Hoping to get an education here, so help is appreciated. I have recently purchased an Ultrasound AG-50DS4 (upgrading from an older model Acoustasonic). Our home was built in 1962 and has the original electrical wiring, no ground wires, etc. Problem is everything in this house causes humming through my amps. I'm using a mogami cable through he DS4. How do I get a cleaner sound? Thanks for any suggestions!

Good morning Brokenpicks
I had the same problem with powered mixer for my condenser mic & recording , get to Radio Shack, explain your problem, I believe what you want is a RF choke, you wrap your power cord around it, it should be an improvement
I think this is also a problem for HAM radio
Fred

Oh boy... This is never pretty.

Grounding issues can show up in all homes, new and old. I moved into a brand new house just three days ago and I had to tackle a huge buzzing issue with my home theater. I had the whole house wired by a professional company who does very high end projects using only the best shielded cables and connections, but even they had trouble alleviating buzz in a couple zones. I even have a dedicated circuit at the electrical panel just for all related gear, which is further cleaned by an industrial strength power filter and surge suppressor. Still buzzing. One room needed a cable filter, another needed a ground lift (which I don't recommend unless you're sure it's safe), another needed a line filter to clean up noise that was coming in through a satellite dish, of all things. I was pulling my hair out.

Your problem could be RF (radio frequencies) or it could be grounding issues. If it's grounding issues I'd strongly suggest you consult with an electrician, and be specific, and it could be as simple as a phone call. If it's NOT grounding then you should avoid things like CRT monitors, dimming lights, neon lights, etc. Also, don't coil your cables - let them lay out as straight as possible when in use because coiled cable makes an antennae of sorts for noise.

You may also consider a conditioner from these guys: http://www.surgex.com/products.html

Power strip. Filter. Amp. Direct box. Mic, or guitar with pickup (I love K&K), and that's all you can do. All the great early recordings had all kinds of spurious noises to deal with. Do what you can, and then just play. Great single coil pickups have that 60c hum when you're not passsing signal, but the music can be sublime.

quote:

Originally posted by sonoman:
Power strip. Filter. Amp. Direct box. Mic, or guitar with pickup (I love K&K), and that's all you can do.

No, that's not all you can do. As stated earlier, the issues are solvable, but it may take some work. A certain amount of buzzing at high gain is normal and everybody has to decide for themselves just how much is acceptable. Because this post exists, it stands as evidence that his current level of buzzing isn't acceptable. I'm also tempted to suggest that he just play through it, but I understand the frustration. Eliminate the buzz, THEN play.