[Tinkerer]

  So my stax SRM-3 just stopped turning on.  The screws on it are stripped down so I can't open it up and take a look. 
 
Basically I just want to know what goes wrong with stax amps usually and how costly are repairs?

 
Usually you got a short somewhere and need to clean it up, and hope it didn't blow a transistor or a cap or your transformer didn't die. Parts are cheap. Hunting down the problem is not, so best to do it yourself if you can.
 
First thing I'd personally check is the fuse at the back though, and get it opened up so you can see if there's any obvious damage. A dremel or small hacksaw blade will cut some grip back into the screws for you to be able to get a flathead to turn them. And you can buy replacement metric screws for next to nothing.

 

[Tinkerer]

  This is extremely disappointing for a headphone of SR-009's stature, but mine is producing some sort of crackling noise. The closest analogy I can imagine is the noise that cheap speakers make when the volume is cranked up.
 
Could someone please tell me what might be causing this and how I can fix it?
 
In case it helps, I've been using it exactly for a month now.
 
Thank you.
 
EDIT: The only major factor that has noticeably changed is the temperature in my room because I've to crank up the AC to keep my PC cool during gaming. Is there a possibility that the lowered temperature is affecting the headphone?

 
 
Can be any of three things.
 
Could be the stax fart, but you probably know what that sounds like by now.
 
Could be the amp/source. Not fun hunting that down.
 
Could be dust in the stator. This is real trouble, like hope you still have a warranty kind of trouble.
 
Start working on process of elimination if you can. Hook it up to a different source. Measure offset and balance on the amp. That sort of thing.

 

[ahnafakeef]

   
 
Can be any of three things.
 
Could be the stax fart, but you probably know what that sounds like by now.
 
Could be the amp/source. Not fun hunting that down.
 
Could be dust in the stator. This is real trouble, like hope you still have a warranty kind of trouble.
 
Start working on process of elimination if you can. Hook it up to a different source. Measure offset and balance on the amp. That sort of thing.

The Stax fart generates from the ear pads, right? The noise I'm experiencing is definitely coming from the drivers themselves.
 
I only have one electrostatic amplifier and only one DAC (other than my ODAC). So no way to verify if it's the amp or DAC.
 
Dust in HPs? Unlikely, if you ask me. I've used it for only a month, and I've kept the HPs covered with a CPC-1 at all times.
 
Please advise on my next course of action. Thank you.

 

[AnakChan]

  The Stax fart generates from the ear pads, right? The noise I'm experiencing is definitely coming from the drivers themselves.
 
I only have one electrostatic amplifier and only one DAC (other than my ODAC). So no way to verify if it's the amp or DAC.
 
Dust in HPs? Unlikely, if you ask me. I've used it for only a month, and I've kept the HPs covered with a CPC-1 at all times.
 
Please advise on my next course of action. Thank you.

 
No the Stax fart is from the drivers. Search through the term and you'll find out more about it. When do you hear the crackling? When you're moving your jaw? At least for me it only "farts" when I'm moving my jaw. If I'm not flexing my facial muscles whilst listening to my SR-009, it doesn't "fart".

 

[ahnafakeef]

   
No the Stax fart is from the drivers. Search through the term and you'll find out more about it. When do you hear the crackling? When you're moving your jaw? At least for me it only "farts" when I'm moving my jaw. If I'm not flexing my facial muscles whilst listening to my SR-009, it doesn't "fart".

I hear the crackling when something's playing, regardless of jaw movement. I would have specified, but I thought it was implied.
------------------------------------------
As for dust in the HPs, is there a way to verify whether there's dust in there, so that I can at least eliminate that possibility?

 

[paradoxper]

  I hear the crackling when something's playing, regardless of jaw movement. I would have specified, but I thought it was implied.
------------------------------------------
As for dust in the HPs, is there a way to verify whether there's dust in there, so that I can at least eliminate that possibility?

Find it hard to distinguish. Some say it's arcing while others report the fart sounds quite similar within an crinkling/popping.
 
post #5866

 

[ahnafakeef]

  Find it hard to distinguish. Some say it's arcing while others report the fart sounds quite similar within an crinkling/popping.
 
post #5866

My experience - "like snap-crackle-pop" and "definitely coming from the earpiece" but it does not sound like electrical arcing. It's just random intermittent noise. And very distracting and disruptive in my opinion.
 
But if it's related to burn-in, shouldn't I have experienced it since I first started using it? Why is it occurring after a month of use?
 
This is very frustrating and is really taking everything away from my listening experience. Please let me know any and every step that I can take to possibly solve this issue. Even the most basic of probable solutions are welcome since I'm new to electrostatics and haven't really been able to do anything so far to find a fix.
 
Thank you.

 

[paradoxper]

  My experience - "like snap-crackle-pop" and "definitely coming from the earpiece" but it does not sound like electrical arcing. It's just random intermittent noise. And very distracting and disruptive in my opinion.
 
But if it's related to burn-in, shouldn't I have experienced it since I first started using it? Why is it occurring after a month of use?
 
This is very frustrating and is really taking everything away from my listening experience. Please let me know any and every step that I can take to possibly solve this issue. Even the most basic of probable solutions are welcome since I'm new to electrostatics and haven't really been able to do anything so far to find a fix.
 
Thank you.

We all have different interpretations. To me, it's a distortion sound - it sounds exactly like arcing with that pshhwt pshhwt. I'm not aware of a 'fix', though.

 

[ahnafakeef]

  We all have different interpretations. To me, it's a distortion sound - it sounds exactly like arcing with that pshhwt pshhwt. I'm not aware of a 'fix', though.

If you don't mind my asking, have you experienced this issue with your STAX HPs? If yes, what did you do about it?

 

[paradoxper]

  If you don't mind my asking, have you experienced this issue with your STAX HPs? If yes, what did you do about it?

My current mk 1 does it. The only thing I've tried is really readjusting the fitment. It's a minor inconvenience so I'm not too bothered by it.

 

[aalleexxii]

I only have a sr-307 with a srm-323s for 2 months but I've been noticing the crackling since the beginning. The crackling is caused by volume and quality of the recording imo. I mostly listen to classical and I listen it easily at volume 7-8 and then the crackling usually happens at an orchestral outburst. It will usually not distort if you put the volume all the way up at silent/moderate playing. And then the recording of the quality will determine at what level the crackling will start, sometimes it's happens already at volume 6. I found it amazing that if I listen to commercial electronic music, the distortion rarely happens even if you put the volume super loud. But when a lot of noises happens at once, it seems that it can distort when it's badly produced. I find it amazing that the SR-009 has the same problem. Can you share your thought on this ahnafakeef?

Edit: and it happens sooner with with the right driver, it distorts more easily. Both drivers will distort at the same moment when the volume is additionally raised. Which makes me think there is some production flaw at hand. But it also makes me wonder if, at that point when testing it, I'm even listening at a level that an actual orchestra would generate live.

 

[zolkis]

The first thing that came to mind: what is your source to the DAC? If computer, the noise may come from the PSU. I experienced that once with my office rig. Otherwise it may be clipping, or electrostatic discharge. If you can, try other sources, amp, and headphones to locate the problem. Neither my 007 nor my 009 made any crackling or popping noise ever so my guesses are just guesses.

 

[HemiSam]

Try unplugging the connector to the amplifier and touching the five prongs with your finger.  There will be no shock but you will discharge the headphones.  That can help at times.  You can also try firmly popping with an open hand (don't break it just a good stiff pop) the earspearker in question from the outside.  Finally, you can put it in a sealed back with desiccant...removes moisture.  I'm making the leap that the relative humidity in your country is high and when you introduce air conditioning you can have a condensation effect.
 
If there is a shop that sells Stax amplifiers anywhere nearby, I would start there and ask if they have a demo unit and use your headphones.  If no problem, then you've isolated it to amp and/or DAC.
 
HS

 

[bearFNF]

@ahnafakeef
 
Earlier in the thread someone mentioned they had a similar issue and they found a hair in there somewhere. Might be worth a thorough inspection and cleaning.
 
As far as the temperature goes, I have had mine in cold and warm (for me) room (55F to 76F) and had no noticeable issues.
 
Last resort after the above suggestions is warranty?, depending on where you got them from...

 

[lilbthebasedgod]

Ok so I opened up the SRM-3 and the fuse was broken.  I just replaced it with a similar one but then the entire main board caught fire.
 
I turned it off immediately and found this
 

 
The bottom four resistors were burned.  Now, resistors are generic, and I can replace them easily, but I am just trying to figure out what could have caused it to burn like this in the first place.