Static or Earth

this time of year it is quite dry. so I say static is the problem.
there will be a small amount of hum, sometimes, solar flares maybe.
I experience the same thing as you. no worry.
if another household appliance shares the same electric circuit as the guitar/amp there noise can occur.
I enjoy one outlet in my house because of proximity to where I like to play. when my frig would come on I would get noise. I had to move to another outlet because it shares the same circuit.

It's not so much the hum i'm worried about. Although it is pretty loud.

My concern is that when you touch metal parts of the guitar (tuners, knobs, strings, pickups) there is a click through the amp, this happens every time you touch/tap a metal part, unless you are already touching a metal part with you other hand.

The manufacturer said this may have something to do with the pickguard. This was after I mentioned to them that my old Vintage V99 did not suffer from this ticking when used in exactly the same place.

pickguards, being plastic, are very susceptible to static build up.

But would that, or could that cause a clicking sound to go through the amp every time I touch any metal part of the guitar?

Has anyone else ever come accross this?

The clicking sounds, to me, more likely to be earthing than static.
You will get rid of static every time you touch the pickguard (and have a hand on the bridge), if the strings are earthed.

possibly the next step is to open it up and check all wires and connections.
it must be earth probs.

I am a bit wary of opening it up to be honest. I'm not an electrics expert and don't want to do anything that might work against me in arguing that the guitar is faulty. I have sent it back to the manufacturer after reporting the problem to the shop I bought it from, but they have sent it back saying the wiring is ok.

I don't understand this clicking thing. I am a relative beginner and don't know if it's any sort of common problem but it doesn't seem right to me. And it didn't happen on my old guitar (the maufacturer has said it may be becaus my old guitar had a smaller scrath plate).

I don't want to be kicking up a fuss with the manufacturer or the shop if there is actually nothing wrong with the thing so wanted to get you guys expertise to consider what, if anything, I do next.

Cheers
Jay

I guess you need to check every component involved.
turn all pot controls. any noise?
flip all switches. noise?
amp in good shape.
try other electrical outlets.
and lastly. how is your cord?
in good shape?
have you another to try.

I am spent. this is all I have.

OK, to check the static story, get yourself a length of wire and a willing partner. Strip the shielding from each end of the wire (not much, just enough to get a good electrical contact. Now, get the volunteer to hold one end of the wire against the scratchplate and the other to the bare metal of the bridge. If the guitar is properly earthed, the connection will dissipate any static, which may have built up in the scratchplate. Whilst holding the wire in place, see if the clicking still occurs.
To be honest, I don't believe the static thing. If you did have a static build up, it would dissipate into your fingers, every time you got near the scratchplate - a big build up would create a painful spark between your finger and the scratchplate and you've mentioned no such occurences.

Well as for testing outlets chords etc, I belive everything is fine. I have another guitar a Vintage V99 and I cannot replicate the clicking. The only thing, in my view that gives the static argument any weight is that this doesn't happen if I play in the kitchen, which has a tiled floor rather than carpet. Although I might try this again tonight just in case I got lucky.

Another thing that has occured to me, after reading another post on here. Is that if I put my hand over the strings the Hum through the amp stops. Now in the other thread that I read somebody said this is a sign that the bridge isn't earthed properly. This would support my suggestion that an earth problem is at least contributing to the clicking. Can anyone confirm whether or not this comment is accurate.

The clicking isn't a huge issue but it is irritating and I don't want to just put up with it if it is a problem with the guitar. The guitar is brand new and if it is a fault then it needs addressing. Also it's a fair step up as a replacement for my Vintage, so it is rather frustrating.

As it has already been back to the manufacturer and they claim that they found no problem I want to investigate it as fully as possible before going back to them or the shop where I bought it.

Many thanks for all your help guys it's muchly appreciated

Jon

Also one other point to possibly consider. The scratchplate seems to be getting a lot of mention, and I have a question from this. Would/could static build up caused by the scratch plate result in a clicking when I touch a tuning peg with my other hand nowhere near the guitar let alone the scratchplate?

this is not to do with scratchplate ... i have a jackson js30rr with no scratch plate and a vintage les paul , i have this problem in both guitars and i study electical installation/ engineering ... i have checked the guitar completley and i am going to check the amp later on tonight ill let you guys know if i find anything

My main axe does exactly what you describe. Clicking when you touch any single metalic piece. Humming a good bit, but the humming stops when you touch the strings.

It only does it when plugged in in the living room or bedroom.

Never in my study.

Here's the reason I found- in my apartment, which is cheap, sorta crappy, and in a country with no building codes at all, wiring is sort of haphazard. When I took apart the wallsockets, I discovered that the "ground" like in the rooms with click and buzz aren't actually connected to anything. Someone installed the outlets with no ground.

I'm 100% convinced that the problem you describe is ground related.

The only new thing I can add to the conversation is that it could be the grounding in the guitar itself, or it could be outside. The fact that it doesn't buzz in your other guitar suggests that the earthing of the new guitar is to blame, but doesn't prove it.

It may be that the circuit in your old guitar was somehow so "closed" that, even with some problem, such as inadequate grounding, in the system, it didn't buzz. Each guitar is different. (I'm not engineer enough to go further with this.) Seems sure to be a grounding problem- And I'd check your outlets. I also might take it to a friends house and try it there. If it works on some outlets (your kitchen) but not others (other parts of your house), the problem really may not be in the guitar.

BEst,
Ande

I think the proble is a poor amp. I have never heard of that before. Replace it!!