monitor buzz

Colorblind · Post by **Colorblind** » Mon Apr 14, 2008 1:04 pm

Hey all,

I'm using KRK V8 series 2 monitors. Ever since I've had them, there's been an annoying buzz coming from the tweeters. I contacted KRK and they said there may be a very slight hiss, but buzzing is not normal (duh). They suggested that I buy a ground lift adapter and see if that makes a difference. I tried one, and the buzz was still there. I don't know if this is relevant, but my guitar amp has no buzz. Thoughts?

Thanks,

C

A.David.MacKinnon · Post by **A.David.MacKinnon** » Mon Apr 14, 2008 1:54 pm

Try swapping the cables. I have a set of KRKs and they hum badly if I use anything other then really good cables. If that's not the culprit I'd think it might be a magnetic field thing. Turn off the rest of the studio gear and see if the monitors still hum. If not, start turning things on one by one till you find the culprit.

Post by **TapeOpLarry** » Mon Apr 14, 2008 8:34 pm

Do they buzz when not plugged into a source that feeds them?

Colorblind · Post by **Colorblind** » Tue Apr 15, 2008 6:57 am

They buzz even when just the power cable and nothing else is plugged in. I'll try turning everything but the speakers off, and see if that makes a difference. Thanks for the replies.

C

vsr600 · Post by **vsr600** » Sat Apr 19, 2008 10:14 am

man one of my V8's does this too.... nothing plugged in the back except power cords and one buzzes but the other doesn't. It's not loud enough for me to notice that much unless it's really quiet in the studio though so I just work around it.

Colorblind · Post by **Colorblind** » Sat Apr 19, 2008 3:37 pm

yep, very annoying. Still a buzz with nothing else turned on. I'm going to take them to my friend's studio and see if the buzzing persists.

C

pdxstudio · Post by **pdxstudio** » Wed May 28, 2008 1:40 pm

I am currently trying to solve a combination of hum and radio transmissions coming out of my monitors. I have genelec 1031a, and a KRK S12 sub. When I add the sub, both the hum and the radio interference gets louder (meaning if I plug the main speaker outputs of my mixer directly into the 1031s, it's quieter) I don't know if this has anything to do with the sub being KRK, I just thought I'd mention it.

I am having a tricky time with the radio and hum issues. There are a lot of variables, I'm trying to eliminate as many as possible, will post with joy if I ever get it sorted.

Post by **TapeOpLarry** » Thu May 29, 2008 8:01 pm

Power isolation and conditioning. The real stuff, not the little rack lite jobs.

Weasel9992 · Post by **Weasel9992** » Fri May 30, 2008 10:54 am

TapeOpLarry wrote:Power isolation and conditioning. The real stuff, not the little rack lite jobs.

Yup...it sounds like a power problem to me too.

Frank

pdxstudio · Post by **pdxstudio** » Fri May 30, 2008 9:41 pm

Can you please give an example of a proper power conditioning unit/system?

Prior to posting, I added a Monster 3500 Power Center (and all gear is plugged into it, though I had to use additional power strips), and this improved both the radio interference and hum quite a bit, but the problems persist more than I'd like.

thanks.

Professor · Post by **Professor** » Sat May 31, 2008 9:43 pm

Colorblind wrote:I contacted KRK and they said there may be a very slight hiss, but buzzing is not normal (duh). They suggested that I buy a ground lift adapter....

By "ground lift" adapter, do you mean one of those little three-prong to two-prong cheater plugs for A/C power?
If so, then someone over there at KRK tech support needs to be slapped upside the head.

First, those are for adding a safety ground connection, not for removing them.
Second, you should never remove the safety ground from any of your electrical devices... it's there for your safety.
Third, that's coming from the manufacturer's tech support which really opens them up to a huge lawsuit should anything happen to you or anyone else that got similar "advice".

As for your problem, I'd be curious to know if it is only in one speaker and not the other, or is it consistent for both?
--If it's only one, then you may have something broken inside the speaker.

Do you have other powered speakers, and do they have a similar problem when placed in that location?
--If you can, unplug & remove the KRKs and try another set of powered speakers in the same location and power outlet. If they have the same problem it may be something about the room or the power.

Have you plugged them in elsewhere in your house, just to test to see if something is wrong with the speaker or the outlet?
--If you are drawing too much current on a particular circuit you may be just under the amount that would be necessary to trip a circuit breaker, but may be drawing so much current on that line that the buzzing is coming from the household power system. Remember that single wall outlet may be tied to any number of other outlets and lights in any number of rooms. If the whole thing, for example, is a 10-amp breaker feeding an air conditioner somewhere, or a heater, or some other sort of noise generator, and is being pushed right up to about a 10-Amp draw because the speakers were added, then there can be a lot of noise on the lines. (Do any light bulbs hum or buzz nearby?)
It's also possible the whole house/apartment is drawing more than it is meant to be fed from the power company, so you might even take a speaker with you to work or a friend's house and try it there too.

As for power conditioning, yeah, something like a Furman, Equi=Tech, or similar voltage regulator, line conditioner, etc. could be a solution but they can be expensive and can't always fix the problems if they're coming from the household power.

-Jeremy

millions · Post by **millions** » Mon Sep 22, 2008 3:24 am

Hi,
I'm experiencing the same kind of troubles with my pair of KRK V6 series 2
This has nothing to do with AC or ground issues:
I went to a few other places (studio) with these...same problem.
I tried the KRK's website verifications and solutions...nothing.
I contacted them and even sent the recorded buzz coming out of my KRK's tweeters...no answers..
These monitors are great but the KRK support is a shame.
So I'll take a chance on the krk dealer for netherlands....

If anyone has new info, explanation or solution about this issue, please let me know

Thanx

Post by **TapeOpLarry** » Mon Sep 22, 2008 8:30 am

Sounds like the way the power amp circuits in the speakers are designed. I'll tell ya, I can only hear my ADAM S3-A's if I jam my head up against the tweeter and the room is dead quiet. My DynAudio BM6A's are nearly as quiet. I've had a hard time on other KRK speakers in the past, just figuring out the sound, but that happens to everyone when you try speakers.

HINT: Before buying a set of speakers try powering up with nothing attached and see if they buzz. Then plug in the output of just a console or monitor selector. See if the initial buzz was due to an open circuit from the input jack having no signal to it. If the speakers just buzz don't buy them. You wanna mix through that? Don't. Then get to try the speakers in your space before buying, if possible. If you don't feel that you immediately are hearing more and working harder, don't buy them!

Lutraphobe · Post by **Lutraphobe** » Sat Oct 11, 2008 10:24 am

I have a very similar problem with a pair of Event TR-5's: a sort of fluttering buzz that definitely isn't just the noise floor, comes out of both speakers equally, and can't be fixed with different cables (XLR, RCA, 1/4" TRS...). Doesn't matter what gear it's connected to or where it's plugged in - the only thing that seems to make a difference is moving around the audio cable. And even then, the changes in the loudness seem almost arbitrary - no one piece of gear seems to have a strong field around it, and sometimes it seems like moving the cable closer to different parts of the monitor itself makes the biggest difference. I'm thinking about buckling and buying a Furman conditioner, but it's a big investment and I'm not sure power is the issue. Would really nice speaker cables be a better choice?

Groove Element · Post by **Groove Element** » Mon May 24, 2010 7:46 am

Hello all,

I just found this thread. I have KRK V6 Series 2 monitors. I love them, but have also had the buzzing problem. Up until now, I have always written it off as a power issue on my end. Recently I tried powering them up to a power conditioner (Furman PL-8 nothing special but has always worked for all my other needs with no noise) and with no audio cables hooked up, still get the buzz. Upon doing some internet snooping it seems this is a very common problem. One forum I found has a guy saying that Guitar Center got KRK to replace his KRK's but that was in 2004: http://duc.digidesign.com/showthread.php?t=116632

If this is indeed a manufacturing flaw, I'm dissappointed that KRK doesn't have anything on their site mentioning this. I have contacted them and am waiting to see what they say.

Has anyone else been able to resolve their buzzing problems?

Thanks, Christian

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