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SBEQ foot switch is now really loud

PostPosted: Mon Dec 12, 2011 11:41 pm
by thesjkexperience
And the strange thing is if you hold the body of the pedal and click the foot switch with your hand it isn't too bad. It is being powered by a single jack from a PP2+ so I wouldnt think it is the power, but who knows. Any ideas?

I am still leaning towards putting a switchable buffer in it, so if it is a bad switch I would do it then.

Re: SBEQ foot switch is now really loud

PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:04 am
by Your name here
You've eliminated cables as the cause? That's usually what causes these sort of problems when they happen to me. Or maybe a jack has come loose or rotated inside the pedal, causing the problem... Assuming of course that it isn't the foot switch itself going out... It may be. I've got a Wah Probe currently popping and acting intermittent. I plan to take apart and clean the switch first... If that fails, it's replacement time.

Re: SBEQ foot switch is now really loud

PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 9:59 am
by thesjkexperience
I'll check the cables! It hasn't moved from the board in ages, but I guess I should go through and give everything a tighten up on the output jacks. I just had a fuzz go wonky and a loose jack was the culprit.

The Purple Humper is also making a bit of noise with the foot switch, but not near as bad S the SBEQ.

Re: SBEQ foot switch is now really loud

PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 11:02 am
by Your name here
Strange... I wasn't getting any noise with the Humper. I hope you're able to track the issue down quickly!

Re: SBEQ foot switch is now really loud

PostPosted: Tue Dec 13, 2011 4:13 pm
by thesjkexperience
Now I suspect I may have a grounding issue. I will put batteries in both tonight and see what that does.

Re: SBEQ foot switch is now really loud

PostPosted: Wed Dec 14, 2011 7:29 am
by Donner
yeah let us know .... its an assembledge of parts and things slip out of spec,, and sometimes that a dirty stomp or a loose nut -- and sometimes its something in the environment like cables power, Ive even seen it be the stomp going bad in another pedal thats never switched off...... its always a challenge figuring out which rat in which hole is the culprit :mrgreen: and if all else fails you can send it to me .....

Re: SBEQ foot switch is now really loud

PostPosted: Wed Dec 14, 2011 11:02 am
by thesjkexperience
Thanks Donner! Bjorn contacted me about my desire for a buffer in my SBEQ and we went over some things to look for, but due to the crazy schedule with the kids this week I haven't had a chance to do any diagnostics. I am hoping it is simple and myPP2+ isn't messed up, but I do have quite the combination of wall warts and PP2+ running off of the same power strip.

I did recently get an extension cord so I could plug my pedals into an outlet not near the 4x outlet my computer and related stuff. I also used the buzzx or some thing to help stop ground problems I usually plug my amp into and that brought the noise down a lot.

On a related note will I need to change the foot switch on my SBEQ if I want an always on buffer in it?

I can't wait for my package :pedallove from Sveeden! :bjorn ROCKS!

Re: SBEQ foot switch is now really loud

PostPosted: Wed Dec 14, 2011 1:42 pm
by hawaii121
Having been down this road a bit myself... If the "pop" sounds like a footswitch click that has a mic next to it (unusually loud) it probably means you have leaking DC voltage somewhere in your chain. If this is true, batteries wont solve it. Here are a few options for trouble shooting.

1. EASY OPTION: Does the pedal still pop when isolated? If "yes" try switching out your pre-amp tube in V1. Most amps rely on the V1 pre-amp tube to remove DC voltage (it's more complicated than this, but in a nutshell that's what they do).

2. MORE TIME CONSUMING: Do you have a multi-meter? If it is leaking DC voltage, batteries are not going to solve the problem. Plug a cable into both sides of all your pedals and take a DC reading on the amp side cable with the pedal "on" and "off" - you should not have a reading of higher than 2mv (again, little rusty on this, but I think that's the right metric) on any pedal, if you do, that pedal might be your culprit.

3. MORE TIME CONSUMING: When I was having this problem, Bjorn kindly helped me trouble shoot and suggested checking all your DC cables as pedal "pop" is one sign they are going bad. The hitch? The pedal that is actually "popping" is not necessarily the one with the problem, so once a "pop" happens, you have to do process of elimination switching DC cables, removing pedal, etc... OR... if you have a multi-meter you can test DC cables the same way you test guitar cables.

Hope some of this is helpful and hopefully your problem is simple. Mine turned into a several week long goose chase that ended with finding out I had 2 or 3 bad pre-amp tubes that I was switching in an out of V1.

Re: SBEQ foot switch is now really loud

PostPosted: Wed Dec 14, 2011 2:45 pm
by thesjkexperience
I had a few minutes this morning and took both the SBEQ and the PH out of the chain and put batteries in them. No pops! SO, I put them back in the chain and again, no pops! However; my new Timmy's footswitch is really loud! I do have that and my MHvT on a Y power cable, so I will go through and check all my toys using Donnel's list. I will be so glad when this week is over! :banghead

Re: SBEQ foot switch is now really loud

PostPosted: Wed Dec 14, 2011 9:46 pm
by thesjkexperience
Is it 2 mA or 2 mV? My crummy, 30+ year old, analog meter won't do mV. Volt & Ampere need to be capitalized as it is a proper name.

I messed around with it a bit and without the battery it most always pops and it pops, but not as bad when off the board plugged into a wall wart (regulated). I put my MP RRB in the SBEQ slot and it doesn't pop at all! I changed out power cords for the SBEQ and the Y cord since the Timmy makes noise when plugged in, but not when run on a battery.

I need a new multimeter! I just don't know what to get and there are so many choices! Expensive choices too!