6 simple and cheap ways to fix hum, buzz and ground loop noise

Hey! Since I made this video, I've more than doubled the number of tips and ideas for solving these issues - these and more can be found in my ever expanding book, available to the good people who make this channel possible on Patreon:

This ground loop isolator is getting good reviews on Amazon:

NOTE: Only use balanced (TRS) cables for instruments that have balanced inputs AND outputs, otherwise it won't work well and may degrade the quality of your sound

If you're getting noise because of a USB cable connected to your instrument, a USB isolator might do the trick. There are a few of these, here's one I tested - it's on the expensive side but has interesting connectivity options:

If all else fails, use a DI box. In general - use a passive box for a powered source (synths), and an active box for a passive source (guitar with magnetic pickups). Here's a good one passive DI box:

For non-audio cable noise like ethernet or USB - Get a ferrite choke here (remember: no choking any ferrets!!):

Audacity is free and awesome:

After making this video I tried out Brusfri from Klevgrand and it's highly recommended:

Here's a link to Noise Remover from Accusonos:

And their bundle is also quite interesting:

Finally, you can also try out RX 7:
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Timeline:
0:00 Intro
0:20 Use one outlet
0:50 Balanced gear
1:30 Isolators
2:30 Ferrite chokes
3:10 Using filters
3:35 Advanced tools

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NOTE: Occasionally I’ll try out affiliate marketing and include affiliate links. This means that I may earn a commission when you click on or make purchases via affiliate links. The content of this clip is entirely my opinion, and was not paid for or dictated in any way by the company creating the gear. Without addressing the particulars of products shown here as they might be under NDA, gear shown on this channel may be either sent by the manufacturer, on loan for review or bought at a discount.
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[tradrudeboy]

I first watched this video about a year ago, which definitely helped me identify the source of some of my frustrations.

I finally just replaced all the outlets in my studio, re-grounded all outlets on the circuit that feeds my studio, and installed GFCI outlets on the most upstream point. I've also run insulated conduit to act as both cable management and power/data/audio cable isolation. I've added ferrite cores to all my USB cables and run voltage tests on all my audio and power cabling. This has allowed me to completely remove ground loop isolators and post-recording phase reversal filtering from my process.

Short of a master power conditioner and UPS hard wired into my space, I've cleaned my entire electrical path as much as possibleand it sounds fantastic.

[cuba]

Great tips! I got one more.
If one of your rack equipment produces hum when connected, check if it's not touching other pieces of gear in the same rack and is properly isolated from a rack rails (properly painted for example). Just take it out of the rack while connected to see if the hum disappears. Most of the gear's earth is connected to the enclosures and if enclosures touch each other in some cases, ground loop may appear.

[catsven]

If all videos about tech are that quality I’ll watch them all day long like a football match without getting bored..

It’s valuable interesting well documented and very well filmed and done ... thumbs up!

Thanks for that knowledgeable fun moment.

[NobleLuke]

It took me precisely one video to realise that this guy is absolute no-bullshit legit!

[StringerNews]

Ground loop hum often happens in houses because with split phase wiring one must work to balance the legs to keep a voltage off of the neutral. It has *nothing* to do with the ground, so removing the grounding lug is not likely to fix the problem, and more likely to create an electrocution hazard. In cases where it does make a difference, that's because the ground line was returning current to ground in a "bootleg ground" situation. The problem here is that if someone touches an ungrounded chassis with one hand, and a grounded one with another, the voltage can be just right to stop ones heart. Far more effective to either hire an electrician, or learn to inspect your home wiring yourself if you have sufficient training. Another solution is to have a "balanced power" circuit installed for audio / video gear where ground loops are a problem. In the US this requires using gear at 240V or getting a step-down transformer. (I used a Furman AVR that takes 240V in and puts out 120V regulated, until I replaced it with a double conversion UPS that synthesizes the local AC so there can be no ground loops. Both are expensive, pro solutions.)


Ferrite is very ineffective at line frequencies, so it's really only used to block radio frequencies. Ferrite chokes can be very effective in keeping high frequencies out of a system when used properly. Most VGA monitors had one at the end of the cable because they had three coaxial cables to carry the video signal to the monitor. Coax is unbalanced, so the shield is also a conductor, and RF inside the room can induce a voltage on the shield and enter the system. A ferrite choke absorbs the energy first. People who didn't know how it worked started putting ferrite on everything, thinking it would be a magic bullet, but it was a wasted effort. Recently I ran into a situation where every time someone talked on their radio, the SDI video signal to my monitor would go out. SDI uses coax, so I got an old ferrite bead that someone had put on a computer keyboard and put it on the SDI cable where it connected to my monitor. Problem solved!


No reason why that balun should invert the signal. Chances are it was wired up the wrong way. But there's a use for the polarity invert switch on some audio gear.

[no_categories]

Thank you so much for showing the actual soundwaves. So often on videos like this you just watch somebody listening to a difference and giving a subjective opinion.

[Allthewrongkeys]

So i choked all of my ferrets and i’m still having ground loop issues. Help.

[iamseeingdots]

You are an absolute legend! One and a half minutes in and our sound issues are now solved! Thank you for your very comprehensive video :)

[otuon]

loopop once again being a lifesaver. this popped up thanks to the algorithm and my usb2 connection hum was driving me wild. Well, ferrite choke here I come.

[Noone-of-your-Business]

Indeed, NO. You should absolutely NOT disconnect the ground pin. For all those who do not know, that thing is there *to save lives* !! In case of a short inside a grounded device with the live wire touching the metal _casing_, it is the ground connector that takes care of your fuse box and immediately causes a cut of power on the affected circuit.
Whatever you do, DO NOT REMOVE THE GROUNDING PIN on your plugs!

[RichardsWorld]

That notch filter trick really did some magic for me.

[velanche]

Great video! Been a fan of your videos but never knew you had this one. I solved a grounding problem today with an RCA audio switcher that has a turntable, a CD changer and a digital mixer all connected to it. I had ground issues with each, and narrowed it down to the switcher. Got myself a ground loop isolator on the cheap, and it's working as advertised. Good to know of other solutions too, so this video will be a keeper. Thanks again.

[LloydRobinson]

Good tips. My ground noise usually is my sampling input cable not connected to a sampling source. Sometimes it's too much Sustain and i panic, turning everything down but then realise it's Sustain.

[Fallen_Grove]

Thanks for the tip about the shared power. I have my audio setup plugged into a different power source since it's far away from my computer. I couldn't figure out what was causing the hum on my setup and it was slowly driving me crazy. I even bought some of those grounding devices and it didn't help. Who knew something as simple as plugging everything to the same power source can solve this issue!

[pauloingpauloing]

Timeline on video description doesn't work on mobile
0:20 Use one outlet
0:50 Balanced gear
1:30 Isolators
2:30 Ferrite chokes
3:10 Using filters
3:35 Advanced tools

[chrislaarman]

For me, making a part of the connection wireless may dispose of the hum without trading off too much delay. YMMV. :-)

Example: going wireless from my guitar into my old Zoom 505 pedal was an impressive improvement.

[craigconway]

Thank you for this, it got me thinking in the right direction. I have a computer speaker that is USB powered, when it was plugged into my desktop computer's USB port it made an annoying sound. To fix that I plugged it into a USB to AC adapter for charging a cell phone (5V 3A). And now the speaker works as it should.

[cAnuL]

So im back here on this video I watched like 1 hour ago. And I just want to say: THANK YOU SO MUCH! I had everything I needed already. I just set this up wrong. After I watched this video i started from scratch. And ta-da: Ground Noise is gone! Thank you so much!

[motlblya]

As always, the best tutorials on the web !

[fpelini]

ground loop iso worked "magically" just as you said my friend. thanks a ton!