Buzzing..ground Loops? Bad Pots? What?

[Charles]

Hi folks,

I came across this site searching for info on my buzzing guitar. Happy to find a new forum and hoping I can get some help.

Long story short: Ibanez RG550. I never realized how truly noisy it was until I played my new BC Rich which is super-quiet. Now I'm trying to figure out what's wrong with the Ibanez.

When I began investigating the sound I found that when I touched the switch on the 5 way selector the buzzing got louder. The 5 way selector was coming open due to a broken clip so I replaced the selector with a Fender type selector. This took care of a considerable amount of buzz but there's still buzzing.

All the pickups have a constant buzz sound. The single coil is extremely loud! I wax potted the single coil to see if that would help but it didn't make much of a difference.

Each humbucker is quiet compared to the single but still both have the same level buzz.

So I've been debating (mostly with myself), could it be the pots, a ground loop problem, or just bad pickups?

Someone on 6stringheaven suggested that it's the ground loop problem.

Does anyone have any suggestions on troubleshooting ground loop problems or just any suggestions/comments in general?

I'm not even really concerned with the single coil. If I could get the humbuckers quiet I'd be a happy man.

Thanks,

Charles

[jnewman]

Are you sure it's buzz and not hum? The wiring in a guitar can pick up 60 cycle hum even if the pickups are humbuckers. The 60 cycle hum inherent in the wiring could explain the low level of noise with the humbucker and more noise with the single coil. Most BC Rich's are humbuckers as far as I know - do you have another guitar with single coils to compare it to? Are the control cavity, pickup cavities, and wire runs shielded?

Visit www.guitarnuts.com and look at the "quieting the beast" page for some tips on how to reduce 60-cycle hum.

Edited April 10, 2007 by jnewman

[curtisa]

Could be all sorts of things!

A ground loop suggests that there is more than one earth path with significant resistance back to the jack socket. You can re-wire the earthing in your RG550 so that you have a star ground inside, which will solve any ground loop problems in the guitar, although I would've thought that Ibanez already know the best grounding layout for their instruments...unless your guitar has previously been rewired poorly?

I'd start by confirming that all components of the guitar that are meant to be grounded ARE grounded - cavity shields, cases of pots, pickup covers (maybe), strings etc. Use an ohmmeter to find out if you have continuity from the shield of the jack socket to all those points.

Could be inadequate shielding in the guitar.

Do you play the instrument in a room fitted with light dimmers or fluroescent tubes? Anywhere near a TV or computer monitor? Is your house wiring old and/or unearthed? Are you positive that the humbuckers are actually wired up as humbuckers, not in coil-tap (dumb question, I know, but still possible)?

[modman]

I'd start by confirming that all components of the guitar that are meant to be grounded ARE grounded - cavity shields, cases of pots, pickup covers (maybe), strings etc. Use an ohmmeter to find out if you have continuity from the shield of the jack socket to all those points.

This is very likely the cause. The metal ungrounded or improperly grounded elements pickup up noise because of the physical construction. If they are not grounded, this noise and RF interference will creep into your signal.

If you touch the switch, it's not only the switch that is acting as an antenna to pick up noise, your body as well

[GregP]

+1 -- any time the symptoms and cause you describe have happened to me, it's been due to one component not being sent properly to ground. It could also be a ground loop (in which case, your wiring might even "look" correct upon first visual inspection)-- but either way, I'm betting on ground.

Greg