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Topic: body noise thru amp? |
Mitch Ellis
From:
Collins, Mississippi USA
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Posted 2 Oct 2009 6:48 pm |
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This could be considered an electronics question as well as a mechanical issue so it may need to be moved to the "Electronics" section.
Here's my question. When you lightly tap on the cabnet of your steel, is it normal to here it thru the amp? I play a Zum D10 thru a NV400. I am very careful with my instruments, but a few minutes ago I accendentally dropped my tuning wrench on top of the cabnet and I heared the sound come thru the amp. To make sure I wasn't hearing things, I took the tuning wrench and lightly tapped the top of the cabnit and the sound came thru the amp. Again, is this normal? My volume pedal was all the way up (off) and the amp volume was in the normal playing position. There is no foot pedal or knee lever noise. I once took the original p/u out (True-Tone) and put another in. A few months later, I put the original back in. Did I mess up somewhere? Thank You,
Mitch |
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Mitch Ellis
From:
Collins, Mississippi USA
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Posted 2 Oct 2009 7:03 pm
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Correction. The volume petal was NOT off but in fact was at about half throttle. Sorry about that. 
Mitch |
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chas smith R.I.P.
From:
Encino, CA, USA
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Posted 2 Oct 2009 7:16 pm
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| Welcome to the steel guitar. When I used to do sessions, more often than I do now, I would spend a lot of time practicing pushing pedals and knees to be as quiet as possible, as well as hand noise and such. The body of the guitar coming back through the strings is where the tone of the guitar comes from. |
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Bryan Daste
From:
Portland, Oregon, USA
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Posted 2 Oct 2009 9:06 pm
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| Every vibration will be heard, some louder than others. I had a problem that every time I let off my B pedal I could hear a clicking sound through my pickup/amp...I traced the mechanical path and found a spot where the pull rod was clacking against another piece. I wedged a little piece of paper in there and it fixed it. I have seen threads where some players used foam and other things to quiet down there guitars. Keeping all the moving parts lubricated should help too. |
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Jody Cameron
From:
Angleton, TX,, USA
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Posted 2 Oct 2009 9:23 pm
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| Sounds to me like you are experiencing a microphonic pickup. jc |
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Bryan Daste
From:
Portland, Oregon, USA
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Posted 2 Oct 2009 9:25 pm
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| Can you be more specific? |
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David Hartley
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Posted 2 Oct 2009 11:32 pm Hi
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Yes, a microphonic pick-up sounds like your problem. I have had this on an old shobud. I remember it was annoying. I replaced the PU with a george L and it sorted this out, and the guitar had more gain too.
David |
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Bob Hoffnar
From:
Austin, Tx
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Posted 3 Oct 2009 1:27 am
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If you want to see if your pickup is microphonic yell into it. If it is microphonic you will hear your voice coming through the amp. Pickups are rarely microphonic. Yours might be though from the way you described it. Aother way to find out if your pickup is microphonic is if it gets a high feedback squeal at loud volumes. Some body noise coming through the amp on pedalsteels is very common. You can reduce body noise by doing what has been suggested and by putting some foam, rubber gromets or any sort of buffering material between the pickup and the steel body where it is mounted.
_________________
Bob |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 3 Oct 2009 6:48 am
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I feel that a good, sensative pickup has to be slightly microphonic.
Not enough so that you can sing through it but enough so that it will transmit the resonance of your instrument. |
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Geoff Cline
From:
Southwest France
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Posted 3 Oct 2009 7:45 am
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| Erv Niehaus wrote: |
I feel that a good, sensative pickup has to be slightly microphonic.
Not enough so that you can sing through it but enough so that it will transmit the resonance of your instrument. |
Yep. Emphatically so. Nothing takes the place of the appropriate amount of microphonics. MUST HAVE for me in every electric guitar. |
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David Doggett
From:
Bawl'mer, MD (formerly of MS, Nawluns, Gnashville, Knocksville, Lost Angeles, Bahsten. and Philly)
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Posted 5 Oct 2009 6:42 am
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I was tapping on my pedal steel and hearing it through the amp. But then I realized I had the volume pedal on very loud. If I hit a string there, it would be deafening. So, it's important to keep the ratio of string volume to mechanical noise in perspective. If you can't hear the mechanical noise through the amp when playing normally, then it's a non-issue.
When playing quietly at home, I can hear mechanical noise directly, not through the amp. But when I play louder for a gig or in the studio, I can't hear that. So, you have to keep it all in perspective and not obsess over mechanical noise you can't hear through he amp at normal playing volume. |
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Richard Sinkler
From:
aka: Rusty Strings -- Missoula, Montana
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Posted 5 Oct 2009 7:20 am
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Gas-X should take care of some of those body noises. Sorry, couldn't resist.
_________________
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 54 years and still counting. |
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Billy Carr
From:
Seminary, Mississippi, USA (deceased)
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Posted 6 Oct 2009 4:49 am psg
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| I've known single coil p/u's to do this on several guitars. See you Saturday. |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 6 Oct 2009 10:51 am
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| Quote: |
| I took the tuning wrench and lightly tapped the top of the cabnit and the sound came thru the amp. Again, is this normal? |
No, it's not normal to go tapping cabnits with tuning wrenches.  |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 6 Oct 2009 11:19 am
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Doug Earnest
From:
Branson, MO USA
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Posted 6 Oct 2009 12:15 pm
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| God bless David Doggett & Donny Hinson. |
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Bo Legg
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Posted 6 Oct 2009 10:00 pm
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and the rest of us can go to you know where
Just kidding Doug.
Last edited by Bo Legg on 9 Nov 2009 9:20 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Doug Earnest
From:
Branson, MO USA
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Posted 6 Oct 2009 10:22 pm
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| Well Bo if you did it wouldn't hurt it, it would just make a noise. It's all hooked together...it's supposed to make a noise if you make it vibrate. |
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Roger Rettig
From:
Naples, FL
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Posted 7 Oct 2009 8:04 am
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My old ZBs were the worst offenders in this regard. Those were the guitars I played back in the Old Country when I did a lot of sessions, and even noise from the pedal-bar seemed to find its way to the amp!
My Emmons guitars are much quieter - I hope this doesn't mean they're no good!!!    
_________________
Roger Rettig: Emmons D10, B-bender Teles, Martins, and a Gibson Super 400!
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John Floyd
From:
R.I.P.
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Posted 7 Oct 2009 8:29 am From 50 years in the School of Hard Knocks
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Microphonic Pickups largely have too great a Mechanical Connection to the guitar body.
An older Fender Telecaster Bridge pickup has 3 screws with springs For mounting to a plate beneath the bridge/tailpiece. It is usually isolated by a piece of approx 1/16" thick rubber same identical dimensions as the mounting plate and bottom of the pickup. It is sandwiched between the pickup and mounting plate. If you remove that piece of rubber, you have a Pretty damn good microphone.
You need a certain amount of isolation between the Guitar body and pickup.
Single Coils are the Worst for Microphonics when not properly isolated.
Ideally You only want to pick up the vibrations from the string itself. The String will resonate from its connections to the body and that is what you want to pick up.
Picking up vibrations from the body thru the pickup is the cause of microphonics. |
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