Hissing Martin Logan SL3's


The electrostatic panels of my SL3s start making a hissing sound (white noise) after being used for a short while. The noise is not audible while listening to music at normal levels, but is audble between tracks and at low levels. The noise continues for about 10 minutes after the power amp is switched off, then stops. In order to try and isolate the problem, I disconnected the power amp from the speakers after turning it off (I thought maybe the tubes were getting noisy). The hissing did not stop. Anyone have any ideas about the problem ? The speakers are just under 3 years old. No smart comments, please, about looking for snakes !!!
dacostab
It's a long shot, but have you cleaned them recently? If not, you should unplug them for a day and take a vacuum to the panels. While I've never noticed any night-and-day differences with my SL3s, I clean them once or twice a year as routine maintenance.
I agree mine started hissing..I vacuumed them and The hissing went away. Compressed air works too. You need to clean them periodically.
Vacuuming is best. If you are a little brave, putting the panels under the shower may just work. A lot of the time, dust and debris can affect the sound and will cause some hissing and cracking sounds. Just make sure to unplug your speakers for at least 10 hours (so that the electrical charge will dissipate) and then vacuum the panels (front and back). You will notice an immediate improvement once they are plugged in again.

For more info, you can check out the Martin Logan Club at http://www.martinloganowners.com

Jason Liu

President
Martin Logan Club
Thanks for the responses guys. The hissing did disappear after vacuuming (had been a while since I last vacuumed them); the sound improved as well. I was not brave enugh to put them in the shower