Dreaded hum/buzz or ground loop

[Mark C Flick]

An oddity I've noticed lately is a buzz when my Blu-ray player audio is connected to my receiver with an RCA cable. One of these days I'll give up my Denon 3805 but until then, my temporary solution is a Toslink cable. As you can imagine it's not ideal for great audio. So the basics include;
Sony KDL-40S5100
Denon 3805
Acurus A250
Direct TV receiver, also did it with Dish Network Hopper w/Sling.

Thoughts?

 

[billrobbo]

It's not a problem we see a lot of here in Oz, most people stateside use something like the Art Cleanbox Hum Remover.

 

[Peter Loeser]

An oddity I've noticed lately is a buzz when my Blu-ray player audio is connected to my receiver with an RCA cable. One of these days I'll give up my Denon 3805 but until then, my temporary solution is a Toslink cable. As you can imagine it's not ideal for great audio. So the basics include;
Sony KDL-40S5100
Denon 3805
Acurus A250
Direct TV receiver, also did it with Dish Network Hopper w/Sling.

Thoughts?

When you say you were using the RCA connection, do you mean digital coax, or analog? If you're going from digital coax to TOSLINK I wouldn't expect it to have any noticeable impact on sound quality. Either way your AVR will do the D/A conversion. If TOSLINK elimiates the hum I'd stick with it.

 

[Todd Anderson]

Have you tried using extension cords to plug your gear into some different outlets to see if hum was eliminated?

 

[Leonard Caillouet]

Do you have any filtered or isolated outlets? I wonder if there is some leakage in the isolation on that player. Is the player only connected to the receiver or is it networked?

 

[Mark C Flick]

Yeah, not sure. No filtered or isolated outlets. Yes, digital PCM coax. I can definitely hear an improvement in audio quality with the RCA vs. the Toslink but just can't figure why I get the hum/buzz. It is network connected by wifi not hard wired.

 

[Mark C Flick]

Have you tried using extension cords to plug your gear into some different outlets to see if hum was eliminated?

Have tried it in multiple outlets and a couple of different homes.

 

[Peter Loeser]

I've had success connecting a single wire between the chassis of the source and receiver, or in some cases receiver to sub amp chassis to eliminate ground hum associated with RCA connections. Not the prettiest solution but it gets the job done.

 

[Sonnie Parker]

I had some noise when we had Dish Network... I inserted a ground lug in the cabling coming into the room, connected a copper ground wire from that lug to the lug on the back of my receiver and it was gone... GONE!

 

[Mark C Flick]

Until I can figure it out I just unplug my Blu-ray player when not in use. Any other ideas out there?

 

[Peter Loeser]

Duct tape?

 

[Leonard Caillouet]

I really am going to create a Duct Tape thread...

 

[Mark C Flick]

Maybe electrical tape?

 

[Todd Anderson]

Hey Mark -

Have you tried one of these?

https://emotiva.com/products/accessories/cmx-2

 

[Mark C Flick]

No, before I were to do that I think I'd just as soon put that money toward a receiver with HDMI.

 

[Tony V.]

You said that unhooking the BluRay player gets rid of the hum is the player connected to the network using a wired eithernet connection?

 

[Mark C Flick]

No, it's connected Wi-Fi.

 

[Tony V.]

Have you tried different anologe cables?

 

[Todd Anderson]

Interesting that the Blu-ray player is giving you the issue... I agree with your sentiment, tho. Maybe it's time to upgrade the receiver.

 

[AudiocRaver]

FWIW, I have used TOSLINK a lot and have been completely happy with the sound. If your system's sound changes markedly going from digital coax to TOSLINK, then I suggest you look closely at any and all changes involved, there might be other factors affecting the sound than just the fiber.

 

[Mark C Flick]

Believe it or not, my BDP does not have a TOSLINK connection. My current temporary fix is HDMI from BDP to TV and TOSLINK from TV to receiver.

 

[Todd Anderson]

If you're okay with that fix... living with it isn't such a bad thing. You could probably invest $500 in a competent receiver (from a place such as Accesories4Less) and gain some convenience. But your audio experience might not change a whole lot...

 

[Mark C Flick]

Yeah, temp fix. Kinda got my eye on and Integra 50.4 for $399 from Accessories4less, seems like a pretty good deal.

 

[Tonto]

I'd replace the Digital Coaxial cable 1st. A tiny short will cause a hum. And can get worse over time.

Have you wiggled the cable to see if it has any effect?

 

[Mark C Flick]

Doesn't matter if it's a Phillips, Monster or $2 cable, they all do it. Wiggling has no effect.