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Radio killed my studio star
StoreTags: RF interference, strategy, old house
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Hey Portland
Anyone know the science behind radio frequency interference in your studio equipment? FM?
I live in a super old property and even though the plugs in my studio zone are 3 prong, I think something is bad somewhere. Two pieces of gear- a Doepfer filter module that's in a mini module box, and a tube bandpass filter unit (old).
I've been trying to be "into" the "earthy character" of the RF interference, even doing some no-input-filter noise tracks based on the FM interference. But now I'm just frustrated. i've tried:
better shielded cables
switching around using different outlets, power strips
wrapping the module box in tin foil
etc.
I am at a complete loss. Fellow Portland studio nerds please help!!!!
Strategy | |
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06/09/08
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strategy
I incompleted a thought. The two mentioned pieces of gear are the ones that get RF.
Strata
06/09/08
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lilt
make sure that none of your cables are coiled up... they should be sitting straight
and make sure that when they cross, they cross at right angles (like an X)
ive had this problem too and those are two good ways to reduce it
06/09/08
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mapmap
hey paul. even if your plugs are 3 prong it doesn't necessarily mean that they are grounded.
you can pick one of these things up at the hardware store to check them out....
link
~marc
06/10/08
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bb01
its easy to check if they are grounded
just remove the face plate and check wether the third tab has got a wire attached to it.
the other thing thats not so obvious (to me anyways) is that plugging gear all into the [bold]same[/bold] electrical circuit helps.
(guessing which outlet is on which circuit is impossible sometimes in old houses - I should know - just try plugging it all into the same outlet)
06/10/08
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gamatam
Also, sometimes 'earth'/'ground' isn't 'earthed'/'grounded', get an electrician in to check it out..
06/10/08
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jdg
remove any dimmers on your lights that are on the same circut.
wrap your entire studio in brass mesh to make a faraday cage.
06/10/08
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opulentaudio
My freakin system picks up every GSM cell phone within a block or two. Worst part - GSM interference is like a cadence, it has it's own beat.
Makes me craaaaazy
06/10/08
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flies
how do you know it's RF? (and bad wall power, say?)
06/10/08
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strategy
RF? Cuz I'm listening to the ads on FM radio !!!! All the corny ads, major label hip hop, announcers- and a lot of static too
Not sure its bad wall power but I can't figure out why this same pieces of gear do not display this behavior when taken out and used elsewhere (other studios, shows, etc.)
Strategy
06/10/08
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ignatius
weird.
you could spend some coin on a balanced power box but they are all pretty spendy. do you have a furman rack rider type thing? those do pretty well for cutting out interference and can be had for $150ish for the better models.
as someone said, investigate the grounding situation. who knows.. maybe the grounding rod is 100 years old and has rusted out. i've heard of this happening. you think there's some big rod buried in the ground but you go to check it out and it just comes out of the ground w/no effort and has rusted away.
i've never had issue w/Fm interference only ground loops/hum.. so can't say for sure how to solve your problems.. what jdg said will probably work though... making music in a big wire cage might be kind of weird.
you may want to check those doepfer modules and make sure the power supply is connected properly and that nothings come loose.. but as you say they work fine in other environments so... bah.. good luck man.
06/10/08
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strategy
yeah it's weird. I can check the doepfer unit again, yeah. who knows
I live in a really old property. It's actually even on the national historic registry! There's a plaque on the front of the house. I really doubt the electrical system is up to par, there's some overall disrepair.
I didn't think about power conditioners, it can't hurt. C'mon, Craigslist!
Strategy
06/10/08
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tunalicker
is pacific power the one on the Eastside of PDX? I had dirty (really) power problems in an apartment.
living now in the city, power has less interference built in and cleaner audio (what, PGE?) i guess.
if apartment, neighbors fridge/AC/compressor/etc. may cause interference out of your control.
in solitary house, you can shut down fridge/AC when recording.
sometimes morons that build stuff run telephone, power, and cable/antenna lines parallel and wrapped together.
That is the worst thing one could do with any of that and short of rewiring (rarely happens with landlords pinching pennies), you're stuck.
@ignatius : grounding rods are copper, no rust. if they exist at all that is. Secondly, it is acceptable to bond (bolt on) copper (hopefully not aluminum) wire to the cold water supply line where it enters the house (not the hot water side of the water heater). the ground rod may not be a full 4-6 feet deep. in GA, if the guy i learned "how not to work in electrical" from, the rod hit a rock and he cut it off, shrugging and smirking. it happens quite a bit....
someone told me to get a link
ground loop isolator one time and that helped a bit for some of my crap equipment. Grounding is a beeyatch.
06/10/08
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p
I've had this problem too. definitely try the ground thing that everyone suggested. make sure your cables are clean as possible, the deposits on connectors makes them into tiny antennae . I'm guessing cables between gear (and probably inside the gear as well) are receiving the radio interference...I had this problem when I lived right around red mountain (the mountain where all the local television radio signals are broadcast in my hometown.)..my guitar picked up spanish music..through the cables and connectors.
If none of this stuff works. this article mentions ferrite beads and filters for eliminating rf or emi. I can't attest to these as I've never tried this.
link
06/11/08
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kidgamma
when a cellphone goes off near my ghettoblaster, the thing goes crazy, which is good because its so loud i wouldn't be able to hear my ringer! also once this girl got christian radio station to come in through a bass amp when she put the cable jack on her forehead...
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