Power conditioner questions

[Hetfield]

I have a little buzz from my speakers, RSL speakers. I can't hear it when in MLP but can when I put my ear up to the speakers. I have a Denon X3400H and Parasound HCA1205A amp.
I am looking at the Panamax MR4300 as it has 4 high current plugs. Good price on Amazon too.
I also would like to improve overall sound quality not the hum is the most important thing. This should eliminate that buzz correct? That's kinda what it does right? Lower the noise floor and clean up the current coming into the home theater altogether correct? Thanks got any help.

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[WaynePflughaupt]

It the problem is a line issue, then the Panamax should help. If it’s originating in the equipment, the Panamax won’t help. Since you aren’t sure which it is, make sure the Panamax has a generous return policy.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[Hetfield]

It the problem is a line issue, then the Panamax should help. If it’s originating in the equipment, the Panamax won’t help. Since you aren’t sure which it is, make sure the Panamax has a generous return policy.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Yeah that I'm not sure of. I don't know if it's the Parasound amp that is causing it or the receiver or something else.

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[Verdinut]

Yeah that I'm not sure of. I don't know if it's the Parasound amp that is causing it or the receiver or something else.

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You should be able to find out by disconnecting the Parasound amp from your receiver.

 

[Hetfield]

You should be able to find out by disconnecting the Parasound amp from your receiver.

But if I do that there will be no power to the speakers at all and no hum. Do I have to disconnect the Parasound and connect the speakers to the Denon and see if the hum is gone? What is it is determined to be the Parasound amp? What is the solution then?

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[lovinthehd]

But if I do that there will be no power to the speakers at all and no hum. Do I have to disconnect the Parasound and connect the speakers to the Denon and see if the hum is gone? What is it is determined to be the Parasound amp? What is the solution then?

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It could be inherent amp noise, or maybe a bit of a ground loop hum? One way is to narrow the possibilities is to see if the speakers make the noise with the avr alone vs using the external amp. Most amp/avr power supplies should be more than up to basic power filtering, tho. Maybe if you have some really bad electrical utility in play....

 

[Hetfield]

It could be inherent amp noise, or maybe a bit of a ground loop hum? One way is to narrow the possibilities is to see if the speakers make the noise with the avr alone vs using the external amp. Most amp/avr power supplies should be more than up to basic power filtering, tho. Maybe if you have some really bad electrical utility in play....

Hmm, interesting, maybe I'll just mive the right front channel which I can hear it when I put my ear next to it. If I hear it in the left channel and not the right then I'll know it's the Parasound amp. Good idea? It's just some banana plugs anyway. I'm on vacation next week so I'll experiment and try to get to the bottom of this.

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[lovinthehd]

Hmm, interesting, maybe I'll just mive the right front channel which I can hear it when I put my ear next to it. If I hear it in the left channel and not the right then I'll know it's the Parasound amp. Good idea? It's just some banana plugs anyway. I'm on vacation next week so I'll experiment and try to get to the bottom of this.

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Yeah I'd spend some time trying to narrow the conditions, checking connections, etc.

 

[Hetfield]

Yeah I'd spend some time trying to narrow the conditions, checking connections, etc.

Dam this inexpensive HT sounds dam good though. RSL speakers surprise the hell out of me. Have to fix this issue though.

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[Truthslayer]

But if I do that there will be no power to the speakers at all and no hum. Do I have to disconnect the Parasound and connect the speakers to the Denon and see if the hum is gone? What is it is determined to be the Parasound amp? What is the solution then?

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No, what Verdinut is saying to do is- disconnect the cables going from the denon to the amp. Power on the amp, leave the speakers connected to the amp and then listen. If you hear no problems it is likely the denon or your house electrical.
If you still here it this way, it's either the amp or your house electrical. It's just a quick way to narrow down the problem.

 

[Hetfield]

No, what Verdinut is saying to do is- disconnect the cables going from the denon to the amp. Power on the amp, leave the speakers connected to the amp and then listen. If you hear no problems it is likely the denon or your house electrical.
If you still here it this way, it's either the amp or your house electrical. It's just a quick way to narrow down the problem.

Ah ok, that makes sense. That's gonna be a pain in the butt to get behind there and disconnect everything.

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[Kleinst]

Don't count on the PANAMAX to take care of this. Only way mine helped was when i ran my cable in and out of it and that isolated some of the Direct TV ground interference.

Could be your AMP, could be a ground loop. I've been there. But don't spend a ton of money on a PANAMAX thinking that will solve all the problems.

Now, like me if you can get some used for cheap, they are decent protection and nice looking surge protectors. But I've always bought mine for under $100.

 

[Hetfield]

Don't count on the PANAMAX to take care of this. Only way mine helped was when i ran my cable in and out of it and that isolated some of the Direct TV ground interference.

Could be your AMP, could be a ground loop. I've been there. But don't spend a ton of money on a PANAMAX thinking that will solve all the problems.

Now, like me if you can get some used for cheap, they are decent protection and nice looking surge protectors. But I've always bought mine for under $100.

Yeah I guess you guys are right. Gotta do this the hard way. I have the whole week to figure this out.

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[Verdinut]

It's also possible that the TV Dish or cable signal which is not properly grounded to your house ground connection. Have a look at the following thread (Posts #1 & 5):

How would you GROUND ?

I am battling with some nitwit about the proper grounding method for your utilities and I know I am right in some areas and it seems he is right in others but there is no happy medium, here is the short version from my end: Dish on roof, cable into house, tele into house, and so on, These...

forums.audioholics.com

 

[Hetfield]

It's also possible that the TV Dish or cable signal which is not properly grounded to your house ground connection. Have a look at the following thread (Posts #1 & 5):

How would you GROUND ?

I am battling with some nitwit about the proper grounding method for your utilities and I know I am right in some areas and it seems he is right in others but there is no happy medium, here is the short version from my end: Dish on roof, cable into house, tele into house, and so on, These...

forums.audioholics.com

No cable TV for me, stream TV from Fire Cube. AT&T TV Now from Fire Cube. I'm almost positive it's the amp causing this. I ordered a AC cheater plug. See if that works.

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[highfigh]

Yeah that I'm not sure of. I don't know if it's the Parasound amp that is causing it or the receiver or something else.

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A great way to find out if the amplifier is the source is to connect a pair of audio cables to the input and plug the free ends together- this shorts the pins to the sleeves and is the worst case-scenario for noise. It's easier to do with cheap cables because the metal isn't as stiff. If you have a cheap cable and would be OK with sacrificing it, you can cut it at some point, strip the center wire and twist it together with the shield wires. If you would use it repeatedly in the future, you could make it very short and solder the wires to make it more permanent as a test tool.

Do you have dimmers on your lights, lamp modules or anything that's not just a toggling light switch? My guitars buzz and it's caused by a Lutron Caseta lamp module- the buzz is gone when the dimmer is turned off.

If you have ear buds or headphones, it's easier to find sources of noise between source devices and AVR.

You might try connecting a wire between the ground screw next to the 12V output on the Parasound and the signal ground on the Denon. You can also connect a wire from the screw to the shield of one audio cable (either piece, try it on the Denon first)- sounds weird, but it can work. I have had good success with this one in car and home/pro audio situations.

 

[highfigh]

As far as the Panamax, I haven't really noticed noise reduction from power protection in most cases but I like the Furman/Panamax pieces that will shut off above and below a certain voltage- I use a Panamax MR4000 in my system (which includes a Parasound A23) and it shuts off at 90VAC or 140VAC- some brands that sell these don't do anything for brownouts or anything below about 200VAC- I don't want my equipment to be exposed to those extremes and I am planning to get one for my guitar amp since it's collectible- it uses tubes and some areas operate in the 435VDC range, which means that every added volt coming in is multiplied by the power transformer by a factor of around 3.7, so 140V in means the output tubes will be hit by 520VDC.

 

[highfigh]

BTW- for those who may have a ground loop with a sub & AVR, Panamax has this-

2 Outlet End-to-End Surge Protector Kit | MD2-AV | Panamax

2 Outlet end-to-end surge protector kit provides AC and RCA signal line protection. Keep your equipment safe from catastrophic surge. Get it today!

www.panamax.com

I haven't used one, though.