Am I using my NS-2 correctly?

[uz3r]

Im trying to cut back on noise that I get from my 5150II when I play at some venues. I do not get much noise when in our rehersal room, just at venues, some times its real bad, sometimes its just an annoyance. Im guessing it may be a power thing?

 

I just borrowed an NS-2 and set it up in our rehersal room. Its set up like this:

 

1. Guitar > TU2 > Wah > Amp in.

 

2. Amp Loop Send > GT3 > NS2 (input>output, no use of loop) > Loop Return.

 

Keeping in mind I only get maybe 10-15% of the noise that I get when in some live venues, as far as I can tell the way I have set it up seems to eliminate the noise/hum that Im talking about.

 

I dont really know much about supressors, does the way I setup it up make sense with what Im trying to acheive?

[frankiej]

Well.....the NS-2 is meant for noisy dirt pedals.

 

If your amp is noisy, the NS-2 won't help much. It will take some away but its not used to tame noisy amps, just noisy dirt pedals.

[Blitzraptor007]

 

Well.....the NS-2 is meant for noisy dirt pedals. If your amp is noisy, the NS-2 won't help much. It will take some away but its not used to tame noisy amps, just noisy dirt pedals.

 

 

That's what I use mine for... my fuzzes are quite noisy

[frankiej]

 

That's what I use mine for... my fuzzes are quite noisy

 

 

Yup, I only see it when people stack dirt pedals or need to tame some noisy pedals.

[crowquill]

I suggest you talk to the amp forum

[bengerm77]

Wait, it won't help my amp hiss at all?

 

That can't be true...

[melx]

 

Wait, it won't help my amp hiss at all? That can't be true...

 

 

It's not, you have it in the amp's loop ...... so you should be able to use it to take away any amp preamp noise when you stop playing.

 

If the hiss is coming from the power stage (after the loop) it won't help though obviously.

[bengerm77]

 

It's not, you have it in the amp's loop ...... so you should be able to use it to take away any amp preamp noise when you stop playing. If the hiss is coming from the power stage (after the loop) it won't help though obviously.

 

 

Ya, I've got serious preamp hiss. When I switch to clean the hiss goes away, thus it is preamp gain making my amp all hissy.

[melx]

 

Ya, I've got serious preamp hiss. When I switch to clean the hiss goes away, thus it is preamp gain making my amp all hissy.

 

 

yeah, don't worry about what's correct and what isn't, if it works then it works......you will need to tweek around with the NS-2 when you get it up to gig volume though, the louder the signal going into it, the more you'll need to turn the pedal up to shut the noise down....it's something you'll just have to play around with. you might have to turn it off when you switch to clean too if your clean signal is quieter....that's the whole problem with gates in my experience, getting them to work with clean and overdriven at the same time.

[empire_machine]

get the isp decimator.

[Small Stone]

I suggest you try the NS-2's loop, it's very nice. There is also a way to put your preamp in the NS-2 loop. I use to do it and it was DEAD silent. If you can't figure it out yourself, let me know, and I'll tell you how to do it.

[bvester]

Honestly, all I've ever used it for was to eliminate amp hiss. And it always performed better before the preamp than in the loop, which always confused me. In any case, get an ISP. Worlds better noise reduction.

[bengerm77]

 

Honestly, all I've ever used it for was to eliminate amp hiss. And it always performed better before the preamp than in the loop, which always confused me. In any case, get an ISP. Worlds better noise reduction.

 

 

yeah, but at a quarter of the price, the ns2 will have to do for now.

 

$50 used v $200-something

[80k]

You don't want the NS-2 to hear a noisy signal and then suppress it. You want it to detect an unnoisy signal so that it can know whether you are playing or not (and hence knows whether any "noise" is intentional), and then it will know when to do its job of cutting off the noise (which is introduced later in the chain) before it gets to your amp. In terms of what it wants to hear from its INPUT jack, it's trying to differentiate between noisy (i.e. you playing the guitar) and non-noisy (i.e. you NOT playing the guitar).

 

The more silent the input signal to the NS-2 is when you are NOT playing, the better it will work. And hence why you need the guitar going into the NS-2 FIRST. When it decides that you are NOT playing, it will suppress sound so that no sound is AMPLIFIED by the noisy pedals that are inside the NS-2 loop. The hiss, noise, buzz, and all that crap that you are trying to get rid of is NOT what the NS-2 wants to hear. It wants to hear the cleanest signal directly from your guitar, so that it can decide WHEN to do its job to prevent the hiss, noise, buzz and all that crap that you ultimately want to get rid of.

 

If you put the NS-2 late in your chain or put it in your effects loop, then it is hearing a noisy signal and has no idea WTF to do.

 

The pedal is fantastic if you use it right.

[turnitto11]

Using an NS-2 at all is using it wrong.

[80k]

 

Using an NS-2 at all is using it wrong.

 

 

I actually think Boss should just get rid of it because NOBODY uses it right anyway. They keep thinking it's a noise gate. Really what it is doing is similar to turning all your pedals off when you are not playing and turning it back on when you are. It can only do this if it is first in your chain and hears the purest/cleanest signal directly from your guitar. Then it really knows when you are playing and when you aren't, so that it can do its job of "shutting" down the noisy pedals when you are not playing.

[gusvolta]

i use it the right way:cry:

 

it kills all the unwanted noise from my dirt pedals

which is what it's for

 

i do believe the isp decimator works better for the amp, correct?

[danut]

[uz3r]

I tried it at a gig last night as I specified in my original post. It works great in the loop. When Im not playing / in between songs it kills nearly all the hiss. Im happy!