Is there an extension cord that reduces noise?

[birv2]

I'm getting lots of humming since I moved my gear into another room, more than the normal single coil stuff. I am using a Pro Jr amp, which is fairly quiet for a PJ. Also have a Gator pedal board and am running my pedals through that.

Musicians Friend offers this: http://accessories.musiciansfriend.com/product/Furman-SS6B-Surge-Block-?sku=181297

Is that a good product? Does Home Depot or Lowes offer something better?

[MichaelE]

I'm getting lots of humming since I moved my gear into another room, more than the normal single coil stuff. I am using a Pro Jr amp, which is fairly quiet for a PJ. Also have a Gator pedal board and am running my pedals through that.

Musicians Friend offers this: http://accessories.musiciansfriend.com/product/Furman-SS6B-Surge-Block-?sku=181297

Is that a good product? Does Home Depot or Lowes offer something better?

You have what sounds like a ground loop problem. Try lifting the ground on the three prong cord and see if this helps. BTW, this is not recommended, but sometimes you have to do what you can to stop it.

See if your amp has a ground lift switch or polarity reversal switch.

I have a DBX compressor with a terrible ground loop problem. So bad I can't record with it without lifting the ground.

[deeaa]

I don't think any extension cord can remove humming noises really. They can protect the gear from spikes etc. and thus somewhat reduce sudden pops, but the main reason for the hum they cannot tackle.

As mentioned, it's possible to lift the ground but I'd not do that too readily, it can kill you.
You can lift the ground from single pieces of gear that even have switches for that rather safely but do NOT lift the ground off an extension cord etc. and if you're dealing with tube amps, be careful about it. I've been shocked twice due to a lifted ground & tube amps having been used and had I been standing on concrete floor, touching a waterpipe or something, those woulda been deadly too. Anyway I got such a kick on my lips from going to a vocal mic that my mouth was totally numb for like six hours, lips drooping and all. Great on a gig for a singer :-)

You don't really specify what exactly is the problem, but I'm guessing it's not interference from fluorescent lights etc. but electricity and electric supply is the key.

If that is the case, you probably have an insufficient grounding problem or bad connections or some kind of a problem with your mains fuse panel or something.

I know I had a lot of pops and crackles before, and I used not one but two surge protection power strips and they only helped a little.

BUT since I had to rebuild some of the house plumbing, I also had to re-run the grounds wires thru the house (electrics were grounded via metal plumbing, not a single copper wire) and I used a heavy-gauge copper wire such as lightning conduits and ran that thru all the house and it goes straight from the whole metal roof via the fuse boxes under the house along with the water main I guess like 50 feet or so in the ground.

Problem solved.

Anyway, as a simple fix you could try this: run ALL the devices off the same power strip; buy a huge one and if not enough, continue with another off that, and also when you put in gear put them in one by one starting with the amp that makes the most noise, and make sure with each if it doesn't make a difference which polarity you connect it with (which way the plug...weird but sometimes it has quite a clear effect).

[MichaelE]

As I said, it is not recommended, and doing so with a tube amp can kill you as deeaa said.

If anything hot touches the chassis with that ground lifted it'll toast you the first time you touch something that is grounded.

Because guess what? YOU are now the ground!

I don't want to scare your socks off, and unless you're rough with your equipment or there is a manufacturing defect, the likelyhood of this happening is slim, but you should be aware of the danger. Especially with a tube amp if that's what you have.

Line voltage in the US is not such a shocker, but the voltages generated in a tube amp will really light up your life.

[birv2]

Hmm. None of this is too encouraging. Sounds like I either have to risk getting electrocuted or convince my landlord to rewire the house...:)

We don't have fluorescent lights. It's a tube amp, with single coil guitars. So I'm sure that's a big part of the problem. However, it is noticeably worse in the new room. I tried running my rig with my new Gator pedal board with its own power supply, then without that power supply, with 4 pedals, 3 pedals, 2 pedals, 1 pedal, no pedals... All pretty much the same. Maybe I should try it with the amp unplugged and see if that makes a difference.:whatever:

[MichaelE]

It may also be that the socket is wired backwards. It's been known to happen.

If you have a multimeter you can check the polarity of your socket.

With the ground receptical at the bottom of the socket, the neutral slot is on the left and the hot is on the right.

Insert the black probe into the ground hole and the red probe into the right. You should have 115+/-VAC. Insert the red probe into the left slot and it should be less that one volt.

If these readings are reversed you socket is wired backwards.

[wingsdad]

No flourescent lights...OK.

But do you have any rheostats -- e.g., dimmers, variable speed ceiling fan controls -- in the room or on the same (breaker) circuit? They'll pick up RF signal.

If not those culprits, you could try picking up a UPS (Universal Power Supply)-- like you might use to hookup computer gear -- at an electronics or office supply store for $30-$50 and hookup your stuff thru that. Since I went to one of those, I eliminated most hums and RF that used to creep in. Besides that, I use the battery backup outlets for my most critical stuff that I wouldn't want to go dead or drop out in a power outage or spike in the middle of trying to record --DAW, mixer, etc.

[birv2]

No flourescent lights...OK.

But do you have any rheostats -- e.g., dimmers, variable speed ceiling fan controls -- in the room or on the same (breaker) circuit? They'll pick up RF signal.

If not those culprits, you could try picking up a UPS (Universal Power Supply)-- like you might use to hookup computer gear -- at an electronics or office supply store for $30-$50 and hookup your stuff thru that. Since I went to one of those, I eliminated most hums and RF that used to creep in. Besides that, I use the battery backup outlets for my most critical stuff that I wouldn't want to go dead or drop out in a power outage or spike in the middle of trying to record --DAW, mixer, etc.

There is a 3-speed ceiling fan in the next room... I'll try that. Thanks!

[marnold]

Also, a good UPS will have ground fault detection and other such things so it will be able to tell you if something is up with the way the outlet is wired. My office is just about the worst place for guitar playing and may explain why I have "issues" with traditional single coils. The wiring is excellent, but I've got a big ol' florescent light and my computer's CRT. It's a big noise-o-rama.

[birv2]

Boy, do I feel stoopid...

While checking the fan in the next room, I realized that we have a big-**s A/C unit. With it turned off, most of the noise was gone.

:thwap:

Thanks for all the replies, and apologies for not thinking it all through first.

I still think I'm going to look into one of those UPS power strips though.

Bob

[kiteman]

Boy, do I feel stoopid...

While checking the fan in the next room, I realized that we have a big-**s A/C unit. With it turned off, most of the noise was gone.

:thwap:

Thanks for all the replies, and apologies for not thinking it all through first.

I still think I'm going to look into one of those UPS power strips though.

Bob

That means you're using the same circuit as the AC. Same goes with iceboxes and freezers. I've read about a fellow who ran an extension cord from a room free of said appliances to his room and now in jam city.

[deeaa]

That means you're using the same circuit as the AC. Same goes with iceboxes and freezers. I've read about a fellow who ran an extension cord from a room free of said appliances to his room and now in jam city.

Fridges etc. are bad; they give a mighty jolt when they kick in the cooling phase after a pause.

One thing that can be pretty audible on an electric network is a plain ole coffee maker. The heater thermostat on/off makes for quite a pop.

Quite often it doesn't help much to get power from the next room either...may be less since it's behind a separate fuse, but still the same fusebox. Depends on how the system is built.

[sunvalleylaw]

So I am now setting up a new family/rec room area that has a large music corner. It will have an iMac computer in it with a 20 inch screen, a traditional TV that may change to a plasma or the like some day, a stereo, a gas fire plac. A Yamaha keyboard will be in the vicinity, along with my C-30 and my son's Peavey Vypyr. The place has compact flourescent floods in ceiling mounted cans. There is no dimmer for the lights, but that may change. It would be nice to dim the lights, but I don't want to cause problems. We have a lot of thunder and lightning in the area, so I am going to get at leasta furman power strip or similar from HomeDepot or whatever to guard against spikes. But what else should I do?

[deeaa]

Um, I understand you can't use a dimmer w/fluorescents. Maybe I'm wrong though.

Those regular spike protection power strips seem to work pretty well.
A week back lightning struck our house, or very near anyway, and the digital TV receiver went kaputt. But my computer, which is behind two of those strips, never even flinched.

[sunvalleylaw]

I think you can with the compact floods that go in these cans, but I am not completely sure myself. We may have some that stay incandescent if we cannot dim the compact flourescents. I will ask the electrician as he has some follow up to do, and also ask him about what circuits for outlets would be most remote from the problem things. The gas fireplace does not have a thermostat, but does have a switch plate that controls the pilot, on/off, fan, etc.

EDIT: Here is the answer from the GE website on dimmers and compact flourescents.

Can I use a compact fluorescent light bulb with a dimmer switch?
To use a compact fluorescent bulb on a dimmer switch, you must buy a bulb that's specifically made to work with dimmers (check the package). GE makes a dimming compact fluorescent light bulb (called the Energy Smart Dimming Spirals®) that is specially designed for use with dimming switches. We don't recommend using regular compact fluorescent bulbs with dimming switches, since this can shorten bulb life. (Using a regular compact fluorescent bulb with a dimmer will also nullify the bulb's warranty.)

[kiteman]

So I am now setting up a new family/rec room area that has a large music corner. It will have an iMac computer in it with a 20 inch screen, a traditional TV that may change to a plasma or the like some day, a stereo, a gas fire plac. A Yamaha keyboard will be in the vicinity, along with my C-30 and my son's Peavey Vypyr. The place has compact flourescent floods in ceiling mounted cans. There is no dimmer for the lights, but that may change. It would be nice to dim the lights, but I don't want to cause problems. We have a lot of thunder and lightning in the area, so I am going to get at leasta furman power strip or similar from HomeDepot or whatever to guard against spikes. But what else should I do?

Play out? :dude:

Seriously, I'd make sure that the electrical systems in the house are earthed.

By the way, for computers the UPS is Uninterupted Power Supply. In case of outage the UPS allows you so many minutes of operations like shutting it down without loss of data.

[sunvalleylaw]

Yep, some big old grounds are visible where power comes into the house, and also to the separate garage. I will ask the young guy that worked on the "media room" stuff about the various circuits and grounds for the electricity, and the cable/phone/data ports as well. They put in ports that support and provide both a phone/data connection and cable connection.

[kiteman]

So you will have a dedicated outlet(s) for your instruments?

EDIT: forgot to mention that my sis's husband now retired was an electrician and he wired our house where the appliances have their own curcuits. The wall outlets are free of them.