Buzz pops and cracks etc in my XLR lines. Help!

[Jherman]

Hey all,

I wasn't sure what forum to post this in but my best guess is this one, if I am wrong, mods I apologize.

Recently (yesterday actually) I finished up connecting my 8 channel xlr wallplates (Redco) to my control room and my recording hall. They are on opposite sides of the wall from one another but are "over and under" each other. Connected the snake (pulsar tech gold plated) to my Digi 003 Rack+ and to my dismay there's a constant buzz and crackling noise in EACH channel (yes I tried different mics, different cables, used different IN's the whole deal). I eventually caved and plugged a mic line directly into the snake that's connected to my interface, and there was no noise. Which leads me to believe that its coming from the electrical line in the same wall (didn't really have a choice of placement on my plates). They ARE encased in PVC housing and are about 8 inches from the electrical line inside the wall.

I did some reading and talked to some people before I installed this and everyone said the "safety zone" is 12-18 inches from the electrical line and that if you had to be closer, using PVC housing around your XLR lines should save you. It didn't save me *sigh*.

I am at a complete loss on what to do, should I rip a huge chunk of my wall out and encase the electrical line in PVC also? (which I'd really rather not do) I've strained my brain on this quite a bit over the past few hours and figured I would throw myself at your mercy. If for some reason you need dimensions or pics feel free to ask and i can supply both. I can even make a vid if necessary.

[Soundman2020]

Have you checked your grounding system in your studio? AC cable next to XLR should not produce that kind of buzzing. I do it all the time at events, even with stage lighting cables running right next to my mic cables for tens of feet, and I don't get that kind of problem. I'd expect it from LINE level cables, for sure, but not from XLR. That's the entire point of using balanced cables: they reject noise.

So my guess would be that you have a grounding problem somewhere, or that your connectors are not wired correctly (confusing pin 1 with pin 2, maybe?). Or that your snake cable isn't shielded properly. I'd check things like that before you start ripping out wall.

- Stuart -

[Jherman]

Stuart,

Thank you for your reply, i'm 99% sure the XLR's are soldered properly but i will def give it a double check. Also I realized I was not very clear on the "sound" situation. I AM getting signals via my wall plate and the buzz/popping/cracking only exist when i run through my wall plate, if i bypass it completely there's no noise and the signal is crystal clear. If it was a grounding problem, I'll be honest and say that I'm a complete electrical Newbie so any detailed suggestions you may have would be greatly appreciated!

-J

*edit* My apologies for the bad quality of the pictures, the Female side of my XLR plate was "pre soldered" by redco so I don't think they'd mess it up. If you need better pics I can try to take some more later.

[Jherman]

Stuart,

Nvm, i'm completely retarded. Wires were crossed rofl.

<3

[Soundman2020]

Problem solved, then?

Don't feel bad: I've done the exact same thing more than just a few times! That's why I suggested it as a possibility...

- Stuart -