Audioengine A2 bass problem, owners please help!

[steven_1026]

 
I noticed when listening to this song http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4eQBF9smOHg at around 1:20 mark when the low bass kicks in, my left speaker produces a buzzing/flapping sound (like putting a piece of paper against the bass slit), it gets aggravated if I put a finger up against the bass slit to block a portion of it. If I increase the volume loud enough, I'll hear it from the right speaker as well, but much more noticeable on the left speaker.

 

I have the volume a little high but certainly not LOUD. Now before anyone blames the youtube quality, I was listening to the song in flac and I've tried different sources as well.

 

Does anyone else experience this? I just want to know if I got a defective pair or is it simply too low for the A2 to handle.

 

UPDATE: I switched out the op amps in my Essence sound card today and that sound almost entirely went away (I would say 90% reduction)! I had the LT1358 installed and I replaced them with LT1469. Interesting...


 

 

[Vikingatheart]

I am not experiencing this. There might be a problem with your speakers, man. What are they hooked up to? Directly to your computer? DAC? Maybe its something else in the chain. Most likely though, its the speaker. 

 

[tuahogary]

Funnily enough I have that same problem of the left speaker crackling a high volume, low frequency. I bought mine second hand so I can't do anything about it atm. Hope you still have a warranty?

 

[steven_1026]

Quote:

I am not experiencing this. There might be a problem with your speakers, man. What are they hooked up to? Directly to your computer? DAC? Maybe its something else in the chain. Most likely though, its the speaker. 

I have it hooked up to my Essence STX card. I'm pretty sure it's the speakers too, the same thing happens when I use different sources. Just wondering though, you don't experience this at all even if you up the volume?
 
I guess I'll go exchange the pair. I'm very pleased with everything else so far.
 
tuahogary, have you opened them up to see if maybe you can fix the issue yourself? It almost sounds like there's something loose inside the speaker, which if it is the case, could be an easy fix.
 

 

[tuahogary]

Never thought of that. Maybe I will one day. I'm just a little afraid that by messing with the acoustic chamber, I might inadvertently change the sound of the speakers 

 

[TMRaven]

Is it a constant thing, or is it just short bursts of crackling?  I have that XX album, and that song has a lo-fi feel to it, and there's crackling in the song itself.  

 

[tuahogary]

Happens with any song or recording or movies with low frequencies

 

[TMRaven]

Do you have any EQ or audio enhancement filters on the computer turned on?

 

[steven_1026]

No eq or any effects. It's a constant thing, I also get the feeling that its a poor recording but I've tried low frequency sweeps as well and it produces the same problem.

 

[Vikingatheart]

I never hear "flabbing" or "flapping" or whatever, but there is a bit of a crackle. From what I can tell, that crackle is from the video or music and not the speakers. 

 

[tuahogary]

Mine is definitely a hardware fault. I've set the speakers up with a PS3 as well as on my laptop. No EQ or effects plugin or poor recording. Just the weird sound as described by steven_1026.

 

[Vikingatheart]

Check out the track with something other than your speakers. Any headphones, just to see if they produce a weird flappy bass thing. 

 

[tuahogary]

Yes.. of course I have checked with multiple outputs! 

 

[Vikingatheart]

Hey, just giving suggestions. No need to get snippy. 

 

[steven_1026]

It most certainly is an issue with the speakers, I was pretty sure of that in the beginning. But I didn't know if it was just out of the A2's range or a defective speaker. Using tone generators, it seems the problem is most noticeable from 50hz to 90hz.
 
Anyways, going back to the store to file an RMA. Unfortunately they don't have any in stock at the moment so I'll have to wait for the exchange.
 
Thanks for everyone's help, much appreciated! Good luck with your pair tuahogary if you decide to open them up to take a look.
 
I'll give an update when I get a new pair.