srnitynow @ Thu Mar 04, 2010 7:51 am wrote:
OK, I'm NOT a TECHNICIAN, AND I may make a fool of myself here, BUT wouldn't it be EASY to run a HEAVY DUTY extension cord to the components NOT plugged into your MAIN power supply, and plug them ALL into the same MAIN power supply. Then if the noise STOPS, you could unplug them (one-by-one), and re-plug them into the outlet they were in, to see if the NOISE comes back. When you hear the noise, then you KNOW where the problem is coming from. Once you find which outlet is the problem (if it is), just leave that component plugged into the MAIN power supply. If, when you have ALL plugged into the MAIN power supply and you STILL get the noise, UNPLUG them (one-by-one) until the noise goes away. Then you'll know which one is LIKELY causing the problem. Is THIS reasoning flawed, and if so, HOW? I'd like to know in case (I) run into this problem.
Rosario
Serenity Now Karaoke
That's what I do, everything in my rig is plugged into the same Furman Rack Rider which then connects to power. Now the issue is as gunghouk pointed out in situations where it's not a ground loop issue, that doesn't help. As I've been saying for a while now, I don't believe the issue here is a ground loop issue. It's some other form of interference and it seems to be traveling on the ground (earth) conductor.
This is why I get irked that the term ground loop gets tossed around so freely to describe any form of induced interference. Each has their own set of troubleshooting steps and the causes/results are very different.
jerry12x, in answer to your question, I have seen all sorts of rigs from the smallest clubs to the largest 40,000+ capacity auditoriums have ground loops. Now to fix them there are various solutions. In most cases simply setting up the rig as I've mentioned before is all it takes. In larger venues, sometimes the ground lifts built into amplifiers, D/I's or other equipment are needed to resolve the issue. However, you don't see guys breaking off ground pins, they value the equipment's and their safety far too much.