MW
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Posts: 13
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Post by MW on Jan 8, 2017 18:57:39 GMT
Hello, I've been having an issue where my ceiling/bathroom fans, heaters, etc. cause my new Klipsch ProMedia 2.1s to make a popping noise. I've reached out to Klipsch regarding this issue asking what they recommend. Here is what I sent to them, which should describe the issue in detail: Dear Klipsch Support,
I don't believe that my ProMedia 2.1s are broken, however any help with my situation would be greatly appreciated.
I ordered my Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 BT speaker set direct from Klipsch.com a little over a week ago. They sound great, but I soon noticed a slight humming and occasional popping noise. The humming is only noticeable when the room is quiet, and isn't a big deal. The popping on the other hand can be quite alarming, especially when the speakers are turned up.
After a bit of experimenting, it appears that other devices in my home appear to be the cause, namely ceiling/bathroom fans. When I turn the fan off, the speakers made a very noticeable pop. I'm not quite sure what the cause is, but from what I've read it sounds like it might have something to do with a sudden discharge of electricity?
I've tried different outlets, surge protectors, and snap-on ferrite cores, but nothing has made a difference. I also tested this issue with a different set of speakers and the same thing happens.
There doesn't seem to be anything wrong with the speakers themselves, but I'm not sure how to counteract this issue. Would a power conditioner or a UPS work?
Anything recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!I hope to hear back from them sometime this week, but in the meantime I have still been searching for info on how to possibly solve this issue. Many people seem to suggest replacing the fan switch, but I don't believe that's the issue, being as the same popping noise happens regardless of whether or not I turn the fan off via the light switch or the chain on the fan itself, and the fact that other high power devices cause popping as well. I came across a post on AVSForum with a link to this page: ethanwiner.com/dimmers.htmlCreating a filter as described on your page is certainly something I'd be willing to do, but I'm also considering picking up a ~$50 APC UPS and seeing if that works, or a "power conditioner" from Furman, Pyle, etc. Do you think that either of those could possibly prevent the popping noise, or would making my own filter definitely be the better option? I'd like to avoid the hassle of ordering a bunch of different pieces of equipment and sending them back if/when they don't fix my issue. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
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Post by sal1950 on Jan 9, 2017 3:08:34 GMT
There are others here with much better ability to help diagnose your issue but my first guess would point me to a problem somewhere in the data stream feed to your DAC. Would you please detail the signal chain from source to amp.
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Post by rock on Jan 9, 2017 3:26:27 GMT
Your house wiring may likely be the problem. If you can bring your Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 to a friends house and it works OK there, that will verify the problem is in your house wiring. It could be an open ground (earth) or a reversed neutral/hot or some other wiring fault.
Cheers, Rock
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MW
New Member
Posts: 13
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Post by MW on Jan 9, 2017 3:41:16 GMT
There are others here with much better ability to help diagnose your issue but my first guess would point me to a problem somewhere in the data stream feed to your DAC. Would you please detail the signal chain from source to amp. I'm not all that familiar with audio equipment, as these ProMedia 2.1s are the highest end speakers I've ever owned. Everything is pretty much enclosed/built-in, the sub contains the amp and all, the power cord feeds into the sub, the aux input, volume control, etc. are all located on a "control pod" which feeds into the sub, and the speaker wire going to the two satellites comes out of the sub. So it's source (iPhone) > Control Pod (the proper term is preamp I believe?) > Sub/Amp. The same popping occurs with any other speakers as well, so I don't believe that there's a problem with my speaker setup, rather the noise/interference that the fans, heaters, etc. are generating when turned off. I could be wrong, that's just my view on it.
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MW
New Member
Posts: 13
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Post by MW on Jan 9, 2017 3:56:43 GMT
Your house wiring may likely be the problem. If you can bring your Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 to a friends house and it works OK there, that will verify the problem is in your house wiring. It could be an open ground (earth) or a reversed neutral/hot or some other wiring fault. Cheers, Rock The popping occurs with other speakers I've tried as well, so I think it's safe to rule out the ProMedias themselves as the source of the issue. I've pretty much determined that fans and heaters are the main culprit, whether improper wiring is related to it or not I'm not sure. I guess my main question here is will the "homemade" type filter prevent my speakers from popping, or would a power conditioner or UPS also possibly work? Thanks!
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Post by sal1950 on Jan 9, 2017 4:58:20 GMT
"The popping occurs with other speakers I've tried as well, so I think it's safe to rule out the ProMedias themselves as the source of the issue." Yes that's why I asked about your source signal chain before the active speakers. And yes you did answer my question. I'm not sure I would point to your house wiring as they culprit though it very well may be. Or maybe the case is that your iphone is very susceptible to powerline or RFI noise. Does the issue happen when you run the iphone on it's battery without the power supply plugged in?
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MW
New Member
Posts: 13
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Post by MW on Jan 9, 2017 5:41:30 GMT
"The popping occurs with other speakers I've tried as well, so I think it's safe to rule out the ProMedias themselves as the source of the issue." Yes that's why I asked about your source signal chain before the active speakers. And yes you did answer my question. I'm not sure I would point to your house wiring as they culprit though it very well may be. Or maybe the case is that your iphone is very susceptible to powerline or RFI noise. Does the issue happen when you run the iphone on it's battery without the power supply plugged in? It happens even if no device is connected to the aux, but yes it does happen when the iPhone is running on battery. I think I'm just going to go ahead and try the DIY filter. If it doesn't help then I'll just have to go from there. Thanks for the help so far!
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Post by sal1950 on Jan 9, 2017 7:58:57 GMT
Take it to a friend or twos houses. Then try switching some lights etc there on and off. That will either eliminate or substantiate a issue with your house wiring as cause. If it happens at your house only you could then look into any possible issues with the houses grounding system. Easy to check with a few plug in ground testers. If it happens at other locations, I'm lost. Do a lot of googling Good luck
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Post by arnyk on Jan 9, 2017 13:06:16 GMT
"The popping occurs with other speakers I've tried as well, so I think it's safe to rule out the ProMedias themselves as the source of the issue." Yes that's why I asked about your source signal chain before the active speakers. And yes you did answer my question. I'm not sure I would point to your house wiring as they culprit though it very well may be. Or maybe the case is that your iphone is very susceptible to powerline or RFI noise. Does the issue happen when you run the iphone on it's battery without the power supply plugged in? It happens even if no device is connected to the aux, but yes it does happen when the iPhone is running on battery. I think I'm just going to go ahead and try the DIY filter. If it doesn't help then I'll just have to go from there. The source of the problem is the switch, and the Promedia's are the means by which you have become aware of the problem. Usually, we are all able to switch lights on and off without any spurious sounds from our speakers. As the old saying goes, it takes two to tango and both the switch and the speakers share in the fault, but you want to put an end to this dance. Ideally, the switch would not create the burst of EMI (Electromagnetic Interferance) and the Promedias would not convert the burst of EMI into sound. In this case both bad things are happening, so there is some kind of an unusual situation with both of them. For those of us who are experienced with don't such things safely, and don't have to hire it done, changing out the switch is the least costly first move. If you don't know what you are doing with live wires, call a good electrician. It is probable that there is some kind of a fault with the light switch that is causing to generate all of this EMI. This sometimes happens when switches wear. Try a dimmer.
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MW
New Member
Posts: 13
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Post by MW on Jan 9, 2017 15:44:24 GMT
It happens even if no device is connected to the aux, but yes it does happen when the iPhone is running on battery. I think I'm just going to go ahead and try the DIY filter. If it doesn't help then I'll just have to go from there. The source of the problem is the switch, and the Promedia's are the means by which you have become aware of the problem. Usually, we are all able to switch lights on and off without any spurious sounds from our speakers. As the old saying goes, it takes two to tango and both the switch and the speakers share in the fault, but you want to put an end to this dance. Ideally, the switch would not create the burst of EMI (Electromagnetic Interferance) and the Promedias would not convert the burst of EMI into sound. In this case both bad things are happening, so there is some kind of an unusual situation with both of them. For those of us who are experienced with don't such things safely, and don't have to hire it done, changing out the switch is the least costly first move. If you don't know what you are doing with live wires, call a good electrician. It is probable that there is some kind of a fault with the light switch that is causing to generate all of this EMI. This sometimes happens when switches wear. Try a dimmer. The popping also occurs when devices such as electric heaters turn off, although the pop isn't as loud. Not saying that there couldn't be an issue with the switch, but I don't think that's the only source. I'll just go ahead and try the DIY filter, which I guess I should have done before creating this thread. I was kind of hoping to hear Mr. Winer's thoughts on it though. However I'm sure he'll chime in soon.
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Post by Ethan Winer on Jan 10, 2017 19:35:38 GMT
This article on my web site addresses this exact issue: Hum and Buzz, Clicks and PopsFor $30-40 you can get an RFI filter and wire it up in a metal box.
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MW
New Member
Posts: 13
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Post by MW on Jan 10, 2017 20:34:55 GMT
Filter is on the way. Hopefully that will take care of it.
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MW
New Member
Posts: 13
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Post by MW on Jan 13, 2017 19:16:08 GMT
The filter came in today and I hooked it up to a power strip as described on your page, however the speakers still pop when a fan or whatever is turned off. I'm baffled and a bit frustrated at this point.
Any ideas?
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Post by rock on Jan 13, 2017 19:51:37 GMT
I think Arny suggested replacing the switch. That might not work either but if you don't change it, you'll never know.
In the ,70's I worked field service for a selfserve gas station equipment manufacturer. Among other things to solve and intermittent readout error, we installed a Sola ferroresanant transformer in the AC power line. It didn't work (might work for you though). Years later, after I left the co. I heard they finally fixed the problem by pulling new wires to the pumps. This has nothing to do with your problem except you CAN at least locate and isolate the problem even if you can't practically fix it but if you are going to, you have to do something.
Cheers, Rock
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MW
New Member
Posts: 13
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Post by MW on Jan 13, 2017 20:44:14 GMT
Can't the switch already be ruled out since the popping happens even when I turn the fan off via the chain? Also the fact that an electric heater will cause a pop. I really thought the filter would work... it's hooked up to a power strip with all the wiring and everything just like in the diagram. It doesn't even reduce the popping at all. I found this image, but the filter linked to on Mr. Winer's page only has the one ground terminal, so I'm not sure if this applies or not: 2.bp.blogspot.com/-xCOJ6pDMZqA/Tow97gEhTnI/AAAAAAAAAaM/6pTqRu_dyWc/s1600/EMI_filter_correct_wiring.png
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