I was hoping with my new used Genz Benz Shuttle 6.0 amp I could use the DI out straight into my PC using an XLR to 1/4" then a cable that has 1/4" and 1/8" connections for recording. the volume is good but there is a hum at low Hz but only when the cable is plugged into the amp DI out whether the ground is lifted or not. Is this normal, or could there be something wrong with the amp? and if it is how could i get rid of the hum?
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DI to PC hum
- Thread starter Travis Anthony
- Start date
DiabolusInMusic
Functionless Art is Merely Tolerated Vandalism
My guess is you're overdriving the input on the PC. Being a Mac guy, I can't tell you exactly what to do, but there ought to be some way to set the sensitivity of the input to Mic or Line ... you want Line.
The real solution, of course, is to get proper USB (or other) interface. The integrated sound card in most PC's is usually not up to the task of recording.
The real solution, of course, is to get proper USB (or other) interface. The integrated sound card in most PC's is usually not up to the task of recording.
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thanks for the quick responses i really appreciate it and it has been very helpful. a little more info, the soundcard im using on the pc is a up scale sound blaster, although it is designed for games, i thought it should still work pretty well. and i am trying the mic input as well as the line in, and testing the amp with the switch in line volume or mic volume all of these result in the same annoying low hum. When i get home from work i will open up the XLR to 1/4" and see if it has the proper wiring in the diaram, but i can already bet that it does not. thanks again for all the help everyone
i have a new update. after opening the XLR to 1/4" adapter i see that it is really an XLR to TRS adapter with the 1 pin connected to the shield, pin 2 connects to the tip, and pin 3 is going to the ring between the tip and the sleeve. (do pins 1 and 3 needs to be switched? or is this correct wiring for XLR to TRS?) then it connects from the adapter to the TRS to 3.5mm stereo cable, into the pc's mic input.
sorry for making you guys do the work for me, i know there are videos out there, but electronics like this is a little over my head, i just want to play guitar.
sorry for making you guys do the work for me, i know there are videos out there, but electronics like this is a little over my head, i just want to play guitar.
I can't say exactly, since I'm no engineer. But I will say that if you just want to record guitar/bass you might be making it harder on yourself by trying to track down noise issues in your cables.
The problem is likely not your soundcard. An old soundblaster can work fine, IF you use the line in, AND going through a mixer or mic-pre. Better yet, as others have said, to use an USB interface and bypass the card completely. The DI from your amp is meant to match impedance with a mic input (a proper one like on a mixer). It's essentially a line level signal, which means it needs to be (properly) amplified. You can use the mic input on the card, but it will likely sound horrible and distort. Have you tried the DI on any other source to see if it works right - shouldn't be any noise at all.
If no one has ever opened your XLR adapter cable, it's probably fine.
The problem likely has to do with the way in which your connecting, using so many adapters and such (lots of impedance mismatching, etc..., adding noise). Get yourself a budget USB interface, or at least a mixer that can plug into the line in on the PC card (usually stereo RCA to 1/8 input stereo plug). You'll have to figure out how to monitor and deal with latency issues, regardless of how your record.
The problem is likely not your soundcard. An old soundblaster can work fine, IF you use the line in, AND going through a mixer or mic-pre. Better yet, as others have said, to use an USB interface and bypass the card completely. The DI from your amp is meant to match impedance with a mic input (a proper one like on a mixer). It's essentially a line level signal, which means it needs to be (properly) amplified. You can use the mic input on the card, but it will likely sound horrible and distort. Have you tried the DI on any other source to see if it works right - shouldn't be any noise at all.
If no one has ever opened your XLR adapter cable, it's probably fine.
The problem likely has to do with the way in which your connecting, using so many adapters and such (lots of impedance mismatching, etc..., adding noise). Get yourself a budget USB interface, or at least a mixer that can plug into the line in on the PC card (usually stereo RCA to 1/8 input stereo plug). You'll have to figure out how to monitor and deal with latency issues, regardless of how your record.
