Just about every electric guitarist or bassist has experienced “the hum.” It seems ubiquitous, like no matter what you do, how you stand, what you play, the way you hold your mouth, it’s there. It’s not offensive, but it’s noticeable, and right when you think it’ll never, ever stop, you touch your strings or the jack, and it does.
A guitar hum stops when you touch the jack because you become part of the ground, essentially. Humming is generally caused by how the components in the guitar are wired, which can be fixed by using humbuckers, shieldings, or noise suppressors.
In this article, I’ll provide a fuller explanation about why a guitar hum stops when you touch the jack alongwith possible solutions for each reason. Should you have other humming problems, I’ll also explain some other possible causes for hums and those quick fixes.
If you want to find out what my recommended guitar gear is, then here is what I recommend on Amazon:
- Fender Cutaway Acoustic-Electric Guitar Bundle (MY FAVORITE GUITAR)
- Snark SN-8 Super Tight All Instrument Tuner (Easiest Tuner I’ve Used)
- 6 String Acoustic Guitar Capo (Best CAPO for quick changes)
- Dunlop Max Grip 1.0mm Nylon Picks (Thick Guitar Pick So You Don’t Lose Grip!)
- Universal Guitar Stand (Cheap & Minimalist Guitar Stand I Recommend)
- Levy’s 2″ Wide Quick Adjust Guitar Strap (Best Guitar Strap For Any Level)
What Is Guitar Hum?
Guitar hum refers to an undesirable noise that can be heard from an electric or amplified guitar. This noise is typically a low-level humming or buzzing sound that can be heard even when the guitar is not being played. Guitar hum is often caused by a grounding issue in the guitar’s electrical system.
In a properly functioning guitar, the ground wire connects the guitar’s electronics to the guitar’s metal components, which in turn are connected to the guitar’s bridge and strings. This creates a complete electrical circuit that allows the guitar’s signal to be properly grounded and shielded from external interference.
However, if the ground wire is disconnected or damaged, or if there is a problem with the guitar’s shielding, the guitar may produce hum or noise. Additionally, external sources of electrical interference, such as fluorescent lights or other electronic devices, can also cause hum in a guitar.
To diagnose and fix guitar hum, it is often necessary to carefully inspect the guitar’s electrical system and shielding, and make any necessary repairs or modifications. In some cases, it may be necessary to consult a professional guitar technician or repair person to address more complex issues.
Why Electric Guitars Hum (or Guitar Amp Hum)
That’s the big question, isn’t it? And it IS a big question because guitar hum can come from any number of sources. Between your amp, any pedals, processors, and other effects units, your cables, and your actual guitar and its solders and wires, there’s a seemingly limitless amount of potential hum producers.
Most likely, your guitar hum stems, at least in part, from the way we build electric guitars. There may be other electrical issues at play— you may have a grounding problem, a loose wire, or a solder that’s come loose, but even in those cases, you’re still dealing with an electrical issue.
If you’re in a recording setting, that hum could present an issue. No matter the source of the hum, you’ll need to know the culprit before you can do anything about it. Isolating the offending item can be time-consuming and painstaking, but once you’ve found that it’s your guitar, you have solutions to try.
However, you’re here because the hum you currently fight in rehearsal and onstage mysteriously disappears whenever you touch the jack (or any other metal on your ax, including the strings). Let’s take a look at how the same electricity that amplifies the sound of your strings also causes interference, buzzing, and humming.
The Ground (and Ground Loop)
As part of its very nature, if you will, electric guitars are designed to hum the way they do and also to stop humming when you touch the strings or other metal to it (Related: How To Deal With Noisy Guitar Pickups). With all that electricity running through wires, pickups, and jacks, guitars “naturally” hum because of that electrical energy.
Early electric guitar makers quickly realized that touching the metal eliminated the hum, so they began attaching a wire to the bridge.
This is possible because all the components in your guitar are wired together. When you look inside and see all those wires soldered here and here, you can see that the electricity has many places to go. There’s lots of electrical noise going on there, and by wiring the bridge, guitar makers made it so that when a player touches it or the strings, that player becomes part of the ground, and the hum goes away.
So if you’ve got a low, relatively soft hum that goes away when you touch any metal on the guitar, there’s probably not any major issue plaguing your instrument or your amp setup. However, even the softest hum can be a problem in the recording studio, and we’ll address some possible solutions to it shortly.
You may also have a ground loop issue. A ground loop occurs when the electricity coursing through your guitar sees two or more paths it can take toward a ground. Everything has to be grounded, so that’s another thing to check out: When you look inside your guitar, be sure the ground wire (the black wire, likely) connects to all the attenuators and switches.
Any component you find not wired to that ground wire remains ungrounded and will cause some hum when the guitar gets plugged in.
How To Fix Guitar Hum
If the hum just comes from the electricity coursing through your guitar and you still want to get rid of it (or try), there are some steps you can take. Two of them, however, are not for you if you know nothing about electric wiring or tinkering around. The third can get pricey. Let’s take a look.
Humbuckers
Humbuckers are pickups that, as one might imagine, buck or eliminate hum. If you play a Telecaster with its two single-coil pickups, you’ll get some overall buzz here and there every now and again (and again and again). That’s the nature of a single coil. It’s one or more magnets wrapped in a single coil of copper wire, and it’s prone to buzz and hum.
A humbucker is, at its heart, two single coils wired together. It’s essentially a double-coil pickup, and the two wire-wrapped magnets are wired together so as to resist producing hum.
However, replacing pickups can cause problems. If you’re playing that Telecaster but replace the single-coils with humbuckers, like this Seymour Duncan SH-6b Humbucker, available through Amazon.com. It provides a high output and maintains clarity. Just keep in mind that you’ll have to figure out how to get them to fit into the spaces where the single-coils were.
If you figure that out and get it all wired up, well, your Telecaster won’t sound much like a Telecaster anymore because that particular guitar sounds like a Tele primarily because of the pickups.
Less iconic guitars will benefit from using humbuckers, though, so it’s not like this is a ridiculous solution that will result in a pyrrhic victory for you and your instrument.
Shielding
Another possibility for suppressing hum lies in shielding. If you think that sounds fancy and complicated, don’t worry, because it really isn’t. It involves opening up your guitar, which may be something you don’t want to mess with, but rest assured, most guitar players have, at some point, unscrewed everything, moved stuff around, put it together, and still had a working instrument.
Again, most hums come from electricity. It’s powerful and very willful, so sometimes we have to put it in its own little time-out chair. That’s where shielding comes in.
A Faraday cage is a brilliant invention that, at its core, is a hollow conductor. We put the electronics that we want to be isolated from electrical interference inside this conductor, and the electricity that’s causing us problems dissipates on the walls of the cage itself.
But you don’t have to build an actual cage to make this work. You can create a Faraday cage inside your guitar using something like LOVIMAG Copper Foil Tape (available on Amazon). It’s flexible and easy to tear yet holds strong, and it makes such a task incredibly simple.
(It should be noted, however, this is a delicate process, and if tasks like soldering wires back together are beyond you, you should leave it to the professionals.)
Create a DIY Faraday cage with the following steps:
- Remove the strings.
- Take off the pickguard (almost every pickguard is secured with tiny Phillips-head screws, and a small screwdriver should already be a part of your guitar maintenance kit).
- Remove the electric components from inside the guitar.
- Once your guitar is just a piece of wood, layer the copper foil tape in all the cavities in the guitar.
- Cut and trim tape to fit neatly in the recesses.
- Reassemble the guitar’s innards.
- Apply copper foil tape to the underside of the pickguard to create shielding.
- Replace the pickguard and strings.
- Get back to playing, this time with much less (perhaps no) hum.
Noise Gates and Suppressors
Because we live in a technical world, there’s a machine for doing just about anything, and eliminating guitar hum is no exception. One notable option is the Donner Noise Gate Pedal (available on Amazon.com). Using this allows for a complete blocking of all sound below a certain volume level. In other words, you can have all the unchecked buzz and hum in the world, but if it’s below the volume threshold you’ve set, none of it will sound through your amp.
Another option is the Boss NS-2 Noise Suppressor (also on Amazon). It allows you to block specific frequencies so you can selectively suppress sounds you don’t want coming out, like that 50 or 60Hz buzz that occurs when you’re not touching the strings or the jack.
Either solution can be great, but both of them cost more than a roll of copper foil tape. Still, since it’s virtually impossible to completely eliminate all buzzing and humming, one of these may be a better solution for you.
Sources of Problematic Guitar Hums
As mentioned earlier, sometimes humming happens, and we have no clue as to why. Sometimes it doesn’t go away when we touch the strings. Sometimes it gets worse. Or maybe touching different parts of your guitar does nothing at all to affect the hum.
But not to fret. Here are some of the most common sources of hums and how to keep them from happening:
The Building You Play In
Unless you have all your gear plugged into the same outlet, you’ll get some electrical interference, especially if the two or more outlets you use have different grounds. This problem is properly known as electromagnetic interference or EMI.
EMI manifests as buzzing and humming, so the electrical wiring of the building in which you’re playing will play a role in producing a buzz. Unless you build your own rehearsal hall and have the electrician wire it the way you want, there’s not much you can do about this. And if you’re playing around town in multiple venues, you can expect to face less-than-ideal wiring situations regularly.
Other Electrical Items
Play electric guitar in your high school jazz band, and you’ll get tons of hum because nearly every band room in America has fluorescent lights. Those are notorious sources of EMI and, consequently, humming and buzzing.
But your microwave, television, refrigerator, and laptop can also be sources of this interference. While you’re on your quest for hum elimination, turn things off and on, listening as you go. You will also notice that some appliances produce more interference than others.
Play your guitar while walking around the room. If it gets louder as you get closer to the kegerator, then dissipates when you move away, there’s your EMI source.
You may be able to remove the offending appliance, or you may not. Do what you can, and depending on the severity of the interference, you may need to look into shielding or noise suppressors, as discussed above.
You
At rest, the human body produces enough electricity to power a light bulb and can make more as your physical exertion increases. If your cell phone, microwave, or even a fan blowing in your rehearsal room can cause buzz-producing EMI, then so can you.
You are a source of electrical signals (your brain, your heart, you know, the important stuff), so getting close enough to your guitar to play it can send out some electrical signals that will cause interference.
Your Guitar, Amp, or Cables
Aside from EMI, there may be a wiring issue in your guitar or any of the pedals or processors between your guitar and amp, or even in your amp itself. Before you go unscrewing things and randomly trying to troubleshoot, do some investigation, maybe switch some stuff out.
The very first thing you should look at is your cable. Many of us jump around when we play, and even if we don’t, our cables get stepped on. Every player has likely caught his cord on something and had it forcibly jerked out of the guitar jack. Guitar cords take a beating, and they develop shorts easily.
If you plug a different guitar into your rig and the hum is still there, your guitar isn’t the issue. Try a different cable, remove all the effects pedals, and plug into another amp. As mentioned above, the pool of possible electrical problems is nearly bottomless, and the more gear you use, the deeper that pool gets. Switch this for that, then listen for the buzz. If it’s still there, what you switched out wasn’t the problem.
Whatever you do, be methodical about it. Don’t switch three cables at once and try a different guitar, or you’ll never reach the end of the rainbow. It will take some time to do this right, but once you isolate the problem, you’ll better understand how to remedy it.
Soldered Joints
If you’ve narrowed the problem down to your guitar, it may be as simple (and maddeningly common) as a bad or broken solder joint. If you’re going to be a long-term electric guitar player, invest some time in learning how to run a soldering iron because soldering issues creep up often. If you’ve never dealt with one before, you will, as every electric guitar player deals with it at some point.
One common soldering fault happens at the jack itself. Plugging a cord in and pulling it out over and over puts strain on the jack, and sometimes, the soldering joint cracks or breaks.
If you can produce or eliminate hum by jiggling the cord at the jack (and you know the cord isn’t the problem), then you very likely have a problem with the jack. Open the guitar up and inspect that soldering joint. That may solve all your problems.
Grounding
If you’ve opened up your guitar and seen that all the solder joints are solid, you may have a grounding problem. Check that all your instrument’s components are properly grounded and that all the connections to the ground are short. Long wires just present more opportunities for EMI.
Selector Switch
If you’ve got multiple pickups on your guitar, you very likely have a selector switch that allows you to turn one or more of them off and on. This switch is how we can produce different tones on the same guitar even without a fancy effects bay.
But that switch isn’t indestructible. If you isolated your guitar as the problem, but none of the other possibilities yielded fruit, it could be the selector switch. If the hum goes away when you move the switch to certain positions, there’s a good chance that’s the problem. Changing it out is simple, but as with anything on this list, take your instrument to a professional if you’re not comfortable doing it.
How Much Guitar Hum Is Normal?
While some degree of guitar hum may be normal, particularly in high-gain or high-volume settings, it is generally desirable to minimize or eliminate hum as much as possible. In a properly functioning guitar and amplifier setup, hum should be very low or virtually nonexistent.
That being said, there are some factors that can affect the amount of hum in a guitar signal. For example, the type and quality of pickups used in a guitar can have a significant impact on the amount of hum that is produced. Single-coil pickups are more prone to producing hum than humbucker pickups, which are designed to minimize hum.
Additionally, the quality of the guitar’s shielding and grounding can also affect the amount of hum that is produced. A guitar with poor shielding or a faulty ground wire may produce more hum than a guitar with properly functioning shielding and grounding.
Ultimately, the amount of guitar hum that is considered “normal” can vary depending on a variety of factors, including the specific guitar and amplifier being used, the environment in which the guitar is being played, and the individual preferences of the player. However, as a general rule, it is always advisable to strive for the lowest possible level of hum in a guitar signal in order to achieve the cleanest and most noise-free sound possible.
Guitar Hum & Buzz: Summary
On some level, guitar hum is a fact of life. If you’re playing live or in your rehearsal space, the kind of hum that brought you to this article won’t be much of a problem because you’ll be touching something metal on your guitar very nearly 100 percent of the time you’re playing.
As you search in frustration for the cause of the hum, remember that you’re not alone. My guitar was humming this afternoon, and it’ll hum some more when I play it at my gig tomorrow night. Some hum is a fact of life, but the serious, loud, invasive hums need to be addressed and repaired.
If you want to find out what my recommended guitar gear is, then here is what I recommend on Amazon:
- Fender Cutaway Acoustic-Electric Guitar Bundle (MY FAVORITE GUITAR)
- Snark SN-8 Super Tight All Instrument Tuner (Easiest Tuner I’ve Used)
- 6 String Acoustic Guitar Capo (Best CAPO for quick changes)
- Dunlop Max Grip 1.0mm Nylon Picks (Thick Guitar Pick So You Don’t Lose Grip!)
- Universal Guitar Stand (Cheap & Minimalist Guitar Stand I Recommend)
- Levy’s 2″ Wide Quick Adjust Guitar Strap (Best Guitar Strap For Any Level)
Guitar Hum & Buzz: FAQs
Why is my guitar humming?
There are several potential reasons why your guitar may be humming, including issues with the grounding or shielding of the guitar’s electrical system, interference from other electronic devices, or problems with the guitar’s pickups or wiring. To diagnose and fix the issue, it may be necessary to carefully inspect and test various components of the guitar and amplifier setup.
How do I stop my guitar from humming?
To stop guitar humming, it may be necessary to troubleshoot and address any underlying issues with the guitar’s electrical system or the surrounding environment. This may involve checking the guitar’s grounding and shielding, minimizing interference from other electronic devices, using noise reduction pedals or software, or consulting with a professional guitar technician or audio engineer for further assistance.
How do I get rid of 60Hz hum on my guitar?
60Hz hum, which is often caused by interference from power sources or electrical devices operating at 60Hz, can be minimized or eliminated through the use of noise reduction pedals, power conditioners, or other forms of noise filtering or isolation. Additionally, improving the grounding and shielding of the guitar’s electrical system may also help to reduce or eliminate 60Hz hum.
How do I get rid of the hum on my acoustic guitar?
Hum on an acoustic guitar can be caused by a variety of factors, including issues with the guitar’s pickups or electronics, as well as external sources of interference. To get rid of hum on an acoustic guitar, it may be necessary to diagnose and address any underlying issues with the guitar’s electrical system, or to experiment with different pickup configurations or amplification setups to minimize noise and interference.
How much guitar hum is normal?
While some degree of guitar hum may be normal, particularly in high-gain or high-volume settings, it is generally desirable to minimize or eliminate hum as much as possible. The amount of guitar hum that is considered “normal” can vary depending on a variety of factors, including the specific guitar and amplifier being used, the environment in which the guitar is being played, and the individual preferences of the player.
Do humbuckers eliminate hum?
Humbuckers are designed to minimize hum and interference by using two coils that cancel out unwanted noise. While humbuckers are generally more effective at reducing hum than single-coil pickups, they may not eliminate hum entirely in all situations.
What pedal eliminates 60 cycle hum?
There are several pedals on the market that are designed to eliminate 60 cycle hum, including noise gates, noise suppressors, and hum eliminators. These pedals work by analyzing and filtering the incoming signal to remove unwanted noise and interference.
How do you fix ground hum?
To fix ground hum, it may be necessary to identify and address any issues with the guitar’s grounding and shielding, or to use a ground lift or isolation transformer to isolate the guitar’s signal from external sources of interference.
Will power conditioner get rid of hum guitar amp?
A power conditioner can help to eliminate hum and interference caused by electrical noise and interference in the power supply. However, it may not be effective in all cases, particularly if the hum is caused by other issues with the guitar or amplifier setup.
Why does my acoustic guitar hum?
Hum on an acoustic guitar can be caused by a variety of factors, including issues with the guitar’s pickups or electronics, as well as external sources of interference. To diagnose and fix the issue, it may be necessary to carefully inspect and test various components of the guitar and amplifier setup.
Can I use aluminum foil to help guitar hum?
Aluminum foil can be used as a temporary measure to shield a guitar from external sources of interference, such as fluorescent lights or other electronic devices. However, for more permanent solutions, it may be necessary to address underlying issues with the guitar.
How do you tell if your guitar is grounded?
To determine whether a guitar is properly grounded, you can use a multimeter to test the continuity between various components of the guitar’s electrical system, such as the output jack and the bridge. Additionally, you can test for ground hum by playing the guitar and listening for any unwanted noise or interference.
Can a bad guitar cable cause hum?
Yes, a bad guitar cable can cause hum or noise in a guitar signal. This can be caused by issues with the cable’s shielding or grounding, as well as damage to the cable itself.
Why do humbuckers still hum?
While humbuckers are designed to minimize hum and interference, they may still produce some degree of noise depending on the specific guitar and amplifier setup. Additionally, external sources of interference, such as fluorescent lights or other electronic devices, can also contribute to hum or noise in a guitar signal.
What causes a 60 cycle hum?
60 cycle hum is typically caused by interference from power sources or electrical devices operating at 60Hz, which is the frequency of standard AC power in the United States.
How do I reduce my amp hum?
To reduce amp hum, it may be necessary to check and address any underlying issues with the amp’s electrical system, such as faulty grounding or shielding. Additionally, using noise reduction pedals or software, or minimizing interference from other electronic devices, can also help to reduce amp hum.
How do I fix my hum audio?
To fix audio hum, it may be necessary to identify and address any underlying issues with the audio equipment or setup. This may involve checking the grounding and shielding of the equipment, minimizing interference from other electronic devices, or using noise reduction pedals or software.
Why does my guitar hum when I touch the pickup?
Hum when touching a guitar pickup may be caused by a grounding issue in the guitar’s electrical system, or by interference from other electronic devices. To fix the issue, it may be necessary to diagnose and address any underlying problems with the guitar’s wiring or shielding.
Why does my guitar hum when not touching?
Hum when not touching a guitar may be caused by a variety of factors, including issues with the guitar’s grounding or shielding, interference from other electronic devices, or problems with the guitar’s pickups or wiring. To diagnose and fix the issue, it may be necessary to carefully inspect and test various components of the guitar and amplifier setup.
Why do cheap guitars buzz?
Cheap guitars may buzz due to a variety of factors, including poor construction or materials, issues with the guitar’s hardware or setup, or problems with the guitar’s electrical system. In some cases, upgrading or replacing certain components of the guitar may be necessary to eliminate buzzing or unwanted noise.
How much guitar buzz is ok?
While some degree of guitar buzz may be normal, particularly in certain playing styles or environments, it is generally desirable to minimize or eliminate buzz as much as possible in order to achieve the cleanest and most noise-free sound possible.
Why does a Stratocaster hum?
Stratocasters are equipped with single-coil pickups, which are more prone to producing hum than humbucker pickups. Additionally, issues with the guitar’s grounding or shielding can also contribute to hum or noise in a Stratocaster.
Is it normal for a guitar amplifier to hum?
While some degree of hum may be normal in a guitar amplifier, particularly at high volumes or gain settings, it is generally desirable to minimize or eliminate hum as much as possible. Hum in a guitar amplifier can be caused by a variety of factors, including issues with the amp’s electrical system, external sources of interference, or problems with the guitar’s pickups or wiring.
