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Line in buzzing
Author
Hi.
I tried to connect my guitar to my PC the other day but discovered an annoying problem.
When I have a cable connected to the line in, and the line in is unmuted I have an annoying buzzing sound no matter what is connected to it. Then I went and connected my guitar to the amplifier(no PC involved) and still there was this buzzing sound( even when the guitar wasn't connected only the cable ( a different one)). My guess would be some kind of power problems maybe it is not correctly grounded.
If anyone has any suggestions/solutions please help cause it's driving me nuts.
Thanks.
Could just be a cheap card that is poorly balanced. What is the make and model of the sound card?
Author
It's an onboard one. Realtek, ALC888. But I don't think that's the issue. I have another PC also with onboard Realtek(don't know which) and it works perfectly.
Are you using a DI box, or another kind of pre-amp?
IICR the output level of guitars is quite low, so you'll typically need a DI box or effect box of some sort to "lift" it to line level expected by amplifiers and sound cards.
Also, are your pick-ups straight or humbucker?
Guitars are quite sensitive, so if you don't have humbucker pick-ups, you may be getting hum through inductions in the pick-ups.
Finally, if you're getting hum even when just a cable is plugged into an amplifier, and nothing on the other end, you may be having induction issues at the house. Are you near some large power lines, perhaps? If you short out the two leads on the loose plug with your thumb, does the hum go away?
IICR the output level of guitars is quite low, so you'll typically need a DI box or effect box of some sort to "lift" it to line level expected by amplifiers and sound cards.
Also, are your pick-ups straight or humbucker?
Guitars are quite sensitive, so if you don't have humbucker pick-ups, you may be getting hum through inductions in the pick-ups.
Finally, if you're getting hum even when just a cable is plugged into an amplifier, and nothing on the other end, you may be having induction issues at the house. Are you near some large power lines, perhaps? If you short out the two leads on the loose plug with your thumb, does the hum go away?
Author
Quote:
Finally, if you're getting hum even when just a cable is plugged into an amplifier, and nothing on the other end, you may be having induction issues at the house. Are you near some large power lines, perhaps? If you short out the two leads on the loose plug with your thumb, does the hum go away?
I'm not near some large power line AFAIK, and no, shorting out the two leads doesn't cause the hum to go away.
Quote:
Are you using a DI box, or another kind of pre-amp?
IICR the output level of guitars is quite low, so you'll typically need a DI box or effect box of some sort to "lift" it to line level expected by amplifiers and sound cards.
Also, are your pick-ups straight or humbucker?
There is a hum no matter what is connected: guitar/mp3 player/nothing.
And also as I said,there is also noise coming from my regular guitar amp only with the cable connected and no guitar.
EDIT: When I come to think of it, I constantly get electrocuted by a small current from every appliance in my kitchen... Is there a way to test if my apartment is grounded correctly?
Quote: I constantly get electrocuted by a small current from every appliance in my kitchen... Is there a way to test if my apartment is grounded correctly?
There may very well be leakage that is small enough to not violate code, but be big enough to cause all kinds of audio-level problems.
To make sure that your electrical system is up to code, you should call in a professional electrician and ask for him to check it out, and perhaps get a bid to bring it up to snuff. While a handy engineer can probably handle electrical circuits on his own, there are a number of city-specific gotchas (having to do with fire safety, local codes and building regulations, etc) that mean you're much better off actually asking a professional.
This topic is closed to new replies.
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