Guitar Rig 5 noise problems

[Brock1]

Hey all,

I play a lot of hard rock/metal. I have a modest home studio and I don't have zillions of dollars to buy amps, mics, etc. I got Guitar Rig 5 because I had heard good things about it. It has lots of options, but I swear that no matter what I do, when it comes to high gain/distortion, the noise floor is just ridiculous on that thing. It's like a tidal wave of "white noise". Does anyone else have this problem? You can use a noise gate or the noise reducer, but this tends to clip the sound and then it sounds fake and/or crappy. It really drives me nuts and I cannot possibly use it as it stands to record anything. I've also wondered if maybe the power in my house just sucks. It's an old home and the wiring is very old. However, a quickie search on the internet revealed that other people are having this noise issue as well. There doesn't seem to be a universal consensus as to why. But that's random internet people. I figure TAXI forum guys probably are far more educated on such matters. I myself am a work-in-progress. I freely admit I'm not techie, though I would like to be and am trying hard to learn.

If anyone else uses GR5 and/or has this issue, your input/guidance would be greatly appreciated!

Mike
www.mikewestbrock.com

[Brock1]

I did a lot of research on the internet. It appears I am not the only one with this problem. But it also seems like a lot of people have no problems with it. Nobody seemed to have an answer. I found a link from another GR5 user who had the same issue. He made a recording of himself and the noise he gets when playing. It's identical to the noise I get:

https://soundcloud.com/st-adam-1/soundcheck

Thoughts?

Mike
www.mikewestbrock.com

[BruceBrown]

Are you using a gtr with hum bucking pickups or single coil pickups. Fender or Gibson in other words
Single coils with Gtr rir are noisy.
If thats the case try Gibson style pickups.
Bruce

[Brock1]

Hey Bruce,

I tried multiple guitars and got the same result with all. Each has Humbuckers: Fender Tele, Schecter Diamond, Ibanez Jem.

This isn't regular guitar noise. It sounds more like a "digital tidal wave". I'm tempted to blame the software, but I know a lot of people get very good results from it and don't seem to have issues.

Still, it sounds internal to me.

It may be that it doesn't like my interface (Apogee Duet). Or maybe I have low power. My house is old with ancient wiring. Maybe I'm getting low voltage or brownouts...not sure.


Mike
www.mikewestbrock.com

[MartyH]

Guitar rig 5 has an update. You could try it and see if that helps. I know it's more geared toward the aax 2 format. Or, what about a reinstall or repair of the current version you have? Just throwing out some ideas... I don't have the noise problem. Or, do any noise gates make a difference? Well, good luck.

[Russell Landwehr]

I've found that some of the patches in Guitar Rig just sound noisy... kinda like the whitenoise is part of the VST... to make it sound like real life?

Also... I did find that if I placed my cell phone away from my guitar cord it helped. (oh yes, and turning of the computer monitor, the room lights, the heater and my pacemaker... JK on the pacemaker)

Also, when dealing with this wonderful non-analog world of mis-matched impedances, you could also examine your preamp or lack of.

Russell

[Len911]

I did a lot of research on the internet. It appears I am not the only one with this problem. But it also seems like a lot of people have no problems with it. Nobody seemed to have an answer. I found a link from another GR5 user who had the same issue. He made a recording of himself and the noise he gets when playing. It's identical to the noise I get:

https://soundcloud.com/st-adam-1/soundcheck

Thoughts?

Mike
http://www.mikewestbrock.com

I wouldn't describe what's on the audio link as noise because it isn't constant. My instinct says it has something to do with latency or buffer size or something in that direction. It sounds like a delayed distortion of some sort. The delay is something associated with latency, buffer size is usually associated with crackling or popping, I'm not sure if it would include or not the distortive sound. I thought at first it might be a defective semiconductor, but they don't have those in software,lol!


gr5 is an effect, it can only do so if there is a sound played into it, this case, the guitar. The guitar sound has a rather clear, clean sound, and what comes later seems to be the effect from gr5, though delayed, and garbled. First place I would check is the settings within the gr5, and try different settings. So that eliminates the guitar as the problem.

[Russell Landwehr]

OK, the noise is constantly the same but being gated. Where is the gate in the signal chain? Since you've tried different guitars, the noise has to be coming from somewhere between your guitar and the gate. This could be anything from your guitar cord to the last thing in the chain before the gate. You aren't using a wireless for your guitar are you?

Are you using a factory patch in GR5? Which one? I use GR5 and I've noticed "authentic" noise in some of the patches. I would like to check out the preset you are using.

Russell

[Brock1]

Hey all,

I appreciate all the replies. I'm going to respond person by person just so nobody thinks I didn't read their post:

Marty H: I didn't know about the GR5 update. I will download that and see if it helps. I have done every possible combination of Noise Gate and Noise Reducer. It makes no difference. I would consider a reinstall, but here's the catch:

It doesn't do this one every preset. It's only the hi-gain/distortion presets, and not even all of those. And I know that other people have used the hi gain presets WITHOUT getting all the nasty noise. I know this because I pulled some of the presets off of YouTube and such. The people posting did NOT have this sound in their recordings. I'll address the "all hi gain presets have noise" issue below.

Russell: When you say some patches are noisy, do you mean "normal" noise; ie like "60 cycle hum from a single coil pickup" or noise like in the example I posted previously; ie a sound akin to somebody kicking a digital spring reverb down a flight of stairs? I have no problem with "real" noise. if it wasn't there, the amps wouldn't sound authentic. But this is some weird digital barf, not "real" amp noise.

I have tried facing away from my computer, sitting further away, turning off lights, etc...no dice.

You may have a point on the pre-amp or lack thereof...I go through an Apogee Duet straight into my Mac. I tried googling "Apogee Duet Guitar Rig 5" to see if anyone else had compatibility issues but I found nothing.

Len 911: The noise happens whenever he stops playing (same as it does for me). So, it's like "play...play...stop...*HUGE* tidal wave of digital noise...repeat".

I have changed the latency to both extremes...no dice. I didn't mess with the buffer because I'm not getting crackling/pops/stuff associated with buffer issues.

I have tried using multiple different guitars as well as turning off any and all effects in the presets...no change.

Russell: I tried switching out the guitar cable. I am not using a wireless. The patch is user made...they posted a screenshot on YouTube and I copied it in GR5. I will describe the settings if you like. There isn't a lot going on and I have used those components in other patches with no issues. It's bizarre.

I freely admit I'm not an expert, but I do have somewhat of a clue...I've tried everything I can think of including plugging all my cables into one dedicated breaker...no change. I am completely at a loss.

I want to say thanks to everyone who has offered advice!

Mike
www.mikewestbrock.com

[Russell Landwehr]

This sounds very frustrating.

Yes the purposful noise I was talking about would be things like authentic tube noise and stuff.

how about if you export the patch and email it? If you wanna do that I will PM u my email Addy.

or you could post a screenshot here.