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GaN Amp & Speaker Popping Sound At Power On

Forum Members,

I just got a GaN400 amp and when it is powered on, the speakers make a popping noise that is about the magnitude of the music at the Peachtree startup setting (volume of 3 out of a possibility of 8).  It does this whether I use the 12 volt trigger from the PreDAC or manually power on the amp on by pushing the power on button.  There is no way to start the amp with zero volume.   

I am using speaker wire with bare ends that are tightly attached to the speaker and amp connectors - verified this.  The popping noise is much louder than with the Nova500 that I am in the process of trading in for these new units.

I have observed that the popping tends to be louder with a longer gap between turning off and turning on (similar to the music volume at startup) vs turning off and on with a few second delay (sometimes quite a bit less loud than the music volume at startup).

Is this induced speaker popping noise a concern for long-term speaker damage with many on/off cycles?  

Those of you with this amp or other GaN amps, do you experience a similar popping sound out of your speakers at powerup?  Peachtree technical support stated that this was a characteristic of GaN technology.

Note, other than powerup, this amp is dead silent as far as noise induced artifacts, including when powering it off.

Appreciate your thoughts.  (Note that I am querying both Peachtree and my speaker manufacturer about this, but would like to hear back from you all.)
michiganbuckeye
georgehifi's avatar
georgehifi
10,312 posts
 

michiganbuckeye

GaN Amp & Speaker Popping Sound At Power On

Forum Members,

I just got a GaN400 amp and when it is powered on, the speakers make a popping noise that is about the magnitude of the music at the Peachtree startup setting (volume of 3 out of a possibility of 8). It does this whether I use the 12 volt trigger from the PreDAC or manually power on the amp on by pushing the power on button. There is no way to start the amp with zero volume.


Is it alarming loud, if so not good.
Do the bass drivers move in and out excessively, if so not good
If you have a sample hold dc volt meter you could tell us the peak dc voltage these pops are at.
Even if moderately loud, it’s not good over time even for the drivers, and maybe the xovers
Cheers George
koslekt1's avatar
koslekt1
73 posts
 
I don't know about the GaN400, but the Merrill Veritas amps (class D) I had were meant to be left on at all times - and honestly sounded better to me after a day or two of constant power.
art_boston
45 posts
 
I know my Apogee ribbons would not like that pop! It should be corrected.

I agree with leaving it on all the time. My H2O is so recommended and so are other class-D's.
hifi59's avatar
hifi59
51 posts
 
“Those of you with this amp or other GaN amps, do you experience a similar popping sound out of your speakers at powerup? Peachtree technical support stated that this was a characteristic of GaN technology.”

No popping noise from my LSA Voyager Gan350 amp at system power up or down. (Amp stays on all the time per manufacturer recommendation ). 
georgehifi's avatar
georgehifi
10,312 posts
 
Peachtree technical support stated that this was a characteristic of GaN technology.”
That sounds like a copout statement, of a not well thought out design


No popping noise from my LSA Voyager Gan350 amp at system power up or down.

Nothing reported from the three Technics amps that use GaN either.

Cheers George
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