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Cutlass RS HSS single coils not silent

M

marmatkat

Member
Hi Folks. New owner here of a '023 EBMM Cutlass RS HSS. I like the guitar a lot, but one thing I'd really appreciate your feedback on is that the "silent circuit" isn't completely silent on my guitar. All pickup positions have some noise on high gain settings, but mostly positions 5 (neck SC) and 3 (middle SC). I A/Bd the guitar with my PRS CE 24 with the humbucker's split (which is 100% noisy single coil) and the Cutlass is quieter but there's still 60 Hz noise. (The noise changes in volume depending on how I angle the guitar.) I think I can live with it, but compared to the Fender Ultra I tried, the Cutlass is far from silent. I want to make sure that this is how it's supposed to be. Thank you!
 
What you're reporting sound normal to me. No noise removal system is quite as effective as a humbucker or stacked single coils. The general rule of thumb is about 60% noise removal compared to no noise removal.

Next time you are changing strings, carefully turn the pickguard over. There are two trim pots on the circuit board that you can adjust the silent circuit if need be. They are next to the tone pot and marked TPA and TPB. One is for the neck pickup, the other for the middle pickup. The stock factory setting is about half way but feel free to increase it if you like.
 
FYI from their support email:

The silent circuit is dialed in to reduce as much hum as possible. This is done in factory.
While the silent circuit does remove a large amount of noise, it will never completely remove single coil hum.

Some hum will be audible in high gain situations.
Click to expand...
 
The Silent Circuit is pretty good, for sure, but it won't be as quiet as noiseless pickups. It's not meant to be.
 
My (SSS) Cutlass was a bit noisy - perhaps over the 8 years since I bought it, it drifted a little. The other day I removed he pickguard and tweaked the trimpot and will say a little turn made a big difference
 
The Fender Noiseless pickups in the ultra are actually true humbuckers so they’ll be a little quieter but won’t have the same sparkle on the top end. Everything is a trade off. At least that’s been my experience.

Have you tried a different room or amp? There is one room on my house that seems to have a lot more noise than the others for whatever reason.
 
Thanks everyone. BTW I read elsewhere in the forum that posting a pic is required :) . I picked it up at a LGS for $1650 out the door cash. Made March 2023, mint. I think I'm going to love it. The neck in particular has been surprising. It's a little narrower and thicker than my PRS CE 24 "pattern thin" neck (which I really like) but the Cutlass neck is smooth and likes to be played - maybe it's the roasted maple plus SS frets?

https://imgur.com/a/gebzN6L
 
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