Static sound w/ SE Piezo Hollowbody ii

[Rlogue22]

Saw and older post about this with no solution. The other day I was playing my SE Hollowbody Piezo ii and I got a weird staticy noise. Pretty quiet unless I put on any distortion then it was really loud. Sounded like interference almost. I checked my pedalboard, nothing. I unplugged everything from the amp. The amp was silent besides normal amp hum. I plugged just the cable in. Still no sound. Plugged in the guitar, got the static noise again. Today I tried another guitar through the pedal board, no static sound. Tried the other guitar straight into the amp, no static sound. Plugged the hollow body back in, the static cam back. I was using the blended pickup output. I switched to the mag only, no static. I’m was using a 1975 Fender Deluxe Reverb. I went back to the combo pick up, static came back. I tried a spreader amp, VHT Super 6 Ultra. The combo pickup still had a static noise but was more faint. The mag only still had none…any thoughts?

 

[Birdsofprey]

Do those have a 9 volt battery if so my guess would be it’s failing.

 

[Rlogue22]

Do those have a 9 volt battery if so my guess would be it’s failing.

It does have a battery and it’s still good. I changed it and will check but in the previous feed, battery changes didn’t fix the problem. Headed out to play later and I’ll see if that worked but the battery I pulled was pretty fresh.

 

[Rlogue22]

New battery, thought it worked. Then…the noises came back. Switched guitars and no noises…taking it in to the shop tomorrow. Fingers crossed. The tone of the guitar is so great but the static and crackle…not from the amp…isn’t ok.

 

[aphantomvaper]

Sound like contacting the PTC is the way to go. Its a stellar instrument otherwise, right?

Perhaps turning down the piezo gain would help.

 

[Rlogue22]

Sound like contacting the PTC is the way to go. Its a stellar instrument otherwise, right?

Perhaps turning down the piezo gain would help.

It’s a fabulous guitar. Tone is great. Fits my style of play great!

 

[TXBlueslinger]

I just picked up a mint HBii and having the exact same issue with static. Did anyone have a solid solution or root issue?
I’m thinking about reaching out to LR Baggs regarding the pickup to troubleshoot and get tips for handling this issue.
But wanted to see if anyone had a proven remedy?
Thanks,
Paul

 

[Huggy Love]

Let me get this straight, you guys are using distortion on your Piezo?
Correct me if I'm wrong but I thought it was for faking an acoustic sound on your electric.
So isn't that supposed to be used in a clean channel?

 

[Rlogue22]

I just picked up a mint HBii and having the exact same issue with static. Did anyone have a solid solution or root issue?
I’m thinking about reaching out to LR Baggs regarding the pickup to troubleshoot and get tips for handling this issue.
But wanted to see if anyone had a proven remedy?
Thanks,
Paul

Took mine into the shop where I bought it. No sound at all…we determined it’s probably picking up some electrical signal in my house. Like single coils, I guess Piezio’s pick up that stuff. I usually play in a room I built in the garage, so I’m sure there’s something in the electrical I’m picking up, fridge, battery chargers, etc. the last couple times I chose different outlets and the noise is either gone or a lot less noticeable.

 

[Rlogue22]

Let me get this straight, you guys are using distortion on your Piezo?
Correct me if I'm wrong but I thought it was for faking an acoustic sound on your electric.
So isn't that supposed to be used in a clean channel?

Ya using gain on this guitar is great. This thing gets all sorts of cool tones on clean or distortion. It’s also not faking and acoustic. The piezo is picking up the acoustic sound of the hollow body. It’s not a simulation. This guitar is one of my favorites. So nice.

 

[TXBlueslinger]

Took mine into the shop where I bought it. No sound at all…we determined it’s probably picking up some electrical signal in my house. Like single coils, I guess Piezio’s pick up that stuff. I usually play in a room I built in the garage, so I’m sure there’s something in the electrical I’m picking up, fridge, battery chargers, etc. the last couple times I chose different outlets and the noise is either gone or a lot less noticeable.

Thanks for sharing, I’m going to try that. I’m not using distortion in mine. A little gain at times, low gain. And blend the piezo to get the sparkling highs. This guitar is a keeper, and stunner to boot! So I’m willing to try and keep it and figure out a remedy that works. Maybe there’s a better piezo brand, or something similar to swap.

 

[TXBlueslinger]

Let me get this straight, you guys are using distortion on your Piezo?
Correct me if I'm wrong but I thought it was for faking an acoustic sound on your electric.
So isn't that supposed to be used in a clean channel?

Hi, I’m getting the same noise plugging directly into a Fender Acoustic amp. No pedals, or gain. So my guess is it’s not the distortion, being that im getting the same results from a clean channel acoustic amp.

 

[Rlogue22]

Ya using gain on this guitar is great. This thing gets all sorts of cool tones on clean or distortion. It’s also not faking and acoustic. The piezo is picking up the acoustic sound of the hollow body. It’s not a simulation. This guitar is one of my favorites. So nice.

LR Baggs pickups are top notch. So nice. Have them in my acoustics. I actually live in the same little town where everything is made. They are a cool family owned operation.