Acoustic/Electric question

yomogimogi

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I recently bought a Kala KA-TE from MGM. The striped mahogany looks pretty sweet and sounds awesome in my noob opinion. I haven't bought an amp yet (pignose hog 20), but I wanted to test the electronics so I plugged into some computer speakers and I noticed there was an annoying hum. Sometimes it happens depending on where my hand is touching the ukulele. It has a metal wound low G string and the rest aquila. I was wondering if any sound people out there know if I would need a DI box or what or if that noise is even normal. I'm under the impression that since it has an active pickup (which would be a preamp, right?) I could just plug it into a speaker with a line in spot.

Also, does anyone have a problem with the wires inside the ukulele touching the walls to cause a buzzing noise? I had to lightly tape the wires down.

I only know a bit about sound electronics, so anything helps!

~Traci
 
wait until you can actually test it in an amp. if you still hear the buzz, change out the battery. while youre at it, you can e-tape some of the excess slack in the pickup wiring so theyre not so loose that theyre all around the place inside the body and causing buzzing. you can anchor it down too, but it requires quite a bit of careful patience.
 
You have to wait until you get an amp. Computer speakers != amp I've got a Roland Microcube and I love it, but I also am into effects and rocking out vs. relaxed uke.

I also have a wound G on my acoustic electric and I am going to take the damn thing off if I can't find a soundhole cover soon. It rings out WAY longer than any of the other strings and you can get weird feedback issues.
 
Cool thanks guys. I'm going to try plugging it in this weekend.

Also NukeDoc, I think I watched your video on how to string the ukulele, and I just restrung a soprano. It worked, although I broke a g string for some reason.. It just snapped right at the nut while I was cleaning up the loose ends. Kudos nonetheless. :)


*Edit*

I tried it on a Mackie SRM 150 (http://www.mackie.com/products/srm150/), but there still is a buzz. I think it may be an unbalanced line cable or something (using normal 1/4" to 1/4"). Switched out batteries and got the same results. Also, when I touch the metal part where I plug in or the wire inside the sound hole, the buzzing goes away completely. If settings are too high there is lots of feedback. The built in mixer has the equivalent of a DI box to supposedly help, but it doesn't... any suggestions?
 
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