Topic: Problems with guitar. Need help.

I'm new to guitars, so bare with me. I was loaned a Peavey bass guitar and Fender amp. At first I was having no troubles with them. I picked up the guitar one afternoon to play, and about 20 minutes into the session I realized the sound was fuzzy. Within a few minutes, it got really distorted and then a constant buzz came through the speaker. I strumbed the strings and nothing happened. I turned the amp off and left it for a couple minutes, and then turned it back on. I was able to play for a few minutes, then the exact same thing that had happend earlier happened again.

Does anyone have any suggestions? Could it be a setting on the guitar, or amp? I messed with the equalizer, but that's not it. I have no idea what the knobs on the guitar do, except adjust the sound. I've gotta return this guitar soon, and if something's wrong I'd like to know before I do. Any suggestions or information would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.

Re: Problems with guitar. Need help.

Is it a tube or valve amp? Tubes can often become difficult like this late in their lives and will need replacing.

'The sound of the city seems to disappear'

Re: Problems with guitar. Need help.

Sometimes instruments will have batteries to power an active pick-up. I have a fretless bass and mine has a battery inside. If the battery is bad the symptoms you mentioned will occur. Also, make sure you unplug the cable from your guitar when you're not playing for when the cable is in the guitar it drains energy from the battery.

cytania's suggestions are correct as well but you should start tracking your potential source of problems from the guitar first, then the amp.

Give everything but up.

Re: Problems with guitar. Need help.

Try a guitar of a friend using your amp. After doing this there are 2 possibilities:
- Your amp, and reading the topic I noticed that there is no topic concerning amps.
- Your guitar: a little story:
In January 2007, somebody I know, wanted my "acoustic" line 6 guitar, this guitar sounded on my acoustic amp like sh**. He wanted this guitar and so we changed. I got his 12 string Burns + 400$. The problem of the noise on my amp was caused by the Variax. He went to a music store, and there they told him that a lot of acoustic variax guitars made in a certain period, were bad sounding, they gave him another, and he is happy.
So the 2 things you have to do are: using another guitar on your amp, and/or using your guitar on another amp.
So basicly I tell the same thing as SouthPaw41L and Cytania.
________________________________________________________________________
GITAARDOCPHIL SAIS: ONLY BEES CAN BUZZ

[color=blue]- GITAARDOCPHIL SAIS: TO CONQUER DEAD, YOU HAVE TO DIE[/color]   AND [color=blue] we are born to die[/color]
- MY GUITAR PLAYS EVERY STYLE = BLUES, ROCK, METAL, so I NEED TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY IT.
[color=blue]Civilization began the first time an angry person cast a word instead of a rock.[/color]

Re: Problems with guitar. Need help.

Your speaker may have rips in it causing the fuzz sound.

Bootlegger.