How to stop Tremolo from warbling when not being played

[stella was a dive]

Turn it on, and it tremolo-lates when engaged but not playing notes. VL trem plugged into PP2.

hotcake > arc klone > CC > surf rider > voodoo > amp

what might I do to stop it from making that sound when on, but nothing being played?

 

[axdxm]

Zvex Loop Gate

 

[johnh]

I find that adding a buffer can remove the noise.

 

[stella was a dive]

there's already two in the chain with the Klone and hotcake.

 

[NakedInTheRain]

switch it on just before you start playing.

 

[TheoDog]

Volume pedal, gate or something else to kill the noise floor.

 

[johnh]

there's already two in the chain with the Klone and hotcake.

Sorry - Doh!

 

[johnh]

Did you try swapping the order, or putting the tremolo in front of your overdrive?

 

[stella was a dive]

Did you try swapping the order, or putting the tremolo in front of your overdrive?

that would certainly give me a weird sound I'd rather avoid.

 

[Jules-RM]

This is of those "only a guitarist cares" problems. Maybe a better solution is to not mind?

 

[analogsystem]

When I use the tremolo on my Princeton Reverb I hear it when not playing. Sounds cool to me.

 

[heyrobscott]

I think it's important to realize that the tremolo is creating a volume shift between quiet and full volume, so the more noise you allow through pedals and gain, the more warbling you hear. A compressor and distortion pedal with single coils is going to be noisy even when not being played, so this is what your tremolo is volume shifting against. The tremolo introduces quiet, the noise is already there.

Like others said, you can add a noise gate to set a threshold for how loud the signal needs to be before it's passed through, and adjust that threshold to just be above the guitar or pedals' noise floor.

 

[TheoDog]

The tremolo introduces quiet, the noise is already there.

Brilliant truth.