Static Popping when touching metal parts

    Hello,


    Newbie needs help... I get like static popping when I touch guitar metal parts (strings, pegs bridge ), this happened to me before on different solid state amps, but never on tubes amps. So I tried many different things, bot guitars, changed cables, only plugged the Kemper, guitar and earphones and it pops. The only way I can get rid of it is (don't laugh :^) is if I ground my body with a small electric wire to the Kemper casing. I guess there's a way out of it without getting connected, but can't find it thru the Internet.



    Thanks, Rejean

    Quote from flog

    Thanks Sharry, but I'm not sure of what you mean by a grounded output ?


    Sorry for not precise answer.
    Each output (main out, monitor out, etc) at the back has a red button to lift or ground.
    One connected plug must be set to ground.

    Well, Your answer was precise, but my knowledge is basic.. I've tried those, but it's worse when I lift the ground from any output. I've even tried with the guitar plugged into the Kemper to find better grounds in the guitars with an electric cable and alligator clip, but without any luck. I might try what I've read in other forums to shield the electronics in the guitars but I'm not sure it's going to help.


    Thanks

    Quote from flog

    I might try what I've read in other forums to shield the electronics in the guitars but I'm not sure it's going to help.


    Ok, when it become worse when you lift the ground, then my next proposal is to improve shielding of guitar.
    I think you can find instruction for that at you tube.
    But I would go for it to a luthier. Since retirement I've two left hands. ;)


    Good luck - Harry

    Dont understand why, but after a few hours working on the situation I finally got it but cant explain why. I moved the whole home studio to the basement and piece by piece reinstalled everything. Guess what no static popping anymore. problem solved.

    Carpet upstairs, no carpet downstairs? Just guessing...


    Did it happen with all your guitars (if you have more than one of course)? I have one guitar that I have shielded and grounded as much as possible and it still crackles at times! Don't laugh, but the only way it stops is if I rub a dryer sheet on the pick guard and the metal bracket that attaches it to the body. It works for a couple of months and then it creeps back again. In fact, it's the same guitar as in my avatar to the left.

    Quote from dpeters95

    Don't laugh, but the only way it stops is if I rub a dryer sheet on the pick guard and the metal bracket that attaches it to the body


    I will not laugh, that's one way to prevent potential equalization currents,
    I suspect that the noise caused by different potentials between Kemper incl. Guitar and your body.
    Remedy could bring other shoes without rubber sole. :)


    Harry

    Quote from dpeters95

    Carpet upstairs, no carpet downstairs? Just guessing...


    Did it happen with all your guitars (if you have more than one of course)? I have one guitar that I have shielded and grounded as much as possible and it still crackles at times! Don't laugh, but the only way it stops is if I rub a dryer sheet on the pick guard and the metal bracket that attaches it to the body. It works for a couple of months and then it creeps back again. In fact, it's the same guitar as in my avatar to the left.


    Thanks guys, dpeters95 no carpet upstairs natural varnish maple wood, downstairs engineered flooring. My best guess would be that in the room upstairs that I uses also as a home office is loaded with ( desktop, laptop, Internet Wi-Fi signals, Led TV on the other room on the same wall, and different lights so it must be one of those. I hate being in the basement lollll, but cant stand the popping


    Thanks again dpeters95 and Sharry

    Yeah, I know what you mean. I have my studio in my basement. It's comfortable for me though because it's a "finished" basement and I can stay away from all the other "noise" upstairs. ;)

    Quote from flog

    Hello,


    Newbie needs help... I get like static popping when I touch guitar metal parts (strings, pegs bridge ), this happened to me before on different solid state amps, but never on tubes amps. So I tried many different things, bot guitars, changed cables, only plugged the Kemper, guitar and earphones and it pops. The only way I can get rid of it is (don't laugh :^) is if I ground my body with a small electric wire to the Kemper casing. I guess there's a way out of it without getting connected, but can't find it thru the Internet.


    Thanks, Rejean


    Hello Rejean,


    Something doesn't sound right...



    Quote from flog

    Dont understand why, but after a few hours working on the situation I finally got it but cant explain why. I moved the whole home studio to the basement and piece by piece reinstalled everything. Guess what no static popping anymore. problem solved.


    Couple of questions...


    How old is your residence? Can you confirm that all the electrical outlets in your residence are 3-prong, and that each circuit has a ground wire, with all ground wires connected to a common grounding Earth rod.


    Are you the original owner, or did someone live there previously?


    Has anyone, to your knowledge, done any electrical wiring work in the room you were having the problems in? It almost sounds like you had your KPA / amp plugged into an outlet that did not have a properly connected ground connection.


    Also, just because an outlet looks like it is a modern 3-prong grounded outlet...doesn't mean that it has been wired correctly. That is why I asked if there were previous homeowners, and/or if you know if any non-licensed electrical work might possibly have been performed.


    Cheers,
    John

    Edited 5 times, last by Tritium ().

    This. My bet is that the first room's outlet is not properly grounded.
    simplest test (to be tried for a few seconds only) if you do not want someone to come and check it: connect the Profiler's chassis to a pipe (water, gas, heating) and see if the noise goes. If it does, the outlet is not grounded.



    I'm the original owner of the house, 5 years old new construction. with 3 prongs outlets. Nothing as been performed on the electricity side.


    I made other tests since yesterday. I started by shielding one of my guitar (the strat one) no changes. But this morning I made tests with a small Blackstar IDcore solidstate in the same room and noticed after a while that when my right strumming hand passes near the pick ups it gets worse, when I put my strumming hand over the pups about an inch and hit gently a tuning peg with a finger of the other hand it pops loud enough. That's why while practicing with an acoustic sound on the Kemper I noticed at first.


    Where I get lost is why it does not do it in the basement




    Thanks John

    The 3 prong outlets may have lost ground, you can get that checked easy enough. What about lighting in that room/. Florescent lights can reek havoc on a guitar. With the noise you are describing I'm certain it's an electrical issue with the house.

    I used to get this on an old Yamaha pacifica.. The rubbing of my hand against the scratch plate whilst strumming up and down built up a static charge on the scratch plate. Remember when you used to rub a balloon on your head as a kid? Or the nylon-stick rubbing experiment at school? I could discharge the static by touching a metal part of the guitar or touch the pickups. (Or holding some earthed metal work prevented the build up of static, just as described in the OP). Took me ages to find this out.
    A solution I found was to wet my hand a bit (licking the side of my hand was enough) to prevent the build up of static. The other solution I used was to stick aluminium (or aluminum to our USA friends) adhesive tape on the scratch plate to provide an earthed conductive barrier that stopped the static. It looked awful but done the trick. Perhaps changing my clothing or better still the material of the scratch plate would cure it. Damp sweaty hands may be useful in this scenario too as static likes dry conditions.


    On the other hand I may be totally barking up the wrong tree but happy to share my war against static tactics.


    Hi Rejean,


    Good to know that it is new construction and you are original owner.


    I would still be curious as to issue you are having in your original location.


    There is one other thing I would double-check.


    Try to replicate this issue in another room that is on the same floor as your home office. Typically, the outlets in a separate room are on a completely different circuit. It is likely that all the outlets in your home office are tied into same circuit. If one of them has dropped a ground connection (or has a faulty ground), than all the outlets in that room would be affected...not just the one that you plugged the amp into. However, an entirely different room on the same floor (e.g. living room) is probably on it's own circuit. Try replicating the problem in that room (e.g. living room).


    What troubles me is that your description does not appear to be a simple ground loop (hum) or interference. You seem to be describing a small electrical shock, which means there is a non-trivial voltage potential difference between you (acting now as a ground) and the amp. As there is no obvious means of building up a static charge (you stated that your home office has hard wood floors, no carpet)...I am still suspect of a faulty ground connection somewhere in the circuit.


    With that said...I might be making a mountain out of a mole-hill, or misinterpreting your original description of the problem.


    Cheers,
    John

    Edited 2 times, last by Tritium ().