3 Tone Print Pedals cause a hiss TC Electronics

[jlagana2002]

Hi,
First off I love TC Electronics and I have their tech Tore in Denmark working on this problem, and I just wanted to ask you guys/ & any Techs if you can help me.

I have the TC Electronics Corona Chorus/ Hall Of Fame Reverb/ and the Flashback delay !

So here goes. When all 3 pedals are on they cause a very loud hiss that gets louder when I turn the volume up on my Plexi Clone.

Now I do not have an effects loop. And I did EVERYTHING you can imagine as per Tore from TCE to trouble shoot this issue.

My EVH Wolfgang > 3 Tone Print Pedals> the front input of the Plexi Clone.

Now the Clone is whisper Quiet even all the way up, and other pedals do not HISS like this. However for the price, these Toneprint pedals sound AMAZING except for the loud HISS !!!!!

Tore had me power them with batteries, and move them around in the chain, switch to buffer bypass etc. But nothing helps. We have been going on here for days...

I wanted to know if anyone could help me to crack these pedals open and solder what ever I have to to stop this hiss.

When I use any 2 toneprint pedals it is very quiet, & NO HISS ! But when I click the 3rd on, it sounds like a CB radio noise floor scurrying hiss that is so loud it messes with my clean playing.

On high gain no one cares.

Can anyone help me before I have to get a different delay or something.

Please ask me questions if necessary.
I built my own PLEXI clone (and I take pride that it's whisper quiet)
and I don't have this issue with any other pedals.

Remember, I love TC Electronics and I am not here to bad mouth them.

I want to keep my pedals.

Thank you very much !
Joe

 

[Hector Arcadius]

It sounds some kind of impedance issue, but I really have no clue. Subscribed to the thread to see how it turns out. Good luck with your issue man. Glad to hear that TC stands behind their product like this.

 

[jlagana2002]

They really are helpful. But I see that no other person on this forum is having the same problem as I am. The only thing I can say in my defense is that no other pedals have done this and I am into testing many many pedals.

If these 3 toneprints didn't sound so good together, I wouldn't be asking how to fix my HISS issue.

Man, the hiss is really bad. SO LOUD, and I get LOUD pop's when stepping on the switches. (Only when using 3 at a time, with just 2 at a time, NO ISSUES AT ALL !)

It's so bad, I had to switch back to my DL4 delay !

Thank you for the response !

 

[Timshady]

I had a similar issue just a couple weeks ago and it turned out to be something that I never would have really thought of. My pedal chain goes as such:

PolyTune -> Fulltone GT-500 -> MXR 10 band EQ -> Dunlop Jerry Cantrall Wah -> Hardwire delay

My pedals all go into the effects loop in my amp and it's normally whisper quiet. When I introduced the GT-500 into the chain, I bought a couple new small pedal connector chords along with it and all of a sudden I started getting this nasty hiss. I troubleshot it one pedal at a time and no matter what pedal I used in any configuration, when I brought that last pedal into the chain, I could hear the hiss. After a couple hours of being frustrated, I called a friend of mine who is my pedal guru. He came over and within minutes he found the issue. Apparently, one of the small 6" chords I bought was faulty or not shielded. He swapped it out for one of his to prove it and the hiss went away.

So, long story short, my small chords in between pedals turned out to be my problem. Try checking all your connections and the chords in between. Maybe you have a bad one in your chain somewhere.

 

[jlagana2002]

Thanks for the input Tim,
But alas, I tried that already with super high end cables that I payed WAY to much for, and they still HISS.

I guess I may have to stop using the Flashback delay and go with the TCE ND-1 Delay which will have similar qualities for delay.

I like TCE Delay as it doesn't do anything to my tone except repeat it !
Some people like their delays to beef up or add something, not me !

The Plexi does it all on its own !

Thanks !
Joe

p.s. I have thanked people a lot on this forum but I have 0 Thank You's in my avatar !

 

[AngryHatter]

So any two work fine but when the third is added, no matter which one it is and the hiss starts?

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

Given that it's an odd number of pedals, might it be a ground-polarity issue? That would of course assume that there is "cross-talk" happening.

 

[jlagana2002]

Hatter, yes, thanks, when the 3rd on is turned on, or its buffer in set to on, it hisses, but any 2 work fine !

Now Thanks Thump, I like what I am hearing.
So when I turn on the 3rd pedal in the chain it could be causing a polarity issue.

So, in theory, I guess if I got a 4th pedal this might cancel the cross talk out ?
I could use the TCE Vortex Flanger, but $150 down the road and it might still hiss !

Hmmm, does anybody know what to do INSIDE the pedal to stop this?
I built my own amp so i am comfortable with cracking these pedals open...

Thank you guys !

 

[jlagana2002]

So, great news, Tore from TC Electronics said he would change out my three Tone Print Pedals for 3 new ones tested from Denmark. If they don't hiss there they shouldn't hiss here. And just to be safe I got a new VooDoo brick on the way as well !

This should solve the hiss problem.

I'll keep you posted.

 

[Hector Arcadius]

Now THAT is customer service!

 

[JakeM]

Now THAT is customer service!

You said it Brother. I will definitely stand by T.C Electronics as they have amazing build quality etc. but their Customer Service seems to be of a VERY high Standard.

Jake

 

[lifele55]

I wish they were more supportive with us Nova System users.. I love TC too but I guess, they're more business driven.

Since the Tone Print pedals are they're most recent release, my guess would be they'll be doing all the support they can to it. And everything else falls lower in their priority list.

 

[jlagana2002]

I hear ya Lifele,
But its like anything else, you want to fix the bugs in new equipment, as you did in previous years on past equipment. I am sure when the Nova systems were new, they were fixing bugs, but now they move to the next product.

A company HAS to be somewhat business driven.

Hey look, I don't know of a top company that WONT replace a product, providing you can show proof of sales...
I did it with an Ibanez guitar, they couldn't fix it, there was a factory defect thing, they sent me a new one in its place ! As long as it is a factory defect I guess maybe...

Whats wrong with your Nova system, maybe we can help here ?

Thanks,
Joe

 

[jlagana2002]

Tore from TC Electronics fixed my hiss problem !!! He changed out my three Tone Print Pedals for 3 new ones tested from Denmark.
THEY DON'T HISS AT ALL !!! PERFECT TONE !!!

TCE for life !