Getting electric shocks from my guitar?

[Jaredio]

Hey guys, sorry if this is the wrong forum for this question.

Anyway, last night i was playing guitar as usual and i put my right arm on the string and felt a tingly burning feeling i my arm (like snagging a armhair on some sharp thing) Later i tried to tune up with the fine tuner and the bridge gave me a shock.

Is there any chance that my guitar actually shocks me? or could it just be a faulty input cable?
Havent really got around to test it with my other guitars or change the cables, but i will do it tonight.
The main question tho, could this be dangerous? I dont want to burn down my house or die, but at least i will die with my guitar in hands.

[paranoid]

It could just be static, but Look at the amp grounding and all gear that is plugged into an outlet first. Make sure your input cables are good. static electricity can be a problem but not as likely to kill you as bad grounding on AC plugs and cables.

[Vass]

Given the tingly sensation doesn’t sound like static to me. Yes, it’s potentially dangerous and no it shouldn’t be happening. Whatever you’re plugged into stop using it. Sounds like there’s some sort of voltage leaking and there’s no way of knowing how much..... well, actually there is, but there’s no way to know that it’ll stay at whatever level you measure.

What are you plugged into?

If you MUST play get that sucker on a GFI outlet.

But really- don’t play till you figure it out.

[Jaredio]

Im plugged into my regular practice-amp, an old Laney hooked up to a digitech RP250 (or something).
Played with the same "rig" in my basement for about two years, no problem.

Im just wondering if this is to dangerous to do some pass/fail testing on my owm, you know, try another guitar/try a new set of cables or should i call an electrician right away? Voltage is generally a thing i dont want to **** around with.

[Vass]

You shouldn’t be feeling current coming through the guitar. Are you plugged into a properly grounded outlet?

You can test the outlet pretty easily if you want. Multimeters are cheap.

it probably won’t kill you to just keep playing, but it could.

Being in the basement, it could become just that much easier for the ground to become you. Not a situation you want.

[lefty]

Use a wireless! Problem won't be solved, but you won't get electrocuted either...

[Jaredio]

Well i tried 3 different guitars, 2 amps and tried to change cables. No difference.
i brought a carpet down to the basement to stand on while i play, and that cured everything.
When i stand on the carpet: no electrocution. stand on the floor and i can feel the strings stinging my hand.

Wtf is going on

[Axewielder]

You might check the outlets with one of those electrical outlet testers if you have one. They might not be grounded properly.

[Vass]

Well i tried 3 different guitars, 2 amps and tried to change cables. No difference.
i brought a carpet down to the basement to stand on while i play, and that cured everything.
When i stand on the carpet: no electrocution. stand on the floor and i can feel the strings stinging my hand.

Wtf is going on

It’s the outlet. You’re the ground. If you were conducting better, with wet hands and bare wet feet, you might end up having a real problem.

Get this figured out dude. Not a great situation. Do as Axe says or call an electrician.

[Jaredio]

Yep. This have to be fixed, im calling to get somebody to fix it.
Just boggles my mind that i havent noticed this before, it must have been this way for a long time.

Thanks for the advice guys, all the best.

[CaptNasty]

Sounds like a grounding problem. If this is occurring on different amps, the guitar definitely has the issue. Guitars ground through the ground of the amplifier via the output jack. Check the following:

1) Is your tremolo claw grounded? Is the tremolo ground wire grounded properly in the control cavity?
2) Are you using noiseless springs? If yes, did you remove the polymer coating where the springs touch the claw and the sustain block?
3) Is the ground properly connected between your electronics and the output jack?

If you are not comfortable and familiar with guitar electronics, take the guitar to a professional guitar tech and describe what you are experiencing and ask them to check all the grounds in your guitar.

[Jaredio]

I tried 3 different guitars, two amps, changed all the cables and still have the same problem. I took the back-plates off on one of my guitars and checked all the groundcables and they are looking just fine. Nothing loose or anything, soldering looks just like new.

I am fairly confident the problem is located in the wall-socket, i never had an issue with this in my old appartment. Guess it has always been this way in my house, i just failed to notice it up until now. Thanks for the advice nonetheless

[kamanda]

If it's happening with multiple amps / guitars then it is definitely your wiring in your house! And you never know, electricity / wiring is a funny thing and it could have just started recently (something with the ground on the outlet itself). Call the pros and let us know!

EDIT: If your semi inclined you could always pop the breaker and take the outlet out to see if its something super obvious like the grounds not connected or something - wouldn't be the first time I've seen this.

[Jaredio]

Update:
I had an electrician over to look at the problems, tested both the guitars, amps and cables (Luckily the guy also is into guitars so he did not charge me a lot)

Bottom line is this; The ground wires in my sockets were cut, and thats not unusual in houses/basements like mine. He concluded it was mostly static electricity, as it was close to un-measurable values of volts in my strings (Just enough to feel it in some situations) I took an extension-chord and plugged it into a socket i knew was grounded, and the tingling sensation is now gone.

To anyone who reads to this who has the same problem: Dont f*** around with this, you dont have to have the same minor problem as i have just because it feels like i described it. It can be something else that suddenly can shock your balls off. Be careful, call someone who knows what they are doing.

[kamanda]

Glad you got it sorted quickly!