[zeplin]

As long as I've been in this vortex of an addiction that we call head-fi, there are still a few things (more than a few actually) that I know little about. One of them being the benefits of power chords, power conditioners, power supply upgrades, etc..
My speaker rig that I have is run by my Arcam A75 integrated amp. I love it to death, but there is a slight hiss (well, more than a slight hiss) I can't seem to get rid of. I've tried using my Kefs instead of my Infinities. I've tried using different outlets around the house. I've tried using different surge protectors. I do however think that I can find my answer in upgrading the power supply to both my source and integrated amp. I have upgraded my headamps power supply (HR Cosmic) by buying the Cosmic power supply upgrade off of headroom and have had astonishing results. The space between the notes became extremely silent, the bass increases in both quantity and quality, and the treble energy also stepped up a notch in quality. The thing is, in trying to find something for my Arcam, I do not know what the equivilent is to receiving the same results as I do with my Cosmic power supply upgrade? I also would like to buy something similar for my Rega Planet 2000 source as I know this would help too...it surely couldn't hurt, right?

If anyone wishes to help me out, perhaps you can first start off by explaining to me what the differences (and definitions) are between upgrading power cords, upgrading the power supplys, and upgrading or adding power conditioners. And if there is anything I'm missing, be sure to iunclude that too. If I can spend 100$ on each upgrade (amp, source), then so be it. But spending more than that is something I'd like to avoid unless absolutely neccessary. Even better, if this hiss problem can be fixed without any of these upgrades, I would like to accomplish that first...but I will not entirely ignore the possible benefits that can be had by upgrading the power supplys (or whatever I upgrade).

I should note that the power cord coming out of my Arcam is permanently fixed (I guess is the correct term??) inside the component while the power cord on my Rega is detachable.

Any help that can be offered is greatly appreciated. Enjoying my speaker system through the Arcam A75 is getting to the point of becoming a huge annoyance because of the loud hiss getting in the way of the music (especially on classical recordings

).

One more thing. I also should mention that my Onkyo receiver has no problems with any hissing or humming...it is perfectly silent, with all speakers I've ever hooked up to it. Also, the headphone out on the Arcam shows the exact same results as it does with the speaker outputs...a damn annoying hissss!

 

[zeplin]

Is there not anyone willing to help me start out? I have no idea where to start and right now, it is a bit overwhelming seeing as how there are a ton of different paths I can potentially choose from in addition to knowing so little about the subject of power cables/conditioners/etc.. It would be really great to have someone who knows what they're doing walk me through this uncharted (for me) aspect of audio. Thanx again!

 

[Edwood]

Can you hear the hiss with the volume turned all the way down? Does it get louder as you turn the volume up (with nothing playing)?

Does the Arcam have a two prong or three prong grounded plug?

-Ed

 

[go_vtec]

Typical source of hums/hiss or noise are:
0. from the recording: duh!

1. from the amp itself: internal parts do wear out/degrade, even solidstate devices)
2. from poorly designed surge protector or power/line conditioner: you will be suprised to see how bad it is the power output of poorly regulated 5 bucks power strips from K-mart.
3. from the corrupted power supply: if you connect noise component (labtop power supply, poorly designed wallmart power supply) along with your precious cdp/preamp/amp, your audio equipment can pick up noise. This is true even if you use a descent power/line conditioner. I've seen a misguided self-claimed audiophile guy using his power surge protector to power his aquarium's light/heater/pump plus his fan. I'm not saying your are doing this, but check and remove all non-audio related equipment to see if it makes any difference.
4. from the power cable of amp (especially economical headamps): some amps are very sensitive to the clean power, it will pick up a noise from USB/firewire cable which may be heard from your amp.
5. your signal cables (ICs) may be picking up noise from the power cord, florecent light, halogen light source and so on. Rule of thumb is you that you run power and signal cables separate; never run power cord and signal cables right next to each other (keep them at least foot or two apart where applicable).
6. poorly designed (or ungrounded) chasis of cdp/dac/preamp/amp can pick up noise from its surrounding environment.
7. headphone itself can produce hum/hiss

There are more causes, but these are most common ones I have seen so far.
Finally, some headphones are EXTEREMLY more sensitive in picking up. Say CD3K will pick up hiss/hum while Senn HD600/HD650 may barely exhibit the noise.

 

[dd3mon]

I've heard these comments before relating to the Arcam. Sell it or return it (if possible) - and buy something that doesn't hiss. I know a little noise tolerance can be overcome in name of "good sound" - but if I pay that much for an amp it'd better be silent at full volume with sensitive speakers/cans.

EDIT: Here's how to fix your problem.

Step 1) Get in your car
Step 2) Drive to Circuit City
Step 3) Look for Panasonic SA-XR25 Amp on clearance (<$150, they're being discontinued)
Step 4) Buy it, and go home
Step 5) Hook this up, listen for 10 mins, and sell your hissing Arcam

I just bought one of these today because it was so cheap and I believe it bests my NAD C320BEE in almost all respects. Be sure to use a digital input, the digital amp section sounds best with as pure of a digital signal as possible! BTW - You can read up on this amp and it's larger brother, and their replacements (XR50 & XR70) at AudioAsylum, lots of news, lots of happy people (some selling of thousands of $ of gear after getting one of these little Pannies!)

-dd3mon

 

[zeplin]

Thanx all for your suggestions

I'm going to start trying a bunch of things I haven't yet tried and I'll report back later. A friend (Nielpert) also offered to help me over the phone so I'll see where I can get from there.
I will say that I hope something isn't wrong with any internal components as I don't want to give it up. I bought it off of an online store (for about 200$ off of full price) which said they offer the full manufacture warranty. I hope I didn't get screwed. If however some internal components do need to be replaced, I will certainly explore that option for all it has to offer. Thanx again guys.

Edwood,
I have to correct something before I answer your question...
The power cord connected to the amp is detachable (not fixed into the unit like I thought), and both sides of that power cord are three pronged.
Thanx

 

[Edwood]

Try a two prong cable or use one of those "cheater" adapters.

-Ed

 

[zeplin]

Edwood,
Thanx for the help! It looks as if I've forgotten to answer one of your questions.
Yes, the hiss does get considerably louder when I turn the volume up (w/out music).
I'm going to get this problem fixed if it's the last thing I do!

 

[zeplin]

Edwood or anyone,
I've tried a couple of things so far. I first tried one those "cheater" things you were talking about...turning a three pronged end (male?) into a two proged end (female?). Didn't make much of a difference if any at all. However, the device I used for this looks very, VERY old...maybe from the 70's or even 60's and is very corroded. Maybe I should go to Radioshack to buy a new one?? I also tried a single "Electronic Equipment Surge Protector" from Radioshack and found no improvements at all (It stated on the packaging something along the lines of it supposing to be able to reduce ground/floor noise to make for more quiet black noise). I then tried various outlets around my room as well as my house to no avail.

Where should I go from here? And what are your thoughts regarding power conditioners/supply's?? Better yet, what exactly is it that power conditioners/supply's do and how do they work?

I really hope this can be fixed as I love the Arcam for the way it sounds overall. Do you think this problem could be related to me buying it from the UK meaning that it might have components only compatible with UK electronics (I hardly know what I'm even saying)

Thanx again for the help

 

[zeplin]

A little update...
Ok, I went to Radio shack and bought some new power cords and cheater plugs. I thought maybe the problem lied in the cables not being shielded, which is causing the horrid hiss I hear. So the cables I bought at Radio Shack are shielded 18(I think?) gauge power cords. I replaced the Arcam's & Rega's power cords with the "rathshacks" and found it to make no difference overall. Although I did notice a little less hiss, but nothing too noticeable...it could have been all in my head. I then tried the brand new cheater plugs that Edwood recommended I try. They didn't do anything either. It was wierd though. I use my Arcam int amp with both my headphone and speaker rig, so anything I change with it will obviously be noticed on both setups. With both of the cheater plugs being used (so there were no ground poles), it introduced a slight humm/buzz to my headphone setup. So I removed them and everything is back to normal. The headphone rig is perfectly silent.

I truely hope nothing is internally wrong with the Arcam to have to come to the point of looking into prices for repair. I am thinking I can take it to the next couple of meets (SJ and LA) so someone can go over some troubleshotting options with me with some nice, high quality power cords and the works to see if there is still a hiss.

However, I am still left with many options, as Nielpert and I discussed about on the phone the other day. He said I should try a better surge protector which will quiet things up considerably (hopefully). I was just wondering if I could get some opinions on the matter. I also want to find out if anyone has had similar problems or has anymore to offer than what I've tried and am going to try so far? Here is the link to the Filtered surge protector...
http://www.provantage.com/buy-7TRPL...ra-shopping.htm
Do you all think this will work for me? I think it might help out a lot. But I am still crossing my fingers. I won't be able to try this thing out for awhile as I have to save up for awhile first. Until then, I will occasionally listen to my speaker rig, but more often I'll do most of my music listening on the headphones, which I don't mind because I like them better anyways

Anyone willing to share some views or advice regarding the issue I'm having?? Thanx again!

 

[mxs1030]

I had this exact problem before, it was driving me insane for 3 months. I tried using cheater plugs as well ( actually cheater plugs were my only choice, this house only has female outlets ), that didn't fix the problem. I came to the conclusion that it was the amplifier, no matter what outlet I plugged it into, the hiss was there. So I sent it back to AA for a replacement, 5 weeks later I got my amp back and the hiss is gone.

 

[Orpheus]

Quote:

He said I should try a better surge protector which will quiet things up considerably (hopefully).

it won't.

it is the least likely to make any difference. look, i have in my studio over 50 pieces of audio gear. i've owned hundreds. and many of them have similar problems, and it's never cause of power filtering problems--or at least not cause of my own electrical problems... it is possible the unit itself has a bad power supply, but that's independent of my electrical environment.

the most likely cause of hissing (if in fact that's what you hear) is just the circuitry itself inside your unit. that is the MOST likely cause off hiss. it's what we call a noise floor. it's in every audio unit in existance. but in some it's more audible. now, i know your stuff is high-end and solid-state, so it would be unusual for it to have such an audible noise-floor. but who knows.

now, if you are hearing buzzing/humming, that's COMPLETELY different. those types of sounds are caused by ground loops and crap like that--and that stuff will be cured by implementing different grounding/wiring schemes. but you hear a "hiiisssssssssssssssss" right?

...so, the best test is just to move your malfunctioning system to a friend's place. check it out. if it has the same exact problem at the same exact level, well then heck--it is your own enviroment, and yeah, then probably investing in some power products MIGHT help. if it performs the same, well, then it's your equipment.

it's that simple.

 

[JaZZ]

Zeplin...

...do you get the hiss uniformely with every of the Arcam's inputs? I'm afraid that it's most likely an issue within the amp itself -- EMF barely causes a continuous hiss.

 

[zeplin]

First off, thanx again to you all for the help. I don't know where I'd be without the help given to me here on head-fi!
Yes, the sound I hear is a definite hiss, and is quite annoying.
I have tried it on different outlets around the house as well as at a friends house with no luck. Well, it looks like I'm going to have to get it fixed by either Arcam or someone else. This sux big time

As of now, I can't find any of the warranty information, but I remember that the people I bought it from online said it was fully covered under warranty. Do you guys think it possible that Arcam will still fix this problem under warranty if I cantact them about this problem? If it turns out that they won't fix the problem, is it possible to get this problem fixed at an audio repair shop? If so, what would be the damage (rough estimate) I would have to fork out be?

Orpheus and others. Again, thanx to you all for your input and advice, it is greatly appreciated as I was totally in the dark and lost in figuring out what to do next. I sure hope I can get this fixed because if I have to sell it, the price of course would have to be knocked down because of the ground/floor noise problem

I also, other than the hiss, like the Arcam a lot because of its very simple and straight forward approach. The Arcam very easily drives my Infinity bookshelves and Klipsch sub extremely well with wonderful dynamic clarity.

Maybe I should just start looking at other integrated amps to drive my speaker system?? I sure as hell am not going to let my ONkyo HT receiver do the job as it is only good for movies.

JaZZ,
Thanx for asking.

Sadly, the hiss is there no matter what input is used. Man this is turning out to be a shi**y situation.

 

[Orpheus]

hey, can you bring it to someone else's house and try it out? that's the best way to differentiate between problems that might be caused by your environment. i strongly suggest this.

EDIT: OOPS. didn't see that post. so you tried it already at a friend's place and same results? well, then it's most likely the unit itself. i mean, usually, if it's the electricity, your friend's place would provide different results. but if you get the same noise at the same level... yeah, it's safe to assume it's your unit's problem.

now, you have to realize, like i said, all audio equipment has a noise floor. it just may so happen that what you hear is actually the way it was supposed to be. especially audiophile equipment--some of it isn't spec'd to spectacular measurements, as audiophiles pride themselves on listening and not measuring. and noise floor is one of those things that you can hear easily. it might be that the equipment you use downstream of whatever is causing the hiss might be too sensitive, allowing to hear this abnormality.

anyway, i hope the manufacturer can help you out. good luck.