Humming to the wrong tune! - How to get rid of unwanted noise.
/Are hum and noise in your system driving you crazy? Fear not, we have the solutions for you! Matt from Audio T Cardiff takes a deeper look into these problems and which products can help resolve the issues, from power distribution sockets to other ways of filtering noise and improving sound and hopefully losing some of that unwanted hum or high frequency noise.
Planar 6 Exact cartridge and logo close up
Moving steadily along my own exciting hi-fi journey, with various changes in my own personal system, I was plagued by that old problem which I am very familiar with, ground hum. My home listening space sadly isn't the most ideal of rooms but it works.
MM & MC cartridge
The room itself is a converted garage and as you can guess the internal wiring from the house to the garage was an afterthought and tagged onto the ring mains of the house. It’s not the cleanest power in this room and leaves it open to noise such as ground hum etc. With my main music source being a Rega Planar 6 turntable, I notice this hum issue more when playing vinyl. Due to the nature of turntables and open pickups they are susceptible to noise. A cartridge is made up of copper windings, a cantilever and magnet open to the elements, thus its gonna pick up some noise and some cartridges pick up more noise than others.
So, what do I do about this hum? A little noise is not bad and to be expected with a turntable whereas a lot of hum is not so good and can be quite distracting. What can I do short of rewiring my house? I started looking into good quality power distribution sockets and ways of filtering out that hum without sacrificing my sound quality. In this article I’ll be taking a look into options such as power cables and plug-ins including power conditioners that can help with noise and improve sound.
What works best?
There are many products out there that can help with noise issues and sound quality in general. We carry a number of options in our shops and I have been able to take bits home and listen for what works best for the problem I have been experiencing with my own system. The problem with electricity is it’s unpredictable, in the sense it can fluctuate thus causing the problems we have mentioned.
At Audio T Cardiff, one of our favourite cable manufacturers is Chord Company. This year they have added more options to their power cable and power distribution ranges. Starting with the Clearway power cable , then climbing up the ranks to Shawline, then Epic right up to their flagship Music power cables which utilise Chord Companies Array technology. Quite recently we had the opportunity to try out some of these power cable options including Chord’s new PowerHAUS power distribution sockets, the S6 and M6 , which also contain the GroundArray technology inside.
The PowerHAUS
To say that they made a big difference would sell them short. During our own audition of this new range of power cable and power distribution options from Chord Co. we started at the bottom and worked our way up the range. The sound difference as we progressed was incredible to say the least. For instance, I put on a piece of music which I knew wasn't recorded particularly well and when we reached the PowerHAUS S6 it made everything sound better, not perfect but more pleasing to our ears than when we started the listening session. This change in the delivery of the power gave us more dynamic range even a bigger and better sound stage. The PowerHAUS also had a profound effect on the vinyl side of things, again a much bigger soundstage with more detail and, dare I say it, more fun.
Chord GroundARAY high-frequency noise reduction.
Next up we added in the Chord GroundARAY “plug-ins”, so here’s a little run down to get you up to speed. The Chord Company have spent many years researching what makes a hi-fi sound great and it’s not just about the source, the amplification or the speakers, in Chords way of thinking it’s everything in-between i.e., speaker cables and interconnects. Chords latest research has gone into power and filtering with Chord GroundARAY plug-ins and as we’ve already touched on the PowerHAUS range.
The GroundARAY range consists of the following connections USB A, RCA, DIN, XLR, BNC, RJ45 and HDMI. Their idea behind the plug-ins is to go into unused sockets from your router right up to your amplifier, whether its RCA, XLR, BNC or HDMI, they all can be plagued by our old unwanted friend high frequency noise that can happen anywhere in the chain. Looking at the construction of these they are rather well machined pieces of thick-walled aluminium and this alone helps with noise. Each GroundARAY is filled with Chord’s vibration damping material protecting ARAY circuit.
The GroundARAY assessment
We began our assessment streaming from the Bluesound Node which was wired into the amplifier with Chord Company Shawline RCA cables and the speakers connected with Chord company Epic speaker cable. The Chord representative showed us a couple of combinations using the GroundARAY plugs going from the Ethernet switch right up to the XLR inputs on the Leema Acoustics Tucana amplifier. The difference was subtle at first but as the amplifier warmed up, we could really tell the difference.
The system we used -
Rega: Planar 10 turntable fitted with a Rega Apheta 3 cartridge
Trichord: Dino phono stage
The artists and tracks we used in this audition.
Streamed on Tidal
Bjork - Post 1995 - “Hyperballad”
Big Wreck - In loving memory 1997 - “Blown wide open”
Vinyl
Dire Straits - Communique 1979 - “Once Upon time in the west”
The Big Wreck track was the most suspect one of the bunch. I used this particular track as I knew it’s a bit too heavy on the bass in the mix, which meant this track loses definition. Believe it or not the Chord PowerHAUS seemed to help in calming down the bass and giving the track more definition.
Audioquest…
Audioquest niagara 3000 mains distribution block rear
thunder iec mains cable
We can’t mention power and conditioning without mentioning Audioquest, a great brand with a long history in the Hi-Fi industry. Audioquest have designed and built great audio cables such as the most recent edition, the Mythical Creatures range. They also offer options on the power distribution side of things too. From the G8 power outlet right up to the Niagara series , both product lines have had an impact in the industry. They also offer a superb range of power cables from the NRG series up to the Storm series. Again, like Chord they have spent many years of hard work and research looking into how they can improve that dreaded high frequency noise issue as well as RF noise i.e., radio frequency as well as ground hum. The offerings from Audioquest most definitely improve the sound quality of your equipment delivering power more efficiently with less noise or lowering the noise floor in your system.
The Wireworld Matrix
Wireworld are an American company owned by renowned cable designer David Salz. Their cable technology was founded with the unique mission of perfecting audio cables through objective listening tests. The idea is to make the perfect audio cable with such cables like the Platinum eclipse series from RCA connections right through to tone arm cables and speaker cables. They also make fantastic power distribution blocks such as the Matrix II shielded power cord extender, which is a no nonsense design and great value. This approach to power distribution is simple and effective.
The Audiolab DC block
Audiolab dc block
The Audiolab DC block is a fairly new addition to the Audiolab family of electronics and I think this piece of kit is a little wonder box. I feel it is unbeatable at its price bracket. In essence the DC block cleans up power by reducing unwanted DC distortion before it reaches the component in your Hi-Fi system. DC voltage from many house hold appliances can create unwanted noise on the AC mains supply. The DC block can cancel DC voltage found within the AC mains supply in your home. It achieves this by correcting the DC offset and rebalances the sine wave. The ideal power situation in the home would be to have a perfectly symmetrical sine wave alternating between positive and negative phases but this sadly is not the case. Power in the home fluctuates causing the noise issue we are describing. The main job of the DC block is to offset and rebalance the mains power giving you better all-round performance from your equipment.
direct current blocker
The Solution to my problem
Going back to the beginning with my system and the noise I experience at home as we have described above. I decided to take home a Wireworld Matrix 2 power distribution block and the Audiolab DC block to see if one or both of these fantastic pieces of equipment can help with my noisy system. I tried them both separately at first and found some improvement. The Dc block certainly dropped some of the hum and the Rega Elex-r amplifier sounded more alive in its performance. Then, I plugged everything into the Wireworld Matrix distribution block this by itself made a great difference to the noise floor and everything cleaned up really well. Next, you guessed it, I tried both the Dc block and the Wireworld together. what a difference hum almost gone but the main thing I noticed was the difference in sound power and clarity, and sound stage jumped to a whole new level in my little system. For now, I have just bought the Wireworld Matrix, but I will be buying the Audiolab DC block to go with it as I feel it’s a worthwhile purchase, not much outlay for great performance, I feel that’s a win in my book.
What else do I look at in my system if I have noise?
1: The first things I would look at are connections between equipment such as RCA cables for instance between the phono stage and amplifier and make sure they’re fitted properly the same goes for things like optical cables making sure they’re connected properly.
2: I would check the condition of the cables making sure there’s no breaks or corrosion on the plugs or on exposed wire and replace if necessary.
3: Check speaker cables and make sure banana plugs are tight, if you are using bare wire make sure the terminals are tight and there are no stray wires that can cause a short.
4: Check speaker terminals on the back of the amplifier and speakers are tight, for example if you have a pair of speakers with four terminals on the back with linking bars make sure they are locked down.
5: If your turntable has a ground lead coming from the tone make sure it is connected to the ground point on the back of the amplifier.
6: Make sure the fly leads are connected properly on the back of your cartridge, if they are loose they can short out or cause hum.
7: Last thing to make sure your power leads are properly secured.
There are many other things that can cause unwanted noise, but these are some of the good basic checks you can do.
Other ways you can help with sound quality and noise in your system is to look at how your system is connected and consider changing speaker cable and interconnects. For instance, going from a basic pair of speaker cables to something like the Chord Company C screen X makes a world of difference to your sound. I also highly recommend trying some of these different pieces of equipment I have talked about in this blog in your own home as I have done, to find what works best for you in your system. Here at Audio T, we have a home loan scheme, so you can take equipment home and listen in the comfort of your own chair and see how much of an effect they have on your system and how everything sounds before and after.
Why not pop into our store for a chat or give us a call and we can certainly help and recommend many products that can help your system to sound its best. You can contact us on 02920 228565 or email us at Cardiff@audio-t.co.uk
Thank you for reading
Matt, Nick and Kerrin - Audio T Cardiff
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Chord Company and Wireworld can be found at all of our Audio T stores
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