Fixing an electric guitar

[tenohfive]

Quick question for the guitar guru's out there.

I've got a Marshall G30RCD 30W amp, a Crafter Cruiser strat copy and a Yamaha electric acoustic. When I'm playing the strat I get a constant background humming noise which is pretty irritating, and has meant that I've only ever really played it unconnected (I learned to play on that guitar.) I don't get the same noise when the Yamaha is plugged in using the same lead etc. I'm assuming there's something loose or broken inside the guitar and wondered if anyone has any ideas what could be causing it and how I'd go about fixing it? I've never tinkered with guitars before, so simple language would be appreciated

[Dr Z]

Simple answer: The hum is due to the single coil pickups in the strat...and the cheap electronics/crap shielding that goes with it. If you don't want to buy another guitar too soon, change your pickups out to mini-humbuckers/rails. It makes a world of difference.

I have a cruiser/crafter copy as my first (and only) electric, and I put some cheap GFS rails on...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyzXg5OBAyU

[tenohfive]

Dr Z said:

cheap GFS rails on...

Sorry...what's that in simpleton? What do I search for in ebay/amazon?

[Dr Z]

tenohfive said:

Sorry...what's that in simpleton? What do I search for in ebay/amazon?

Sorry, it is a type of pickup that doesn't hum but still retains the 'strat' sound to some degree. Think of it as a slightly beefier strat sound...

I got them direct from GFS...

http://www.guitarfetish.com/Calibrated-Set-of-3-Li...

When I got them the dollar-pound conversion rate was about 2-1, so was very cheap.

If you're good with soldering, you can wire them up in standard config (there are many wiring diagrams lying around the web), otherwise get a guitar tech to wire it for you... I have it in a fancy configuration and I'm not good with a solder so it cost me quite a bit. I should think you could get the volume/tone pots and electrics upgraded and shielded nicely with <£40 (excluding the cost of pickups). However, if it is more than £70 all in I wouldn't bother with this idea, as I think the guitar itself is nothing special and costs about the same and you're better off buying a nicer guitar to mod, as the quality of wood/neck/frets may be better and nicer to play.

Hope this helps!

[tenohfive]

Cheers. I can't solder, and I'm not particularly keen on guitar modding in any case - I just want a strat-a-like which plays cleanly without the background hum. I can't really stretch to a new guitar any time soon (unless I get lucky with a £20-30 Squier on the bay) so I might just have to live with the electro acoustic for awhile.

[singlecoil]

Does the degree of hum change from when you are touching the strings, to when you are not?

[Incorrigible]

tenohfive said:

Cheers. I can't solder, and I'm not particularly keen on guitar modding in any case - I just want a strat-a-like which plays cleanly without the background hum. I can't really stretch to a new guitar any time soon (unless I get lucky with a £20-30 Squier on the bay) so I might just have to live with the electro acoustic for awhile.

What's the point of having a guitar you don't play. And also what's with the "I can't solder, so I won't do it" attitude. There are about a million instruction videos out there (unlike when some of us started) just give it a go, you might end up with a guitar you really like, and failing that you might learn something.

[davepoth]

It's a strat copy guys, there's an easy answer.

Leo Fender was an excellent production engineer, refining the design with each model. The strat is very clever because all of the electrics are fitted to the scratchplate, and the scratchplate is then screwed to the guitar.

The advantage of this is that, providing you can work a screwdriver, you can swap out all of the electrics quickly and easily by swapping in a new prewired (or "loaded") scratchplate.

Look on ebay for "loaded strat scratchplate" or "loaded strat pickguard" ("loaded strat" will probably work too) and you'll see what's available.

[singlecoil]

davepoth said:

It's a strat copy guys, there's an easy answer.

Leo Fender was an excellent production engineer, refining the design with each model. The strat is very clever because all of the electrics are fitted to the scratchplate, and the scratchplate is then screwed to the guitar.

The advantage of this is that, providing you can work a screwdriver, you can swap out all of the electrics quickly and easily by swapping in a new prewired (or "loaded") scratchplate.

Look on ebay for "loaded strat scratchplate" or "loaded strat pickguard" ("loaded strat" will probably work too) and you'll see what's available.

Well, there's still the earth to the spring retainer, and the wiring to the jack socket. The OP will have to address the soldering issue eventually.

But before we decide he needs new electrics, we need to know that the exisiting electrics are working correctly, and that there isn't an actual fault which could be easily repaired. The first thing he needs to check is that everything is earthed correctly, hence my question above.

[Gaspode]

Simple solution - buy an EMG DG20 loaded scratchplate from these people:

http://www.guitarandampshop.co.uk/acatalog/EMG_DG2...

Watch this video to see how easy it is to install:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcMe1L0-f5A&fea...

Then your guitar will sound wonderful. No soldering, 10 minutes work, you don't even have to remove the strings.

[singlecoil]

Gaspode said:

Simple solution - buy an EMG DG20 loaded scratchplate from these people:

http://www.guitarandampshop.co.uk/acatalog/EMG_DG2...

Watch this video to see how easy it is to install:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcMe1L0-f5A&fea...

Then your guitar will sound wonderful. No soldering, 10 minutes work, you don't even have to remove the strings.

Are you serious? £255 pounds worth of pickups in a guitar worth half of that?

[tenohfive]

Incorrigible said:

hat's the point of having a guitar you don't play. And also what's with the "I can't solder, so I won't do it" attitude. There are about a million instruction videos out there (unlike when some of us started) just give it a go, you might end up with a guitar you really like, and failing that you might learn something.

I don't own a solder. I don't have the spare time to learn a skill I will very rarely use. And I can't afford the mini humbuckers suggested. So thanks for that little lecture, but it's something I've considered and dismissed.

singlecoil said:

Are you serious? £255 pounds worth of pickups in a guitar worth half of that?

Probably a lot less than that, given how battered it is after several years of cack handed ownership. It's still easy and comfortable to play and I'd prefer to keep it though.

My issue more than anything else is budget - I don't have much money to play with. My hope was that there'd be a likely cause like a loose wire or connection somewhere that could be easily fixed.

Edited by tenohfive on Tuesday 15th November 11:18

[singlecoil]

tenohfive said:

My hope was that there'd be a likely cause like a loose wire or connection somewhere that could be easily fixed.

There may well be, let's start by you answering the question posed earlier.

[tenohfive]

singlecoil said:

There may well be, let's start by you answering the question posed earlier.

Just noticed it.
Short answer...I don't know. How do I check?

I took the back off the guitar yesterday and couldn't see any obvious loose connections. I did likewise with the jack, but as you may have worked out I'm not very good with electronics.

ETA:

Just thought, when I'm touching the strings the buzzing seems to go away. I'm not sure if that's relevant.

And I'm currently removing the scratch plate to look for anything that seems obviously out of place.

Edited by tenohfive on Tuesday 15th November 11:36

[tenohfive]

davepoth said:

The advantage of this is that, providing you can work a screwdriver, you can swap out all of the electrics quickly and easily by swapping in a new prewired (or "loaded") scratchplate.

Look on ebay for "loaded strat scratchplate" or "loaded strat pickguard" ("loaded strat" will probably work too) and you'll see what's available.

Slowly working my way through the responses to this thread.

From a quick search on ebay that seems straightforward enough. If there is some soldering to be done that is unavoidable, I know a sparky that would probably be willing to sort it for me for a couple of beers if it's a straightforward job.

[singlecoil]

It was this one, how to check it is contained within the question

singlecoil said:

Does the degree of hum change from when you are touching the strings, to when you are not?

The first thing to check with any noisy guitar is whether it is correctly earthed, and the noise reducing when you touch the strings is a good test. If the noise reduces then it's likely the earth from the negative on the jack socket (the part that connects to the barrel of the jack plug) is not continuous with the bridge (and therefore the strings) or there may even be a problem with the lead or amp.

[tenohfive]

singlecoil said:

It was this one, how to check it is contained within the question

singlecoil said:

Does the degree of hum change from when you are touching the strings, to when you are not?

The first thing to check with any noisy guitar is whether it is correctly earthed, and the noise reducing when you touch the strings is a good test. If the noise reduces then it's likely the earth from the negative on the jack socket (the part that connects to the barrel of the jack plug) is not continuous with the bridge (and therefore the strings) or there may even be a problem with the lead or amp.

Thought the hum reducing when touching the strings was relevant.

I've removed the scratch plate and the jack. There are two wires going to the jack (black and white) and both seem solidly connected to the barrel, with no noticable loose strands/wires. Likewise at the other end of those two wires.

Is there anything other than loose wires I should be looking for? I can take some photo's if that would be any use.

Oh, and if there's no humming when using the same lead and amp with an electro acoustic I presume that means that the problem lies with the guitar?

[singlecoil]

Take the plate off the back of the guitar, and check that the earth wire to the spring claw is solidly attached.

[tenohfive]

Photo's, if they make any sense:

EDIT - no need for pic's clogging up browsers when it turned out to be the amp.

Edited by tenohfive on Thursday 1st December 16:34

[Dr Z]

^^ This. Definitely this.

Singlecoil does know a thing or two about hum, you know!