Buzz from my Berg?

Dee-man · #1 01-11-2012, 09:53 AM

Howdy TB. I'm hoping someone can help.

I have a Berg HT322 that I picked up about 6 months ago. Lately, when using it at home for practice, I've been hearing a noticeable buzz coming through, regardless of which of 2 amps (solid state), instrument cables and bass (passive or active) I use, including a Rob Allen Mouse that is usually dead quiet. The buzz is like a humbucking-type buzz (e.g., P bass with tone all the way to treble) and usually goes away when I put my hand on the strings. I have tried turning all the lights in the room off. I go straight from amp to regular power strip to outlet.

The buzz is driving me nuts at lower volumes. Any suggestions anyone? Take back plate off and look for loose wires? Call Jim? Bring to a tech?

Thanks a lot, DM

KJung · #2 01-11-2012, 09:57 AM

Old house wiring or dimmer switches. I doubt it is the cab. Try a different location or circuit.

Dee-man · #3 01-11-2012, 10:41 AM

Thanks, Ken. It's not the lights. Wanna help me move the cab downstairs to try another circuit?

KJung · #4 01-11-2012, 11:23 AM

Pretty sure that would take care of the problem. Amazing how much variance in noise there is from one plug to the next, expecially in an older home.

BurningSkies · #5 01-11-2012, 11:42 AM

I agree with Ken, its not the cab. Hum or buzz comes from something upstream from the cab, whether it be ungrounded outlets in your house, a bad cable, your bass or amp. Cabinets are a passive component, they can only reproduce what they're given and can never add any noise of their own.

eyeballkid · #6 01-11-2012, 11:45 AM

well.. they CAN, if theres a clear defect in the speaker but this usually happens under stress.. but 98% of the time the noise is from something else. If the noise goes away when you touch the strings it is definately a grounding issue.

BassmanPaul · #7 01-11-2012, 11:48 AM

It's not the speaker system - they can't pickup hum. If it happens with two different amps the common denominator is the bass or instrument cable. If the hum disappears when you unplug your signal cable it's not the amp. Try a new signal cable. and try a different bass.

KJung · #8 01-11-2012, 12:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BassmanPaul

It's not the speaker system - they can't pickup hum. If it happens with two different amps the common denominator is the bass or instrument cable. If the hum disappears when you unplug your signal cable it's not the amp. Try a new signal cable. and try a different bass.

Hey Paul. He stated this happens with different basses and cables and amps, which led me to believe it is an AC issue with the wiring in his house. I have one of those 'magic outlets' in my basement... everything hums and buzzes, and all kind of grounding type issues with my pickups.

BurningSkies · #9 01-11-2012, 12:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KJung

Hey Paul. He stated this happens with different basses and cables and amps, which led me to believe it is an AC issue with the wiring in his house. I have one of those 'magic outlets' in my basement... everything hums and buzzes, and all kind of grounding type issues with my pickups.

You've just described my house. 2 conductor, non-grounded pre-war outlets only. Even the 3-prong outlets in the kitchen and bathroom are only there to fake you out.

Its very cheap and easy to purchase an outlet tester...under ten bucks. It will tell you whether its grounded or not, and if it's got other wiring problems. Buy a few, leave it plugged into whatever powerstrip you use for your rig and you can ALWAYS see what you're dealing with.

Dee-man · #10 01-11-2012, 01:19 PM

Thanks, all. Is there a fix for the grounding issue? Is it just to make sure the outlet grounding wire is hooked up? It might just be me and my OCD, but the buzz makes me not want to use the rig, which would be stupid given how good it sounds.

FerK · #11 01-11-2012, 01:31 PM

Same problem here, the "music room" in my 120 year-old house has a fake-ground plug (the only one in 20 feet), and makes my 30W practice combo sound like an old record. But when I play with friends someplace else it sounds like a completely different amp. I'd love to hear a solution for the grounding issue. I feel it won't be easy.

KJung · #12 01-11-2012, 01:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dee-man

Thanks, all. Is there a fix for the grounding issue? Is it just to make sure the outlet grounding wire is hooked up? It might just be me and my OCD, but the buzz makes me not want to use the rig, which would be stupid given how good it sounds.

Grounding the outlet (always a good idea) might or might not fix the issue. Some of the noisiest outlets I've dealt with were grounded.

Electrical work is pretty inexpensive (compared to plumbing, anyway!). It is amazing how a good electrician can snake a new three wire ground through a wall and hook it up to its own breaker. That would most likely take care of it. Grounded or not, if there are dimmer switched lights or flourescent bulbs on the same breaker, you can run into buzz and hum.

JOE EDO · #13 01-11-2012, 02:26 PM

Agree with Ken here. I had the same issue in my home studio (no grounds.) Had an electrician come in and run two new independent, grounded, 20 amp curcuits for just under $175.00, which included materials. He also changed out all the ungrounded outlets to GFI's in order to offer some protection from shock (being there is no ground.) Be safe...

Dee-man · #14 01-12-2012, 08:49 AM

Really, less than $175? In NY?!? Well, if I go that route, at least there won't be any shipping involved.

Thanks again all. In hindsight, I feel a little silly having asked this given that it likely is the outlet. Hard to believe you can get all this killer gear and still have these kinda issues.

DM

babebambi · #15 01-12-2012, 09:00 AM

Well, there goes my chance to suggest this excellent $500 power cable ...