Pickguard Static Noise

[darwinohm]

Okay G&L fans, I'm sitting here chilling out tonight and decided to play my S-500. I plug it in and notice that I get static noise in my amp while playing, so this calls for an investigation. I determine that with the guitar laying on my setup bed that if I run my finger across the pickuard, along the lower side of the pickups, I get this static noise. It is not near the edges or even on the top side of the pickups. So , I ground out the pickguard screws and even the pickguard and there is no change. It is apparent to me that this is static being picked up by the pickup wiring. So i wet my finger and run across the same area and absolutely no noise. Now I decide it is time to check some other guitars. I bring Blingy out (ASAT Classic) and it had no static noise. Next I bring my Legacy (2010) with the Kinman Blues and that baby is quiet. Next I get a 2007 Legacy. Noisy, just like the S-500. Now I decide to try a Legacy that is probably a 2004 build. This one is also quiet. I am not going to remove pickguards tonight and maybe someone here on the forum has the answer but I suspect that the ones with the static noise do not have shielding on the back of the pickguards. This is a simple fix if needed. I tried other brands ( Several Fenders and a Suhr) and they have no static. So what do you think folks, other than colder weather in Minnesota. I am going to dig into the Legacy with the Kinman blues as I know that the wiring was also replaced on that one but it may have also been shielded on the back side of the pickguard. I am not going to replace everything with aluminum pickguards but do I need to shield pickguards or do I need shielding around the wire from the pickups? I am looking for an easy answer. -- Darwin

[louis cyfer]

wipe the pickguard down with a dryer sheet. it will get rid of the static. you can run a piece of wire from under the pickguard to the ground so it gets discharged regularly.

[Philby]

Hi Darwin. I'm guessing there's no foil on the back of the pick guards. I've got 2 Tribby asats that do the same thing. Neither had foil shielding. I put foil shielding on and ran a ground wire to the foil and problem solved. No more static.

[darwinohm]

Thanks Louis and Philby. Philby, I suspect that your answer is the long term fix and the right one. I thought all pickguards had foil on the back. Has this been discudded here before?-- Darwin

[Craig]

Thanks Louis and Philby. Philby, I suspect that your answer is the long term fix and the right one. I thought all pickguards had foil on the back. Has this been discudded here before?-- Darwin

It has been discussed on the original G&LDP several times and usually around this time of year.
Louis's suggestion of using a dryer sheet is the one most recommended in the past.
I will add this to the G&L Knowledgebase-G&L Tech Tips, so that it will not get lost again.

I happen to have a new Comanche pickguard from the factory. This scan shows the foil tape
that the factory uses under the controls section of the pickguard.



Hope this helps.

[sickbutnottired]

Darwin your always coming up with the Darnedest questions.

My question is: i have seen and had people use really expensive shielding tape on single coil guitars. Why wouldn't standard HVAC foil tape work just as well?

Anyone with experience?

Jeremy

[louis cyfer]

Darwin your always coming up with the Darnedest questions.

My question is: i have seen and had people use really expensive shielding tape on single coil guitars. Why wouldn't standard HVAC foil tape work just as well?

Anyone with experience?

Jeremy

copper has different shielding qualities than aluminum. the best way is actually copper sheets cut to size and soldered together. labor extensive though.

[Lefty]

Hi Darwin. I'm guessing there's no foil on the back of the pick guards. I've got 2 Tribby asats that do the same thing. Neither had foil shielding. I put foil shielding on and ran a ground wire to the foil and problem solved. No more static.

+1 - I have 3 ASAT's that don't have foil on the back of the pickguard. Only one has a static problem. I usually notice it most after cleaning/polishing the pickguard (creating static.) A dryer sheet will quiet it!
If that doesn't do it, you may want to try one of these products:

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Electronics ... lding.html

[Philby]

Hi Jeremy. HVAC tape should work just as well as long as you can assure that there is electrical continuity.

I recall reading an article by Bill Lawrence where he argued that aluminium is better shielding material than copper though copper is easier to work with.

[darwinohm]

Jeremy, I agree that HVAC sticky tape should be the ticket. I have access to it and that will be a good winter project. I have never had a pickguard off a G&L except for a Bluesboy and I honestly do not remember if it had foil or not. I just assumed that all pickguards were shielded from the manufacturer. I have learned something today and I thank all of you for you input. My final question would be for Craig. Does the factory shield all new G&L pickguards? My 2010 Legacy does not have a static issue. Thanks-- Darwin

Edit. The relative humidity in the house has dropped to 32% and I am going to look into a humidifier in the next week or two. That should also control the fret sprout common in the winter.

[Ken Baker]

Having shielded a few basses, I've found that the copper tape made for the purpose is very effective and easy to work with. It has the additional quality of having conductive adhesive, so pieces of it that are stuck together are connected together electrically. Finally, copper tape will accept solder - something that aluminum HVAC tape will not do.

I know it's not a guitar, but perhaps this will help.

Ken...

[Craig]

My final question would be for Craig. Does the factory shield all new G&L pickguards? My 2010 Legacy does not have a static issue. Thanks-- Darwin

They do shield the control area of the pickguard. See my previous post has an image of a recent Comanche pickguard.
Also check Ken's link to his tutorial on his SB-2 bass shielding. There is a photo of the pickguard showing the G&L shielding
prior to his shielding mods.

I wonder if different plastic pickguards (material and/or number of plys) are more susceptible to static.
Which pickguard is on your 2010 Legacy?

Hope this helps.

[darwinohm]

Thanks Craig. The 2010 legacy has a vintage white pickguard. The noisy one on the s-500 is a pearloid. - Darwin

[wrigman]

Just my 2 cents here. I have had a static problem with an 09 ASAT and A 07 Legacy. I went to stew-mac and bought copper shielding kit(it isn't that much$$) I shielded the guitar bodies and pickguards, put a grounding wire from the pickguard to the body. I also went a little over the body edges(not so much that it will show when the pickguard is installed) and I have dead quiet guitars. I also did it with my ASAT Blues boy, and what little noise there was, is now gone. The copper foil was overlaped and worked real well. Good luck to you and your quest for quiet....

[darwinohm]

Thanks Wrigman. I am going to do this some time this winter. I just have to figure out how many I have to do it to!-- Thanks again-- Darwin

[vincethemba]

hi.

i also had static problems with my tribute legacy strat.
used graphite spray at the back of the pickguard and made a copper shield between the pickguard and body.
got rid of the pickguard noise but still, when i'm wearing a sweater which consists polyester, the contact between guitar and sweater is still noticeable.
i think there' no way to ground the paint of the guitar... kind of disappointed by g&l with this issue. should be tested before releasing it.

regards,
vince

[darwinohm]

Did you shield the back cover over the trem cavity? -- Darwin

[vincethemba]

hi darwin. didn't do that. do you have experience with it? would self-adhesive aluminum foil do the job?

[darwinohm]

Yes, I think the sticky aluminum foil will fix it right up. Most manufactures use similar paints so that is not the problem. Let us know how this works out. -- Darwin

[vincethemba]

i shielded the back cover now but it didn't solve the problem.

i get static noise when i'm practicing and the guitar touches my clothes. (cotton/no polyester)

did anybody experience and solve this annoying problem??

[bassman]

You have to connect the shielded back cover to ground. Just having a foil shield ungrounded does nothing.

I have exclusively used HVAC aluminum tape on all of my instruments that needed additional grounding with no issues. I don't see the need for copper and the adhesive on the aluminum tape seems to conduct current just fine. I don't solder anything to my shields,

Static is always more prevalent in winter because of the lack of natural humidity.

[vincethemba]

hi bassman,

thanks for the reply. well, i shielded the whole cavity of the tremolo springs and grounded everything. as i described, the problem with the pick guard is solved but the whole body seems statically charged. at least i'm able to touch the pickguard with my fingers without getting static noise.

best, vince