• Ernie Ball
  • MusicMan
  • Sterling by MusicMan

beej

Moderator
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Messages
11,963
Location
Toronto, Canada
I don't know anything about the new SC ... though I am very curious. Has it changed in the passive instruments? Or is it just for the newer ones that have on-board preamps (buffers & boosts)? Obviously you can't remove the power source if the output is buffered.
 

Johnny Alien

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 16, 2006
Messages
334
Location
Harrisburg, PA USA
The new silent system is buffered as well as noise reducing. So all of the new single coil guitars that use this new silent circuit have the buffering as well.
 

beej

Moderator
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Messages
11,963
Location
Toronto, Canada
The original Silent Circuit is buffered- it's a dummy coil buffered by an op-amp, so there's no load on the pickups. Without a battery, noise reduction doesn't work but you'll still get a signal from the guitar.

Whereas the new guitars have the signal (and not just the noise reduction signal) buffered- which is a different thing. You can't do that without a battery.
 

mikeller

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 11, 2007
Messages
2,759
Location
Central Ohio
So - as a new owner of a delightful Cutlass, in an effort to understand, I must ask, is there a downside to the buffered output?

Personally - I use a wireless guitar system (Shure GLX-D) which runs thru 5 true-bypass pedals into the front of the amp. I use good quality patch cable (Evidence Monorail) and good quality cable to the front of the amp and thru the loop.
 

Sweat

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 31, 2006
Messages
7,020
Location
Texas Finally!
So - as a new owner of a delightful Cutlass, in an effort to understand, I must ask, is there a downside to the buffered output?

Personally - I use a wireless guitar system (Shure GLX-D) which runs thru 5 true-bypass pedals into the front of the amp. I use good quality patch cable (Evidence Monorail) and good quality cable to the front of the amp and thru the loop.

I would be curious as well, I dont play out or in a band but since my new Cutlass will be here Friday want to know what to expect.
 

mikeller

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 11, 2007
Messages
2,759
Location
Central Ohio
I would be curious as well, I dont play out or in a band but since my new Cutlass will be here Friday want to know what to expect.

I took the day off this past Monday and set my full-gig rig up and tried it all and I didn't notice anything concerning - I just don't understand about buffer's and so forth, so trying to educate myself !!
 

Johnny Alien

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 16, 2006
Messages
334
Location
Harrisburg, PA USA
It's completely possible. There have been a few people reporting that it didn't play nice with some of their pedals. Specifically of the fuzz/overdrive variety. With a wireless unit I don't think it will make a bit of difference. As beej described the new units have the signal buffered so removing the battery from the cutlass will also make it not work which is very different from the last silent circuit.
 

mikeller

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 11, 2007
Messages
2,759
Location
Central Ohio
I've read some stories about certain pedals not playing well with fuzz pedals - with no experience there, I am really not sure what to expect. Maybe its buffered pedals early in the chain.

What happens? Does the fuzz get ugly sounding or noisy?
 

beej

Moderator
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Messages
11,963
Location
Toronto, Canada
Some fuzz pedals won't work well when fed by a low impedance signal. There are gadgets out there than you can put in front of a fuzz to fix that, should it be a problem.

Personally I like the idea of an onboard buffer- it fixes a bunch of problems.
 

drewbixcubed

Moderator
Joined
Jul 7, 2005
Messages
355
Location
San Luis Obispo
Just to clear things up regarding the Cutlass electronics.....

The new silent circuit utilizes our patented design which maintains traditional passive wiring between the custom wound Music Man pickups and the instrument's volume and tone controls. The added benefits of the new design provide superior noise canceling and equips the pickup to perform at its utmost potential.

Music Man's proprietary unity gain buffer, which is implemented after the controls, transparently drives the instrument's signal at a low impedance. This ensures any use of poor quality cables, effects, or other accessories in the signal chain do not negatively effect the pickup's tone.

As a result, the Cutlass delivers the clearest possible signal to any rig.
 

Sweat

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 31, 2006
Messages
7,020
Location
Texas Finally!
Just to clear things up regarding the Cutlass electronics.....

The new silent circuit utilizes our patented design which maintains traditional passive wiring between the custom wound Music Man pickups and the instrument's volume and tone controls. The added benefits of the new design provide superior noise canceling and equips the pickup to perform at its utmost potential.

Music Man's proprietary unity gain buffer, which is implemented after the controls, transparently drives the instrument's signal at a low impedance. This ensures any use of poor quality cables, effects, or other accessories in the signal chain do not negatively effect the pickup's tone.

As a result, the Cutlass delivers the clearest possible signal to any rig.

Awesome what I was hoping to hear!! Will find out tomorrow what it is all about:)
 

Johnny Alien

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 16, 2006
Messages
334
Location
Harrisburg, PA USA
Thanks. The bottom line (which is what I was after) is that the guitar will not produce sound without a battery. I understand the decision but not sure I could be cool with that.
 

mistercharlie

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 23, 2016
Messages
69
Music Man's proprietary unity gain buffer, which is implemented after the controls, transparently drives the instrument's signal at a low impedance. This ensures any use of poor quality cables, effects, or other accessories in the signal chain do not negatively effect the pickup's tone.

Is this buffer also in the Valentine? There's no output without the battery, so I guess so.
 

Norrin Radd

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 20, 2004
Messages
2,797
Location
Saint Paul
So does the battery just need to be installed or must it have life? Will the guitar output sound with a dead battery?
 

RichieZ

Well-known member
Joined
Sep 22, 2016
Messages
86
I just received a new Valentine. It sounds amazing... but in single coil situations(either bridge or split neck) I do get a bit of noise. Not a lot... but enough to hear the difference between those and the unspilt humbucker... even without much gain. Just curious as to if that is normal?

Also... I can't find any documentation on how to adjust the silent circuit or the volume boost.

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you for your time!

Just to clear things up regarding the Cutlass electronics.....

The new silent circuit utilizes our patented design which maintains traditional passive wiring between the custom wound Music Man pickups and the instrument's volume and tone controls. The added benefits of the new design provide superior noise canceling and equips the pickup to perform at its utmost potential.

Music Man's proprietary unity gain buffer, which is implemented after the controls, transparently drives the instrument's signal at a low impedance. This ensures any use of poor quality cables, effects, or other accessories in the signal chain do not negatively effect the pickup's tone.

As a result, the Cutlass delivers the clearest possible signal to any rig.
 
Top Bottom