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Strange Noise from PrimaLuna DiaLogue One

I have been the happy owner of a Prima Luna DiaLogue One (the *non* "premium", original DiaLogue) for about 8 years now. I love the thing to death.

My system consists of Sonus Faber Elipsa SE (or "Red") speakers, and Oppo 105, and Nordost cables. Most of my listening is via CD's or my own custom-made server (still using the DAC in the Oppo).

Here is the problem I have been experiencing as of late:  

I am getting a kind of noise coming from the tweeters of when using the PrimaLuna. The noise the same in both speakers and even happens when the amp is on "mute".

The best way I could describe this noise is that it sounds like "interference". A sound similar to what one normally experiences when a cell phone is placed close to a speaker and there is an incoming text message. But in this case, the intermittently "beeping" noise is almost constant. Impossible to hear when playing music, but it can get distracting during silent passages.

I am baffled by this, because the PrimaLuna has been exceptionally dependable, reliable as a rock, and dead-silent as of today.

I tried changing tubes (all of them), turning off my Wi-Fi router (not that it makes a difference, since I live in a condo and there are literally 10 other signals in the air 24/7), I made sure nothing was charging in the house, we do not even have dimmers anywhere... but no luck...

Today, my dealer let me borrow a McIntosh integrated amplifier. I have been curious to try out a solid-state amp, as I believe my speakers (not the last word in efficiency) would not mind the extra juice... With the solid-state amp, the noise is gone! Baffling!

Even if I end up liking the Mc, I will not part with the PrimaLuna, because I love it so much. But I would like to find out why I am experiencing this issue... Any theories as to why this may be would be appreciated.

Thank you all in advance!


beyondarkness
lostbears's avatar
lostbears
538 posts
 


I don't think you are getting the most from your Elipsa SE with the  PrimaLuna DiaLogue One. The Elipsa SE really need more power to sound their best. I use an Audio Research Ref 110 to drive my Elipsa SE. I think around 100 wpc is a good starting point. With less power the Elipsa SE loose a bit of detail and sound stage. The bass will also not be as crisp and tight. The Elipsa SE are amazing speakers. Mac is a good match with them. But I would definitely also try borrowing a more powerful tube amp from your dealer. 


stereo5's avatar
stereo5
6,265 posts
 
have you tried cleaning the mute switch on the amp?
beyondarkness OP
24 posts
 
Thank you all for your feedback. I will be calling Kevin at Upscale Audio tomorrow, but was wondering if any of you had had a similar experience.

Lostbears, I am actually auditioning an used McIntosh MA8900 as we speak. I am very much aware of the limitations of the PrimaLuna in this particular context, but I love the amp dearly, my room is fairly small, and I tend to listen to fairly moderate volume levels. I really have had no big issues with the Elipsa/DiaLogue One combination. But I was indeed curious to see what the Elipsas could do with a solid state amp, and my dealer was kind enough to let me take it for a ride for a few weeks, so I am definitely looking forward to the next few days. Right "out of the box", so to speak (even though this particular unit had a previous owner), I certainly can hear a lot more "ease" and "flow" to the sound, and, ironically, a sweeter midrange and warmer overall tone. It may be foolish of me to jump to conclusions so quickly, but to my ears (at least so far) the Mc integrated sounds more "tube-like" than the PrimaLuna!


dweller's avatar
dweller
3,741 posts
 
@awn Tried everything. Different house circuits, "cheater" plugs, power conditioners -nothing helped! Sent the unit to Upscale Audio who said it tested "normal". I loved the sound and it had plenty of bass (!) but couldn't live with the hum. I believe that some shielding was accidentally omitted during assembly -that's my intuitional opinion. Damn shame, sounded great, couldn't use and I lost about $600 on the deal.
lostbears's avatar
lostbears
538 posts
 

 If your  PrimaLuna is around 8 years old it is no longer under warranty. I would have a local tech take a look at it. If you don't know a good one, your dealer may have a suggestion. Since the hum is in both channels my guess is that the problem lies somewhere in the power supply.

 You may also want to take a look at the separates your dealer has.  A separate amp and preamp can have a higher level of performance than an integrated.


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