Power Conditioner

Hi everyone,

My Marantz SR7002 has always sent a hissing noise to my speakers. It really isn't too bad but my work is selling a 1.5KW APC power conditioner for $100. Is it really worth spending the money on this component. The Outlaw 7500 has been flawless and I'm 100% sure my pre-outs are the problem. Any suggestions?

Do you know what model of APC? I think a few on this forum, possibly XenonMan, has a few APC's that are 1.5KW. Not sure if it would help with the hissing sound you describe though, but it might, doesn't seem like a bad price.

Yes I have two APC H15 which are 1500 watt power conditioner/voltage regulator/surge protection capable. I don't count on the power conditioning features of these devices to make audio or video any better but they are superb protection from lightning which is a frequent guest here in South Florida.

I would not expect the hissing to go away by plugging into a power conditioner. Most audio equipment conditions the power using the built in power supply. It is likely caused by something other than the receptacle power supply. Try using a different outlet or a different circuit. Is it a hiss that gets louder when you turn the volume up or does it just seem to go away due to higher SPL. Does it do it on all sources or only a specific source. If it is more of a hum than a hiss then it is probably a ground loop hum and could be due to your cable or satellite hookup. Check all your speaker connections to make sure you haven't got a strand of wire touching anything other than the lugs. It could be induced by close proximity to an RF source.

XenonMan,

It's definitely a hiss that becomes louder as I increase the volume but it's inaudible during movies (unless it's a quiet scene) or when listening to music. It occurs on all 5 channels and it seems to be worse when I have the source switched to DVD. It's funny you mentioned RF since I was able to hear faint voices with the volume all of the way up.

It's not bothersome but I live near two base load power plants and Selfridge air national guard base. Even though Michigan has the infrastructure to produce and distribute reliable power, it seems like we're always receiving brown outs or no electricity!

Disconnect your sources one at a time with the system off, turn it on and see if one is causing the hiss. Since the hiss becomes worse when you turn up the volume it is likely a source crosstalking to your AVR through one of the various paths.

I just found out that it was an APC H15. It's hardly used and the going rate is $125. Now all I have to do is convince my wife that I need one. She loves the 7500 but the thing weighs a ton!

Seems like a great price! I know what your talking about, the 7700 is a back breaker.

Ask her if she would prefer the system to be wrecked by a storm. The best reason to get one is surge protection. A second best reason is ground loop isolation.