epi 335 feeds back, a lot!!! why so much?

[monkeywalker]

i've got an epiphone es335 and despite it's low price and presumably stupidly cheap materials it has a nice bite to the sound on the clean channel with a bit of gain. however when your put it on the distorted channel it feeds back like nothing i have ever come across in my life. even at low volume and with me sat as far away as possible it screams at me as if i'm punishing it unnecessarily with a very large sharp stick. it's got 1957 reissue humbuckers on it which are the original pups. does anyone know why they do this so much?

[HJM]

If it is a high pitch un-musical feedback it is microphonic and the pickups need to be potted in wax.

Semis are prone to feedback, it's all the air in the body!!

[Ratrod]

Hollow body guitars will produce feedback earlier than solid bodies. So as a general rule don't use too much gain and keep some distance from the speakers.

A good set of pickups that are properly wax potted will prevent the guitar from going into early feedback.

Cheap pickups usually have lousy wax potting.

My MQ equipped hollow body will still go into feedback on high gain and loud volume when I'm standing close to the amp. It'll never go awy completely but the new pickups improved a lot.

[Searcher]

Was it B.B King that used to stuff small towels in his guitar to stop it feeding back? Someone did anyway; those things often have problems.

[tewboss]

I think it was quite common for people to fill the sound holes with material to stop it feeding back. I thought Slowhand used to do it as well.

[_tom_]

If it is a high pitch un-musical feedback it is microphonic and the pickups need to be potted in wax.

Semis are prone to feedback, it's all the air in the body!!

My Mules did that even after being re-covered with the black ones, and I guess they were re-wax potted  :? Dunno if its just the amp though, old valves maybe..

[Steve-Mr Pig 2U]

If it is a high pitch un-musical feedback it is microphonic and the pickups need to be potted in wax.

Semis are prone to feedback, it's all the air in the body!!

My Mules did that even after being re-covered with the black ones, and I guess they were re-wax potted  :? Dunno if its just the amp though, old valves maybe..

Im afraid thats probably your amp or lead. We've never had a microphonic covered pickup, its not possible. If you've got old valves it will probably explain your "muddy" neck pickup too.

[nineacres]

I've had positive feedback experiences with my Heritage535 and Barden Two-Tone HBs - I've found that I can coax some real nice sustain by exploiting the feedback (obviously on the right notes   ) but it is true that you always have to keep an eye (or better, an ear) on things at the same time. So not all bad news, I'd say ... Depends how you work it.

[The amazing Phil]

Hollow guitars will feedback like buggery I'm afraid, that's why the B.B. King Lucille has no F holes, but it's something that goes with the territory. It's easily solved by not going OTT with gain, and standing some way from your amp.

[Bob Johnson]

Hollow guitars will feedback like buggery I'm afraid, that's why the B.B. King Lucille has no F holes, but it's something that goes with the territory. It's easily solved by not going OTT with gain, and standing some way from your amp.

I read somewhere that at least one incarnation of BB King's Lucille (there have been quite a few of them) was made of a solid Maple/Poplar/Maple sandwich to preclude any feedback problems.
Like everyone has already said hollow bodies are renowned for feed back.

[monkeywalker]

cheers guys. i think it was just a little unexpected cos i probably sub consciously compared it to my dads Rickenbacker 330 which is semi with super high gain single coils which don't feed back even if you want them to. they sing like a choir of angels on the clean chanel and love a lot of gain when you crank it up.

[Bob Johnson]

cheers guys. i think it was just a little unexpected cos i probably sub consciously compared it to my dads Rickenbacker 330 which is semi with super high gain single coils which don't feed back even if you want them to. they sing like a choir of angels on the clean chanel and love a lot of gain when you crank it up.

Just to add to what's already been said; a Rici 330 will perform more like a chambered solid, the top is nowhere near as resonant as a large bodied arch top. Unfortunately the qualities that make archtops sound like they do works against them when it comes to feed back.