Mullen Discovery hums thru Peavey Vegas 400

Fred Hedgecoth · From: Virginia, USA

At first I thought it was the amp but after running other instruments through the 400 I discovered that only the Mullen created hum. It's there with or without the Boss FV=500H volume pedal although obviously the Boss increases and decreases the hum volume when used. I'm no techie so I don't understand pickups, windings, etc. Is there a simple explanation for the hum? Do I need to replace the stock Mullen pickup? I am a beginner so I don't want to spend a lot of $$$ resolving this issue.

Thanks!
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In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth

Richard Sinkler · From: aka: Rusty Strings -- Missoula, Montana

If it's a single coil pickup, they are suseptible to create hum depending on surroundings. Neon beer signs, dimmer light switches, flourescent lights, dirty power will all cause this.

I had a Mullen Royal Precision SD12 (the one in my avatar) that hummed incredibly bad in a couple of venues I was playing at. Tried repositioning the guitar and turning off all neon beer signs near the stage, but that was no help. The guitar and bass player used single coils and also hummed real bad. It sounded like a swarm of bees onstage, and could be heard through th P.A. when we were playing, picked up in the vocal mics. So, I installed a Bill Lawrence XR-16 humbucker in and wired a switch to turn it into a single coil when playing places that didn't hum. Any humbuker that will fit will work. I just like the ability to have either single coil or humbucker at the flip of a swith.
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Carter D10 8p/8k, Dekley S10 3p/4k C6 setup,Regal RD40 Dobro, Recording King Professional Dobro, NV400, NV112,Ibanez Gio guitar, Epiphone SG Special (open D slide guitar) . Playing for 55 years and still counting.

Dave Grafe · From: Hudson River Valley NY

Two things come with single pole pickups: mathless tone and lurking hum. I have used some very good humbucking pickups over the years but I love my Emmons and Truetone pickups so I learned to make them work. One hint is to set up your amp to get the desired volume and tone with the volume pedal backed off to about 1/3 to 1/2 of the way up. This will keep the hum to a minimum and increase available sustain. You will notice that the hum only shows up when the strings aren't active, so try to pick like you mean it. This brings us to the second hint: using the volume pedal to shape the beginning, middle AND end of each note or phrase, and default to all the way off when not playing. Just like a horn player.

As you see, my druthers are to take another opportunity at skills building rather than spending money on and changing gear. If you personally feel you must go with a humbucking pickup I have also found joy with the Telonics 206 and George L 10-1, E-66, but you're going to get lots of help with others here!

Jim Pitman · From: Waterbury Ctr. VT 05677 USA

Large whole building power transformer just outside but near the stage ruined my evening back when I played a single coil guitar.

Kevin Hatton · From: Buffalo, N.Y.

My Mullen guitars would not tolerate any single coils. I had to run humbuckets both of them. Finally sold them.

Pat Chong · From: New Mexico, USA

Hi Fred,
I have the same problem with my Dekley, also with single coil pickup.

When you can change the volume of the hum, it's usually a ground problem. I turned my rig on it's side and tried grounding all parts, but to no avail, no help, not even a little!

But while I had my psg on it's side, I noticed the hum (although still there) was not as loud. I realized my amp had a large transformer (Nashville 400, which your Vegas 400 might have), which radiates a 60hz 'signal' (because of it's size), which my single coil pickup picked up. (Ties in with what Jim Pitman experienced...)

Solution: I moved my guitar away from the amp....that fixed it! I just discovered this today, and that might be your solution too.

Luck on your guitar......Pat

Rich Ertelt · From: Texas, USA

Single coil pickups pick up stray electric noise. Thus the creation of the Humbucker pickup, to buck the hum. Unfortunately, in the process of cancelling the hum, it cancels other frequencies and changes the tone. Whether that is a good or bad thing is a matter of opinion, but humbuckers do sound different.

I am in a very small office. Since this is my work place (WFH), I have 2 laptops, my destop DAW, 2 monitors on all the time. So a lot of things to cause noise. Plus any amps. The power supply on those cause noise, which is why the preamp tubes are usually on the opposite side of the amp than the power supply.
Moving around - someone mentioned laying the steel on its side reduced noise, because it is now on a different plane - tells me it is noise from something in the room. Amp usually.

So, yea, lots of things beside neon bar signs cause noise.

I'm a guitar player by trade, lots of strats and teles, but I do gig pedal steel. On a bigger stage - Usually - I'm far enough where single coil isn't an issue, but I've been in places that were just noise factories. It goes with the territory. You want the sound of single coils, you live with it.

There are some humbuckers I like on steel. I tried the Alumitone, no noise, and sounds a lot like a single coil. Though on my GFI, I felt there was something missing over the Steeltronics and Wallace. Currently, I have the new Telonics with the adjustable screws, and really like it. Not Quite single coil sound, but close enough.

There are some pedals that reduce hum, but I don't like what they do to the tone.

I just ordered a Discovery. Single coil. I played in TX with a guy who had one, I sat behind it a couple times. Loved the tone. I'll deal with the hum.
Everything is a compromise, it comes down to what you want and what you can deal with/stand.

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