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Amp buzzing made worse when I use my tone knob

R

RatticusFinch

Guest
Apr 22, 2014
6
1
46
#1
Have any of you dealt with speaker buzz that gets worse when turning your tone knob? I have an Ampeg 410 that I bought in 2006 and have used fairly lightly over the years. It's developed a pretty loud buzzing sound that's made a LOT worse when I turn the tone knob to more trebly/bright. I've tried it with a few different basses, and the bass cables as well as the speaker cable between the head and cab are new, so I'm pretty sure the problem is with the speaker.

I took a video so you can see/hear what I'm talking about, you can see it below. Any thoughts on what the issue is or how I can address it? Thanks!
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#6
Bodeanly said:
That's just the nature of the J bass, man. You could get hum canceling pickups or check the grounding, but that is not the amp or cab.

Edit: just heard the crackling of the amp's knob. It could be the amp. My money is on the bass though.
Click to expand...

+1. I think the mid knob could use a TINY bit of de-oxit, but it's unrelated to the buzz. You might want to poke around in the pick up & electronics section.
 
#7
Thanks everyone for your input!

I was inclined to blame my bass as well since it's almost 20 years old and has had a couple connectivity issues itself (which have been fixed). But I have heard this sound come through on a Fender P as well as an old Ibanez bass - the owner of the Fender P was actually trying out the amp to buy it off me and declined because of the sound. Maybe it's a combination of things?

Any thoughts on what the fix could be for this? Thanks again.
 
#8
RatticusFinch said:
Thanks everyone for your input!

I was inclined to blame my bass as well since it's almost 20 years old and has had a couple connectivity issues itself (which have been fixed). But I have heard this sound come through on a Fender P as well as an old Ibanez bass - the owner of the Fender P was actually trying out the amp to buy it off me and declined because of the sound. Maybe it's a combination of things?

Any thoughts on what the fix could be for this? Thanks again.
Click to expand...

If it happens with multiple basses, it's your amplifier (not bass or speaker). Is the amp properly grounded? Does the buzz happen when on different outlets? Have you tried it outside your home in a different location? Buzzing from an amp can happen due to electrical issues (or by having dimmers or certain types of lights on the same circuit) or it may need servicing.
 
#10
It's not the speaker, a speaker only reproduces the signal sent to it. I'd say it's the bass, since it changes with the position of the tone knob, but if it happens with different basses then it's most likely your house. Something may be radiating EMI and/or RFI.
 

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