If I touch the pedal or the strings and the hum goes down in volume....

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Whippet

Aug 30, 2014
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#1
If I touch the pedal or the strings and the hum goes down in volume, but does not completely go away.

If I turn up the gain and master, obviously it gets worse.

If I turn on the overdrive pedal it gets seriously bad, that I cant drown the hum/buzz with my playing.

The amps dont make any noise, connected to the same outlet as the distortion pedal. 　I even connected it to a portable battery operated amp and the result was the same. As soon as I connect the distortion pedal, it starts making noise.

I have used all different types of power supply units for the pedal from Zoom ac adaptor, One Spot, Strymon, generic POS, etc etc. I cant get rid of this stupid loud hum. Is there a remedy for this? What am I doing wrong?

Thanks for all information and advice in advance.

Forgot to write, no other pedal is attached except for this overdrive pedal.
 
#4
Warpeg said:
What kind of bass are you using?
Click to expand...

kinda fixed it by plugging the Strymon ac adaptor into the socket by itself, without using a multiple outlet with the amp head attached to it. The hum is now acceptable but for some reason it seems like it gets louder as I keep it plugged longer.

Single coils do produce hums but this isnt that kind of a hum. It is 100 times louder and crackles when I touch the pedal.
 
#10
JKos said:
Is there a possibility the pedal is malfunctioning or wired improperly internally?

- John
Click to expand...

I was thinking about that and to get the answer, I am taking it to my teacher this coming week or next week. I am also thinking of taking it to the tech that recently rewired my transformer to see if the pedal is working correctly.
 
#12
Whippet said:
I wish! Cost me a fortune!
Click to expand...

"One who cannot cast away a treasure at need is in fetters."
J.R.R. Tolkien

First trouble shoot the electrical circuits in your practice room. Then trouble shoot the signal chain including guitar on the input side through the effects to the amp.

Distortion pedals tend to add noise. If this turns out to be the problem the choices are few and simple. Either get rid of it or learn to live with the noise.
 
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#13
202dy said:
"One who cannot cast away a treasure at need is in fetters."
J.R.R. Tolkien

First trouble shoot the electrical circuits in your practice room. Then trouble shoot the signal chain including guitar on the input side through the effects to the amp.

Distortion pedals tend to add noise. If this turns out to be the problem the choices are few and simple. Either get rid of it or learn to live with the noise.
Click to expand...


Thanks for the step by step instruction. I have asked an electrician to come and look at the wiring. Also I am getting a grounded multiple outlet to see if this makes a difference.

Next week I am taking my pedal to my teacher to see what he says about it and try using it at his place to see if noise still comes through. If it does, I am sending it back for replacement.

If all come out positive, I am just going to have to live with the noise.

Thanks once again.
 
#14
No one has mentioned cables. Bad shield will lose audio ground connection. You’re able to restore the audio ground when you touch metal. Isolate the pedal with two good cables. If it’s still bad check the jacks. This seems physical at the connections and not electrical.
 
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#15
stefancaunter said:
No one has mentioned cables. Bad shield will lose audio ground connection. You’re able to restore the audio ground when you touch metal. Isolate the pedal with two good cables. If it’s still bad check the jacks. This seems physical at the connections and not electrical.
Click to expand...


will try this today with a bunch of cables. Thank god I have 8 spare instrument cables!
 
#16
Whippet said:
If I touch the pedal or the strings and the hum goes down in volume, but does not completely go away.

If I turn up the gain and master, obviously it gets worse.

If I turn on the overdrive pedal it gets seriously bad, that I cant drown the hum/buzz with my playing.

The amps dont make any noise, connected to the same outlet as the distortion pedal. 　I even connected it to a portable battery operated amp and the result was the same. As soon as I connect the distortion pedal, it starts making noise.

I have used all different types of power supply units for the pedal from Zoom ac adaptor, One Spot, Strymon, generic POS, etc etc. I cant get rid of this stupid loud hum. Is there a remedy for this? What am I doing wrong?

Thanks for all information and advice in advance.

Forgot to write, no other pedal is attached except for this overdrive pedal.
Click to expand...
First thing you should do is check the outlet your amp is plugged into to see if it is wired correctly. I have a circuit tester that plugs into my surge protector that my amp and effects are plugged into.
I had a problem your discribing that was an outlet I was using.
Four outlets in my room and the one I was using had a bad ground causing all kinds of noise.
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Power-Gear-3-Wire-Receptacle-Tester-50542999/16561511
 
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#18
Otis66 said:
First thing you should do is check the outlet your amp is plugged into to see if it is wired correctly. I have a circuit tester that plugs into my surge protector that my amp and effects are plugged into.
I had a problem your discribing that was an outlet I was using.
Four outlets in my room and the one I was using had a bad ground causing all kinds of noise.
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Power-Gear-3-Wire-Receptacle-Tester-50542999/16561511
Click to expand...

I will go to the hardware store today and look for this. Thanks for the information. The worst part of this hum is that it seems to get louder and louder, the longer I play.
 
#19
Lownote38 said:
I'd bet money that it's the pedal. In my experience, the more expensive a compressor, or distortion pedal is, the more prone to malfunctions they are. I stay away from expensive boutique pedals for that reason.
Click to expand...

I brought it to my teacher and left it at his place, who is going to check it out in the next few days. He'll tell me if this thing is working properly or not.
 
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#20
Whippet said:
I will go to the hardware store today and look for this. Thanks for the information. The worst part of this hum is that it seems to get louder and louder, the longer I play.
Click to expand...
You’re not playing in front of a computer screen or other electrical interference device are you?
I keep a circuit tester in my surge protector at all times. Especially at outdoor gigs and old venues. At outdoor gigs there should be a ground rod hammered in the ground to ground all mics amps and sound gear. Old venues are wired differently than modern wired buildings, no ground wire returning to junction box.
 
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