I had it next to the stand. Once I figured out it was the Orbi I played around with the power supply and then eventually tried waving the Orbi around near and further away, bingo that was the source. The buzz was loudest when it was in held on front of the volume knob. Curiously, the buzz almost disappeared when I touched the volume knob (but only the volume knob, touching the amp case had no effect on the noise).
I hadn’t appreciated how much effect a wireless device could have. It’s now about 6’ away and no buzz for me.
Mine is just under a meter away and no issues. But a while back it was standing tight next to my Star and nothing.
Read somewhere that some transformers are affected more than others so perhaps that?
I did get some really audible hum from my Star’s transformer by either plugging it on the same power bank as the TV or having a hair dryer on ontheven same power line upstairs.
Adding this to my original retitled post so that I don’t have to repeat things.
So the Isotek Evo3 Isoplug arrived. The transformer noise had returned, though not as continuously as before. So I unplugged the Xerxes from the bottom of my three double power sockets into which all my gear is plugged (happens to be the first socket the dedicated supply sees) and inserted the Isoplug. Things were quiet at that moment - but I popped in and out of the room over the next few hours and it was clear that when there were noisy periods they were still there but definitely tamed - and bearable. Had that not been the case the Isoplug would have been out - only £110.00 wasted.
I thought I better now check the effect on the sound quality - expecting the worst and therefore a difficult decision. What followed was a three hour listening session to make sure that I could believe my ears! Yep - sound quality was obviously improved from the very first track to the last. It is like the bandwidth of the system has been widened. Same glorious sound as I have been used to but with more top and bottom information and definition.
This probably falls into the shelf height, stacking order, plug order and cable dressing theatre of improvements - but to my ears it is definitely there. Might just be my setup - but for the cost it’s worth a try.
No brickbats please - just passing on my experience.
I haven’t read the full detail of all posts here, but if it hasn’t been said already intermittent hum from the transformers is almost certainly DC on the mains, which could be coming from something within, or external to the home. The only solution is to find and fix the source(s) if within the home, or block the DC: two options for latter, a specialised DC blocker, or an isolating transformer. The latter is likely to be the more expensive.
Three double sockets in fact. Didn’t do anything other than unplug the Xerxes ps and replace it with the Isoplug. Clearly whatever it does is proving beneficial to the system. It was a noticeable change for the better. Had I been in the business of upgrading my XPS DR with a 555 DR I would have been very happy with such a result.
Thanks for the tip. I will investigate that device - might totally eliminate the transformer noise. As I explained in the first post it had only become annoyingly audible very recently. I think it was external - though I live in a residential area - who knows what goes on. All quiet in the main again now.
Thanks for the link. I’ll have a look at the MCRU DC blocker mentioned in the other post you linked to. Always nice to know there is another level you can go to if necessary.
A cheaper option is the DC Blocker from ATL Audio. Good if you already have a quality multiway.
About £100 delivered from Bulgaria, but a credible company. I and a few other members here have had good results with it.
Thanks.
To clarify - are you saying that the SQ uplift from adding this IsoTek EVO3 ISOPLUG was what you think you’d get from replacing an XPS with a 555DR?
Could be external as you suggest, but it could also be something within your home that has developed a fault. Separate distribution unit and cabling doesn’t of itself block the DC from the rest of the house attached to the mains. However given a dedicated supply, checking if it is from your own home is easier than unplugging everything else: you could switch off the power to the rest of the house at the distribution board. If that stops it then you know its from your home and you could go through to try to find the culprit, as described in the link in my first post in this thread
I did check all the normal culprits as they mainly all live in the kitchen and utility room. Did it in a noisy period - made no difference. I’m certain it was external to my house. Things have been back to mainly quiet for the last few days.
