Light hissing/static on headphone jack

[Darkspace]

Hello,

This is my first post here, and i apologize if it's rude to start asking questions right away. I'm just really in need of some expert advice, since i can't find any answers on the internet, and my own knowledge isn't that great regarding hi-fi.

Last week, i bought an amplifier, te be more specific, a Sony F606ES. This is the little brother of the F707ES and F808ES. The amp is in very good condition, and is working properly. I just have one problem, but i don't know if i can do anything about it.

I have a Sennheiser HD 650 headphone, and when i plug it into the 6.35mm headphone jack, i hear a kind of static/hissing which is constant in volume, whatever i do. It's not really noticable when i play music with enough going on (read: heavy metal), but when i put in something that leaves room for some calmer moments (read: singer/songwriter), it's too noticable to ignore.

I tried every setup. I even put it on the kitchen table with nothing but the power cord and the headphones connected, and still heard the static. I also tried different headphones, the static was also there.

Could someone please tell me what i can do about this?

Regards,

Eric

 

[dalethorn]

The first thing is to clean any and all external connectors, including any switches or knobs. I usually just use a clean dry toothbrush, but for dirtier jobs, you may need an electronics cleaner. If that doesn't fix it, and you can open it up, you could see if it's possible to clean anything inside, taking care not to touch anything that can short out, or void your warranty or purchase agreement. Bad solder jobs can cause problems, wrapping wires around wires or posts without solder can be a problem, or it could just be a solid state component failing.

 

[Darkspace]

Thank you for your reply!

 

[ID.]

Look at this as an opportunity to buy a proper headphone amp like the HD650s deserve.

 

[Darkspace]

Look at this as an opportunity to buy a proper headphone amp like the HD650s deserve.

Any recommendations?

 

[dalethorn]

Look at this as an opportunity to buy a proper headphone amp like the HD650s deserve.

Any recommendations?

What music do you play, and what digital format? What's your music player? Are you looking for just the amp, or a DAC plus amp?

 

[steve_1979]

Any recommendations?

For aheadphone amp with built in DAC: Epiphany Acoustics EHP-O2Di

It's totally transparent sounding and is powerful enough to drive even very demanding headphones without any trouble. It has ultra low distortion measurments that are as good as the best available (i.e. it will sound identical to the £1500 Benchmark DAC/amp).

They also do a cheaper version if you only want an amp without the built in DAC.

You'll also need one of these: 1/4" to 3.5mm adapter plug

 

[Darkspace]

What music do you play, and what digital format? What's your music player? Are you looking for just the amp, or a DAC plus amp?

Mostly extreme metal (death/black/progressive metal), but i can easily listen to some 80's pop music or punk rock as well. There isn't really a genre that i don't listen to, although 90% is metal.

I already have a FiiO E17 and FiiO E09K combo for my desktop computer, but i was looking for an headphone amp suitable for CD playback since i have about 2400 of them which i don't want to ignore just because i can play mp3's...

I have a Sony C701ES 5-CD changer.

 

[Darkspace]

For aheadphone amp with built in DAC: Epiphany Acoustics EHP-O2Di

It's totally transparent sounding and is powerful enough to drive even very demanding headphones without any trouble. It has ultra low distortion measurments that are as good as the best available (i.e. it will sound identical to the £1500 Benchmark DAC/amp).

They also do a cheaper version if you only want an amp without the built in DAC.

You'll also need one of these: 1/4" to 3.5mm adapter plug

Thanks Steve! I'll look into it!

 

[dalethorn]

For aheadphone amp with built in DAC: Epiphany Acoustics EHP-O2Di

It's totally transparent sounding and is powerful enough to drive even very demanding headphones without any trouble. It has ultra low distortion measurments that are as good as the best available (i.e. it will sound identical to the £1500 Benchmark DAC/amp).

They also do a cheaper version if you only want an amp without the built in DAC.

You'll also need one of these: 1/4" to 3.5mm adapter plug

Thanks Steve! I'll look into it!

For the DAC to work with CDs, your CD player will have to be able to feed a digital signal to the DAC input.

 

[Darkspace]

Thanks for all the replies, i really appreciate it.

I contacted a vintage audio guy who cleans and repairs old (and new) amps, and he told me the problem could be dealt with.

I can drop the amp off in a few weeks so i hope that works out!

 

[steve_1979]

For aheadphone amp with built in DAC: Epiphany Acoustics EHP-O2Di

It's totally transparent sounding and is powerful enough to drive even very demanding headphones without any trouble. It has ultra low distortion measurments that are as good as the best available (i.e. it will sound identical to the £1500 Benchmark DAC/amp).

They also do a cheaper version if you only want an amp without the built in DAC.

You'll also need one of these: 1/4" to 3.5mm adapter plug

Thanks Steve! I'll look into it!

For the DAC to work with CDs, your CD player will have to be able to feed a digital signal to the DAC input.

The cheaper one which doesn't have the DAC would be fine in this situation then. Just use the analogue out from the CD player.