How to Eliminate Ghost Notes ?

evh_slash

Member
I love choosing a 100w nmv plexi amp model and diming it with plenty of supply sag , tube bias & a variac but I've recently noticed that with my SSS Strat, particularly on the neck pickup I'm getting some kind of ghost notes / dissonant overtone when playing notes around the 9th - 15th fret particularly on the D and G strings. It sounds like a bad harmoniser or ring mod in the background behind the main note (it sounds like a like a slightly flat major 3rd).

What parameters should I play about with to try and reduce this WHILE keeping as much greasy saggy brown goodness as possible ?? I heard the easiest way is to change from AC to DC power type but just out of curiosity and for future reference I would like to know what I have done with my settings to have caused the virtual plexi to start 'ghosting' excessiveley, particularly with single coils.
 
Ghost notes are intermodulation distortion between the power supply ripple and the audio.

There are several ways to reduce it:
1. Change the supply to DC. This will completely eliminate it as there will be no supply ripple.
2. Reduce the supply sag. This will reduce the amount of ripple but also reduce the power amp compression due to supply sag.
3. Increase the B+ time constant. This will also reduce the amount of ripple but slow the response of the supply.
 
Based on the description of a domed Marshall with extra sag I assume it is a an amp issue. However, if that doesn’t solve it, the problem also sounds like stratitis (pickups too close to strings) although this is usually an issue on the lower strings.
 
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