M1001 noise

[SoundGeek]

My M1001 has a noise while playing. It's somewhat difficult to describe, because it's at a very low level, but if I have the volume cranked way up it is clearly noticable (and somewhat annoying) during quiet music passages. It's a buzzing sound, I'd guess between 100-800 Hz. Sounds more like a square wave than a nice sine wave...it has a gritty, buzzing quality as opposed to a clean tone.

The noise is present via both the toslink and coax digital outputs--I haven't tried the analog outputs--and sounds the same from both. I'm using the DAC in my Onkyo A/V receiver. The noise is not there when playing the same song from CD into the coax digital input of the same receiver, and it's also not there when playing the same MP3 in WMP on my PC, using the analog output of the PC sound card to a different Onkyo reciever.

The track I've been using to troubleshoot is "Xanadu" from Rush's "A Farewell to Kings" album. Being an AAD CD, you can clearly hear hiss from the master tape from both the CD and the MP3 played on the PC, but through the SB the hiss is drowned out by this noise.

Other data: SB is on v2.5.133 connected to WMC 2.0 through wired ethernet, cables are Monster (2M for toslink, 1M "Monster Video" for coax). Data is 256 kbps CBR MP3 ripped with EAC and encoded with LAME.

Any ideas? TIA....

[RokuMike]

Is there any chance that you could try it with a different offboard DAC? As you may have read, the M1001 coverts all audio to 48kHz due to the configuration of its audio components. This conversion should *not* produce the sound you've heard, but I'm thinking that perhaps the Onkyo is doing something different with 48kHz than it is doing with the 44.1kHz from the CD.

[kimkp]

Hi,

It looks to me as it is the same problems I hear. So I am not alone any longer with the problem!

Look at my comment:

http://www.rokulabs.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=7017

Regards
Kim

[SoundGeek]

The only other outboard DAC I have available is an older QED Digit, and that can't cope with the 48 KHz...so nope, sorry, I don't have another DAC to try.

[SoundGeek]

Two updates/items:

1) Just for grins I tried a Rush DVD which is at 48 KHz into the Onkyo--no noise--so apparently it's not just the Onkyo at 48 KHz.

2) A friend has a Denon receiver that I might be able to borrow for testing within the next couple of days...I'll let you know what I find out.

Kim: I saw your posting...hard to say if we're hearing the same thing. I haven't noticed a rumble ("humble?"), but this buzzing might be the same.

A general comment: I really do love this friggin' thing! I hope we can get this figured out. I'm a total Roku/SB evangelist among my circle of friends, many of whom consider themselves audiophiles--I'm the "tin ear" of the group--but this issue has me hedging my evangelism, and I'm not liking it! I'm hoping to borrow the Denon without having to explain exactly why...

[SoundGeek]

The noise is there with the Denon receiver too, using the toslink connection. I did not try the coax.

FYI, the specific receivers in question are an Onkyo TX-DS676 and a Denon AVR-3801.

[tal]

Stupid question: The volume on your SoubdBridge is set to 100%?

Just asking before it just happened to me that I wondered about a hissing sound and found that the cause was that I accidentally lowered the SoundBridge volume (and therefore raised the volume on my amp).

Thorsten

[SoundGeek]

I just double-checked, and the volume is set to 100% (and the noise is still there).

[kimkp]

Hi,

I have also checked the volume setting. I had the idea, that it might cause the problem, that it was set to 100%.

Still same low level distortion on very low level music. Try some classical vocal music with piano, and you might hear the problem. Also, the low-level rumble is a strange noise of the M1001.

As long as this distortion is represented, I am afraid the Ruko M1001 is not useable for high-end hi-fi listening sessions on classical music.

Regards
Kim Kruse Petersen

[RokuGreg]

Does it happen if you play silence?

Greg Garner
Directory of hardware engineering
Roku

[kimkp]

Dear Greg!

Thank you for your attention and your reply, and also for the in general fantastic product, the M1001. It is a milestone in conveinience during music listening, and will definitely change the way we are listening to music in a positive direction.

I am going into deep in this product as well as this technology as I am reviewer on the scandinavian hi-fi magazine HIGH Fidelity.
Therefore I might be listening deeper, more critital and has to listen very carefully on each product I am reviewing. So also the M1001, and the article will be published in the next month or so. (On danish ...)

But:

When playing "Silence" as I read as digital zero, there is absolute no noise or low level noise. Only on CD's where the level is very low (but not zero), it is possible to hear it. Of course, the problem is also, that when I have experienced the sideeffect it is hard to not to hear it in general. On most music, however, fx rock and so, it is absolute impossible to hear the distortion/noise.

You are more than welcome to mail directly to me for further information, if you feel this forum is not the right place for more "into deep" discussions.

When this problem is solved, the M1001 will problably be able to outperform even the best CD-players, even may be my Mark Levinson ML-37, for a 1/20 of the price for this machine.

Regards
Kim Kruse
HIGH fidelity
Denmark

[SoundGeek]

Does it happen if you play silence?

Not sure exactly what you mean by "play silence," but yes, the noise I'm hearing is clearly there when, for example, one song fades out (to the noise) and the next fades in (over the noise). I can hear a split-second break in the noise during the song transition. Note that when I say "fade" I mean the music, as produced; the noise is constant and does not fade.

Sorry I can't find the words to be more descriptive of the noise. It reminds me of the description of some of the sound effects in the later Star Wars movies, where they describe holding an electric razor up to a stainless steel mixing bowl to make the racer engine noises in episode 1.

The noise also seems to interact with the harmonics of certain songs to create a really weird effect. If you can get ahold of the previously mentioned Rush album, listen to "Cygnus X-1" (the last track) at high volume. Between about 1:15 and 2:25 of that song the noise interacts with something (bells?) that has the same effect with me as fingernails on a chalkboard.

[RokuGreg]

It would be very helpful if you guys could listen on the analog audio outputs and see if this noise is present on those as well. Getting more information like this is always helpful in narrowing down the problem.

When I said "play silence" I did indeed mean to play a file with 0's in it.

Greg Garner
Director of Hardware Engineering
Roku

[SoundGeek]

Just checked; yes, the same noise is there on the analog output.

[RokuGreg]

Also it occured to me that it would be helpful if you played some audio that was sampled at 48KHz, and some that was sampled at 44.1 and see if the noise is present?

Greg Garner
Director of Hardware Engineering
Roku