Is this stuck frequency normal?

[nande]

Hello i'm new here. i just got a muse S and the mind monitor app.
the mind monitor app is actually very good. but i'm very disappointed by the reliability of the muse s.
seems most of the price goes to the packaging...
I noticed thanks to mind monitor that there's a frequency that seems to be stuck. around 40+ hz.
i've used the band for about 10 hours in different days, and it always stays there.
all the graph shows that frequency stuck.
it's always tp9 or tp10 the ones.
i tried adjusting the band, repositioning, using wet cotton pieces. and using that 50/60hz filter but it doesnt go away.
when i press the band very firmly on my forehead it seems to normalize like af7 and 8.

also every now and then the app just says "reconnecting" and stays for a few secs with no data.

to my eyes this seems unusable for any mid-serious intention.

is all this common? can it be fixed?

[nande]

pd thanks for the author of this app, it does provides lots of information and the graphs are nice.
also thanks for providing an osc client, with examples in python, using python-osc and osc 1. and not something more complicated. i was able to write some scripts and connect to a game engine that only supports osc 1.

[Karam]

Someone commented that these lines may be nearby electrical devices. Not sure if they are right.

[nande]

thanks for the reply.

hmm i think thats unlikely. ive been all around the house with the same result.
even with the pc off.
ill keep doing tests.

so you mean im not the only one ? thats good news i thought my unit was broken on arrival and that thought was mking me upset.

[James]

That is a 50Hz spike from nearby mains power. Probably a light.
You will see this at 50Hz or 60Hz depending on where you are in the world and the local power line frequency.
Move away from the power source and it will go down.
It's 100% from mains power. If you go outside and stand in a field, you will not see this

[nande]

Thanks James.
For a moment i thought this was somewhat a generic answer but i took a walk around the blocks and i noticed you were right, it's quite consistent in picking up anything around 5 meters of a house.
My worry now is whether i can use this or not, because if i can't use it inside my house it's virtually useless.
I did activated the "notch frequency"on your app but doesnt make any difference (yes i selected the correct frequency).
Even if i could turn the whole house electricity off, which i can't, i still have the neighbors one.
maybe i should wear an aluminum hat....
is there a way to fix this?

thanks for your time

[James]

The mains power spike won't affect your brainwave readings as 50/60Hz is outside of what is measured for brainwaves.
It's just a fun thing to see in the graphs.
An aluminium hat would actually help, but you don't need to worry about it, it's not doing anything bad

[nande]

I always wanted an excuse to wear an aluminium fedora.
Thanks a lot, i guess i'm more at ease with the quality of the muse band.
I'm actually very happy you do show all the raw info regardless. it does help me. i like your way of doing software.

also if i understand correctly the problem in the screenshot with TP10 being all very big is a problem with the band not connecting properly right?
i see you answered that here viewtopic.php?t=1873&sid=4a58b49c779b22 ... d026c0b4ed

[James]

Yes. If there is better electrode contact TP10 will have much smaller variance.