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Topic: Rickenbacker B6 pickup buzz |
Patrick Harison
From:
Minneapolis, MN
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Posted 28 Jul 2014 8:48 pm |
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I'm going to be playing my rickenbacker B6 on a record this week and have noticed that there is QUITE a bit of buzz going on... Which is eliminated completely by touching the pickup. I'm assuming this is some sort of ground issue, but I'm not sure about how to address it. I also understand that the Rick pickups are by nature noisey and some guys prefer to not record with them for this reason. So, what level of buzz is just part of playing ball? And, if I'm getting extraneous buzz, how do I go about killing it... And quickly! I could always play another steel on this session, but I'm doing it on some original material written in the 1930's-40's hawaiian style. It would make me hurt inside to have to use a different axe. Any input is greatly appreciated!
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Professional Accordionist, Amateur Steel Guitarist. |
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Patrick Harison
From:
Minneapolis, MN
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Posted 28 Jul 2014 9:46 pm
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Ummmm, sorry for the false alarm: I'm an idiot. I was practicing in a room of the house different than I usually do (sleeping baby) and was plugged into a power strip... Which was plugged into a two prong outlet via an edison (three prong) adapter. So, clearly the problem was with the ground. The whole circuit wasn't grounded >palm face<  I brought out a roland microcube and everything sounds awesome as it should.
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Professional Accordionist, Amateur Steel Guitarist. |
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Jerome Hawkes
From:
Fayetteville, North Carolina, USA
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Posted 29 Jul 2014 2:37 am
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i have a similar buzz with my B6 except mine buzzes when i touch the pickup - its fairly quiet as long as i don't bump the horseshoes and then HUMMMM.
anyway, the other night i was playing thru my battery powered amp and noticed it didn't do it then....
i'll try some experiments.
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'65 Sho-Bud D-10 Permanent • '54 Fender Dual-8 • Clinesmith T-8 • '38 Ric Bakelite • '92 Emmons D-10 Legrande II |
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Jim Newberry
From:
Seattle, Upper Left America
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Posted 29 Jul 2014 11:46 am
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Jerome, you're just too "current" on everything.
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"The Masher of Touch and Tone"
-1950 Fender Dual Pro 8
-1950's Fender Dual Pro 6
-Clinesmith D8
-Clinesmith 8-string Frypan
-Clinesmith Joaquin
-~1940 National New Yorker
-~1936 Rickenbacher B6
-Homebuilt Amps |
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Mitch Druckman
From:
Arizona, USA
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Posted 29 Jul 2014 12:52 pm
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| It might be your magnetic personality. |
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Rick Aiello
From:
Berryville, VA USA
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Posted 29 Jul 2014 2:21 pm
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| Jerome Hawkes wrote: |
| i have a similar buzz with my B6 except mine buzzes when i touch the pickup . |
I hate to be the barer of bad news ... But if the noise gets louder when you touch the magnets ...
Well, in the immortal words of Ted "Theodore" Logan
| Quote: |
| Strange things are afoot at the Circle-K |
Seriously, what you're describing indicates a problem ... Fully functional prewar Bakelites are noisier than postwars because the strings are not grounded ... But the noise quiets when you touch the magnets (just an EMF thing) ...
Getting louder ... The unit needs assistance ...
Just trying to help
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Jerome Hawkes
From:
Fayetteville, North Carolina, USA
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Posted 29 Jul 2014 3:50 pm
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thx Rick - yeah, i figured something is up but - i'm in tonal bliss playing this B6, lots of little quirks - like the volume knob that makes all kinds of crackles but sounds wonderful when its in a certain point so i've left it alone. sometimes i'll bump it while playing and throw it off and have to go find the 'bad spot' again.
ive had a lot of nice steels, but this one consistently puts a smile on my face after the first few notes.
this was Kenny Dail's old B6 - some of you may remember the name from the forum back in the 'days'. this was his fav steel, he had many, and when i was looking for a B6 and played this one, i understood why - its just got something magical. sadly, i can't record with it because of the hum issue 
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'65 Sho-Bud D-10 Permanent • '54 Fender Dual-8 • Clinesmith T-8 • '38 Ric Bakelite • '92 Emmons D-10 Legrande II |
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Rick Aiello
From:
Berryville, VA USA
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Posted 29 Jul 2014 4:24 pm
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I remagged that one for Kenny ... He was my buddy 
But if the problem you describe is an issue ... I'll fix it for you / Kenny
No charge (pun intended) ...
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Jerome Hawkes
From:
Fayetteville, North Carolina, USA
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Posted 29 Jul 2014 7:08 pm
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wow - amazing Rick! i know Kenny had a few B6s & an A22 - wonder if it was this one. the other one i saw/was offered after he passed away was an early '37 single knob.
my best friend lives in Clear Brook & teaches in Berryville - we are going to a festival in Galax, VA next week - might send it back up with him & get your info.
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'65 Sho-Bud D-10 Permanent • '54 Fender Dual-8 • Clinesmith T-8 • '38 Ric Bakelite • '92 Emmons D-10 Legrande II |
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