Audere major hiss

[molotovshake]

I just installed an Audere 4 way 3Z pre
Vol vol Tre bass himid/lowmid z switch.
Bartolini 9 J pups..

Haveing a terrible hiss when pups arent at same vol.
Also wheneer I use the z switch the I get a hiss that kills.
I have a copper sheeting for my cavity and am grounded as descibed in the Audere install instructions.

Any Ideas would be greatly appreciated

Thanks

 

[bongomania]

Here's the steps I followed:
1) Contact Audere, describe the problem, ask for assistance.
2) Upon Audere's reply that I should read the instructions on the website, I read the instructions and FAQ multiple times, failing to see how I was doing anything different than they describe.
3) Post on Talkbass asking for help.
4) Read the dozen replies all saying "I never had any such problem" or even "there is no such problem" or "did you try reading the info on the website" with smug smilies.
5) Take the bass to a tech who was recommended by Audere as an expert on that product and problem.
6) Pay the tech for his time spent determining that he couldn't figure out what the problem was.
7) Sell the preamp in the TB classifieds.

 

[joeyl]

Here's the steps I followed:
1) Contact Audere, describe the problem, ask for assistance.
2) Upon Audere's reply that I should read the instructions on the website, I read the instructions and FAQ multiple times, failing to see how I was doing anything different than they describe.
3) Post on Talkbass asking for help.
4) Read the dozen replies all saying "I never had any such problem" or even "there is no such problem" or "did you try reading the info on the website" with smug smilies.
5) Take the bass to a tech who was recommended by Audere as an expert on that product and problem.
6) Pay the tech for his time spent determining that he couldn't figure out what the problem was.
7) Sell the preamp in the TB classifieds.

So you did not have a good experience with Audere... first time I hear this
sometimes Dave Meadows is on the board, maybe the OP could PM him?

 

[bongomania]

In fairness I should clarify what the problem usually is: the Audere (and a couple of other recent/modern pre's like the Glock) has to have the pickup common wires isolated from the ground plane (including shielding and the sleeve of the output jack). Failing to isolate them causes noise.

However I've owned two Auderes and had the same experience with both, even though the pickup commons were duly isolated and even through both were installed or tested by people authorized by Audere.

FWIW I only know of one other person who has had the same complaints, and he is very knowledgeable about electronic work, not the sort of person who makes goofy layperson mistakes in installation. So who knows what the real deal is. My tech eventually said "I guess it's just not compatible with your pickups" though he couldn't explain why that would be so.

 

[molotovshake]

Seems I fixed my own problems. removed and checked all shielding and grounds reinstalled and the hiss is practically gone. Only there now when Highz is engaged and treble is cranked.

 

[joeyl]

In fairness I should clarify what the problem usually is: the Audere (and a couple of other recent/modern pre's like the Glock) has to have the pickup common wires isolated from the ground plane (including shielding and the sleeve of the output jack). Failing to isolate them causes noise.

However I've owned two Auderes and had the same experience with both, even though the pickup commons were duly isolated and even through both were installed or tested by people authorized by Audere.

FWIW I only know of one other person who has had the same complaints, and he is very knowledgeable about electronic work, not the sort of person who makes goofy layperson mistakes in installation. So who knows what the real deal is. My tech eventually said "I guess it's just not compatible with your pickups" though he couldn't explain why that would be so.

well I have a new bass with Aero Js and I installed an Audere classic 4 band, guess what: HISS! like a constant white noise that is very different from the normal single coil hum/buzz. It hisses even when pickups are blended even.The bass is shielded, all cavities painted and copper foil on the cover, and the common pickup leads are not hooked to the ground as per Audere's instructions. The only way to make it go away is to turn down hi mid and treble, or turn down the volume on the amp! I am kinda disappointed since I need a preamp in that bass (running amps flat, not having to tweak them was my goal)
Anybody has suggestions for a flexible less hissy preamp?

 

[chasplaybass]

well I have a new bass with Aero Js and I installed an Audere classic 4 band, guess what: HISS! like a constant white noise that is very different from the normal single coil hum/buzz. It hisses even when pickups are blended even.The bass is shielded, all cavities painted and copper foil on the cover, and the common pickup leads are not hooked to the ground as per Audere's instructions. The only way to make it go away is to turn down hi mid and treble, or turn down the volume on the amp! I am kinda disappointed since I need a preamp in that bass (running amps flat, not having to tweak them was my goal)
Anybody has suggestions for a flexible less hissy preamp?

Same exact problem but the flip side is I have'nt shielded yet because I'm not totally finished with the control compartment. So I don't think shielding is the issue and as you mentioned turning down the treble or hi-mid reduces it. I think that's just the nature of the beast kinda like the Yamaha Nathan East model, sounds like bacon sizzling . I was thinking of going with the Q-tuner pups over the Barts I purchased but then the thing would probably sound like a jet.

 

[joeyl]

bummer, I wonder if the people who find them dead quiet are maybe more immune to noise? I just emailed Audere and will see what they say. I don't have much hope since like you guys said, must be part of the design. Are your barts humbucking or single coils? I am trying to see if maybe the Aero pickup in itself was a noisier pickup than others

 

[busmandan]

Add me to the list of those with hissing Auderes. Mine is exactly as described - a gain hiss that comes in with the last quarter-turn of the volume pot. All EQ is flat and the balance knob is in the center detent. Control cavity is completely copper-shielded and the pickup commons isolated from the ground as per the instructions.

I'm running David's SGD pickups, and while I've loving the sound of the pickups - and even the Audere pre, for that matter - the hiss is definitely annoying.

Considering dropping my Lane Poor 1X1 pre in just to verify that the hiss is coming from the Audere.

 

[depalm]

Does the hiss issue happens only with the 4 way 3Z pre or with the other models too?

 

[joeyl]

Add me to the list of those with hissing Auderes. Mine is exactly as described - a gain hiss that comes in with the last quarter-turn of the volume pot. All EQ is flat and the balance knob is in the center detent. Control cavity is completely copper-shielded and the pickup commons isolated from the ground as per the instructions.

I'm running David's SGD pickups, and while I've loving the sound of the pickups - and even the Audere pre, for that matter - the hiss is definitely annoying.

Considering dropping my Lane Poor 1X1 pre in just to verify that the hiss is coming from the Audere.

let me know if you do that. This is a real bummer since the preamp sounds great, minus the hiss, by sounding great I mean that I can hear my pickups as if they were passive...

 

[The Insane]

This thread made me curious about noise from my basses, especially since I just purchased an Audere Preamp. So I did a record from my 4 basses and tried to keep the recording volume as even as possible.
I did a short record, with some seconds silence at the beginning and at the end where you can turn up the volume and listen to the noise.
The EQ was completely flat, blend-pot in the middle.

1) Fender Mustang (1 P-Pickup), all passive, completely unaltered
2)A Cheap Career Bass with cheap Preamp and 2 selfmade singlecoils. Just some shielding paint here and there, but nothing that really protects.
3) Warwick Streamer Stage II, 2 Seymour Duncan Active Stacked Singlecoils with active SD Preamp, factory shielded
4) My personal bass I build, 2 Selfmade Singlecoils, shielded with copper tape, Audere 3zb Preamp

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I recorded the soundfiles with my laptop, some powersupplies and usual sources that could produce hum are present.

 

[The Insane]

I did some more testing with my Audere Preamp, first I disconnected the Pickups from the Preamp and recorded the noise that was coming from the preamp alone. Then wired the Pickups directly to the output jack and shielded the cables.

The Result:
The noise coming from the Preamp without the Pickups is exactly the same as with the Pickups. So the Preamp seems to be the one who's responsible for the noise.
But the Pickups alone give me almost exactly the same noise! It's less pronounced and quieter, but the sound of the bass is different too. It's a typical passive sound with reduced highs without the 'bite' and 'zing'. So I think the hum gets reduced in the same way as the highs due to the capacitance of the cable/impedance matching etc etc.

There was no volume difference between the the Pickups alone and the Pickups running through the preamp.
Can anyone confirm this?

 

[joeyl]

you are probably right, I went the other way, changed out the preamp for an Aguilar, and the amount of noise/hiss stayed the same, since Aguilar and Audere are known for being transparent, then I can assume that the pickups are naturally noisy. I have a set of humcanceling Nordstrands coming in the mail and will report back

 

[sixway]

bummer, I wonder if the people who find them dead quiet are maybe more immune to noise? I just emailed Audere and will see what they say. I don't have much hope since like you guys said, must be part of the design. Are your barts humbucking or single coils? I am trying to see if maybe the Aero pickup in itself was a noisier pickup than others

Aero's are quality Pups. If you didn't have a problem with hiss before installation of the Audere, other than the normal amount common to single coils, then it has something to do with installation, or inherent to the Audere internals. Hope you find a way to quiet it.

 

[joeyl]

Aero's are quality Pups. If you didn't have a problem with hiss before installation of the Audere, other than the normal amount common to single coils, then it has something to do with installation, or inherent to the Audere internals. Hope you find a way to quiet it.

they are very high quality, I love their sound. I wired the pickups straight to the output jack, shielded and grounded cavity, amp is dead quiet, no mains hum, the pickups have the hiss (not hum associated with single coils) The same bass with Am Std J single coil pickups wired straight to the same output jack, no hiss. So I would say that this particular set of Aeros have an inherent hiss, the Audere and the Aggie just made it louder (louder in the Audere I think) Anyway, I wanted to try Nordstrands splitcoils anyway (single coil can be an issue on some stages), and all the hiss is a no issue on stage with the band, just when doodling in the practice room.

 

[sixway]

they are very high quality, I love their sound. I wired the pickups straight to the output jack, shielded and grounded cavity, amp is dead quiet, no mains hum, the pickups have the hiss (not hum associated with single coils) The same bass with Am Std J single coil pickups wired straight to the same output jack, no hiss. So I would say that this particular set of Aeros have an inherent hiss, the Audere and the Aggie just made it louder (louder in the Audere I think) Anyway, I wanted to try Nordstrands splitcoils anyway (single coil can be an issue on some stages), and all the hiss is a no issue on stage with the band, just when doodling in the practice room.

I have Aero humbuckers in my bass, to cancel out buzz. but I can run them in single-coil mode, and they will have 60 cycle hum. I happen to know Larry, the maker of Aero's very well. If you think the pickups are the problem, you should call him and explain the problem. He will be happy to help you as best he can. Tell him Ian from Oahu told you to call.

I personally don't think it's the pickups though, as they rarely fail. From some of the posts in this thread, you aren't the only one to have had problems with the Audere pre. Please make doubly sure you have it installed and wired properly, and if in doubt, call the company's tech support. No manufacturer, Aero included, wants to have their product seen as inferior, without helping you get to the cause of the problem.

I think you should exhaust all avenues before giving up on either the pre-amp or the pickups. Sometimes, working the bugs out is part of the process. You have chosen some great add ons. Don't give up on them just yet!

 

[joeyl]

thanks for the help, I just realized you were in Hawaii! I will certainly give him a call if I still cannot figure it out. I am going to keep the Aeros either way, they may go into my MIA Jazz...
oh forgot to tell you that when I was grounding the polepieces, I was pressing too hard on the tape, and one of the polepieces was pushed out a few mm, I had to push it back in, and the pickup still works. But I could have loosen the windings....

 

[Eric Moesle]

Just to keep track:

No additional Audere hiss here using Nordstrand humcancelling jazz 5's, and stock '08 Fender jazz pickups.

 

[sixway]

thanks for the help, I just realized you were in Hawaii! I will certainly give him a call if I still cannot figure it out. I am going to keep the Aeros either way, they may go into my MIA Jazz...
oh forgot to tell you that when I was grounding the polepieces, I was pressing too hard on the tape, and one of the polepieces was pushed out a few mm, I had to push it back in, and the pickup still works. But I could have loosen the windings....

Not knowing the installation procedure, I don't know why you would have to ground the pole pieces, as there is a ground wire that comes off them. But if the pole piece only moved a tiny bit, it may be alright. Electronics are a funny thing though, and pickups use very fine wire. You may end up having to have the pickup's resistance checked to make sure the ohm output figure is still the same as when new, and to make sure there isn't a short in it.

As suggested earlier, you might want to take your bass to a professional, and have him figure out where the problem is. Something is not right, and you probably don't have the equipment or experience to do a diagnostic check. I would certainly like to know what the problem was when found...