Many worlds, Soft focus and Bicycle delay all adding a ton of noise...or are they just amplifying some noise that came from my Ibanez SR300? I did try a used Walrus power supply that's supposedly a good one but it didn't help and returned it. I dont really want to fork over $$ for an expensive Ciocks or Strymon if it doesnt help. Would a weakening 9v battery in the bass cause extra noise?
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noise! ... is it my Caitlin Bread pedals?
- Thread starter fnkyhd
- Start date
Guitar pedals are no noisier than bass pedals. They may not have the frequency response you want, but noise is not any more or less likely.
So far as where the noise is really coming from, there could be any of a number of things. I would start by plugging in one thing at a time and seeing where the noise level is. It could be as simple as a cable that is going bad and picking up electrical noise.
9v seems like it would be the easiest place to start. Then per any solid troubleshooting method, just start isolating variables, it could be a single thing acting on its own, a weird combination, or anything in between. Try to change a single variable at a time. If you can "turn off the noise" and even better turn it back on, then you've found it.
Sometimes during experimentation, especially when changing more than one variable at a time (often unavoidable) the noise might end up going away and you'll never know what caused it.
Some things I'd look at:
- cable from bass to board and board to amp
- patch cables
- pedals individually (on their own and removing just a single one from the chain)
- when trying them on their own, crank the gain or master volume without playing to see what background noise is present from that pedal. If the sound matches l, then it may be the culprit and is just getting amplified in the chain.
- removing pedals one at a time upstream and downstream from suspect. ie from beginning to end and reverse.
There's so many options to troubleshoot, but think about what your testing and don't feel silly taking notes. Often times even though you're only actively changing/testing one variable, you're likely changing multiple others. It may be miniscule, but keeping those things in mind can help when you don't expect it to.
Good luck, curious what it ends up being.
Sometimes during experimentation, especially when changing more than one variable at a time (often unavoidable) the noise might end up going away and you'll never know what caused it.
Some things I'd look at:
- cable from bass to board and board to amp
- patch cables
- pedals individually (on their own and removing just a single one from the chain)
- when trying them on their own, crank the gain or master volume without playing to see what background noise is present from that pedal. If the sound matches l, then it may be the culprit and is just getting amplified in the chain.
- removing pedals one at a time upstream and downstream from suspect. ie from beginning to end and reverse.
There's so many options to troubleshoot, but think about what your testing and don't feel silly taking notes. Often times even though you're only actively changing/testing one variable, you're likely changing multiple others. It may be miniscule, but keeping those things in mind can help when you don't expect it to.
Good luck, curious what it ends up being.
thanks for all the good info! including whether using guitar pedals for a bass can add noise. true or not it's a reminder to try and see. ive tried a few things cables, different amps etc. I even tried plugging a synth into the bass amp and can still get some noise but nothing like when the pedals are set up. i need to bring my board out there and do a whole project and yes take notes! my limited and slowly dissolving grey matter requires it! ...but i am considering getting a cheap passive bass (because i want one anyway) to try and can also see if my guitar does the same thing.
Nova i appreciate the idea that i should consider that there may not be one root cause but it's added gear amplifying noise that may always be there no matter what, but reducing it is a good goal, as is to stop obsessing on it!
Nova i appreciate the idea that i should consider that there may not be one root cause but it's added gear amplifying noise that may always be there no matter what, but reducing it is a good goal, as is to stop obsessing on it!
following up after taking notes:
9v battery in bass tests good (using actual tester not my tongue)
cables test out good (using loop cable tester)
AMP makes some noise when the gain is up. testing done with gain and master at 12:00. amp pretty quiet then.
Bass to amp: a little pinkish hiss
Guitar to amp: moderately loud hum
korg x50 synth to amp: quiet! (synth gain at 50%)
Pedals:
Battalion: comp circuit noisy adding moderate pink hiss
Canyons: little bit hiss
afterneath: little bit hiss
soft focus: little bit hiss
mxr phase95: tiny bit hiss
many worlds: moderate hum when on, little bit hum off
bicycle delay: moderate hum when on, little bit when off
mxr distortion: moderate hum when on, little bit when off
so i think there are a few things going on.
3 of the pedals are humming even when off. two of them caitlin bread the other an mxr.
since the synth is quiet and all the pedals came off the same power supply that suggests pedal power brick, however the bass alone still had more noise than the synth and the battalion compressor circuit added noise so maybe there was something from the front of the line ie bass etc. (there is definitely something wrong with the guitar!) but we are also talking instrument level versus line level right?
try a passive bass or strymon power supply for the pedals? only been playing bass a lot for a couple years after switching from guitar, can work on my dynamics more and not use a comp.
9v battery in bass tests good (using actual tester not my tongue)
cables test out good (using loop cable tester)
AMP makes some noise when the gain is up. testing done with gain and master at 12:00. amp pretty quiet then.
Bass to amp: a little pinkish hiss
Guitar to amp: moderately loud hum
korg x50 synth to amp: quiet! (synth gain at 50%)
Pedals:
Battalion: comp circuit noisy adding moderate pink hiss
Canyons: little bit hiss
afterneath: little bit hiss
soft focus: little bit hiss
mxr phase95: tiny bit hiss
many worlds: moderate hum when on, little bit hum off
bicycle delay: moderate hum when on, little bit when off
mxr distortion: moderate hum when on, little bit when off
so i think there are a few things going on.
3 of the pedals are humming even when off. two of them caitlin bread the other an mxr.
since the synth is quiet and all the pedals came off the same power supply that suggests pedal power brick, however the bass alone still had more noise than the synth and the battalion compressor circuit added noise so maybe there was something from the front of the line ie bass etc. (there is definitely something wrong with the guitar!) but we are also talking instrument level versus line level right?
try a passive bass or strymon power supply for the pedals? only been playing bass a lot for a couple years after switching from guitar, can work on my dynamics more and not use a comp.
guessing that was with testing the pedals one at a time and swapping cable positions?
And the quiet synth into the pedals into the amp was a bit hissy too?
Things I would be thinking about...
Is the amp on the same set of plugs as the effects?
If I turn all the lights off and any phone chargers/power supplies nearby does it affect the noise level? (IE is there anything RFI picked up)
If I turn the volume of the bass down, does that change the noise level?
If I use the effects in socket of the amp (if it has one) and bypass the preamp completely, does that make a difference?
Am I getting the best signal/noise ratio? If I take whatever is first in the chain as a preamp (the battalion?) if I use that to boost the level, and adjust it down on the amp, does that help?
It's nothing to do with the pedals being "guitar" pedals. I had an awful ground loop caused by the lights at church between a JHS colourbox and a HX stomp - both devices mainly aimed at guitarists... but also used professionally by bass players.
I was dealing with a similar issue for months and finally found out that my dimmer switches were causing pickup interference. If I turned off all the lights everything was dead quiet.
Might be worth a shot.
Might be worth a shot.
the amp is plugged into a furman line conditioner, same as pedals. I also have an practice amp in a different place having same issue on a totally different elect circuit.
bass vol down eliminates some of the noise, but even with bass turned down the pedals when switched on produce noise (and the three bad ones listed above make noise switched off too).
none of my amps have an fx loop but one of them is an electroharmix that has the toneprint thingy two fx on board, no extra noise there.
i did not run the synth through the pedals - should have tried that
the battallion is first yes. it reduces noise when i dont run the comp and also a bit if i am not using the preamp (noon) but the forementioned pedals add noise, even when i am not running the battallion. the comp on the battallion making so much noise kinda tells me there is noise from the bass. it's an ibanez sr300 which is active. I think the pedals making the hum i think are bad (which is too bad because the many worlds got me an awesome tone), the ones that just amplify this pink noise are probably acting normal. i can do without the comp on the battallion but need the switchable overdrive. my other overdrive (mxr distortion) is one of the hummers. i have also tried moving pedals around and have two "isolated" power supply bricks that i use and they both do the same thing
bass vol down eliminates some of the noise, but even with bass turned down the pedals when switched on produce noise (and the three bad ones listed above make noise switched off too).
none of my amps have an fx loop but one of them is an electroharmix that has the toneprint thingy two fx on board, no extra noise there.
i did not run the synth through the pedals - should have tried that
the battallion is first yes. it reduces noise when i dont run the comp and also a bit if i am not using the preamp (noon) but the forementioned pedals add noise, even when i am not running the battallion. the comp on the battallion making so much noise kinda tells me there is noise from the bass. it's an ibanez sr300 which is active. I think the pedals making the hum i think are bad (which is too bad because the many worlds got me an awesome tone), the ones that just amplify this pink noise are probably acting normal. i can do without the comp on the battallion but need the switchable overdrive. my other overdrive (mxr distortion) is one of the hummers. i have also tried moving pedals around and have two "isolated" power supply bricks that i use and they both do the same thing
If you happen to have the same issue I had the power conditioners wouldn’t do anything, as it was actually the pickups picking up the interference from the switches. Didn’t get better until I tried with all the other switches off.
i been running it inside my house and in our practice space, which is out in my garaqe with same result in both. no dimmers and i turn off the flourenscent lights but otherwise need to have lighting. that said is it possible ive been picking up EMI on the metal pedalboard? i just made a board out of wood and guess what? it's quieter! ...with minimal pedals anyway just the battalion (without comp), canyons and afterneath. it's fine really i know as i get better at playing i will need them less and less and maybe i should limit myself to three. i do understand that i will be more creative with fewer tools than with more. those 3 btw do a lot with the canyons and afterneath never over about 30% mix.
I'm definitely no electronics journeyman, but I could imagine if there's a poor ground on a pedal that could happen.
