Recent content by TNPFan

I have had the MC462 in my system for a few weeks now and am very much enjoying it. It is mated to a McIntosh C2700 preamp and feeding a pair of GoldenEar Triton One speakers matched with a pair of SVS SB 16 Ultras. I have been listening to a pair of AHB2s for several years and am very familiar...

I looked at one of those as well and decided I had to begin with one product or the other. Looks like we both solved a similar problem by approaching it at opposite ends. Ha! Glad to hear it worked for you. At $10, I may order the one you suggested just to see if there is any difference in sound...

Happy to report I found a suitable solution. Turns out both of my Oppo players both have ground loop issues - at least, they do in my system. I found a ground loop isolator online, gave it a try and problem solved. It works so well that the skeptic in me disconnected and reconnected everything a...

After trying several configurations, I believe I have traced my issue to the Oppo UDP-205 DVD/CD player. I am thinking it is just something with Oppo decks in general because I also have an Oppo UDP-203 and it does the same thing. When I use the cheater plug on either of the Oppo decks, the hum...

I have tried using Direct, CD, and Aux and get the same result on each. I have even tried swapping out the interconnects as well. My next step is to reconnect the Rotel and Sony players to see what I get.

Yes, when the Mute switch is "on" the hum (and the rest of the sound) goes away. I am beginning to think my Audio Research preamp and Oppo player simply do not play well together. When I replace the LS3B with a Benchmark Media HCG3, there is no hum. I guess I will have to go back to that setup.

Good idea. I tried that early on and it does nothing.

The speaker manufacturer recommends only using LFE (low frequency effects) with a sound processor and not with a standard two channel config. It tried it anyway and still get the hum. I also found a two prong plug for my speakers and it also made no difference. When I disconnect power or...

All great input and suggestions. Thank you. Referring to the pic above of the back of the speakers... yes, that is the same input on the back of my speakers. I only connect the speaker level inputs with speaker wire and DO NOT use the LFE input. I have two SVS subs that are typically looped in...

Once I have lived with both for a bit, I will post my thoughts. All I know is the wait time on the McIntosh is driving me bananas. Appreciate your insight and look forward to some comparative listening.

Are you suggesting I keep all Are you suggesting I keep the power and signal interconnect cables close together? If so, that may be the issue. I have always tried to keep my power cables as far from my signal cables as possible, in an effort to isolate the two. I may be my own worst enemy. I...

So what is your long term preference in amps? I am very interested because I have been living with a pair of AHB2s for a few years and ordered an MC462 to replace them. I am not getting rid of the Benchmark amps and look forward to doing some A-B comparisons of my own. I am only driving a 4 ohm...

Wow Lambda, your drawing looks so much more menacing than mine. :facepalm: But seriously, thank you for making time to put it together and pointing out the ground loops. I had no idea I had those and have no idea how to reconfigure/reconnect things to fix it. Plus, I need to add my other sources...

For better clarification of the interconnect types... Components: Oppo DVD singled ended RCA outputs ===> Audio Research Preamp balanced XLR outputs ===> separate Benchmark Audio Amps configured Dual Mono NL2 connectors out of the amps ===> Golden Ear Triton One Speakers with Self-Powered Bass...

I have tried using a cheater plug with no success. The only way I can eliminate the ground loop is to unplug the power from any source that is being fed into my preamp. I have attached a drawing that contains both power and signal connections. Power is black lines and signal connections are red...