2. misc-audio
  3. 1262965306

Want to Blow Up My Stereo

If anyone has ideas as to the culprit of my issue I'd sure love to hear it.

For I don't know how long I've had an issue with my stereo putting the center of the image just inside the right speaker. This week I decided to "fix" the issue, and began trying everything I could think of. I had previously tried all the usual suspects: swapping the left and right interconnects, swapping the speakers, changing speaker positions. I've added a preamp (no effect on this issue), changed CD players, interconnects, and speaker cables. I thought for the longest the issue was the 24" dropoff in depth of the back wall, as the sound "pools" just inside that dropoff. But this week I've tried even putting the stereo on the flat, long wall instead of the short wall. I've also tried reversing the polarity of the interconnects and the phase on the preamp. (As an aside, reversing the polarity of only the interconnects from CDP to preamp resulted in a mirror image of the image shift, but the sound was very diffuse with no bass at all, and inverting the phase on the preamp had very little effect on the sound.) I've tried moving my room treatments (GIK absorption panels and Echo Busters diffusers) with very little if any effect. I tried moving the speakers completely against the side walls, very close together, and with the left speaker 3 feet closer to the side wall than the right. The image doesn't move. I just want to take a sledgehammer to my entire system. I haven't built a (I don't even want to think about how much money) ridiculously expensive system by sane person's standards (just ask my wife) to have some stupid issue like this that doesn't exist with my "normal" investment home theater.

And if you had any idea how many times I've had to edit this post to remove foul language and inappropriate phrases I think you'd feel my pain a bit more...or maybe not.

At any rate, please help.

Link to system: http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?vdone&1258245716&view
aggielaw

Showing 3 responses by aggielaw

aggielaw OP
267 posts
 
Guys, you helped me get back to some obvious stuff I hadn't done. I have a list out in the car to address the various recommendations, which I'll post later.

But the initial test was revealing. I got out my Radio Shack digital sound meter, and grabbed one of the 6 test CDs I own - as if one wasn't enough - and played a 1Khz tone track. Measured the left and right speakers, and got about a 6dB difference, with the right being louder.

Then I swapped the the output channels on the amp by connecting the right speaker to the left output terminal and the right speaker to the left output terminal. Voila! 6dB difference with left speaker louder.

So the amplifier has been indicted, but not found guilty quite yet. Two more things to do tonight: first, going to swap the output tubes in the Ayon CD-2 to see if the tubes are the culprit, although they shouldn't be because I remember I had this issue with my Cary 303/300. If swapping the tubes doesn't work, I'll get out the RA Opus 21 I have sitting in its crate ready to sell and see if I have the same issue using that CDP. If I do, the amp heads in for a checkup! :-)

Thanks a million for all the help you guys have offered! If I had asked for help on this 18 months ago I could've saved myself literally 50 hours of work!
aggielaw OP
267 posts
 
Howdy, guys. Here's the update. I did as Tvad suggested, and connected the left preamp output to the right amp input and vice versa. The sound shifted left of center. Replaced the cables to proper connection, and the image shifted right of center. Did the same with the CDP output to preamp input, with same results - image shifted left of center when cables sent to opposite channel inputs, and went back to right of center when connected properly.

The pre and amp are both SS, but the Ayon CD-2 uses 4 6H30 tubes, 2 per channel. I'm going to assume it's the tubes and try at least 2 of the other 3 sets of tubes I have for it. If the issue isn't fixed with any of the tubes I'll pull out the Opus 21 and make sure the problem is the CDP. If the issue exists with the Opus as well I'm going to be flat mind-boggled.

Again, thanks to everyone for their thoughts on this!
aggielaw OP
267 posts
 
Update: it was a tube imbalance. I unpacked the Opus 21, and the image is dead center.

Thanks to all who contributed!

Now to figure out how to fix the tube imbalance... :-|
More to discover