[Orpheus]

Quote:

Were they really careful not to scratch the bezel at all, Dean?

the unit looks exactly like how it looked when it left my hands.

okay... i'm going to install 3 deadbolts in each door now. the FBI already agreed this is a serious issue and already promised to have non-uniformed officers patrol my house for the coming months.

 

[ayt999]

Quote:

Originally posted by Orpheus actually....... TO ALL WHO ARE WORRIED ABOUT HUM IN YOUR 901: if you unplug all the inputs, and your problem goes away, it IS NOT the same problem as mine. it is a ground loop most likely, and that's a function of your own environment, not the 901's construction!

I unplugged all my connections (the two XLR balanced analog inputs and the glass optical TOSLINK) and the hum is still there. what could be causing it? I am not worried at all, since as I've said all my cans that I have and will have in the near future are very low impedance and I will dare not use the grace at the levels we are talking about. I can turn the volume of the RME to some insanely low level and go to high gain and high levels on the grace, but that is very unlikely.

btw, 100th post. I hate you guys for dragging me into head-fi.

 

[ayt999]

Quote:

Originally posted by Orpheus okay... i'm going to install 3 deadbolts in each door now. the FBI already agreed this is a serious issue and already promised to have non-uniformed officers patrol my house for the coming months.

so this means that I should be very careful when I go to the socal head-fi meet, or am I banned from that for the time being?

 

[gpalmer]

Quote:

Originally posted by ayt999 so this means that I should be very careful when I go to the socal head-fi meet, or am I banned from that for the time being?

Well no, you can go, but we'll be dragging you behind the van!

 

[Orpheus]

ayt999.... with all inputs unplugged, switch it to digital mode. still humming?--same constant amount of hum at all volumes? which phones you using for the test?--they extra sensative/extra low impedance?

by the way, i should note, when i plug the unit into the electrical system the studio runs on, there is a very small amount of buzzing when i turn up the volume all the way on high gain. however, when i plug it straight into the wall in another room of the house, the noise is gone. it's the same will all amps i've tested... they buzz in the studio, but are clean in the living room. i point this out to let you know that electricity might be the ultimate culprit.

 

[ayt999]

well, more or less the same whether I use digital or analog mode. there is a hiss (white-noise like? I don't really know how to describe it) but it gets louder as the volume is turned up and isn't there at lower volumes and almost inaudible (I may be imagining it too) at higher levels on low gain.

I used an ATH-W2002 and an ATH-L3000. both are low impedance, high sensitivity and should be good enough for the test I hope.

might be the electrical noise, I'll need to invest in a P300 or an ultimate outlet one of these days. I was thinking about it anyways. any recommendations?

 

[Orpheus]

the hissing is normal... the Grace has ultra-high gain. much more than most headamps. it's signal to noise ratio is very good--you can't get much better than that. the reason you hear the hissing is just cause it has too much gain. but at those volumes you turn it up to hear that hiss, your ear drums would have exploded already right?

but the hum thing can be annoying. so, once again, is the hum there with no inputs and with digital selected?

 

[ayt999]

Quote:

Originally posted by Orpheus so, once again, is the hum there with no inputs and with digital selected?

what kind of hum are we talking about? the constant hum that doesn't change with level changes? I don't think I have that (did I ever say that I did?). thanks for the help.

 

[Orpheus]

Quote:

I unplugged all my connections (the two XLR balanced analog inputs and the glass optical TOSLINK) and the hum is still there.

^so i assumed

anyway... it's all good. you don't have the problem then. i would also assume your hum is system related. and the hiss is normal.

so no worries man.

 

[ayt999]

thanks for the help (again). I'm very new to all this audio stuff and have no clue what I am talking about sometimes. Dean, you very nice and patient... looking forward to meeting you at the meet (without the non-uniformed officers patroling your house hopefully).

 

[Edwood]

The white noise hiss that appears when you crank it all the way up is normal. A constant buzz even with the volume all the way off, should not.

I'll find out what's up with it only being there when the High Gain switch is on.

Dean: Nice to hear that Grace is concerned with maintaining the aesthetics of their products when they repair them. Of course that is pretty evident with the care that went into the design and manufacturing.

-Ed

 

[Orpheus]

i take it back...

i just tried the amp out with all sources of noise in the room turned off, using my Etymotic 4P's. these things are 16ohms, and heck-a sensitive.

anyway, in either high or low gain, i can't really "hear" anything. however, when i have it in low gain, then i switch to high gain, i can "feel" the presence of hum. and when i have it in high gain and switch to low gain, i can "feel" this sound go away. but anyway, it's hardly of any concern. in high gain mode, two clicks on the volume is about as loud as i can take for any duration of time--again, only deaf people would use the amp in high gain mode with these phones.

so that's that then. i can truly say, with any phone on the market, there is no audible hum or hiss.

this amp is the real thing. the Halcro of headamps. don't hesitate to buy one!

 

[Edwood]

Yeah, that's pretty much I get with my Grace. Except with my R10's I can hear it. But, yes. It's very low with the High Gain switch on. But you can clearly hear it. I don't listen to high gain with my Grace with my R10's. The volume ramps up too fast. At normal gain, my listening level is 4-7 clicks depending on the song.

-Ed

 

[Music Fanatic]

Quote:

Originally posted by Orpheus oh my gosh, the unit's so perfect now!!! all problems are GONE. the unit is absolutely silent to my ears, even with the Sony CD3000's. the tech tested it with Grado's before it left, and said it was silent with those phones too. MAGNIFICENT. i'm happy now!... looks like this week's gonna be good for me. ...man, i've just had some terrible luck lately..... it's looking better now. heh he. the only problem at all with this unit is that the feet aren't 100% level. but oh well. i don't care too much as long as the performance is perfect. and now it is. incidentally, i did open it to see what they did... but sorry, i still dunno cause they wrapped the whole damn transformer in electrical tape! but they probably just wrapped it in some kind of metal underneath. anyway.... going to lunch. then i'll be back for my baby.

So nice! Congrats on having the perfect amp ... now working perfectly!

 

[Edwood]

Dean, the feet are those crappy black square rubber stick ons? Peel them off and put some better ones on there. I never used the "stock" stick on feet that they same with.

-Ed