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Recording Help?

V

Volpe25

May 5, 2012
105
1
30
Ireland
#1
I recently bought a Lexicon Alpha usb recording studio (its cheap but I'm a student, I can't afford anything better :p) and there's one issue I'm having.

It records my electric bass with a lot of background "static"-ish noise, it records my acoustic bass cleanly but for most of my stuff I need my electric as it has 24 frets which I play up to and it's a 5 string so its easier for me to play chords and my acoustic is difficult to play up higher and lacks the 24 frets.

Is there anything I can do? Its really annoying me :hmm:
 
#3
Im no expert but maybe it could be a grounding issue with the electric? Maybe its the pickups picking up interference when you record?

Anyway heres a free bump for you so other knowledgable people can help! :hiding:
 
#5
Big Mother said:
How are you recording it? DI? Mic on amp? etc etc

What kind of bass? Active?

Is the static only on the recording or do you hear it when monitoring your record signal?

BM
Click to expand...

Invalid Link Removed (theres the unit)

Using a standard 1/4 inch cable from the bass straight to the instrument in. Its passive 2 humbucker pickups. The static is present when monitoring but its only noticeable on a recording with my electric.
 
#9
Volpe25 said:
So it seems now that it is in fact the unit as now all my instruments are recording with the buzz

http://soundcloud.com/volpe25/buzz

theres a short clip of just me playing something random, this is what it sounds like recorded, there is also a buzzing when monitoring the sound throuogh the headphone input of the unit
Click to expand...

Sounds like regular line noise to me; pickup etc. You're saying you're hearing this when you're just playing the bass through your phones or monitors yes? You should hear it when you just turn the bass up and mute the strings, yes? Does the hum and static change when you change the orientation of the bass (turning the bass different angles and positions)? Like someone suggested, it sounds like you're getting interference from your computer monitor screen, the computer itself or something else coming through the pickups. If you turn the volume control on your bass all the way down, does it go away? If so that's what it is. If it's still there when you turn the bass down then it's the converter (or something else) but I doubt that's what it is. You may need to get a headphone extension cable and move away from the computer by several feet or so. Are these single coil pickups you're using? They of course are highly susceptible to noise.
 
#10
I'm with Freight Train.

Other things to look into:
Try it with a different cable
What do you have the unit plugged into? Try a different power-strip, make sure the outlet is grounded.
Try it without anything else plugged into the outlet (no lights, computer, etc).
Try it in another outlet.
Try turning off the lights (especially it there is a dimmer switch on them)

BM
 
#11
Big Mother said:
I'm with Freight Train.

Other things to look into:
Try it with a different cable
What do you have the unit plugged into? Try a different power-strip, make sure the outlet is grounded.
Try it without anything else plugged into the outlet (no lights, computer, etc).
Try it in another outlet.
Try turning off the lights (especially it there is a dimmer switch on them)

BM
Click to expand...

Holy wow I forgot to mention that. Dimmer switches are a HUGE problem with creating that kind of buzz. That would include a dimmer on a halogen pole lamp or anything else. Even the expensive dimmers in studios will cause problems with certain pickups. Fluorescents also cause problems.
 
#12
Freight Train said:
Sounds like regular line noise to me; pickup etc. You're saying you're hearing this when you're just playing the bass through your phones or monitors yes? You should hear it when you just turn the bass up and mute the strings, yes? Does the hum and static change when you change the orientation of the bass (turning the bass different angles and positions)? Like someone suggested, it sounds like you're getting interference from your computer monitor screen, the computer itself or something else coming through the pickups. If you turn the volume control on your bass all the way down, does it go away? If so that's what it is. If it's still there when you turn the bass down then it's the converter (or something else) but I doubt that's what it is. You may need to get a headphone extension cable and move away from the computer by several feet or so. Are these single coil pickups you're using? They of course are highly susceptible to noise.
Click to expand...

The static doesnt change when I change the orientation but is there when I turn the volume up and mute the strings. When I turn the volume down the volume of the static goes down but it is still there. I went to the other side of the room (about 5 metres) and recorded something but the static was still there. They're not single coils, they're humbuckers
 
#13
Big Mother said:
I'm with Freight Train.

Other things to look into:
Try it with a different cable
What do you have the unit plugged into? Try a different power-strip, make sure the outlet is grounded.
Try it without anything else plugged into the outlet (no lights, computer, etc).
Try it in another outlet.
Try turning off the lights (especially it there is a dimmer switch on them)

BM
Click to expand...

I have it plugged into the usb port of my computer, it runs off that, I have tried it with all my cables and its the same with all
 
#14
If lowering the volume on your bass lowered the volume of the static you're hearing, it's most likely interference picked up by your instrument. Lighting is a major culprit of such noise creation but there is any number of things that could be causing it, including old wiring in the house, a cell phone in your pocket, or a bum connection in your pickup electronics.

We once went 2 hours trying to figure out why a condenser mic was hissing before someone just accidentally touched the bottom of the mic, got a static shock, and the hissing went away. Electrons are frustrating things.
 
#15
Hey Volope. Looks like we kind of abandoned you there. Did you get anything figured out? Where you really threw me was saying that when you turned your bass down, the static went down in volume but didn't completely go away. That got me confused. To check just the Lexicon itself to see if it is indeed causing some of this, you should leave everything set as you're using it, and then short the instrument input you're using on the Lexicon rather than plugging your bass into it. You can do this by simply taking an old guitar cable (I prefer to call them bass cables) with 1/4" on one end and bare wires on the other. Plug the 1/4" into the interface and twist the bare wires together to short it. Best to do this with as little cable as possible. Even better would be to solder the + and - of a 1/4" plug together and make a shorting plug. Either way, after you have the instrument input shorted, then turn up your volume and see if you hear any of the static. If so, either the Lexicon is defective or it is also picking up electrical interference from somewhere.
 
#16
Freight Train said:
Hey Volope. Looks like we kind of abandoned you there. Did you get anything figured out? Where you really threw me was saying that when you turned your bass down, the static went down in volume but didn't completely go away. That got me confused. To check just the Lexicon itself to see if it is indeed causing some of this, you should leave everything set as you're using it, and then short the instrument input you're using on the Lexicon rather than plugging your bass into it. You can do this by simply taking an old guitar cable (I prefer to call them bass cables) with 1/4" on one end and bare wires on the other. Plug the 1/4" into the interface and twist the bare wires together to short it. Best to do this with as little cable as possible. Even better would be to solder the + and - of a 1/4" plug together and make a shorting plug. Either way, after you have the instrument input shorted, then turn up your volume and see if you hear any of the static. If so, either the Lexicon is defective or it is also picking up electrical interference from somewhere.
Click to expand...

I tried that and it hasn't had any effect :hmm: Im just going to have to leave it. Its just annoying because its out of return date and only has a warranty in USA so its 50 euro down the drain :spit:

Oh well thanks for everybody's help I appreciate the effort :)
 

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