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Does this sound like a grounding problem?

I have a piezo wired to a 250k ohm pot & guitar jack. When I turn on the amp there's a loud hum/buz and I can't hear the strings thru the amp. If I curl my fingers around the guitar cable and touch the pot, the buzz goes away and the guitar plays thru the amp. Any ideas? If it is a ground issue, how do I fix it? I don't have a metal bridge...

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Permalink Reply by Daryl Bookout on September 1, 2009 at 8:05am

Great info, thanks for the help guys! This thing sounds good, looks great and was a lot of fun to build!! I'm hooked on CBG's now. Can't wait to take one up to our local blues jam and see how she acts in public. :)

Ted Crocker said:

What I do is solder a stripped length of solid core wire from the ground lug to the back of the pot and then solder all of the ground wires to that wire, including just one that goes to the ground on the jack. This way you apply the least amount of heat to the pot which could cause damage.

Daryl, from your pic it looked like you may have a stereo jack, maybe the original ground wire you soldered went to the wrong tab...

Also, I wire mine like the diagram that Wes posted, it looks like you reversed the wires on the outside lugs of the pot.

Glad it worked out!

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Permalink Reply by Tres Seaver on September 1, 2009 at 11:37am

Daryl Bookout said:

Great info, thanks for the help guys! This thing sounds good, looks great and was a lot of fun to build!! I'm hooked on CBG's now. Can't wait to take one up to our local blues jam and see how she acts in public. :)

Cool -- post photos / recording / video, please!

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Permalink Reply by Daryl Bookout on September 1, 2009 at 3:08pm

Will do!

Tres Seaver said:

Daryl Bookout said:
Great info, thanks for the help guys! This thing sounds good, looks great and was a lot of fun to build!! I'm hooked on CBG's now. Can't wait to take one up to our local blues jam and see how she acts in public. :)

Cool -- post photos / recording / video, please!