Amplifier problems?

[Itisnotlogical]

I have two amplifiers, one for a regular guitar and the other for a bass guitar, and they both have the same problem. When I turn them on, they make a loud buzzing sound if the guitar is plugged in, but don't do anything when I play it. Neither amp can be taken apart without destroying the chassis. The cord and the guitars are fine, as I've tried both on a friend's amplifiers and they worked fine then. Can anybody tell me what the problem is and how to fix it, or if I just have to buy new amplifiers?

 

[Marc]

sounds like you've got an earthloop there.

 

[JustAFriend]

Take the amps to your friends house and try them. If the problem goes away, you need an electrician to check out your wiring asap before your house burns down....

(when I went to sell my last house I found half the outlets weren't wired properly. Don't mess around with Mr.Voltage and Mr.Amperage!)

 

[Winterwind]

Agreed. Check them somewhere else. I had a similar problem with an amp at an old apartment with bad wiring.

 

[RobertVA]

Many home improvement stores in the US sell an inexpensive device that verifies that the household wires are attached to the proper slots in a three prong 120V outlet. The devices resemble a grounded appliance plug, but have three lights at the end where the cord would normally come out. A little chart on the side shows which pattern of lights indicate proper, reversed or missing connections. Probably costs less than $10.00.

Unfortunately those devices don't have the ability to check for improper outlets used with aluminum wiring or the dangerous loose connections that could eventually result from such installation errors. That issue requires removal of the cover plate and a visual inspection. If the wrong outlets are used with aluminum wire the connections could eventually loosen, start generating significant amounts of heat when the outlet is used and potentially ignite a fire.

 

[Mr Silver]

sounds like you've got an earthloop there.

This

But it could also be down to how your amplifier handles the pickups of your guitar. If this is the case then you could try out a noise gate/suppressor.

Just to be on the safe side though, I'd take your amp into your nearest music shop and ask them to take a look at it.

 

[Itisnotlogical]

This is really odd. I took one to school and tried it on the plugins there and it worked fine, and now I take it home and it works again here, too. Stupid damn thing.