manicm
Well-known member
Tinman1952
Well-known member
It is if it's a ground loop.....🙂But the hum you hear out of the speakers is not 50hz
File:Ground loop 50 Hz sound.flac - Wikipedia
en.m.wikipedia.org
Tinman1952
Well-known member
Tinman1952
Well-known member
manicm
Well-known member
Not quite the same. The hum you posted is actually a higher frequency generated over a lower perceived frequency. That unpleasant sound is clearly at a higher frequency.
As you could hear the pure 50hz test tone I posted, that is clearly just the low frequency. The hum you hear from a speaker due to lack of grounding is not just a 50hz sound alone. That's rubbish.
Tinman1952
Well-known member
Well it is 50 cycles per second regardless of what you believe....
I don't know why you are being pointlessly argumentative...the original point was it is NOT a high pitched sound if it is a ground loop problem.
manicm
Well-known member
I'm not being pointlessly argumentative. I'm just not being dogmatic. That hum is clearly and audibly a mix of different frequencies.
aversaurus
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Tinman1952
Well-known member
Final comment: you are confusing the 'type' of waveform with it's frequency.....
50 Hz square wave...
Sound familiar....?
manicm
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aversaurus
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manicm
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manicm
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plastic penguin
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Agreed. I mentioned this earlier in the thread. You can't have one speaker on a cabinet & another somewhere else. They either need dedicated stands or wall brackets.
Hi everyone,
just an update.
I've been using my Sennheiser HD650 headphones and now most CDs are enjoyable unlike the MA Bronze 50s, but some CDs despite being enjoyable leave my ears feeling sensitive even though I'm not playing them loudly. An Edith Piaf CD did this and quite a few others. It's like there were shouty sounds in there that I just couldn't tolerate. I've never had this experience playing music through headphones on my phone or through my TV's inbuilt speakers. A Schubert CD (Decca) was the easiest on my ears. The CDs in general also tend to sound a little harsh despite being enjoyable. What other upgrades could I do to fix this? Some people suggest a tube amplifier or R2R DAC and some people say they prefer vinyl. I could do a return on the CD player and purchase a Rega Planar 3 and a good cartridge (I would demo first of course). Does anyone have any suggestions?
I'll be returning the MA Bronze 50 speakers, but actually I do wonder whether I should buy stands and try them on stands before returning.
Edit: I used to listen to a lot of records on my dad's very good turntable/amp/speakers and I never thought it sounded "not quite right" or "slightly harsh". It seems like the Denon CDP/amp and HD650 give a sound that somehow doesn't sound right to my ears, they just sound off somehow. I don't even get this feeling from listening to music on my phone with cheaper headphones. Perhaps I'll do some more testing.
just an update.
I've been using my Sennheiser HD650 headphones and now most CDs are enjoyable unlike the MA Bronze 50s, but some CDs despite being enjoyable leave my ears feeling sensitive even though I'm not playing them loudly. An Edith Piaf CD did this and quite a few others. It's like there were shouty sounds in there that I just couldn't tolerate. I've never had this experience playing music through headphones on my phone or through my TV's inbuilt speakers. A Schubert CD (Decca) was the easiest on my ears. The CDs in general also tend to sound a little harsh despite being enjoyable. What other upgrades could I do to fix this? Some people suggest a tube amplifier or R2R DAC and some people say they prefer vinyl. I could do a return on the CD player and purchase a Rega Planar 3 and a good cartridge (I would demo first of course). Does anyone have any suggestions?
I'll be returning the MA Bronze 50 speakers, but actually I do wonder whether I should buy stands and try them on stands before returning.
Edit: I used to listen to a lot of records on my dad's very good turntable/amp/speakers and I never thought it sounded "not quite right" or "slightly harsh". It seems like the Denon CDP/amp and HD650 give a sound that somehow doesn't sound right to my ears, they just sound off somehow. I don't even get this feeling from listening to music on my phone with cheaper headphones. Perhaps I'll do some more testing.
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Tinman1952
Well-known member
Some initial thoughts....
It sounds as if you have discovered that like many people (me included) you are very sensitive to the high frequency response in the playback chain. Many speakers these days are voiced with an elevated treble response to sound 'clear' and ' detailed'. This was not the case years ago I believe in your Dad's era....
It would also explain why you were bothered by the sound of the CD drive even a few metres away. One of the reasons I initially switched to streaming as I sat fairly close to my CD player.
The HD650 have an excellent high frequency response (some say rolled off but I would dispute this...) and as you say 'most' CDs are now enjoyable. This proves the current speaker/amp combination is not to your taste. Headphones also take the room response out of the equation.
The Edith Piaf CD will I suggest be quite an old recording and some distortion may be evident.
The ear is particularly sensitive in the 3kHz region and in my experience this is what gives some music that 'shouty' quality. Hence the use of the BBC 'dip' in their classic monitor speakers (reduced output around the 3kHz region to sound more 'natural' than the somewhat exaggerated response that can be caused by some microphone recordings).
I am not sure moving to vinyl is necessarily the answer as records can often have the impression of even more 'presence'.... (plus it is VERY expensive to get decent playback quality and purchase music!)
Putting some valve warmth in your system may very well be one solution... but I would suggest it is the speakers that you need to concentrate on to get the sound you like. I would not blame the CD player or even the well regarded amp as I think that is not where the problem lies.
Also don't ignore 'tone controls' to get the sound YOU like. Many don't think twice at using them in the car but think it is sacrilege to use them with their HiFi system. Silly really...
At least you have learned the importance of the often quoted advice to audition gear before buying and also discovered your own preference when listening (ignoring some 'dodgy' CD recordings...)
HiFi is definitely a 'journey of discovery'.....don't be too frustrated as you discover your own personal preference. 🙂
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