Hiss and electrical noise

Can hiss and electrical noise f up an MPC? I have a lot of noise when i am in "record mode" in general. especially when i turn the rec gain knob 3/4 the way and the man volume on high.
I know that it might be because i have unbalanced cables connected to RECORD IN. But can having an ungrounded TT connected to the MP damage it in any way?
I also don't have a power conditioner or anything, it is just plugged into the socket.

izm wrote:Hiss and electrical noise

sounds like music to me

izm wrote:Can hiss and electrical noise f up an MPC? I have a lot of noise when i am in "record mode" in general. especially when i turn the rec gain knob 3/4 the way and the man volume on high.
I know that it might be because i have unbalanced cables connected to RECORD IN. But can having an ungrounded TT connected to the MP damage it in any way?
I also don't have a power conditioner or anything, it is just plugged into the socket.

A power conditioner can eliminate 60cycle hum and is a great investment towards the longevity of your gear. It will protect it from spikes, brownouts and things like that. A solid 120v to your gear can improve the performance of converters, preamps, computer processors and ANYTHING that uses ground as a reference.

None of that really address RFI which sounds like more of your problem. Balanced cables COULD help some of that, but it really depends on your source which you didn't mention. I'm gonna feel silly having written this and see a reply that your source is a turntable with a 45!

Austin_tacious wrote:

izm wrote:Can hiss and electrical noise f up an MPC? I have a lot of noise when i am in "record mode" in general. especially when i turn the rec gain knob 3/4 the way and the man volume on high.
I know that it might be because i have unbalanced cables connected to RECORD IN. But can having an ungrounded TT connected to the MP damage it in any way?
I also don't have a power conditioner or anything, it is just plugged into the socket.

A power conditioner can eliminate 60cycle hum and is a great investment towards the longevity of your gear. It will protect it from spikes, brownouts and things like that. A solid 120v to your gear can improve the performance of converters, preamps, computer processors and ANYTHING that uses ground as a reference.

None of that really address RFI which sounds like more of your problem. Balanced cables COULD help some of that, but it really depends on your source which you didn't mention. I'm gonna feel silly having written this and see a reply that your source is a turntable with a 45!

... it is a TT...having almost non-existing income I didn't buy a mixer so it is not grounded. The real question is if it can damage the MPC
What is RFI?? .....hopefully it's not a dumb question.

RundFyrkant wrote:

izm wrote:Hiss and electrical noise

sounds like music to me

hiss, hum buzz...you get my point

It won't damage the MPC. RFI=Radio Frequency Interference. A cable can act like an antennae picking up noise between source and destination. The turntable presents a different set of issues: low volume output, noise on the record, old needles etc. The biggest issue is that it requires an RIAA preamp to get the volume you need AND to adjust the EQ curve to what it SHOULD sound like from what is actually on the record. If you run it through a DJ mixer, there are RIAA preamps built in AND a ground cable you should use. If you're plugging the TT right up to the MPC that's the problem. Buy this if you just want to go TT straight to MPC with no mixer or anything:http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/DeeJayPre/
No such thing as a dumb question, dumb is not fixing a problem

izm wrote:Can hiss and electrical noise f up an MPC? I have a lot of noise when i am in "record mode" in general. especially when i turn the rec gain knob 3/4 the way and the man volume on high.
I know that it might be because i have unbalanced cables connected to RECORD IN. But can having an ungrounded TT connected to the MP damage it in any way?
I also don't have a power conditioner or anything, it is just plugged into the socket.

I think the record ins are unbalanced anyway.

TBonus76 wrote:I think the record ins are unbalanced anyway.

They ins are balanced but using unbalanced cables work fine in normal situations.
I'd try to find a (cheap) DJ mixer cause connecting a turntable straight into the MPC (without grounding) is asking for trouble/noise.

cowbell wrote:

TBonus76 wrote:I think the record ins are unbalanced anyway.

They ins are balanced but using unbalanced cables work fine in normal situations.
I'd try to find a (cheap) DJ mixer cause connecting a turntable straight into the MPC (without grounding) is asking for trouble/noise.

U right.... my bad

cowbell wrote:

TBonus76 wrote:I think the record ins are unbalanced anyway.

They ins are balanced but using unbalanced cables work fine in normal situations.
I'd try to find a (cheap) DJ mixer cause connecting a turntable straight into the MPC (without grounding) is asking for trouble/noise.

By trouble you mean pernamently damaging it or just creating additional noise when sampling? Coz that's what I did, I connected it straight through.
Hopeffuly I didn't mess it up...

No, don't worry,you can't damage it that way.
But since the turntable is probably not grounded when plugged straight into the MPC you're getting the noise.
Like i said, try to get a cheap Dj mixer you can afford.
Or else look into these direct-in box as suggested by Austin_tacious: http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/DeeJayPre/

thanks for the advice guys.

there ya go

izm wrote:But can having an ungrounded TT connected to the MP damage it in any way?

there ya go

izm wrote:But can having an ungrounded TT connected to the MP damage it in any way?

should the mixer have balanced outs?