In the long-run, it's best to eliminate noise at the source, either via the Illitch or with noise-free pickups, rather than using a pedal. If, OTOH, you aren't particularly attached to your guitar's current tone, look into noise-free or noise-reduced pickups.

If so, pursue a pedal solution or perhaps an Illitch system solution.

If your guitar checks out as OK, but the noise is unacceptable, you then need to ask yourself if you are happy with your guitar's tone (disregarding noise for the moment). I've not been able to figure out why, but at least I know that if a guitar is quiet enough to be usable at home, it will be noise-free just about anywhere else. All of my guitars are dead silent in most places, except my own house. Some buildings have much more noise that your pickups will 'hear'. This noise will vary depending on the ambient electrical environment. Humbucking pickups will still buzz if the pickups or the guitar body has no shielding. 'Buzz' is much higher, and a properly shielded and wired single coil guitar will hum but shouldn't buzz. However, it does reduce other higher-frequency noise that many of us mistakenly refer to as 60 cycle noise you would describe as 'buzz'.

I always shield my pickup cavities and control cavities and I make sure that I avoid all ground loops.īe aware that shielding does not eliminate 60 cycle noise. Follow best practices, including twisting together pickup leads through the chambers of the guitar, keeping all leads to minimum length, have all grounds meet at one and only one point. Make sure everything that is supposed to be grounded actually is grounded. Have it looked over by someone with experience. First, make sure that you don't actually have some sort of wiring error in the guitar.

Cycle sounds magic box