Crush Pro 120 Head buzz

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pab1992
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Re: Crush Pro 120 Head buzz

Post by pab1992 » Fri Feb 23, 2018 8:52 pm

Rlw59 wrote:
Fri Feb 23, 2018 10:01 am
It buzzes when nothing is plugged in?

And the only time the buzzing goes away completely is when you plug in a guitar and turn the guitar's volume to zero?

That's significant and suggests a problem with the amp's input jack.
------------------
You've tried humbuckers and single-coils. Is the buzzing much quieter with humbuckers?

If not, that's another indication there's something wrong with the amp.
Ah, no, I mean just the amplifier plugged into the mains.

Regarding single coils and humbuckers - I'd say it was really marginal, perhaps the humbuckers are slightly quieter, nothing wholly significant.

The buzzing goes away when I roll the volume down on the guitar... the gain hiss remains, but the 'buzz/hum' goes away. So that's pickup interference right?

Do you think a noise suppressor pedal would solve this?

pwrknwldg - Thanks for your help regardless - I'll keep hold of the hum destroyer anyway, the band might need it at some point! I am really surprised it didn't work through...

As I've put above, there's no noise with nothing plugged into the amp. Guitar plugged in and there's just this irritating buzz/hum which obviously gets worse when you apply volume. Trouble is, our band plays REALLY loud haha.

I've noticed also that when I touch the metal parts on the amp, like the channel switch and even the D rails, it has an effect on the buzz. Not sure if this has any significance. It doesn't cut it out, just alters it slightly.

If I have to send this one back too then I'm going to be realllllyyy annoyed.

pwrknwldg
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Re: Crush Pro 120 Head buzz

Post by pwrknwldg » Sat Feb 24, 2018 5:08 pm

Is there any way you can post a recording of the buzz (just the buzz), with your amp set at the gig levels you're talking about, as you turn your guitar volume up and down? I'd be interested to see if I can replicate it with the same levels (and different guitar) on my end. Even just hearing the specific buzz you're experiencing could help the rest of us figure out the issue.

And for my part, I always run through a noise suppressor (Boss NS-2, works well enough for the last 20 years) going into the amp, but I have hot active pups and a minimum of a compressor and a boost hitting the front end, so it's pretty much a requirement for me. A suppressor in the loop instead also can work, sometimes better, depending on where the noise is coming from in the chain: I've also run one this way, and even tried one up front, and one in the loop. (In the loop, I've used a cheapo Donner Noise Killer mini-pedal that, for $30, is a damned good bargain, and is essentially a compact clone of the ISP Decimator.)

In any case, there's no point in slapping band-aids on this owie until you know if it's just a minor cut or a deep flesh wound you need stitches for. A noise suppressor may help, but if it's helping mask a problem that runs deeper and shouldn't be there, I'd say you'd be taking the wrong course of treatment.

*EDIT*: I just reread your prior post and the note that touching the rails or metal switches changes the buzz is pretty concerning. I'd still like to hear this if you can post a recording, but touching metal parts and it changing the sound of the amp in any way sounds to me like a pretty serious grounding issue. I'm assuming you're using the OEM power cord, and that you haven't pulled off the ground plug for any reason? If your power cord is intact, then there's likely something loose inside. This could be really simple to have repaired under warranty at a local authorized repair place: one bad solder joint could be all it is. But if you touch metal on the amp itself and the sound changes, that's an issue. (I just cranked *all* levels of mine to 3:00--yikes, that's noisy--and tested grabbing the switches and rails and no, there was no change in the noise floor at all.)

pab1992
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Re: Crush Pro 120 Head buzz

Post by pab1992 » Mon Feb 26, 2018 5:13 pm

Hi,

Thank you for taking the time to reply, that was really helpful! Much much appreciated.

I will definitely try and get you a video up ASAP. I'm working pretty heavily the next couple of days, but will try and turn it on tonight if I can. Just wanted to acknowledge your reply.

Do you rate the Donner noise killer? I have a Donner delay and it seems okay for the money! I can't really afford a NS-2 this month :(

I have a little Micro Terror amp and that does the same sort of buzz, but only when the volume is up really high. I'm not sure if the change in buzz/hiss was when I was running it through the Behringer MicroHD, which made the buzzing quite a bit worse. But I did think it was strange.

I'm running it through a 2x12 cab in my bedroom at the moment, and it's farrrrr too loud to play but the buzzing is there. Perhaps the wiring in my house isn't ideal, though we did have the entire house rewired last year.

Like I've said, the buzzing goes away quite significantly if I point the guitar at a certain angle...

I'll be back with a video!

Thanks.

pwrknwldg
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Re: Crush Pro 120 Head buzz

Post by pwrknwldg » Mon Feb 26, 2018 6:54 pm

I'm pretty happy with the Noise Killer. It's definitely not as supple as the NS-2: its single knob has a lot of looseness and play, with anything before noon being fairly imperceptible and anything above noon clamping down harder and harder with each millimeter you turn it; that its action isn't particularly tight isn't ideal, and makes it easy to bump into territory that you might not want to go into. Likewise, it lacks the NS-2 variable decay, instead having a tiny rocker switch that selects between "soft" and "hard" (the soft is pretty soft, and the hard is pretty hard; between the two, I prefer the hard). Because it's a micro pedal, it takes up nearly no space (good), but also needs to be powered by a 9V corded supply (maybe not good). And finally, the NS-2's best feature--the loop that allows a ton of flexibility in placing it in the signal chain--isn't a part of this: straight in and out.

That all said, it's a fantastic value and good solution. Again, I believe it's a micro Decimator clone, and it definitely gets the job done without any obvious coloration or tone suck (at most I feel like it attenuates the signal by a decibel or so, but it's pretty transparent and true bypass, unlike the NS-2's buffered architecture). For 1/3 the price of an NS-2, it's a good gate that just needs a little TLC when you dial it in.

pab1992
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Re: Crush Pro 120 Head buzz

Post by pab1992 » Mon Feb 26, 2018 8:02 pm

pwrknwldg wrote:
Mon Feb 26, 2018 6:54 pm
I'm pretty happy with the Noise Killer. It's definitely not as supple as the NS-2: its single knob has a lot of looseness and play, with anything before noon being fairly imperceptible and anything above noon clamping down harder and harder with each millimeter you turn it; that its action isn't particularly tight isn't ideal, and makes it easy to bump into territory that you might not want to go into. Likewise, it lacks the NS-2 variable decay, instead having a tiny rocker switch that selects between "soft" and "hard" (the soft is pretty soft, and the hard is pretty hard; between the two, I prefer the hard). Because it's a micro pedal, it takes up nearly no space (good), but also needs to be powered by a 9V corded supply (maybe not good). And finally, the NS-2's best feature--the loop that allows a ton of flexibility in placing it in the signal chain--isn't a part of this: straight in and out.

That all said, it's a fantastic value and good solution. Again, I believe it's a micro Decimator clone, and it definitely gets the job done without any obvious coloration or tone suck (at most I feel like it attenuates the signal by a decibel or so, but it's pretty transparent and true bypass, unlike the NS-2's buffered architecture). For 1/3 the price of an NS-2, it's a good gate that just needs a little TLC when you dial it in.
Awesome, I'll look into that, really. Thanks. There are some great budget pedals about at the moment in my opinion and most of the Donner stuff seems to get good reviews. I'd like an NS-2 but March is going to be a month of austerity I think!

Just managed to get a video of my amp

https://drive.google.com/file/d/12hBGEv ... r8RoZ/view

It's quite a bit louder that it appears on the video is all I will say haha!

Thanks again

pwrknwldg
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Re: Crush Pro 120 Head buzz

Post by pwrknwldg » Fri Mar 02, 2018 9:15 pm

Been away a while; sorry.

Short story: that's not at all normal. I set all my levels to match what I could see of yours, and apart from the usual high volume/high gain hiss, absolutely nothing like the buzz you have there. Now hearing it, I keep coming back to the same suspects:

1) A ground fault somewhere, and more than likely in the amp (a cold solder joint, a fried component, or maybe even the power cord, which is an easy swap and test);

2) The pickups and/or wiring of your guitar;

3) Some other electromagnetic interference (the hum eliminator might or might not affect that depending on where it's coming from; see a previous poster's suggestion of what I think was a HumX plug extension);

4) Maybe (just maybe) a bad or inadequate patch cable running to your cab, or the cab running at an improper impedance (that'll make the amp hot enough to fry bacon).

If you have a local retailer, you could bring your guitar and test run a 120H in-store to rule that out. Otherwise, it's sleuthing time. I'm not sure even a noise suppressor would help that (possibly in the loop, which would at least let you know where the buzz is: preamp or power amp).

Sorry, man. That sucks.

Lyric
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Re: Crush Pro 120 Head buzz

Post by Lyric » Mon Mar 05, 2018 6:13 am

pab1992 wrote:
Mon Feb 26, 2018 8:02 pm
pwrknwldg wrote:
Mon Feb 26, 2018 6:54 pm
I'm pretty happy with the Noise Killer. It's definitely not as supple as the NS-2: its single knob has a lot of looseness and play, with anything before noon being fairly imperceptible and anything above noon clamping down harder and harder with each millimeter you turn it; that its action isn't particularly tight isn't ideal, and makes it easy to bump into territory that you might not want to go into. Likewise, it lacks the NS-2 variable decay, instead having a tiny rocker switch that selects between "soft" and "hard" (the soft is pretty soft, and the hard is pretty hard; between the two, I prefer the hard). Because it's a micro pedal, it takes up nearly no space (good), but also needs to be powered by a 9V corded supply (maybe not good). And finally, the NS-2's best feature--the loop that allows a ton of flexibility in placing it in the signal chain--isn't a part of this: straight in and out.

That all said, it's a fantastic value and good solution. Again, I believe it's a micro Decimator clone, and it definitely gets the job done without any obvious coloration or tone suck (at most I feel like it attenuates the signal by a decibel or so, but it's pretty transparent and true bypass, unlike the NS-2's buffered architecture). For 1/3 the price of an NS-2, it's a good gate that just needs a little TLC when you dial it in.
Awesome, I'll look into that, really. Thanks. There are some great budget pedals about at the moment in my opinion and most of the Donner stuff seems to get good reviews. I'd like an NS-2 but March is going to be a month of austerity I think!

Just managed to get a video of my amp

https://drive.google.com/file/d/12hBGEv ... r8RoZ/view

It's quite a bit louder that it appears on the video is all I will say haha!

Thanks again
I see you have the Master Volume, Clean Volume, Dirty Volume and Gain knobs settings pretty high. It seems more apparent on the Dirty channel then the Clean channel. When showing the hum on the Clean channel I notice you have to have the Master volume and Clean channel volume pretty high to get the hum, you even had to roll the Clean channel volume pretty high with the Master volume already high to get the buzz somewhat comparable to the Dirty channel.

The Dirty channel does seem a little to buzzy or hum. I do know from experience with amps the more I crank the settings on a Dirty channel the more hum/buzz I get. But knowing your touching the metal on the amp and the buzz/hum somewhat subsides leads me to believe it’s a ground issue. Whether that’s the guitar, guitar wiring, pickups, instrument cable/cables, wall outlets or what I’m unsure.

Recommendations possibly: (you may have tried some of these already or answered some of these already but I’m using this on my mobile atm so it’s hard to read through everything).

1. How long is your instrument/guitar cable? If it’s short, could you use possibly a longer 20 foot cable and step away from the amp at 20 feet and see if the hum fades off?

2. In the video you show or attempt to show how touching the metal on the amp causes the buzzing to slightly go away. Possibly a ground issue here? I’ve had this issue myself with guitars but not amps technically. As already recommended try another power cord “if possible”. Could be your home/house wall outlets, you’d be amazed sometimes with some people’s wiring lol.

3.Try several outlets and move your amp further away from the wall, if possible as this could be interference from the wall outlets.

4. Try the Hum X I recommended in a prior post,,,,

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail ... gLmQPD_BwE

- Lastly I will copy your settings on your amp tonight and see what or if any noise/buzz I get. I do know the version of the CR120H is the same version I have. I’m not sure if any major changes took place over the years but they did change the front panel “wording” on -three- occasions. Anyways I’ll report back and let you know what I get.
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Lyric
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Re: Crush Pro 120 Head buzz

Post by Lyric » Mon Mar 05, 2018 6:51 am

pab1992 wrote:
Mon Feb 26, 2018 8:02 pm

Awesome, I'll look into that, really. Thanks. There are some great budget pedals about at the moment in my opinion and most of the Donner stuff seems to get good reviews. I'd like an NS-2 but March is going to be a month of austerity I think!

Just managed to get a video of my amp

https://drive.google.com/file/d/12hBGEv ... r8RoZ/view

It's quite a bit louder that it appears on the video is all I will say haha!

Thanks again
Copied your settings to a T and I think your dealing with nothing more than an amp cranked, being close to the amp and facing the amp when it’s cranked up.

Below is a video I just did copying your settings, my guitar was a little closer than yours to the amp so you will hear feedback start to come in a bit. But if you notice I get the same buzz/hum as well. You’ll even notice I touch the metal bars on my chassis head and you can hear the tapping like as if I have a ground issue.

I believe a Hum X would take care of some of this - maybe/maybe not. Otherwise I would recommend not cranking the amp that loud if playing that close to it and if you do then just step back further from the amp. Being about 5 feet from the amp will work good. When your on stage with the amp loud you never really find yourself standing close by or even face to face with the amp and typically your facing the audience - not the amp. I believe is a natural occurrence from the guitar and amp being cranked, standing close by and facing the amp. You mentioned when you -turned away- from the amp it diminishes a bit. Anytime I’ve ever cranked an amp like this, get to close to the amp or face an amp that’s turned up I get buzz/hum. I figured this was what it was but wanted to be sure. So check my video below.

https://youtu.be/9RuPpoCq4Qo

Is this your first amp or first big or bigger sized amp? Just wondering as I’ve seen this a lot from several different amps. As you will notice this is more common on the Dirty channel because it’s a “Dirty channel” = GAIN.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<———————————— What gave this away?

You had to crank the Clean channel volume higher than the Dirty channel to get the same level of hum/buzz. Notice you have the Master volume pretty high already. But when you switched from the Dirty channel to the Clean channel the hum/buzz went away for the most part - until you cranked the Clean channel volume to 3 o’clock (almost max) with the Master channel high already.
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Rozz
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Re: Crush Pro 120 Head buzz

Post by Rozz » Sat Mar 10, 2018 9:20 am

Hi Pab1992,
any developments?
I tried my CR120H at your and other very high settings and while there is quite a lot of hiss, as I would expect, there was very little hum/buzz. I did not get any effect when touching the amp. I also tried it at 2 different venues and at home. I hope you have managed to resolve your issues.
Regards
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