Soda Jerk Posted April 29, 2014 Report Share Posted April 29, 2014 I'd never had a problem with my board until I fired it up this morning. Have you ever plugged in all your gear (guitar > pedal board > amp) only to find that somehow, something in your chain is picking up FM Radio?! I plugged my guitar into my board this morning, hooked it up to my amp, and switched it on. Immediately, I could hear a faint sound. I kicked on a distortion pedal, which loudened the sound. It was radio signal. It was bleedin' football news from the radio. I don't even own a radio. There's no radio in the house. It happened when I kicked on any OD/Dirt pedal, though was just about audible without any pedals switched on. Guitar and amp were fine when used with no pedals, so I assume that rules them out. Has this happened to anyone else? If so, was it a pedal, or was it something else? (Patch cable, power supply, daisy chain etc) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavetheRave Posted April 29, 2014 Report Share Posted April 29, 2014 I've had a wireless pick up taxi radio signals once, but it was an early version! Cables can sometimes act as aerials and pick up radio signals, might be worth trying a different guitar cable or patch lead? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soda Jerk Posted April 29, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2014 I did try different guitar leads. However... My pedal board looks like a bomb went off at the patch cable factory. That might be a bit trickier to go over! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavetheRave Posted April 29, 2014 Report Share Posted April 29, 2014 I know what you mean about checking patch cables, I think theres about 14 on my main board! This article might help http://www.digitalprosound.com/2001/02_feb/features/connections/connections3.htm 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colb Posted April 29, 2014 Report Share Posted April 29, 2014 My board does this sometimes, particularly at Downstairs. Rebuilt my board a few times and couldn't find a problem....so I bought a noise suppressor and that makes it manageable. With custom pedals it's quite easy to get problems with components touching the cases and creating weird situations, you can go nearly mad trying to isolate every sound. In Callahan we're pretty loud most of the time so no one really notices. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steviepearce Posted April 29, 2014 Report Share Posted April 29, 2014 Even check the shielding on your guitar and amp. It will be an grounding issue but could be any cable, any solder joint within the pedals or the guitar and amp itself. Are you plugging power into a ring at home that has a radio or computer running off the same ring. Could also cause the issue. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soda Jerk Posted April 29, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 29, 2014 It could possibly be a radio in the flat above, but certainly no radios in my flat. I thought maybe my phone could be interfering. I switched it off and put it in another room, but it didn't help. I tried plugging the board into a couple of different plug sockets, but the problem persisted. I'll give the board a once-over at the weekend. It needs a bit of a shuffle anyway, as I've got a couple of things I want to put on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Broonbreed Posted April 30, 2014 Report Share Posted April 30, 2014 (edited) My old sessionette amp used to pick up radio. Pretty sure it was usually just the guitar straight in, possibly a shred master too. Try covering everything in tin foil. The only drawback is it's even more appealing to junkies than before. Edited April 30, 2014 by James Broonbreed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Posted April 30, 2014 Report Share Posted April 30, 2014 It won't be picking up a radio nearby, it's acting as a radio. Used to have a CryBaby that did it, once so bad I had to completely disconnect it at a gig. Also used to get it a lot when practicing at The Foyer. Even had an amp once that regularly used to spit out foreign radio stations. Lots of reasons for it happening, usually related to shielding but the problem may not even be in your board. Could be a poor quality electrical socket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Broonbreed Posted April 30, 2014 Report Share Posted April 30, 2014 I'm pretty sure it was Norwegian radio my amp used to pick up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soda Jerk Posted May 3, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 3, 2014 Took my board apart today, went through every pedal and cable, one by one, and couldn't get it to pick up radio signal again. Until I realised that I have 3 different power adaptors, and I was trying each pedal with just one of my adaptors. The remaining two power adaptors are exactly the same make/model. They are the offenders. Both of those turn my distortion pedals into radios. Which is weird, because I've been using them on my board for months with no issues. It's odd they've only just started acting out. So, I need a couple of 9V power adaptors. Any recommendations? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steviepearce Posted May 3, 2014 Report Share Posted May 3, 2014 It will be a dodge earth in one of the adapters. Just have a check of that first. Be same as a normal plug where one wire comes loose and the shielding if gone. It would get faulty over time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soda Jerk Posted May 3, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 3, 2014 Seems odd that both have the exact same fault. To be fair, they were both a fiver each from Ebay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stroopy121 Posted May 4, 2014 Report Share Posted May 4, 2014 Took my board apart today, went through every pedal and cable, one by one, and couldn't get it to pick up radio signal again. Until I realised that I have 3 different power adaptors, and I was trying each pedal with just one of my adaptors. The remaining two power adaptors are exactly the same make/model. They are the offenders. Both of those turn my distortion pedals into radios. Which is weird, because I've been using them on my board for months with no issues. It's odd they've only just started acting out. So, I need a couple of 9V power adaptors. Any recommendations? http://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_powerplant_junior.htm xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soda Jerk Posted May 4, 2014 Author Report Share Posted May 4, 2014 Is a powerbank like that better than using a 9v power adaptor and a daisy chain? I'd never had a problem using 3 power packs and a couple of daisy chains until two of the power packs decided to turn into radio transmitters. A couple of adaptors would probably be much cheaper than a powerbank that powers 12 pedals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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