greybagz
Apprentice Shielder
Posts: 41
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Post by greybagz on May 17, 2009 18:52:47 GMT -5
Hi Everyone, I have a friends Deluxe Telecaster in my posession, apparently i am good at soldering, so he had me replace the 3 way switch in it. He also mentioned that it was quite "noisy", and once plugged in I understood what he meant. Especially on a gain channel, (as one would expect) there seems to be an excessive amount humming in all 3 switch positions. How would be the best way in reducing this noise? All signal wires are shielded, (i replaced the signal wire from the 3 way switch to output jack, as it previously only had a single black ground wire and white signal wire, replaced with single core shielded (shield as ground)), this had no effect on noise issue. The pickups are covered humbuckers and the cover plates are bonded to the back of the pots via pickup screen wires (these are 2 core + shield wires, (start, finish and shield) As usual out of factory scratchplate shielding on only the section where the pots are attached. Any ideas on how to reduce this noise would be great, i haven't had much experience with shielding but am open to having a go with some guidance from all you gurus out there Thanks guys Graeme
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Post by ChrisK on May 17, 2009 21:58:48 GMT -5
What frequency (note) is the humming? This is a '72 Telecaster Deluxe. Measure the resistance from the sleeve of the output jack to every point that should be connected thereto. This includes the pot shells AND those terminals that should be grounded, the shielding foil on the pickguard, the pickup covers, and the bridge. Each (and every) reading should be under 1 Ohm. www.fender.com/support/diagrams/pdf_temp1/telecaster/0137702A/SD0137702APg1.pdfwww.fender.com/support/diagrams/pdf_temp1/telecaster/0137702A/SD0137702APg2.pdfNote that the pot shells are connected with a bare wire - don't depend on the pickguard shield to be a conductor, it's not, it's a shield. Also note that the bridge ground (maybe this guitar doesn't have one) and output jack connections are not shown. (Although it is nice to see that the bridge is not a tre mole'.) If all grounds check out, a cavity shielding project may well be in order.
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Post by sumgai on May 18, 2009 0:02:52 GMT -5
gb,
Errr, I hate to sound like a old so-and-so, but have you perhaps reversed the leads to the output jack? Your description of the problem would be the main result of this reversal.
HTH
sumgai
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Post by ChrisK on May 18, 2009 11:21:16 GMT -5
Actually, you sound like an expert...you know, someone like me that recognizes mistakes when I make them again... ;D ;D D-oh! Except that greybagz sez that it was noisy when he got it. Hmmm, a condruminum.
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Post by sumgai on May 18, 2009 11:28:01 GMT -5
Except that greybagz sez that it was noisy when he got it.
Hmmm, a condruminum. It's easy to forget the way things should be, and just put them back the way you found them. sumgai
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greybagz
Apprentice Shielder
Posts: 41
Likes: 0
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Post by greybagz on May 19, 2009 15:54:02 GMT -5
Hi guys, Sorry for the late reply, i have been ill for the last few days. Unfortunately it wasn't something simple such as reversal of the jack connections, but it made me look Chris i measured the resistances between the jack sleeve and all things to be grounded and they checked out good, all under 1ohm, i don't think any were above zero. This included the bridge, pickup covers, pot shells, foil tape on pickguard, and 3 way switch ground lug. On a clean channel, it's not really something that would bug me, it's that slight background hum, but when a lead channel is selected it's just a little too noisy compared to say my Kramer Jersey Star with 3 Humbuckers. I remember reading in here about this one day, but can't remember the cause and resolution, but the hum does reduce a little when you touch the strings, but is louder when not touching. (sounds so amatureish) I feel silly sometimes cause these things seem like such simple issues but hard for me to resolve. I guess its all learning and getting to talk to guys like you all that make it that bit easier. Thanks for your time again everyone. Graeme
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Post by lunaalta on May 19, 2009 16:23:40 GMT -5
Did you supply a doctor's note¿ ;D
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Post by ChrisK on May 19, 2009 17:13:20 GMT -5
Hmmm, you're in OZ; were any below zero?
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Post by ashcatlt on May 19, 2009 19:11:15 GMT -5
I remember reading in here about this one day, but can't remember the cause and resolution, but the hum does reduce a little when you touch the strings, but is louder when not touching. This does come up fairly often. It's a good sign. Means your bridge ground wire is connected and at least partially functional. Of course, you confirmed that with your meter readings already...
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Post by ChrisK on May 19, 2009 20:29:05 GMT -5
Are the pickup and control cavities shielded? You know, against those stealthy emissions from Alpha Centaur that go around the foil shield on the pick guard and sneak in thru the operator's (and guitar's) body. That fact that a parallel ground connection (uh, you) helps reduce the noise somewhat seems to indicate that a better ground would be gooder. How good (or bad) is the cable? Plug the cable into the amp, leave the guitar end unplugged (or put a 10K resistor across its end), and compare the noise level. This is the noise level baseline. If you encapsulate the guitar in 27 cm of unobtainium, you still won't get any quieter than this.
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Post by angelodp on May 20, 2009 0:37:35 GMT -5
I have a 72 Custom and the Seth Luver Humbucker is a noisy pickup as well. I have had at it and also had it worked on by TrueTone in L.A. and believe it or not the single coil in this guitar is quieter than the Humbucker. Yeah mines the Keith Richards with one SC and one HB. Its just a byproduct of this pickup design I believe with those magnet poles they they are arranged vertically.... its not like a Gibson HB at all. Mind you its not that noisy, but more than a typical HB.
cheers ange
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Post by sumgai on May 20, 2009 2:19:47 GMT -5
ange, When you say "it's not all that quiet", I see one of two possibilities...... either the coils are not connected together correctly, or almost as likely, the maker was shooting for a tone that could be obtained only with mis-matched coil windings. That last scenario means that they accepted a certain 'elevation' in the hum level, compared to most humbuckers. If the resultant tone is what you're after, then you get to "suffer" the higher-than-expected/desired level of hum. But then again, most single-coil users have been suffering like that for years. HTH sumgai
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greybagz
Apprentice Shielder
Posts: 41
Likes: 0
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Post by greybagz on May 20, 2009 4:54:43 GMT -5
Ok, wow, thanks for all the replies. This place is a vault full of knowledge. I opted to shield the cavities of the guitar and the back of the pickguard (i'm hoping the dissimilar metals law doesn't impose too much on small projects like this, as i overlapped the copper tape onto the little aluminum foil fender supplied, too lazy to remove pots), i did not enjoy this process to say the least, but i'm impressed by the job i achieved, it doesn't look all that bad Now for the nitty gritty, do i just bond the shield to the main ground (or is this achieved via the pots and switch being attached), then put it all back together with my fingers crossed or is there more to the process? I appreciate all the info you guys have given. Graeme
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