Cavity shielding?
- Thread starter LushTone
- Start date
mayfly
Epic Member
- Messages
- 9,049
I think what's happening here is that we're confusing EMI noise with static discharge noise.
As Cagey points out, shielding on a guitar for EMI reasons is pretty much pointless. You have a mile of wire in that pickup sticking up in the breeze - covering a few inches inside the cavity is not going to make much difference.
BUT!
if you have a problem with static buildup and sporadic discharge into those wires, throwing up a little ground plane up for that static to discharge into can be a good thing. As long as the plane is actually grounded mind you...
I had this issue with one telecaster. It would make crackly noises if I rubbed the pick guard (which apparently I do while I'm playing). "what the heck?" I asked myself. Hitting it with the old static gun confirmed what I was hearing - a build up of charge on the pick guard that was sporadically discharging into a pickup wire. So I got out the old copper foil and applied it to the underside of the pick guard. Not everywhere mind you, just in a little strip over where the wires run. Then I grounded it. the result was no more crackles - not even with the static gun. The static was still building up; it now had a discharge path that was no longer directly into a high gain guitar amp.
Still hummed like crazy when the gain was up mind you, but eliminating that was not what I was after.
As Cagey points out, shielding on a guitar for EMI reasons is pretty much pointless. You have a mile of wire in that pickup sticking up in the breeze - covering a few inches inside the cavity is not going to make much difference.
BUT!
if you have a problem with static buildup and sporadic discharge into those wires, throwing up a little ground plane up for that static to discharge into can be a good thing. As long as the plane is actually grounded mind you...
I had this issue with one telecaster. It would make crackly noises if I rubbed the pick guard (which apparently I do while I'm playing). "what the heck?" I asked myself. Hitting it with the old static gun confirmed what I was hearing - a build up of charge on the pick guard that was sporadically discharging into a pickup wire. So I got out the old copper foil and applied it to the underside of the pick guard. Not everywhere mind you, just in a little strip over where the wires run. Then I grounded it. the result was no more crackles - not even with the static gun. The static was still building up; it now had a discharge path that was no longer directly into a high gain guitar amp.
Still hummed like crazy when the gain was up mind you, but eliminating that was not what I was after.
sixstringsamurai
Hero Member
- Messages
- 702
GoDrex said:
Nahh I later found that it does it on any guitar I handle.
I can sit and rub my finger back and forth on the cavity cover and it sounds like a DJ scratching.... :dontknow:
Strat Avenger
Hero Member
- Messages
- 2,708
What's funny is I never had that static problem on any guitar I ever owned until I bought Warmoth pickguards (3 of them). The back of my original Fender pickguard was entirely covered with aluminum foil, but the Warmoth pickguards had it only on the control area.
fdesalvo
Hero Member
- Messages
- 3,609
A properly shielded guitar is quieter. Once I finished shielding my Strat, I was able to perform with my cell phone in pocket without issue. Prior, I'd hear blips and bleeps whenever I received a message. All bets are off if the source of noise come from the front. The pickups will transduce.
Wolf Follower
Junior Member
- Messages
- 34
Heavy duty aluminum foil will work just as well and is my top choice due to being cheap and easily obtained. Also, I can tell you from experience that shielding a guitar absolutely can make a big difference, particularly with single coil setups. Obviously you can't work around having the pickups exposed but once you have shielded the rest of the guitar, often a slight change in orientation is enough to eliminate any noise.
WF
WF
Strat Avenger
Hero Member
- Messages
- 2,708
Eddie Van Halen knows that shielding is a waste of time with humbuckers. The $3,000 EVH Wolfgang guitar has no shielding in the electronics cavity, because none is needed.
Similar threads
