New buzz - RIPPING MY HAIR OUT

[kissfanps]

So I moved to NYC and my amp and guitar came with me. It was only an hour ride, but as you can imagine the roads are not smooth, AT ALL! I just plugged in straight to the amp and I am when I flipped to high dynamic I am getting this NASTY NASTY NASTY buzz. I have still not solved the problem, but here were the steps I took in troubleshooting it:

switched outlets - no change
lifted ground - buzz got really thin sounding but still there
gently tapped on all tubes - no microphonic tubes or rattling
replaced pre amp tubes one at a time - no change, but buzz did get a little thin when i changed V3
changed cables - same buzz
walked around the place with guitar and turned of all lights and electronics - no change
UNPLUG GUITAR FROM CABLE - BUZZ GOES AWAY BUT A LITTLE HUM (seems normal i think)
UNPLUG CABLE FROM AMP - BUZZ GOES AWAY


obviously the buzz gets louder when i increase the master. on low dynamic it becomes noticeable when i hit 3/4 on the master

i think it may be the guitar because when i flip to the neck pup the buzz gets thin and when i flip to middle position the buzz decreases in volume a little.
PLEASE HELP!

[TonyC]

Have you tried having nothing connected to the amp's input?

[kissfanps]

yeah tony i edited my post and put my results in caps

[slowpokerhino]

I have a similar issue going on right now. Does the buzz stop when you touch the metal part of your cable where it goes into the guitar? I have a couple amps and guitars and after checking all the variables the only common link is my Strat. Must have a loose ground inside. I really don't feel like opening it up (again) but I guess I'm going to have to.
Good luck, I know how frustrated you are.

[MKB]

If you have the amp volumes at normal playing level, and the hum goes away when you unplug the cord from the amp, it's very likely that there is nothing wrong with your amp. Have you tried another guitar with the amp? (Sorry for the potentially dumb question, but I had to ask).

Does the buzz change volume when you change the volume setting on the guitar? If not, you may have a bad ground from the input jack of your guitar. If the buzz does go away when the volume pots are turned down, the problem is somewhere in the switch in the guitar. To confirm this, take a wire of some type and connect the barrel of the cord while plugged into the guitar to either the guitar strings or pickup covers (if you have them). This will give an alternate ground path and will tell you if the guitar jack ground is bad.

[kissfanps]

I dont have another guitar here. The buzz does decrease when turning down the volume pot.[/i]

[kissfanps]

i checked all the connections on the guitar with a meter. everything seems fine.

[surfnorthwest]

Sounds to me like there is some kind of electro magnetic field in the building you are in. Most older buildings which have piss poor wiring to begin with, run TV, phone, interent cables, security, wireless stuff and other wires throughout the building and the waves are being picked up by the amp and probably your guitars pickups also. This stuff runs of all different frequencies and can easily cause this havoc if not properly shielded. Also there could be someone else who is using the same electrical breaker box or circut that feeds power to this apartment and they have something plugged in if affecting it.

I would try to plug the amp into a clean power supply such as a Furman or Monster, that would at least rule in or out the buildings electrical feed. If that is not it then I don't know

[kissfanps]

that was the first thing that crossed my mind

i have one of those powered furman pedal boards. would that do the trick? or would the amp draw to many amps?

[kissfanps]

well i used it anyway. the furman spb-8 stereo pedal board and power conditioner. SAME BUZZ. its really high pitched.

edit: so strange...the buzz really decreases in volume when both pups are selected

[kissfanps]

I have a similar issue going on right now. Does the buzz stop when you touch the metal part of your cable where it goes into the guitar? I have a couple amps and guitars and after checking all the variables the only common link is my Strat. Must have a loose ground inside. I really don't feel like opening it up (again) but I guess I'm going to have to.
Good luck, I know how frustrated you are.

buzz does not stop when i touch the barrel of the cable.

[SteveD]

Sounds like your guitar and cable are picking up some airborn crap. When you rotate the guitar volume it modifies the terminated impedance of the cable and when you are selecting both pups they are probably out of phase and therefore partially cancelling the buzz.

A top quality guitar cable would help as would humbuckers (I'm presuming you have single coils). I know if you're a Strat player that's not ideal :(

[kissfanps]

I actually have humbuckers, but not a top quality cable. Any suggestions?

I do live on the 28th floor of an old apartment building. There is probably crap flying all over the place.

I would hate to think what a strat sounds like up here.

[LivewireBlanco]

Monster cables come to mind. Fulltone cables are supposed to be good too.

[surfnorthwest]

Monster cables come to mind. Fulltone cables are supposed to be good too.

+1