Why is a 1.5-2 volt AC signal on my Neutral line?


I have several music sources e.g. DVD, Phono, DAC, Tuner etc...

I just purchased a NAIM integrated amp and I am experiencing a hum but only from the DVD player.

I have circuit tested the entire house wiring and all is well.

After a lot of investigation I found that some units have a 1.5-2.0 volt AC signal (sounds like a 60Hz signal i.e. hum) between the neutral side of the interconnect and the earth at the power bar.

Panasonic, Pioneer and Sony units I have measured all have this signal present and it varies between 1.5 - 2.0 volts

Luxman and Cambridge Audio gear does NOT have the signal present

All units have a polarized plug with no ground pin

How can the hum be eliminated using the Pioneer DVD with the NAIM Amp?

Thanks
williewonka

Showing 4 responses by shadorne

You have a ground loop issue. Neutral is grounded at the main electrical panel box however the length of cables and a poor contact somewhere (or a cheater plug) to the equipment can allow a small stray voltage to build up from some power supply leakage to ground (coudl be a faulty component). An RC interconnect will provide the return for a small stray current and hence you will induce a hum in the line level signal. With RCA you always have this problem to a greater or lesser degree - although the hiss or hum may often be low enough not to be of significance in a system with low dynamic range.
I gave a complex answer. Here are a few simple solutions.

If the NAIM has an optical in then try that.

Disconnect the video to the TV and see if the hum goes away - if it does then check your TV is grounded properly (no cheater plug).

Whatever you do - do NOT use cheater plugs on the Naim or on the TV - this can expose you to dangerous voltages in the event of an equipment failure.
other than the normal ground loop problems due to bad cabling/mains/ground etc...

Yep other than the normal problems from using RCA.

Please understand that stray voltages ALWAYS exist but for the majority of cases the micro-currents are small enough so that they do not induce much audible hum as they circulate through your interconnects. The only proper solution is balanced - invented ages ago - but the desire by manufacturers to reduce cost means you often get RCA - even on expensive components.
I am glad that we were able to pinpoint the problem as being due to a Ground Loop and help you solve it!