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Conductive paint for shielding effect?

61.110.134.23
Posted on November 6, 2009 at 04:28:36
C.Y
Audiophile

Posts: 341
Location: S.Korea
Joined: September 7, 2002
 Hi,

I heard from others that some copper sheet on 26 tube, connected to ground, helped the magnetic hum induction.

Does this conductive paint coated on 26 tube would do the same? I saw some on ebay saying it's used for guitar pickup casing.



Can I have any experience or opinion?

Cheers,
Chul
RE: Conductive paint for shielding effect?, posted on November 10, 2009 at 12:48:10
casouza
Audiophile

Posts: 485
Joined: March 18, 2008
 I recommend a metallic perforated pencil holder from Office Depot or Staples, as a makeshift "tube cage". The heavier the better.
Drill a 1" hole in the bottom for the tube to go through and attach a grounding wire to the amp / preamp chassis.
It is ventilated, looks nice and stops hum on its tracks.

RE: Conductive paint for shielding effect?, posted on November 6, 2009 at 08:31:02
Hornlover
Manufacturer

Posts: 1013
Joined: March 8, 2002
 For hum (low frequency stuff), you really need iron, and the thicker the better, to be an effective shield. Thin stuff like paint, and non-ferrous metals are only good for RF shielding. Shielding is a wavelength dependant thing, so for low frequencies (60 or 120Hz), thickness counts.

RE: Conductive paint for shielding effect?, posted on November 6, 2009 at 05:41:24
FenderLover
Audiophile

Posts: 3309
Joined: July 31, 2007
Contributor
  Since: May 17, 2009
 I've tried this with so-so success. First off, you have to somehow connect the painted surface to grounded portion of the pickup or the painted surface doesn't work. Some folks even say it can INCREASE hum and buzz if not properly grounded. I haven't had that result. But, it doesn't really stop the buzzing as well as simply touching the strings/pickups with your hand. And since I usually have my right hand on the strings all the time to dampen them from ringing, there's really no the need for special conductive paint. I've also used thin sheets of foil to line the pickup's cavity. This works better as it's easier to wire a ground to the foil than to the painted surface (IMHO).

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