Hi,
Bought an almost new Voluum pedal from eBay a couple a weeks ago. According to the seller it was an: "Unwanted Xmas gift. New and out of the packet once. Had a quick play on it and decided it isn't for me ."...
Received the pedal and it indeed seemed brand new. But now when I have been using it a while I'm beginning to think there is something wrong with it. The noise floor from the pedal is really high, no matter if the pedal is active or not (the noisefloor added by voluum is lot higher than when driving my noisiest overdrive pedal at max gain). The noise is high no matter if I supply the pedal with batteries or a regular power supply that I use with my other pedals and I'm sure that it isn't anything wrong with my cables either. When I disconnect the power supply to the pedal the excess noise disappears...
I have also noticed that the noise level varies and pulsates with the displayed LEDs. It also varies with the selected intensity of the LEDs. The higher the LED intensity, the higher is the noise level an vice versa. Any idea of what could be wrong and what to do next? As I live in Sweden, going to a retailer is not an option, simply because I think there is no one here selling these pedals...
Voluum noise issue
Re: Voluum noise issue
It sounds like the power supply is coupling into the audio. We have found this can happen with certain power supplies, particularly if the power supply is "chained" to other pedals. It call comes down to ground loops and where the power current goes. It it can travel along the audio leads, you end up with noise.
USB can also cause problems where the noisy power supply from USB couples into the audio path. We've found that desktops computers can be bad, portables (laptops etc) much better. A lot depends on how things in the chain are connected and if ground loops can form.
If you use batteries (and there is no 9V power, and no USB connection) does it go away?
When bypassed (and the Voluum is set to true bypass mode) there should be no noise from the Voluum -- it should be the same when you put the Voluum into the signal chain or remove it.
When active (or set to "buffered bypass") the VCA in the Voluum is active and the noise floor will be a little higher. Although the VCA in the Voluum is one of the quietest VCAs available, VCAs are not super-quiet. But you will never notice this noise unless you crank up the gain on your amp/distortion pedals. Compared to other high-end VCA-based compressors/active volume pedals, the Voluum has similar, or sometimes better, noise performance.
USB can also cause problems where the noisy power supply from USB couples into the audio path. We've found that desktops computers can be bad, portables (laptops etc) much better. A lot depends on how things in the chain are connected and if ground loops can form.
If you use batteries (and there is no 9V power, and no USB connection) does it go away?
When bypassed (and the Voluum is set to true bypass mode) there should be no noise from the Voluum -- it should be the same when you put the Voluum into the signal chain or remove it.
When active (or set to "buffered bypass") the VCA in the Voluum is active and the noise floor will be a little higher. Although the VCA in the Voluum is one of the quietest VCAs available, VCAs are not super-quiet. But you will never notice this noise unless you crank up the gain on your amp/distortion pedals. Compared to other high-end VCA-based compressors/active volume pedals, the Voluum has similar, or sometimes better, noise performance.