Noise; Ground Loops - Native Instruments Guitar Rig Kontrol Hardware Reference Manual

7.1.3 Noise

Audible hum can have several reasons, some of which are listed below:
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Single-coil pickups are prone to collecting electrical interferences. Humbucker pickups
produce much less hum, which is why they got their name.
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Your guitar is too close to electrical equipment. To reduce this type of hum, move the
guitar further away from the equipment.
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The guitar's volume knob is set to a low level. Turn the knob up. If your guitar has
more than one volume knob, make sure to check all knobs.
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You are using a non-shielded or broken guitar cable. Your guitar's shielding may also be
insufficient. Try replacing the cable with a shielded model first. If this does not help, you
should consider having your guitar's electronics serviced and shielded by a professional.
If you are experiencing hiss, the input level at the RIG KONTROL preamp might be too
low. Turn up the instrument's volume or increase the input level on the RIG KONTROL .
For more information on setting the input level, see section 4.4 (Windows XP/ Windows
Vista) or section 5.4 (Mac OS X) of this manual.

7.1.4 Ground Loops

Ground loops (usually perceived as a hum or buzz) are a common problem when multiple
electrical devices are connected to the same power circuit. The following steps should
help to eliminate them:
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Disconnect all devices that you are not currently using, e.g. peripheral devices you
may have connected to your computer (external data storage, CD burners).
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Hook up a DI box behind the RIG KONTROL outputs. Most of these boxes have a
ground lift switch, which allows breaking the ground loop and eliminating the noise.
GUITAR RIG KONTROL Hardware Reference – 41