Re: GFCI creates amplifier noise?

In news:1146417338.927874.257740@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx,
hallerb@xxxxxxx <hallerb@xxxxxxx> wrote:
A friend reports if she plugs her amp into her outdoor GFCI outlet she
gets noise, plugged into any other outlet no noise at all.

What kind of noise - 60 cycle hum, hiss, buzz, other? Is the amp old or new?
3 prong plug?


My bet would be it's the location, not the GFCI-ness of the outlet...unless
it's ungrounded, which might be allowed in certain situations. Your tester
will tell.

I'd be loathe to plug a musical instrument or vocal amp used outside into a
circuit *not* protected by a GFCI. These things are notorious for letting a
harmful potential reach the metal case of a microphone or the pickups /
strings of an electric guitar. Not always harmful unless your feet are well
grounded --- and that's exactly what a GFCI id designed to protect against.
It measures current through the hot and neutral wires and if they are not
equal (well...opposite) some of the current is going somewhere else ---
possibly though a human body --- and stops it within 6 milliseconds.

To be fair this equipment was used outdoors long before we had GFCI's but
it's a hazard we can prevent today.

Depending on why there's noise, you could consider putting the GFCI upstream
of the outdoor outlet with wiring to the latter coming from the "load side."
All of our outdoor outlets are done that way to prevent nuisance trips
caused by wet weather.
--
Jim
"Remember, an amateur built the Ark; professionals built the Titanic."


.

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