Way too much noise with POD Go

[goldenegg]

Does anyone else find their POD Go extremely noisy? I get so much more noise through it than through anything else I plug my guitars in to. While I can use a gate to kill the noise when I'm not playing, the amount of noise in the background when playing quieter parts (especially if boosting gain with a pedal or one of the amp models) is really annoying. I'm using my POD Go with a PRS CE24, Godin LG HMB and Fender American Professional II Strat.

 

I don't have any noise issues like this when going in to a real amp or even in to my PC with a POD Studio GX, using the exact same cables. The issue is only when I'm using the Pod Go.

 

Edit:

I opened a support ticket, as I can't imagine this is normal. 

[silverhead]

What is your master volume level setting? You will get the best signal to noise ratio from the POD Go outputs if you set the master volume to maximum. A low master output level will introduce noticeable background noise. 

[goldenegg]

I play through headphones. There’s no way I can have the master volume at maximum. 

[silverhead]

Right. Try connecting your guitar to the FX Loop Return/Aux input. Use Global Settings to make sure this is set to Instrument level input. Place the Return block at the beginning of your signal flow. If the noise disappears you likely have a hardware issue with the Guitar input jack.

[grdGo33]

Also, did you have all effect blocks disabled (just keeping amp + cab) and check out the different amp settings such as hum, bias, drive, etc.?  I mean, if you're going to compare the sound of ex; your PRS through a clean fender amp, but in Go have a ton of effects & different amp and different amp settings, you're a bit comparing apples and oranges!

 

But yeah the Go has some issues with volume...  I've setup my patches one way, and turns out that it's not quite loud enough when recording through USB/DAW, but that was having the amp channels volume at around 4.  Some downloaded patches have the amp channel volume at 10...  So I just wish there was some sort of guide as to how to set your volumes within the Go...   It's a can of worms with lots potential issues.  (made a thread about it once, but I don't remember it providing it a clear answer)

[mikeyg00]

Rather than start a new thread, I will echo the noise comments.

 

Not all patches have the problem, so I think that rules out cable/grounding issues.

 

I started with a guitar cable to my Atomic CLR.  A TRS was much more quiet, is that what I should use?

 

It's not patch gain levels, because I get it on WhoWatt at low gain.

 

I don't want to resort to a gate, I'm not a djenter.

 

I'll try all the effects one by one

[voxman55]

I've had my Pod Go for around 15 months and it's incredibly quiet even with single coil guitars.  When you've been on boards as long as I have you see that it's always pedals/mfx units that get blamed for noise and unless you're unlucky enough to have a genuinely faulty unit, the cause is ALWAYS either down to settings, connections or external causes.  

 

Very often, noise is a combination of different factors so here are some thoughts that I hope might be helpful:

 

1. How are you using Pod Go? With a real amp and fx if you max out amp gain and then add a compressor and or then add one or two maxed out distortion pedals, of course you'll generate noise.   So, exactly the same can happen with Pod Go as all it's doing is modelling the real gear! That's not the fault of Pod Go, that's your pedal selections and settings.

 

2. Your Pod Go is only one part of your chain. Properly check your cables and guitar earthing and ensure you are using good quality cables; cables can deteriorate over the years so try some new ones and see if this helps. Poor guitar earthing can be a big source of noise and can be more apparent with some gear even if it seems ok with other gear - so just because 'my guitar and cables are fine with other gear' doesn't necessarily mean that your cables and earths are all good. Particularly important with single coil guitars, make sure your pickup and control cavities are shielded properly eg with shielding paint and/or aluminium foil.  Many guitars, even name brands, will usually benefit from some attention here.  Also, use plastic safe electrical switch clean to clean your guitar input and pots, and your Pod Go inputs regularly eg every 6 months. Dust, oxidisation etc can all contribute to poorer signal quality and noise. 

 

3. Have a look at the signal chain in your Pod Go...the positioning of distortion and compressors can impact on noise, and make sure that your noisegate settings are reasonable for the fx chain and guitar type you're running. 

 

4. Another common  reason for noise is noise picked up from a ring mains and other electrical devices eg computers, lighting, washing machines etc. This can be particularly  problematic in countries such as the US with 110v mains and which can be notorious for difficulties with 'dirty electricity' that digital gear can be very sensitive too. It's why the US is the single biggest market for line conditioner units.  Look to see what else you have switched on in your home and try your Pod Go in different rooms and different locations e.g. friends and family homes, to see if the noise level changes or even goes.  If you are in an area that suffers from 'dirty electricity ' you may need to invest in a line conditioner such as a Furmen that will filter out noise and provide a consistent voltage and current to your gear. 

 

5. It's possible your Pod Go PSU might be picking up noise or might be damaged.  Sadly, it's a budget unit with a thin short cable and is the weak link of Pod Go where any deterioration in the cable, connection or transformer can create noise.

 

6. Make sure you are using the right cables and that these are good quality. E.g. if you are connecting to a FRFR powered speaker, you'll need a balanced stereo TRS cable(s). 

 

So these are some things to look into and I can almost 100% guarantee you that Pod Go as a unit is not the problem.  

[mikeyg00]

I am running line level to two FRFR speakers, an atomic CLR and a Headrush 1x12.

 

no issues with the same setups for quad cortex or fractal FM3, other than the different cables required due to no. XLR Out.

 

my patches never have gain maxed. Ever. And again no issues with similar gain levels on other units.

 

Hum is really bad, when I touch my laptop it decreases but doesn’t go away. I’ll have to see if running without the editor makes a diff.

[silverhead]

11 minutes ago, mikeyg00 said:

I am running line level to two FRFR speakers, an atomic CLR and a Headrush 1x12.

 

no issues with the same setups for quad cortex or fractal FM3, other than the different cables required due to no. XLR Out.

 

my patches never have gain maxed. Ever. And again no issues with similar gain levels on other units.

 

Hum is really bad, when I touch my laptop it decreases but doesn’t go away. I’ll have to see if running without the editor makes a diff.

Try disconnecting the USB, or running your laptop on batteries. This could be an electrical issue such as a ground hum.

[Alexandre17]

I saw the topic and decided to report my situation.

 

 I purchased a pod go recently and I am quite bothered by this noise issue, which is quite evident in clean tones. it occurs after a few minutes in which the pod go is turned on, even without amp simulation on, the problem persists, and if you connect the guitar to the return of the fx loop, the problem does not occur and the tone is much better, things that I have never seen happen on the my pod hd500x, I use both on the same monitor.  I believe that the pod go has a serious problem in the input circuit or else I was very unlucky.

[JustinBeswick]

I'm having very similar issues, I need a hard gate at the end of my effects loop or it's pretty much unusable. All my guitar and basses have the same issues. Is it possible to edit the input gain?

 

[weitzhandler]

I'm experiencing the same issue of low static noise.

Oddly, there's only noise when I use Main Out (both TRS direct / TRS>XLR), the issue doesn't occur when using Amp Out!

Furthermore, the noise is there even when the device is switched off!