Dtc, I ended up not going into the dealer. I got lazy and didn't feel like driving up to Seattle in the traffic. I'm probably going to end up buying a Mcintosh MC252 or Ayre V-5xe and sell the Emotivas. Before I dish out the big dollars, I might try a set of those Rothwell attenuators listed above to reduce the gain and noise floor. |
It's the amps for sure, I just don't know why they're making my tweeters hiss, and I want to eliminate it. The hiss comes on and stays on when I power up the mono blocks. The pre-amp never actually turns off. Do you think the mono blocks are a bad match for the rest of my system, or can I fix this problem with some sort of line conditioner? |
Thanks for all the helpful information. I'm at work right now, but when I get home tonight I will disconnect the amps from the pre-amp to determine if this is just a noise floor issue. I understand that the Ayre pre-amp might not pair well with the cheap Emotivas, or maybe the Emotivas have too much gain for my sensitive Klipsch speakers. Once the music is on you dont hear the hiss and it sounds amazing. The hiss is most annoying when you're trying to watch a blu-ray during a quiet scene.
@Herman: In this hobby you can't always afford to buy all the nice gear in one purchase. I just picked up the Ayre and will be looking to upgrade my mono amps in the future. I am 25 years old and my system is a work in progress. |
No worries Herman, I appreciate the suggestions and didn't take it as criticism. What kind of amps would you recommend to go with highly sensitive speakers? I probably couldn't go wrong with an Ayre power amp to match my pre-amp, but I'm open to other suggestions. |
I was originally using a Marantz 2270 as a pre-amp, but began having some serious problems with it after it was "refurbished". I demoed a couple pre-amps, one was the Ayre K-5xe and the other was an NAD C326BEE. The difference between the two was night and day so I picked up the Ayre on Audiogon (the hi-fi store wanted $2,800 + 9.8% sales tax for a demo model).
I would have to hear the Bottleheads and see if I like them. I have always liked the sound of Mcintosh amps, but they are out of my price range for now. |
The RF7 II's and the Ayre are my favorite components of my system by far. I'm definitely lucky to have a setup like this. I bought the Ayre used, that's the only way I could afford it.
@josefm: I tried what you suggested by removing the interconnects. The hiss isn't as prominent, but it is still there. I think my new XLR cables may have enhanced the hiss slightly. Ayre states on their website that the maximum gain on the preamp is 4db with unbalanced outputs and 10db with balanced outputs. I guess there isn't a whole lot I can do about it until I upgrade the mono blocks someday. I need to get a bigger place so I can sit further back from the speakers. That way I probably won't even notice. |
I don't want to get rid of the speakers or the pre-amp. If I have to get rid of the Emotivas eventually it wont be a big deal. I think I got them for $279 each, which is minimal compared to the speakers and the pre-amp. I like having some headroom that the more powerful amps offer. Unfortunately I went cheap and bought the Emotivas. I couldn't find anything that packed 200 wpc that matched the same price/quality point as the Emotivas. When I bought all my equipment I wasn't thinking about s/n ratios or anything like that. Shows how little I know about building a quality system. |
Wow. You guys are extremely helpful and full of good ideas. Thanks for all the replies.
This morning I rearanged my equipment and made sure all cables, cords, etc. are nice and neat. Unfortunately when I powered everything back on the hiss is still there. I disconnected my XLR cables from the pre-amp and mono blocks again, and the hiss is much less noticeable. When disconnected you have to put your ear close to the tweeter to hear the hiss. When I have the XLR cables hooked up to the pre-amp in balanced mode the hiss is amplified. |
When hitting the mute button the hiss doesn't change. Neither does selecting a different input or increasing/decreasing the volume. I tried plugging the Ayre in directly into the wall instead of being connected to the Panamax surge protector, but the results were the same. When I swap the XLR cables for RCA cables the hiss is still present as well. I'm beginning to think that the Ayre just doesn't pair well with my amps. |
The RCA cables were actually emitting a humming noise when I connected them in place of the XLR's. They have never done that before. I don't have any other amps to put in place of the monos. I know somone with McIntosh MC-501's mono blocks that are hooked up to Klipsch Chorus II, but they are too much work to bring over to my place. I wonder if any Mcintosh power amps would work well with the Ayre?
The attenuators might be worth a try. I have never heard of them, but it sounds like they would reduce the hiss. Are there any ill effects from using the attenuators? |
Well it looks like I'm stuck with the hiss for now. It won't cause any damage to my equipment right? I'm going to keep my eyes out for another power amp though. Considering the Mcintosh MC252 if I can find one for the right price. |
Id rather have too much power than not enough. The specs for my speakers indicate that the power handling is 250W RMS. I don't want my equipment to have to work too hard to get some serious sound out of them. Al, how do you calculate the reduction in gain, and how much reduction do you think is needed to obtain satisfactory levels? |
I can hear the hiss 7 ft away from the speakers :( Anyone want to buy my amps? |
You're a smart guy Al. It's been a while since I have worked with that kind of math. It seems like there must be more to it than the gain on these amps that's causing the hiss. There are plenty of people out there running Klipsch with Emotivas/Mcintosh and don't experience the ridiculous amount of hiss I'm experiencing. Even if I picked up an Ayre V-5xe, that amp still specs gain of 26db which wouldn't help my case either.
I just want a good solid state amp that can rock hard and won't cause a bunch of hiss through my tweeters. I could hook up my old Klipsch KG4's and see what happens. They are rated at 94db. |
Just tried it with the Klipsch KG4 and it the tweeters hissed just as much. I never had this problem before using my Marantz 2270 as a preamp with the Emotivas. Why is this Ayre preamp brining on the hiss? >_< |
I'm taking the Ayre in to the hifi store on Saturday and will try hooking it up to some of their gear just to make sure there is nothing wrong with my preamp. While I'm there, I might as well demo it with some other power amps to get an idea of how it will sound. Only problem is they dont have any speakers with horn loaded tweeters, so it might be like comparing apples to oranges. I think my preamp just doesn't like the cheap emotivas for some reason. My system is lacking synergy. |
