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Post subject: Why do I hear my guitar cable tap the ground thru my amp?
Posted: Tue Feb 22, 2011 8:48 pm
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Aspiring Musician
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I imagine it has to do with capacitance, or perhaps poor build, or something.

Its actually kind of funny, but I figured i'd ask about it. When the cable falls to the ground, for example, you can hear that through the amp. Its not super sensitive, so its not like every movement will turn heads.

i read somewhere that a non-insulated cable could act like a pickup...i figured this is probably my exact scenario, but isn't the insulation that black/brown "coating"? (i know that question sounds completely naive, because the answer is yes, but i wanted to make sure i understand what they're saying, because it'd be weird to see a guitar cable without that. can't imagine they mean the insulation that separates hot from ground wire.)

at any rate, the description above of what is happening with my cable is very parallel to basic operation of a piezo. its actually frighteningly similar.

so i guess there's something wrong with this picture, i mean cable, right? Whatever is wrong here, might it be causing negative impact on my signal?


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Post subject: Re: Why do I hear my guitar cable tap the ground thru my amp
Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2011 5:33 am
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You have a crappy cable.Cables have as much to do with your tone as the guitar and amp i recommend Mogami 2524 cables


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Post subject: Re: Why do I hear my guitar cable tap the ground thru my amp
Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2011 6:27 am
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I'm using George L's .250. I like them a lot. Mogami are nice too as are many others. You really need quality cables as they do really effect your tone and are also much more reliable.

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Post subject: Re: Why do I hear my guitar cable tap the ground thru my amp
Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2011 7:54 am
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Using good cables is a very important part of good tone. The upside of this is, one good cable will outlast four or five crappy cables.

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Post subject: Re: Why do I hear my guitar cable tap the ground thru my amp
Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2011 8:12 am
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I used to pick up radio stations with my 60s Crybaby. I've had one guitar cable do as you describe. I've been using a Whirlwind Leader Elite since 1991. It was about $28 IIRC.


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Post subject: Re: Why do I hear my guitar cable tap the ground thru my amp
Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2011 9:47 am
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msvolpe wrote:
...i read somewhere that a non-insulated cable could act like a pickup...


You probably mean non-shielded, as the insulation has no effect on signal. A non-shielded cable can act as a pickup. You don't see many cables without insulation, the insulation is necessary to prevent electrical contact with the signal wire and shielding. :idea:

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Post subject: Re: Why do I hear my guitar cable tap the ground thru my amp
Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2011 10:23 am
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Aspiring Musician
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cable is plugged into guitar and amp, amp is on. just to clarify for the last post.

EDIT: the post i am addressing may have been deleted.

i suppose i'll go cable shopping, just for kicks if nothing else, to see what it does for me.

another question: does having excessive solder affect the signal? i cant see why as long as the hot wire isn't sitting on top of a layer of solder. i read this somewhere.


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Post subject: Re: Why do I hear my guitar cable tap the ground thru my amp
Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2011 10:39 am
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Excess solder is never a good thing, the proper amount should always be used. There isn't much clearance inside the plug, and too much solder may allow the joint to contact somewhere that it shouldn't. Also, too much solder indicates that the person doing the soldering, did not do a good job, so the joint could even be cold and cause problems. It is an electrical connection, so too much solder is a waste, and can cause problems. :idea:

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Post subject: Re: Why do I hear my guitar cable tap the ground thru my amp
Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2011 12:47 pm
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S Bender wrote:
Using good cables is a very important part of good tone. The upside of this is, one good cable will outlast four or five crappy cables.


I'd change that to say that "cables are a very important part of tone"... it's all a matter of what tone you're looking for.

I found this article to be pretty interesting:

http://www.premierguitar.com/Magazine/I ... r_Mod.aspx

I've been trying to find more info on old guitar cables, and it really doesn't seem like there's been a lot written.


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Post subject: Re: Why do I hear my guitar cable tap the ground thru my amp
Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2011 12:54 pm
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Actually, the characterization should be "A quality guitar cable is essential to preserve the already great tone that your guitar and amp produce".

JMO

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: Why do I hear my guitar cable tap the ground thru my amp
Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2011 1:24 pm
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The cables that come with the Fender Reissue Strats do the same thing....noisy.


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Post subject: Re: Why do I hear my guitar cable tap the ground thru my amp
Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2011 3:21 pm
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Rebelsoul wrote:
The cables that come with the Fender Reissue Strats do the same thing....noisy.


Thanks for the heads up! I haven't even tried out the cable that came with my new AVRI 57 strat. I think that's going to need to change now!

Retroverbial wrote:
Actually, the characterization should be "A quality guitar cable is essential to preserve the already great tone that your guitar and amp produce".

JMO

Arjay


I agree as long as your goal is the purest tone possible or the most accurate reproduction of what your guitar is sending to your amp. That being said, some great music has been made as a result of going into the opposite direction so to speak, either intentionally as with the guitar on Revolution or by accident as with the guitar on Rocket 88.

If you're looking to get the truest vintage tone, a high quality cable may not be the right choice.


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Post subject: Re: Why do I hear my guitar cable tap the ground thru my amp
Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2011 3:36 pm
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make sure you also invest in a quality Speaker cable too, any weak link will affect the tone.
I use Monster Studio pro 1000 series for my speaker cable, and monster rock's for my instrument cables cause i like the mid bump in the rocks


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Post subject: Re: Why do I hear my guitar cable tap the ground thru my amp
Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2011 4:13 pm
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Also, no reason to spend $50 to $100 on a highly marketed instrument cable. If budget is a factor, you can DIY a cable using your old plugs (if they are any good), and some low noise mogami 2524 cable at $.99 per foot. Or, ad in some high quality Neutrik Plugs with clamp strain relief for about $3.90 each, and you'll have a high quality custom cable in (you choice of lenght) for under $30 (or $25 if you go with a 15" lenght).


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Post subject: Re: Why do I hear my guitar cable tap the ground thru my amp
Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2011 4:20 pm
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TTSC wrote:
Also, no reason to spend $50 to $100 on a highly marketed instrument cable.


Yup!

There's a lot of voodoo mumbo jumbo when it comes to cables, but one thing you can count on is certain brands to be way overpriced compared to any benefit they might provide.

It's sort of like food -- the healthiest foods don't have marketing slogans to tell you how healthy they are.


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