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| Hi,
I recently purchased an Ovation Custom Legend with an Op-Pro/Studio, 1/4" jack and XLR sockets. I found out the Studio and XLR doesn't support Phantom power, after I turned on the Phantom power! Jeez, how was I to know?! Anyways, tried to do some recoding to an Intel MacPro, via a Propellerhaed Ballance sound card and I can hear a high frequency buzz, corresponding to D# on the fretboard, when I connect via the 1/4" jack socket. There also seems to be interference from my phone, a clicking sound - weird! The XLR socket remains crystal clear, with an XLR cable and a dummy 1/4" jack, but if I XLR the guitar to DI box and 1/4" jack the DI box to the sound card, I get the same buzz? Ground lift on the DI box has no effect!
Anyone got any ideas what this could be? Have I frazzled a circuite board already? I've only had the guitar for 3 days, so surely there's some kind of special award I can get, right? I have 3 other Ovations: Classic, Balladeer, and Balladeer 12 string, and they are pretty quiet, though they are all on Op-Pro 1/4" jack! What can I do? Is there a self help solution?
Wes
Edited by thumos 2013-04-07 7:50 PM
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Location: Utah | Did you buy the guitar new? If so the electronics are covered under the lifetime warranty.
The clicking from your cell phone is rf interference. I don't believe you are describing a fault in the guitar electronics on that one. We get this all the time in the airliner I fly. It is how we know one of us pilots forgot to turn off his/her cellphone.
The noise with your macpro may be a form of rf or other interference originating in the computer. An impedance mismatch could cause problems which sound like whines or howls when you have digital devices connected.
But do keep the phantom power away from that OpPro Studio! I fried an aftermarket one I bought to drop into one of my Ovations. I don't know for sure but I suspect it was phantom power which killed it. Being an aftermarket item it was not covered by the lifetime factory warranty.
Have you plugged into a regular guitar amp or PA system? |
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Location: Sunshine State, Australia | FlySig - 2013-04-08 11:48 AM Did you buy the guitar new? If so the electronics are covered under the lifetime warranty. I think you'll find that the electronics aren't' included in the lifetime warranty... |
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Location: Sunshine State, Australia | Just to clarify, they ARE under warranty, but not lifetime. |
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| Hi,
Yes, somehow it's become really sensitive to RF, but none of my other Ovations appear to do this. I can also here the buzz when I plug the guitar into a Boss GT6 pedal, with no computer attached. It's definitely the guitar. If Phantom power was the cause, I guess the question is, which bit has been frazzled: the pre, the can, or the circuit board on the sockets? It's a complete ball ache, either way!
Wes |
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Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | Have you switched Preamps around amongst your Ovations?
If you have another guitar with an OP-Pro preamp, switch them around.
If the Studio Preamp hums in the other guitar... it is the Preamp.
If the other preamp hums in your Legend it is in the guitar... or at least the can.
Either way... By switching the OP-Pro Studio to another guitar, or a regular OP-Pro into the Legend you should be able to isolate the problem.
You can also remove an OP-Pro can from you Balladeer and switch them around.
If you determine that it is the OP-Pro Studio, you could contact the MotherShip and ask about a replacement.
Likewise if you determine it is the Can, they might be able to get you a replacement.
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Location: Utah | The circuit boards at the XLR plug end look to only have robust passive components. I don't believe you could fry them with phantom power. And I don't see how they could become sensitive to RF. The can is the same story, from what I can see there are not active electronics in the can itself. So if something has been damaged it would be within the preamp.
OMA makes an excellent suggestion to swap the preamp into another guitar.
I wonder if there is a bad ground somewhere in your guitar aside from the preamp module which is letting the rf in. |
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Location: Central Massachusetts | Hate to ask the obvious questions, but you'd be surprised how often they are overlooked. Have you tried reseating the pre-amp, and have you replaced the battery? |
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Location: sitting at my computer | "the XLR socket remains crystal clear" - IF the preamp was generating the buzz, wouldn't it also come through the XLR as well as the 1/4"?? I'm thinking the buzz is coming from elsewhere. Have you tried connecting the 1/4" directly into an amp to see if the buzz persists? |
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Location: sitting at my computer | Oh, and use a different 1/4" guitar cable. Might as well eliminate that as the possible cause right away. |
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| Hi,
I used different cables, used different batteries, reseated the pre, and tried the guitar through a Boss GT6, as I don't have an amp, but the buzz is still there. See attachment...
Attachments
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 buzz.mp3 (84KB - 7 downloads)
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Location: sitting at my computer | and none of your other acoustic electrics have the same (or similar) buzz when connected to the system? I played the mp3, but can't tell ya just from that where the buzz is originating. Maybe a resident OFC audio engineer can??? btw - here's an article on phantom power ya might find helpful or at least informative... http://avstomusic.blogspot.com/2012/05/can-phantom-power-damage-your.html |
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Location: Italia, Zianigo di Mirano (Venezia) | FlySig - 2013-04-08 3:48 AM
...FlySyg said:
"But do keep the phantom power away from that OpPro Studio! I fried an aftermarket one I bought to drop into one of my Ovations. I don't know for sure but I suspect it was phantom power which killed it. Being an aftermarket item it was not covered by the lifetime factory warranty".
I have read the other threads still on your OpPro Studio ... fried.Question: you had bought with his can? Maybe not.It's possible that you've entered the OP-Pro-Studio in the can of original guitar ?(not designed for XLR output ).I think that can prepared for XLR has the PCB different from the PCB of the normal can (without XLR)....
Edited by titti191730cm 2013-04-09 11:59 AM
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Location: Utah | titti, I purchased the entire system via AlPep to install in my 2007BCS which came from the factory with the VIP preamp and the XLR output already installed. The Studio came came with a new can though I don't believe I swapped the can itself. I believe the Studio kit came with a new 1/4" XLR assembly which included the wiring and the circuit board. I would not have replaced those parts since they were already installed in the guitar.
The problem may have been that the guitar was wired to deliver phantom power to the VIP. Thus it delivered it to the Studio. The Studio did not die instantly after applying Phantom power. It started making noises at some later date and then shortly afterwards died. I suspect the phantom power could have damaged it, but I can't know for sure. Thus I caution people not to put phantom power on preamps not designed for it, but I cannot claim it definitely killed my preamp. My Studio was beyond the 1 yr warranty so it was never sent back to the factory for diagnosis or replacement. |
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Location: Italia, Zianigo di Mirano (Venezia) | ....but, the VIP-5 would not work with XRL. Now I can not remember, the 2007 BCS has the VIP-5 and XLR output?, it seems strange that the VIP-5 functions with phantom power .I'm doing wrong?...
Edited by titti191730cm 2013-04-09 4:12 PM
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| Hi,
Just to keep you in the picture, I swapped the Op-Pro preamps over from my other Ovations into the Legend, one-by-one, and guess what..., crystal clear! And the other guitars all buzz with the studio in them. So, seems like its the preamp. Don't know why it's only on the 1/4 jack, though! Fender seem to think its HF hiss, but no way. How can it be when the volume is at zero on the guitar. Anyways, it's being returned to the sender. Watch this space! |
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Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | thumos - 2013-04-09 3:06 PM
Anyways, it's being returned to the sender. Watch this space!
The whole guitar or just the Preamp to Ovation/Fender?
Meanwhile, I am glad that you isolated the problem by process-of-elimination.
(And don't you love it when somebody far-far-away tells you that it is NOT broken...
that You are just doing something wrong?  )
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Location: sitting at my computer | thumos - So, seems like its the preamp. Well that's a bummer, but good job troubleshooting it! Don't know why it's only on the 1/4 jack, could it be a fault in the wiring / connection from the pre to the jack? Watch this space! will do! |
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| arthurseery - 2013-04-09 5:54 PM
thumos - 2013-04-09 3:06 PM
Anyways, it's being returned to the sender. Watch this space!
The whole guitar or just the Preamp to Ovation/Fender?
Meanwhile, I am glad that you isolated the problem by process-of-elimination.
(And don't you love it when somebody far-far-away tells you that it is NOT broken...
that You are just doing something wrong? )
Fender were happy to send me a new pre, but they were out of stock, on back order. So, the reseller has asked me to return the whole thing. They're gonna check it out and send a new one if need be.
By the way Arthur, seems you've had more guitars than I've had women. One hell of a collection! |
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Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | thumos - 2013-04-09 5:37 PM
By the way Arthur, seems you've had more guitars than I've had women. One hell of a collection!
If you are looking at my evilBay ME page I don't currently own all of those guitars.
But I have had some nice ones in my day. 
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Location: Northwest Arkansas | The pot in the volume knob went out in 2 of my Pro Studios in the same guitar. Op Pro is fine so is the Op50. I hope that's all the trouble. I'm still under warranty, but...
Edited by AdamasW597 2013-04-10 8:34 AM
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Location: Italia, Zianigo di Mirano (Venezia) | FlySig - 2013-04-09 8:42 PM
titti, I purchased the entire system via AlPep to install in my 2007BCS which came from the factory with the VIP preamp and the XLR output already installed. The Studio came came with a new can though I don't believe I swapped the can itself. I believe the Studio kit came with a new 1/4" XLR assembly which included the wiring and the circuit board. I would not have replaced those parts since they were already installed in the guitar.
The problem may have been that the guitar was wired to deliver phantom power to the VIP. Thus it delivered it to the Studio. The Studio did not die instantly after applying Phantom power. It started making noises at some later date and then shortly afterwards died. I suspect the phantom power could have damaged it, but I can't know for sure. Thus I caution people not to put phantom power on preamps not designed for it, but I cannot claim it definitely killed my preamp. My Studio was beyond the 1 yr warranty so it was never sent back to the factory for diagnosis or replacement. FlySig,....but, the VIP-5 should not work with XRL. Now I can not remember, the 2007 BCS has the VIP-5 and XLR output?, it seems strange that the VIP-5 functions with phantom power .I'm saying something wrong ?....
Edited by titti191730cm 2013-04-10 4:20 PM
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Ovation Op-Pro/Studio blues...
