Roland Rock Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 (edited) I'd like some advice about the ground/lift switch on my pedal. I know it's something to do with eliminating unwanted noise but I don't know how to use it. What is the best time to use each setting and why? I have experienced unwanted noise, where there is a buzz which stops as soon as I touch the strings. It happened quite a bit with my old Ray but only a handful of times with the P. Is this the type of thing that proper use of the ground/lift switch could eliminate? Edited July 23, 2011 by Roland Rock Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icastle Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 [quote name='Roland Rock' post='1314318' date='Jul 23 2011, 11:00 PM']I'd like some advice about the ground/lift switch on my pedal. I know it's something to do with eliminating unwanted noise but I don't know how to use it. What is the best time to use each setting and why? I have experienced unwanted noise, where there is a buzz which stops as soon as I touch the strings. It happened quite a bit with my old Ray but only a handful of times with the P. Is this the type of thing that proper use of the ground/lift switch could eliminate?[/quote] Nope. Buzz whichstops when you touch the strings is a poor earth connection to your bridge. The ground lift button is to remove the earth connection if you are getting an earth loop - it's very unlikely you'll ever need it, I've only found it useful twice in about 30 years... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roland Rock Posted July 24, 2011 Author Share Posted July 24, 2011 Ok, thanks. I've just done a refin, so will double check the earth connection to the bridge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackduran Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 I was going to start a new thread for this, but found this one so I'll just add to it. Recently noticed a buzzing when playing through my set-up, which used to be an issue all the time when I powered my pedalboard off a brick-type power supply but went when I switched over to a Rocktron one-spot. Yesterday and today, when I've been playing through my newly patched pedalboard (just got a set of those solderless Planet Waves patch cables) there is a horrible buzz that clicks when I touch the strings on my Stingray, or even when I make contact with any of the pedals themselves. I've checked the patch cables and they are all properly put-together etc. I'll have another play around later on to see if I can remedy it, but for now, any suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icastle Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 [quote name='jackduran' timestamp='1325454932' post='1483376'] I was going to start a new thread for this, but found this one so I'll just add to it. Recently noticed a buzzing when playing through my set-up, which used to be an issue all the time when I powered my pedalboard off a brick-type power supply but went when I switched over to a Rocktron one-spot. Yesterday and today, when I've been playing through my newly patched pedalboard (just got a set of those solderless Planet Waves patch cables) there is a horrible buzz that clicks when I touch the strings on my Stingray, or even when I make contact with any of the pedals themselves. I've checked the patch cables and they are all properly put-together etc. I'll have another play around later on to see if I can remedy it, but for now, any suggestions? [/quote] Sounds like a cable fault to me. Take it back to basics and use a process of elimination - try your bass running directly to the amp. If your buzz disappears then add pedals to the chain one at a time until it reappears - that last added patch cable or pedal is then the prime suspect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BOD2 Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 Sometimes a pedal board power supply will cause buzzing. As an experiment, try moving the power supply in relation to the guitar cables to see if this makes any difference. Note that it's not the power cables that feed the pedals that cause any issues - it's the actual power supply itself. Another potential issue is if the overall gain of your setup is raised by the addition of the pedal chain (i.e. everything is louder with the pedals in place than without). More gain means more amplification is taking place and any noise in the setup is amplified along with your signal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrRatty Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 +1 for Bod2's suggestion - I recently had a buzzing problem and after much fiddling it was a brick PSU which was the cause - replace the brick and everything was as quiet as a mouse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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