Guitar recording and buzz

N

Nizhny Tagil

Member
When I play or record guitars with ampsims with distortion and high gain I get a very nasty buzzing noise.
It's not normal feedback you would get when being close to the amp (it's even there if I use headphones, so feedback is out of the question).
I don't think it's 60hz hum, because it's there even if I use the in-between position in my pick-up selector.
The cable, the audio interface and the guitars' wiring are fine. I've changed audio interfaces and the problem was always there. I've had the guitar checked today: no problem when I've plugged it into a normal amp with high gain and distortion, although I wasn't at home, but in a guitars shop.
I've tried several different ampsims and no progress.

It's been suggested to me that the problem could be the room's electric wiring which could not have ground; but I've tried setting up everything in another room, using a socket which I know has ground connection, and the buzz was there nonetheless.

Before anyone asks, in the room I play and record in I have no CRT monitors, fluorescent lights or lights' dimmers, though I do have a wi-fi router and, obviously, a computer.

The guitar is a LTD Strat copy with 3 stock single coils.
I usually get by using a noise gate, the least possible gain and turning the treble down considerably in my ampsim, but it's hardly an ideal solution.

Here's a clip. I'm using two different FX chains here: the first emphasizes the problem, the second is the one I normally use.
In both cases I'm using the bridge pu, the gain isn't cranked and the treble is cut on the ampsim, and in both the two parts you can hear the noise before I put my hand, then me actually putting my hand on the fretboard and playing some notes and then turning the pick-up selector to the in-between position to let you hear the difference.

noiseclip.flac - Google Drive

This, instead, is a screenshot with a frequency analyzer (ReaEQ) run before any effects:

noiseeq.jpg - Google Drive

I'd like some advice to solve this annoying problem.
Furthermore, if all else fails, would active pickups be a solution?
Thanks.
 
It *sounds* to me like noise from the pickups, or at least sounds like the kind of noise I've had from pickups many years ago. If you have a mic, what happens if you run the mic through the same ampsim?

Are you going direct from guitar to interface?

Another possible cause is a cell phone or wireless home phone, I've had noises from my cell phone leak into speaker output before (so it could always bleed on an input).

Do you have all inputs in Windows muted other than the one(s) you are actively using from the interface?

When you say you verified grounding in the socket in the other room, how did you do this? Did you take off the face plate and visually verify the third wire on the socket/box?

It's possible there's something plugged into the power in your apartment/house that is causing this. Power conditioners are supposed to help with those kind of situations (I've never needed one, even in an old apartment building).
 
Pinky said:
It *sounds* to me like noise from the pickups, or at least sounds like the kind of noise I've had from pickups many years ago. If you have a mic, what happens if you run the mic through the same ampsim?

Are you going direct from guitar to interface?

Another possible cause is a cell phone or wireless home phone, I've had noises from my cell phone leak into speaker output before (so it could always bleed on an input).

Do you have all inputs in Windows muted other than the one(s) you are actively using from the interface?

When you say you verified grounding in the socket in the other room, how did you do this? Did you take off the face plate and visually verify the third wire on the socket/box?

It's possible there's something plugged into the power in your apartment/house that is causing this. Power conditioners are supposed to help with those kind of situations (I've never needed one, even in an old apartment building).
Click to expand...

I've never tried a mic through the ampsim, but I will.
Yes, guitar direct to interface.
Telephones? You mean electromagnetic interference? That's only when they ring, isn't it?

I have the on-board sound card disabled, so there's no input other than those on the interface.

I haven't verified visually that the sockets I've tried have grounding, I went by memory because I know some do and some don't in this house. I'll do that as well, just to be sure.

I'd like if you could elaborate a little about power conditioners. I keep reading both that they help or they are totally useless about this. I would be really glad if throwing in a 100 euros for a device would actually help.

Thanks.

Edit: I suspect the noise would be there regardless of the guitar. When I used active monitors with an unbalanced connection they buzzed too, although less obviously then an ampsim with high gain.
 
The noise starts out loud, then changes on each clip - is this when you are touching the strings? If so, then its the guitar/pickups doing it.
 
That can be a problem with less expensive guitars with single coil pickups. Look into shielding/grounding it - foil-lined pickup cavities soldered to the common/ground on the controls.

I see you've got another thread going as well on this.

Might be a combination of guitar + bad electrical grounding of ALL the outlets at your house + external RFI coming from something (it could even be a bad transformer on a telephone pole outside your house.)
 
mjbphotos said:
That can be a problem with less expensive guitars with single coil pickups. Look into shielding/grounding it - foil-lined pickup cavities soldered to the common/ground on the controls.

I see you've got another thread going as well on this.

Might be a combination of guitar + bad electrical grounding of ALL the outlets at your house + external RFI coming from something (it could even be a bad transformer on a telephone pole outside your house.)
Click to expand...

Yes, things were I little quiet on the other thread, so I thought it was the wrong area for the problem. I hope that's no problem.

I think I'll check the grounding in the house more thoroughly, try shielding the guitar, getting quieter pickups and maybe look into power conditioners (which I don't know square about).
 
Nizhny Tagil said:
... maybe look into power conditioners (which I don't know square about).
Click to expand...

Sorry I can't help there, as I indicated I've never needed one so I only know what they're capable of helping with. You have cheaper/easier things to check first before dropping the coin on that solution.
 
I have a single coil bass and guitar and if I move the angle, of my holding the guitar to the monitor, the noise follows.

Single coils are famous for the noise.
options...the noisless single coils are sold, the Roland-Fender Strat I have has the sim-single without noise, and theres a lot to the pickups and shielding as mjb mentioned already. my Gearbox software has a cool LEARN> HUM function that gets it cleaned up pretty well.
 

Attachments

  • single coil hum.jpg
    single coil hum.jpg
    18.5 KB · Views: 116
42low said:
You said u use noise gate. Did you mean a plug in? Or a real noisegate in your amp sys?
I can recommend the last one. I alway's set the gear noisegate.
Click to expand...

Plug-in. Why would a pedal be better? It's just a matter of setting a threshold, attack and release.
 
Nizhny Tagil said:
Plug-in. Why would a pedal be better? It's just a matter of setting a threshold, attack and release.
Click to expand...

To be honest, i have better experiences with gear functions. And that not only with noisegate. But this can be a personal preference.
If i use plugin noisegate i have to try more than if i use my gear noisegate. The last one is no more than turning a knob.
My filosophy out of experience (which fit's with "recording-rules"): Although plugins can do awesome things, if i record i try to get the original as far as my goal is. Plugins i try to use only to correct.

Can't you loan one from a friend or whatever to try it?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top