String touch crackle?

jazzmonkey · #1 08-24-2010, 05:17 PM

Greetings,

Sorry if this has been beaten to death already, but why does my bass "POP" when I touch the strings?

I have shielded the body cavities, and grounded all pots to each other, and to the shielding, and the bridge. I have checked continuity between all points, all are connected.

I'm guessing that it comes from me grounding out the strings when I touch them, but I can't stand the pop. It doesn't happen as long as I keep touching the strings, only when both hands come off and I touch again.

I guess what my question really is how do I get it to stop? Do I have to un-ground the bridge?

I did search, but I kept sifting through threads of the obligatory debates over whether or not to ground the bridge, couldn't really find a definitive answer. If I have overlooked something, please point me in the right direction.

Thanks,
jm

Arvin · #2 08-24-2010, 06:22 PM

Have you tested the outlet(s) where you plug in your amp?

In my house, which was built in the 1940's, I have one (!) outlet that's properly grounded. The rest, sadly, are not. If I plug into that one outlet, I get no "string crackle." If I plug into the others, I get a little bit of crackle, but thankfully not much. When I play at my drummer's house, which is newer and has proper grounding, I don't get any crackle at all.

It's possible you may have a similar problem. An outlet tester from your local hardware store might tell you a lot.

HTH

jazzmonkey · #3 08-24-2010, 08:06 PM

Yeah, I need to pick up one of those testers. So is there any way that this can be alleviated? I get the worst crackle at the house where our band rehearses so I would love to make it go away.

What about a good APC or Belkin power strip, or a power conditioner?

dmusic148 · #4 08-24-2010, 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jazzmonkey

What about a good APC or Belkin power strip, or a power conditioner?

None of those things will fix a faulty house ground. The only way to fix it is to fix it.

darkstorm · #5 08-24-2010, 10:01 PM

Yeah, if they didnt connect that 2nd ground, the one on 3 prong plugs. It needs to be fixed thruout the house. The wire may be there but just not connected to the wall socket terminals. Otherwise its time to call a qaulified electrician and contact house insurance company to enquire about wether policy would pay for this since house inspection failed to note it at purchase.

Already In Use · #6 08-24-2010, 10:05 PM

I live in a really dry place..sometimes have single digit humidity. My bass would crackle on occasion when I went to pick it up. I figure it was static electricity.

jazzmonkey · #7 08-25-2010, 10:06 PM

So, I picked up my tester today, and wouldn't ya know, house outlets are fine, yet I still get the "POP".

I ended up just removing the bridge ground, and problem solved. I still get the pop when I touch the control plate, as it is part of the shielding, but no more annoying pop when playing.

Since the bass is well shielded, the RFI is non-existant. I have to try to get RFI, and even then it is negligible. I have to crank the volume and treble on my amp to the max and stand right next to an RFI emitting device, an air purifier with fan and ionizer. Even then it is something that you can barely hear. Basically the pop that I used to get was, at the very least, 10 times as loud as any RFI that I have ever gotten. This does not bother me at all, and besides I have to essentially make the amp unplayable in order to hear the RFI at all.

No more bridge grounding for me, nothing but good shielding all around.

I know that a lot of folks have grounded bridges so I want to know how many don't get the pop from opening and closing the circuit between their bodies and their bass, and how this ideal can be realized. Then I will reconsider grounding my bridge.