Woodwind Posted March 6, 2020 Share Posted March 6, 2020 I've got some recording coming up where I could really do without the buzz that comes from my bass when I'm not touching the strings. I presume this is a shielding issue. For those that have done DIY shielding would you rate copper tape as better than conductive paint? What's a good UK based source for tape with conductive glue? I don't need a huge amount as I'm only doing the one bass. Cheers Thomas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
invertigo Posted March 6, 2020 Share Posted March 6, 2020 Amazon copper tape is what I used on my buzzing Les Paul, does the job nicely and its got a conductive adhesive so no need to bridge the faces of overlapping strips. Got a massive amount left over, but it'll find uses in other jobs. Apparently it's also good for keeping snails out of planters, so my dad might find some use for that in his allotment. From what I read, paint is easier to get into all the awkward bits but tape is far faster and more convenient for most of the job. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted March 6, 2020 Share Posted March 6, 2020 Put a little sliver out of the control cavity to sit under the bell plate to get easy earthing for the cavity Tape over paint every time 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodwind Posted March 6, 2020 Author Share Posted March 6, 2020 1 hour ago, invertigo said: Amazon copper tape is what I used on my buzzing Les Paul, does the job nicely and its got a conductive adhesive so no need to bridge the faces of overlapping strips. Got a massive amount left over, but it'll find uses in other jobs. Apparently it's also good for keeping snails out of planters, so my dad might find some use for that in his allotment. From what I read, paint is easier to get into all the awkward bits but tape is far faster and more convenient for most of the job. 26 minutes ago, Geek99 said: Put a little sliver out of the control cavity to sit under the bell plate to get easy earthing for the cavity Tape over paint every time Great thank you both! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted March 6, 2020 Share Posted March 6, 2020 You can join the back pup to front by a thin strip (62 style and visible ) and the front to main cavity in same way - hidden by scratch plate . This then earths through the bell plate 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodwind Posted March 6, 2020 Author Share Posted March 6, 2020 34 minutes ago, Geek99 said: You can join the back pup to front by a thin strip (62 style and visible ) and the front to main cavity in same way - hidden by scratch plate . This then earths through the bell plate This is for a stingray, but that's a great tip and I might do something similar joing the ray pickup to the control plate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted March 6, 2020 Share Posted March 6, 2020 (edited) A stingray has a humbucker so unsure why you have buzz. Suggest it’s another issue like bridge earthing Edited March 6, 2020 by Geek99 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodwind Posted March 7, 2020 Author Share Posted March 7, 2020 18 hours ago, Geek99 said: A stingray has a humbucker so unsure why you have buzz. Suggest it’s another issue like bridge earthing The buzz goes away when I touch any metal part, which implies the bridge earth is working, but googling around on this and it is not an uncommon buzz issue is on rays. I'll check the bridge earth first and then look at shielding 😎 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted March 7, 2020 Share Posted March 7, 2020 Got a multimeter ? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukeFRC Posted March 7, 2020 Share Posted March 7, 2020 For recording I've taken a wire, wound it around a part of the bridge so it stays fixed. I've then taped it to my upper arm with electrical tape. Not the most elegant solution but it worked! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodwind Posted March 8, 2020 Author Share Posted March 8, 2020 10 hours ago, Geek99 said: Got a multimeter ? Alas no, ok atleast not something I can beg/steal/borrow before when required Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodwind Posted March 8, 2020 Author Share Posted March 8, 2020 9 hours ago, LukeFRC said: For recording I've taken a wire, wound it around a part of the bridge so it stays fixed. I've then taped it to my upper arm with electrical tape. Not the most elegant solution but it worked! Yes thank you for the reminder, I had forgotten about this trick. If All else fails before the critical day, this is a great idea Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted March 8, 2020 Share Posted March 8, 2020 (edited) 12 hours ago, Woodwind said: Alas no, ok atleast not something I can beg/steal/borrow before when required Just check continuity from various points to the jack socket outer ring. Then use ohms / resistance to check resistance (is it a good contact rather than merely connected) - if almost none from various points to the jack outer then that contact point was earthed well. Edited March 8, 2020 by Geek99 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
invertigo Posted March 9, 2020 Share Posted March 9, 2020 I mean, to be fair my Gibson Les Paul with 2x humbuckers buzzed like hell when it was cranked up before shielding, albeit probably not helped by Gibson claiming its not needed and not shielding anything in their guitars these days. Remember that humbuckers cancel out the 60-cycle hum but they can still pick up electromagnetic interference (which shielding then minimises). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fingerz Posted March 19, 2020 Share Posted March 19, 2020 'Slug tape' is self adhesive copper tape and available at most hardware outlets. Paint is expensive but can do a great job too. Unless i was building it from scratch (building up layers on a clean surface from the start) , I would get some copper tape in there to see if it's doing what you need. Quick, cheap and effective. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bloke_zero Posted March 20, 2020 Share Posted March 20, 2020 My home build MM stingray benefited from shielding - I assumed there was an element where the electronics (though passive) could be a source of hum - perhaps it just helped with the grounding! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chienmortbb Posted March 20, 2020 Share Posted March 20, 2020 On 09/03/2020 at 08:31, invertigo said: I mean, to be fair my Gibson Les Paul with 2x humbuckers buzzed like hell when it was cranked up before shielding, albeit probably not helped by Gibson claiming its not needed and not shielding anything in their guitars these days. Remember that humbuckers cancel out the 60-cycle hum but they can still pick up electromagnetic interference (which shielding then minimises). Humbuckers reduce the i nduced mains hum. It is 60Hz in the USA, Canada, Japan but 50Hz in Europe. However you are correct ijn that most of the interference is EMI/RFI. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chienmortbb Posted March 20, 2020 Share Posted March 20, 2020 It takes more work but aluminium tape is the best shielding. Th issue is that you cannot solder it ans there is none that I know of that has conductive adhesive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted March 20, 2020 Share Posted March 20, 2020 (edited) 17 hours ago, fingerz said: 'Slug tape' is self adhesive copper tape and available at most hardware outlets. Paint is expensive but can do a great job too. Unless i was building it from scratch (building up layers on a clean surface from the start) , I would get some copper tape in there to see if it's doing what you need. Quick, cheap and effective. Slug tape doesn’t have conductive adhesive so you need to fold an edge over to touch the next piece or solder the pieces together. That’s the price difference between slug tape and copper shielding foil tape Edited March 20, 2020 by Geek99 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmorris Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 On 20/03/2020 at 13:35, Chienmortbb said: It takes more work but aluminium tape is the best shielding. Th issue is that you cannot solder it ans there is none that I know of that has conductive adhesive. All things being equal Copper is a more effective shielding material. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NancyJohnson Posted March 21, 2020 Share Posted March 21, 2020 On 20/03/2020 at 13:59, Geek99 said: Slug tape doesn’t have conductive adhesive so you need to fold an edge over to touch the next piece or solder the pieces together. That’s the price difference between slug tape and copper shielding foil tape We're talking about shielding as opposed to conductivity? There shouldn't be any need to solder or overlap when you're shielding the cavity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 5 hours ago, NancyJohnson said: We're talking about shielding as opposed to conductivity? There shouldn't be any need to solder or overlap when you're shielding the cavity. Shielding only works with conductivity to Earth, I had thought ? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fingerz Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 On 20/03/2020 at 13:59, Geek99 said: Slug tape doesn’t have conductive adhesive so you need to fold an edge over to touch the next piece or solder the pieces together. That’s the price difference between slug tape and copper shielding foil tape The adhesive strip is narrower than the copper strip, so there's plenty of space for overlap and solid connection. I found it really easy to make a very clean job of it. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NancyJohnson Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 2 hours ago, Geek99 said: Shielding only works with conductivity to Earth, I had thought ? As I understand it, shielding just serves to reduce interference from both inside and outside of the cavity. If you're in a room where you have florescent lights or (in the case I had at one particular rehearsal room) my set up picking up audio from the next room AND mini-cab radio, shielding will lessen that stuff coming out of your amp. The OP is more about a grounding/earthing issue, which suggests something is a bit off with the bass maybe? I suppose this is how these threads meander! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted March 22, 2020 Share Posted March 22, 2020 Surely the take-in of the emf causes a current in the shielding, you need to take that away. The energy doesn’t die if you leave it there, although it equally doesn’t die if you ship it to ground, but al least it’s not bothering you any more Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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