Luke 3 hss, hum/grounding problem

[southbeck]

Hi,

First timer here. I just got a mint condition Luke 3 hss, a really fine instrument. Can´t actually wait to come out doing some gigs with it as soon as it´s possible.

From what I understand the single coils are supposed to be noiseless but I have some problem with them having a bad hum.

It´s the kind of hum that goes away if I touch some of the metal on the guitar, like the bridge. So it behaves like a grounding issue but couldn´t find anything when I opened it.

From a quick search I found several threads regarding the same problem. So I wonder if anyone has find a solution? It´s a shame on such a fine, professional guitar otherwise.

 

[msquared]

That sounds like a grounding problem.

You can take it to a guitar shop and they can probably deal with it. If you're handy with electronics and have a multimeter, you can probably figure out where the problem is inside of five minutes with a little poking around.

With regular single coils, the hum won't stop just by touching metal if it's "normal" single coil hum.

 

[southbeck]

Thanks. Yes, it definitely behaves like a grounding problem. Interesting to hear though if anyone found a solution. Because it seems like a common problem with this exact model.

 

[DrKev]

First off, call Music Man customer service. This is why they are there.

Second, can you answer some questions please? May help trouble shooting?

1) Leave the volume control on the guitar all the way up. Pickup the guitar. Note the volume of the noise, touching and not touching the strings. Now leave the volume all the way up and walk away from the guitar. How does the noise change.

3) If you have a guitar with traditional single coils, how does the above test compare?

2) How much distortion are you using? Are you also using compression? (Similar noise can be entirely normal under certain conditions).

I'm pretty sure It's grounding just fine. The human body acts like a transmitting antenna. It picks up noise from the environment around you and emits some of it too. That's picked up by the single coils and comes out as audible noise. But when we touch the strings (which are connected to ground through the bridge and spring claw) *we* are grounded so the noise vanishes. Sometimes if you touch the neck plate, the noise increases (because the neck plate is not grounded but make more efficient transmission).

 

[southbeck]

Thanks. Yes, I´ll turn to customer service if I can´t get it fixed. I bought the guitar used though so don´t have the warranty.

I understand your questions. But since the single coils are supposed to be noiseless it doesn´t make much sense to compare them to regular singlecoils.

The humbucker works as expected. It´s quiet. But when I turn over to the singlecoils it hums quite bad. Until I touch the bridge/strings. So it behaves like a grounding problem.

I found at least five-six threads here in this forum from others with the exact same problem. But none had a solution. Some guy just changed to a HH Luke instead. And another guy fixed it by using wireless. Hoping to find more of the cause to the problem.

 

[DrKev]

Don;t worry about warranty, just call them for advice. They're great. Also, I've heard lovely things about how helpful DiMarzio customer service is too.

The humbucker works as expected. It´s quiet. But when I turn over to the singlecoils it hums quite bad. Until I touch the bridge/strings. So it behaves like a grounding problem.

Well no, it doesn't. It behaves like good grounding. You inspired me to do a video explaining why.

I hope it's helpful.

 

[southbeck]

Don;t worry about warranty, just call them for advice. They're great. Also, I've heard lovely things about how helpful DiMarzio customer service is too.



Well no, it doesn't. It behaves like good grounding. You inspired me to do a video explaining why.

I hope it's helpful.

Thank you! That was actually very informative and you explained it really well.
Maybe it´s just that the custom Dimarzio singlecoils on the Luke simply aren´t as hum cancelling as other stacked singles I´ve tried before. They actually don´t market them as noiseless. That´s just something I´ve picked up on forums.
Good video! You should put it up on different forums. I´m sure it would be helpful for more people than myself.

 

[tbonesullivan]

I have also noticed that "stacked" pickups are never quite a quiet as side by side humbucking pickups. I've noticed this with basses and with guitars. I have a Luke III, and yes with high levels of gain there is some hum. But it's NOTHING compared to the hum of a true single coil. I also have a G&L Legacy Special with Dimarzio Injectors, which are all stacked single coils, and they also have a bit more hum.

Part of this could be from that "shielding" effect, or it could be that to get a bit more of a "true" single coil sound, the two coils aren't exactly the same.

 

[beej]

Great video Kev! Such a clear explanation.

 

[DrKev]

Thanks guys, glad you liked it.

 

[GWDavis28]

Thanks guys, glad you liked it.

Kev great job, love the pedal board in the drawer!!!

Glenn |B)

 

[Lost In Space]

Hi,

First timer here. I just got a mint condition Luke 3 hss, a really fine instrument. Can´t actually wait to come out doing some gigs with it as soon as it´s possible.

From what I understand the single coils are supposed to be noiseless but I have some problem with them having a bad hum.

It´s the kind of hum that goes away if I touch some of the metal on the guitar, like the bridge. So it behaves like a grounding issue but couldn´t find anything when I opened it.

From a quick search I found several threads regarding the same problem. So I wonder if anyone has find a solution? It´s a shame on such a fine, professional guitar otherwise.

Just curious, did you happen to get it from Guitar Center recently?