BasslineDrums Posted December 8, 2013 Share Posted December 8, 2013 I purchased a Line 6 Spider IV 15 amplifier about 10 months ago for playing and demoing tracks. It has worked quite well and I love the amp, but about a month or so after getting it, sometimes I would go to record, and there would be massive feedback. I would swap cables around and unplug and replug cables until it would suddenly stop. It started happing more often until now, I'm unable to stop it. For the past month, I have been unable to get it to stop. I have tried several different cables, adapters, computers, and power supplies, and nothing will get it to stop now. My setup is: Guitar > 1" cable > Amp > 1" male / 3.5mm female adapter > Double-male 3.5mm cable > microphone line-in jack on computer This has enabled me to record easily and clearly and has no problems besides when this feedback started. It sounds like wind overloading a microphone outside. Its explosive, and overbears any recording. Its not a problem of my guitar, the adapter, or the double male 3.5mm cable as I recorded the guitar straight into the computer to rule out those 3. Its not the amp or the 1" cables I've tried, because when the amp is played outloud, there's no feedback of any kind. I've mixed and swapped different adapters and cables, and nothing solves the problem. Only when I'm trying to record do I get this noise. Its not the noise gate either, I've tried turning it off and back on, it doesn't solve anything. Has anyone else had this problem? Id like to know if there's anything I could do to fix it, or if my amp is defective and I could have it swapped or something. -Christian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fflbrgst Posted December 9, 2013 Share Posted December 9, 2013 What DAW (recording software) are you using? How are you monitoring - do you have speakers plugged into the computer, or are you using headphones? Feedback indicates a sound loop of some kind. What you describe ('wind noise') is not standard guitir/amp feedback, which is a loud pitch (usually high, sometimes low). What you describe sounds more like automatic compression, which will continue to pump up the volume when it 'hears' very low volume. When you plug your guitar directly into the computer do you get the same sound? One thing to note is the built-in soundcard in your computer is made with about $0.69 worth of parts, so has a pretty crappy analog-to-digital converter. Is it possible that this device has auto compression kicking in? You would need to check yoru soundcard and DAW settings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BasslineDrums Posted December 10, 2013 Author Share Posted December 10, 2013 Ill upload a sound example when I get home later today. I'm using Audacity 1.3 for Windows 7. The program gives me no problem, and when the guitar is plugged straight into the computer, there's no feedback of any kind. I don't monitor while I track. I play it back after I recorded the track and check how it sounds. The fact that I've tried it on more than one computer with different types of sound cards (one had an expensive sound card in it) with the same results tells me that the issue is originating somewhere in the amps line-out slot, but at the same time, I hook headphones up to the line-out all the time with no issues. I'm not sure about any sort of auto-compression, but I highly doubt it because this problem never occured until a while after I had it, and even then it only used to occur sometimes. There's no logical way about how I used to get it to work in the past. I haven't isolated the problem, so I would unplug and replug and swap cables until the problem would just stop randomly. Now I can't get it to stop, and I have 2 songs ready to record. I've resorted to doing clean demos with the guitar straight into the computer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BasslineDrums Posted December 11, 2013 Author Share Posted December 11, 2013 I've attached a track with the feedback. Feedback.mp3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fflbrgst Posted December 17, 2013 Share Posted December 17, 2013 Forgot to check this from home, been busy last week, will try to remember tonight! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fflbrgst Posted December 18, 2013 Share Posted December 18, 2013 That's not feedback. It's electric noise. I suspect the amp output (which is a low volume line out) is overloading the input of your computer. Possibly an impedance mis-match as well. the output you are sending out form the amp is stereo - 'double male' as you describe it - is this a left and right mono set of plugs or a 3 conductor stereo plug? The input on your computer, if a mic-in, is mono and has a cheap preamp to boost the low volume signal from a mic (or your electric guitar). A proper audio interface should really be used to get the best analog-to-digital conversion of an audio signal into your computer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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