Vintage instruments can often be noisy. But there’s something about a Hohner Clavinet that when it starts to become noisy, it really goes for it. Whether it’s hum or a type of static, here are a few things that you can take a look at:

Electrical interference:

Hohner Clavinets are very sensitive to noise interference because of the type of pickups they use. If they are near other electroncis with a significant current going through them then problem can occur. Hissing, static, and even radio frequencies can enter the audio signal. Try to keep the Clavinet away from things that have strong electrical frequencies if possible. Dimmer switches, fluorescent lights , and anything with an antennae can also cause an issue.

Mains interference:

Another common issue is when using 9V power from the mains. If the Clavinet is not grounded properly this can cause humming, or sometimes ground loops can occur if the Clavinet and amplifier are plugged into the same socket. Using the 9V battery will help solve this as it will remove the ground loop or electrical interference.

Male sure the Clavinet is grounded:

Check that the ground from the Clavinet is working. Use a multimeter to check that ground signals are in fact going to ground and leaving the Clavinet. Without this noise will be very apparent. Imagine a jack cable when you touch the end – the noise comes from your body because it is picking up your electromagnetic interference. The clavinet is the same, but when grounded this interference has an easy path to escape to. This is why grounding is so important for all electronic devices as a way of reducing noise.

Shielding the preamp:

The preamps in Clavinets are very sensitive to electrical interference as mentioned. One solution can be to add a shield around the preamp which will stop electromagnetic frequencies from entering the amp. Often made of copper, this type of shield wraps around the amp to protect it.

Old capacitors in the preamp:

If neither of these two things have worked, three a chance it might be something inside the preamp of the Clavinet. Like a lot of other vintage gear, the electronics in these instruments are 50 years or older. There’s a good chance some of the capacitors are not working as well as they should, and in their ageing have introduced noise to the system. Replacing capacitors could improve this.

It can help to check where the noise is happening. If it only happens when one of the EQ switches (Brilliant, Treble, Mid, and Soft) then the issue will be located in that part of the circuit.

Still stuck?

No worries, Clavinets can be annoying like this! Feel free to get in touch and we’ll see if we can help.