The Steel Guitar Forum Store 

Post new topic Nashville 400
Reply to topic
Author Topic:  Nashville 400
Derrick Unger


From:
Newark Ohio, USA
Post  Posted 26 Jun 2016 11:42 am    
Reply with quote

Just got a Nashville 400 with a Ken Fox Mod..sounds good...am using a Overfelt "Longhorn" 6 string pedal steel. I am getting a Hum using the no. 1 input and the pre-gain about 2-3 and the post gain about 3.
this is not a bad hum like a 60 cycle power supply hum
and is totally passible but it does get louder if I switch the ground switch up from bottom to middle and up some more if switched to top position..it also increases substantially by cranking up the other gains.. is this normal??? you would not hear this playing at all...just when amp is on and guitar is not playing
_________________
Music is good for the soul..playing it is even better! Gretsch6strLapSteel*PeaveyNashville400*HudsonSD-10*DigitechRP360*FenderChampion100*PeaveyKB300*Goodrich120*Behringerx1204*BehringerMini4*Mullen S10"Discovery"*Peavey Vegas400*Princeton112plus*SuperChampX2*SidekickReverb65*Rumble100*MarshallMG50DFX*Nashville112
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Lane Gray


From:
Topeka, KS
Post  Posted 26 Jun 2016 6:39 pm    
Reply with quote

I'm just guessing that those thirty year old caps are tired. Caps suppress the hum.
_________________
2 pedal steels, a lapStrat, and an 8-string Dobro (and 3 ukes)
More amps than guitars, and not many effects
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Yahoo Messenger

Derrick Unger


From:
Newark Ohio, USA
Post  Posted 26 Jun 2016 7:56 pm    
Reply with quote

Well it isn't something I can't live with at all...at least for a while..just wondered if other Nashville 400 users had the hum at moderate volume levels when everything is silent.
I believe I have also heard about checking the ground on the input jack as being a problem on many amps also..thats an easy look into.
_________________
Music is good for the soul..playing it is even better! Gretsch6strLapSteel*PeaveyNashville400*HudsonSD-10*DigitechRP360*FenderChampion100*PeaveyKB300*Goodrich120*Behringerx1204*BehringerMini4*Mullen S10"Discovery"*Peavey Vegas400*Princeton112plus*SuperChampX2*SidekickReverb65*Rumble100*MarshallMG50DFX*Nashville112
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Bob Metzger

 

From:
Waltham (Boston), MA, USA
Post  Posted 27 Jun 2016 8:03 am    
Reply with quote

Derrick,

Is there hum with nothing plugged into the NV400? Do you have another instrument around to check it with that for hum? Is the pickup(s) on your instrument a single coil or humbucking? And, of course, have you tried another connecting cable?
_________________
Bob M.
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Derrick Unger


From:
Newark Ohio, USA
Post  Posted 27 Jun 2016 9:40 am    
Reply with quote

Thanks Bob...Duh on my part..sometimes you can't see the forrest because of a tree..tried with nothing plugged in..not a sound.
tried with my guitar..not a sound..not my cord..it is the pickup on steel..nice to know the amp is perfect.

Thanks again!!
_________________
Music is good for the soul..playing it is even better! Gretsch6strLapSteel*PeaveyNashville400*HudsonSD-10*DigitechRP360*FenderChampion100*PeaveyKB300*Goodrich120*Behringerx1204*BehringerMini4*Mullen S10"Discovery"*Peavey Vegas400*Princeton112plus*SuperChampX2*SidekickReverb65*Rumble100*MarshallMG50DFX*Nashville112
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

chris ivey


From:
california (deceased)
Post  Posted 27 Jun 2016 9:48 am    
Reply with quote

not knowing anything about 6 string overfelt steels, i thought it might be something to do with that.
View user's profile Send private message

Bob Metzger

 

From:
Waltham (Boston), MA, USA
Post  Posted 27 Jun 2016 10:00 am    
Reply with quote

Derrick,

Got an ohmmeter? Got a (low-power, about 30 watts) soldering iron?

Measure the pickup either at the jack or at the bobbin (whatever's easiest). I don't know your pickup but it's pretty safe to assume that if working, it will measure somewhere between 8K and 22K ohms. With a soldering iron, you can touch-solder the jack and if you're super careful, the leads coming from the bobbin itself, just enough to let the solder re-flow. Not always but sometimes this will correct the problem. If you need a re-wind, Jason Lollar or Lindy Fralin are good candidates. If you're not all that much in love with your pickup, the guy in New Mexico will wind you anything you'd like and his stuff is good. Someone on this forum will has his name/contact info.

But first, before all these heroic measures, plug the steel into the amp and wiggle the pickup wires (if possible) using a needle nose pliers. If the hum disappears, even temporarily, then it could be a bad ground/ bad (cold) solder somewhere. Just to eliminate all this stuff, I usually unsolder the output jack, clean it really well, re-solder the wires and re-attach the jack to the chassis using a fresh metal lock washer and make sure everything is tight. Bad grounding can cause hum. Some guys use copper tape around the bobbin to lessen hum. This might help. If you go thru everything with a fine tooth comb, it'll be as good as it's gonna get.

Good luck,

Bob M.
_________________
Bob M.
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Bob Metzger

 

From:
Waltham (Boston), MA, USA
Post  Posted 27 Jun 2016 10:01 am    
Reply with quote

deleted - posted twice
_________________
Bob M.


Last edited by Bob Metzger on 27 Jun 2016 11:16 am; edited 1 time in total
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

chris ivey


From:
california (deceased)
Post  Posted 27 Jun 2016 10:47 am    
Reply with quote

contact the overfelt guy and ask him what to do. this is a fairly new product being offered by him and i would think he'd like to make sure he's putting out something reliable.
View user's profile Send private message

Bob Metzger

 

From:
Waltham (Boston), MA, USA
Post  Posted 27 Jun 2016 11:27 am    
Reply with quote

Chris,

Good point! If this is a newer instrument and possibly under warranty then contact the maker/company and leave your soldering iron put away. I would, as a preventative measure, tighten up the output jack or any and all ground points relating to the pickup and/or the electronics. Sometimes if you lose ground contact here, it might cause hum.

If the pickup is a single coil type, some hum will probably be inevitable. But another possibility is that the pickup has a defect and I would think any reputable instrument maker wants to see great sounding examples of his work in the field. So check out the warranty angle if the instrument is fairly new.

Best of luck,

Bob M.
_________________
Bob M.
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Derrick Unger


From:
Newark Ohio, USA
Post  Posted 27 Jun 2016 11:30 am    
Reply with quote

First..thanks for the replies.. I was glad Bob replied and made me aware of the obvious..absolutely nothing wrong with Nashville with guitar in it..quiet as a church mouse..I have a gretsch lap steel almost new and it sounds almost the same with hum. I think it is the pickups.

Also let me put this in perspective..I have a 3 speed 8" electric fan on desktop running on low and it completely drowns out any hum I hear.
I am going to check out my jack on the steel though..thats easy..thanks fellows.
_________________
Music is good for the soul..playing it is even better! Gretsch6strLapSteel*PeaveyNashville400*HudsonSD-10*DigitechRP360*FenderChampion100*PeaveyKB300*Goodrich120*Behringerx1204*BehringerMini4*Mullen S10"Discovery"*Peavey Vegas400*Princeton112plus*SuperChampX2*SidekickReverb65*Rumble100*MarshallMG50DFX*Nashville112
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail


All times are GMT - 8 Hours
Jump to:  

Our Online Catalog
Strings, CDs, instruction,
steel guitars & accessories

www.SteelGuitarShopper.com

Please review our Forum Rules and Policies

Steel Guitar Forum LLC
PO Box 237
Mount Horeb, WI 53572 USA


Click Here to Send a Donation

Email admin@steelguitarforum.com for technical support.


BIAB Styles
Ray Price Shuffles for
Band-in-a-Box

by Jim Baron
HTTP