Phenyx Pro wireless system PTG-11 -distortion

[blliB]

I bought a Phenyx Pro wireless system PTG-11 to use in my living room. I sit about 15 feet from the amp and receiver.

When I use a 20 foot cable, my sound is quite clear. (I use no other electronics in my signal chain.

When I use the PTG-11, I get the same volume but fuzzy distortion. All other settings remain unchanged.

is the distortion inherent in a wireless system? I’d think not. Did I buy the wrong system to handle low frequency? Is it a function of a low price unit?

Any suggestions what I can do to clean up the sound?

 

[DWBass]

Did you try different channels?

 

[blliB]

DWBass - thank you for your thought. The unit has an auto channel function. I’ve tried a few times and it picks a different frequency. Same issue remains

 

[DWBass]

DWBass - thank you for your thought. The unit has an auto channel function. I’ve tried a few times and it picks a different frequency. Same issue remains

Is your bass active? If so, put in a new battery.

 

[Zener]

Distortion is not inherent to the system. I used to use one for guitar, and my bass player had one, and all was clean. I'm currently trying to find a system for my bass, and have read reviews with people having the same problem that you're having. I'm still searching for the right system.

 

[Billy She-hands]

I'm having the same problem now and it seems to get worse as time goes on. Mine is out of warranty of course so I took it apart and discovered several spots where the manufacturer forgot to solder things like the antenna connector jacks. I noticed that none of the potentiometers are glued so I'm thinking maybe something is drifting out of tune from handling. I didn't have a problem at first so that's the only thing that makes sense to me.

I think the moral of the story is you get what you pay for lol.

 

[Billy She-hands]

I've canabalized one of my transmitters and have been running a bunch of tests to see if I can solve it. I think I found a couple solutions.

if you have a “white noise” problem it may be from the transmitter being too close the pickups. You can add an extension cable and move it to your strap to prevent it from transmitting into the pickups. Noticeable difference on single coil pickups. There will always be a little fuzz in the background but this can lower the volume of it.

Secondly if you are getting distortion when playing low notes like I was I found there is a small potentiometer on the board (see picture). This appears to control the input gain to the opp amp they use to amplify the audio signal. Lowering the gain I find significantly cleans up the low end and can remove a lot of that distortion. You just have to compensate on the receiver by cranking up the gain.

Disclaimer: Results may vary, not responsible if something on your unit breaks.

 

[Billy She-hands]

I suppose that lowering the volume knob on your bass and cranking the receiver could net you the same results.

 

[blliB]

Billy - this makes sense. I am getting the distortion on the low end. I can reduce the amount of distortion by lowering from the instrument and cranking the amp volume. But doesn’t eliminate the distortion. Of course I could use the “solution” to justify a more powerful amp…and of course new cabinets.