Quote:
Originally Posted by
bhazard 
I was going to buy the balanced minidsp anyway. It will most likely remove the ground hum, and I wanted it to EQ with. I just seem to be having trouble actually ordering it off the site.
It turns out, it was mostly a connection issue. I'm using wire nuts while I wait on my speakon terminal for the sub, and one became loose. Once fixed, everything picked back up.
I have a Sherwood R-972. After Trinnov calibration, it set the gain on the AVR to -5, with the gain on the EP4000 at max, which isn't bad. I'd probably just have to turn down the EP4000 with a balanced signal to it.
I'm sold on DIY subs, and definitely sold on the SI's. They are the real deal. I would probably max myself out with 4 SI's total in my room, so you guys running 8-16 are my heroes, or you're just nuts. Maybe a little of column A, and a little of column B.
Might want to experiment with your gain structure my friend. I know beast has a thread going about the optimal way to set your gain. In my past experience, when you set any particular signal in the chain to "max" it will introduce noise.
Have you ever muted your AVR and turned the volume up really loud? At some point you will start to hear a hiss and the hiss will get louder the higher you turn it up. As I understand it, this is attributed to "XYZ" components in your chain effecting the SNR.
Someome correct me if I am wrong, but I believe maxing a signal from any component can also cause said signal to clip. It's a bit early for me to go into anymore technical elaboration or find back up resources, but the bottom-line is that you should experiment to find the sweet spot for each component that will keep the noise (hiss) down.
For instance, my sub chain currently goes AVR to SMS-1 to Amp. I use my SMS-1 to control my sub volume. If I turn my AVR sub level down to -5db and max the output level of my SMS-1 and amp it will introduce noise. However, if I raise my AVR level to 0db and reduce my amp gain and SMS-1 level accordingly, I can achieve the same desired output without maxing any signal in my chain. This has helped me keep signal noise in check. Make sense?
Give it a try.
Note - There is a clear difference between "hiss" and "hum." Both have different solutions, but properly setting your gain structure could yeild positive results to mitigate a small amount of your hum issue as well.
