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Post by nickthestick on Sept 26, 2005 20:16:43 GMT -7
what up y'all...heres the deal....got my new ghia home today and i love it...its everything i wanted and more....however i noticed tonight when i was standing close to it that its not dead silent....it almost sounds like a tube thing....there is a slight crackle, and a bit of a hum......from what i know about z quality these amps should be dead quiet..right?....i live in a really old house and all my amps tend to do this....even after tube changes....its very very annoying.....could this be a power issue with the house?.....i dont want to change my tubes...i just got the amp home!...help please!
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Post by nickthestick on Sept 26, 2005 20:28:53 GMT -7
oh i should probably add this too....the main noise is kind of a soft shhhhhhhhhhhhh(crackle crackle)shhhhhhh.........like i said, i just got the amp tonite.....i was using a fulltone fat boost infront of it for a while....is it possible to damage the tubes that way....ahhhhhh......im so annoyed right now!
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Post by nickthestick on Sept 26, 2005 20:47:47 GMT -7
hey look at me...im answering my own questions......i unplugged the amp from teh cheap radio shack power strip i have and went directly to the two prong adapter and into the wall, and voila!...no more noise....i have to say though that the outlets in my apt scare me.....especially with my new investment.....i would still appreciate any thoughts on the subject
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Post by nickthestick on Sept 27, 2005 12:54:53 GMT -7
ok it came back today!!!!.....i just bought a power outlet analyzer form radioshack, and it tells me that all the outlets in my house have an open ground.....thats not cool im assuming...also the noise only comes through when i have the guitar volume up.....lefty...myles.....could use your help here
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Post by trisonic on Sept 27, 2005 16:33:12 GMT -7
Sorry no one more clued in than me has answered you! You probably need a qualified electrician to take a look at your apartment. I use a '67 Vibro Champ (modified/serviced by Jimmy Somma of Somerville) at home and I was looking around for a decent power strip and found a good one (well, it works for me) at Home Depot of all places. It's called a Belkin Surgemaster - it has the thickest power cable I've come across and a variety of warning lights. Not too pricey either. If you have an amp problem I recomend Jimmy www.sommatone.comGood luck. Best, Pete.
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Post by nickthestick on Sept 27, 2005 16:41:30 GMT -7
cool man....i was checkin that out today.....also dig this...teh guy at the store that sold it to me threw in a cheap speaker cable just to get me goin....i went over to sam ash today and picked up a monster speaker cable...and bam...instantly less noise....and better tone to boot....also i found one outlet in my place thats grounded and tried the amp there, and also....BAM...even better sound, and less noise.....its crazy how sensitive these amps are to different power sources and cables ect......it just goes to show how responsive the nature of these things are.....now that ive alleviated my little issue i can relax and play some freakin music!
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Post by billyguitar on Sept 27, 2005 19:20:41 GMT -7
High end stereo guys go as far as having an electrician run a dedicated outlet for the stereo. Then they use expensive boxes that firther filter the A/C. Then they use hospital grade cords on their components. Supposedly it all lowers the noise floor in the power supplies. A little too fussy for me. The speaker cable making less noise is a new one to me though. Glad you're getting it sorted out.
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Post by G'OlPeachPhan on Sept 28, 2005 9:34:55 GMT -7
quickly... heard somewhere that Z actually uses 'hospital grade' power cord on his amps. can't remember where I heard that, but it does make sense given Z's background in medical electronics.
on the Ghia... it can be on the noisy side compared to some amps all other things being equal. it's not overly noisy, but it is a mean little hot rod if you crank it, and if you want a hot rod, there are always trade offs in 'street driveability.'
Further, the Ghia is sensative to dirty power supplies, stray voltage, flourescent lights, etc. It WILL amplify that stuff. I found that if I play with my cell phone in my pocket, I can hear a ticking coming through my amp.
Having an open ground is more of a saftey issue than a tone issue... that's the reason I'd have an electrician check that out.
As for the natural noise floor of the Ghia, I've always found it to be a worthwhile trade off, and it has never bothered me when playing even quietly. Heck, the Ghia is a lot quieter than any kind of overdrive/distortion pedal that produces the kind of gain that this amp does, and people are willing to put up with that.
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Post by JoeYello on Sept 29, 2005 8:09:14 GMT -7
Nick,
I have noticed the same thing in my home in Jersey with the Ghia. Maybe it's a Jersey Power thing?
I'd love to try powering the Ghia through a Furman power conditioner and see if it stops the noise.
Joe
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Post by nickthestick on Sept 29, 2005 14:08:58 GMT -7
yeah its quite interesting...i had my first official jam session last night with the, and it was pretty strange....we play at this old industrial warehouse up in hoboken, but it has all industrial/fully grounded power supplies....my ghia was much much louder, and the tone was much smoother....i fianlly got to hear the amp the way i heard it in the store.....the when i got home, i tested some more outlets and found that the power in my computer room was grounded properly, and it had a great surge protector on it as well.....similar results to the warehouse.....my roomates probably wont be too happy with the ghia and z best chillin in the computer room.....but its all in the name of tone!
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