Speaker + Receiver Staticy Sound
August 4, 2023 12:18 PM Subscribe
Hi! I have a pair of Klipsch R-51PM speakers and they work flawlessly when I connect directly to them with Bluetooth.
However, I'm trying to connect them to a Sony STR-DH190 Stereo Receiver. (Right speaker) (Receiver) When I connect the receiver to my speakers as shown in the images, I'm getting sound but it's really crackly. I've tried other wires with banana connectors with the same staticy result. I have no idea what I'm doing wrong, hoping one of the lovely geniuses here can help!
First, the cables shown are RCA cables, not banana cables.
I'm confused because the speaker picture shows a speaker-wire connection going to the screw terminals, but the receiver photo doesn't show the corresponding connection on its speaker terminals. That would be the wiring I'd expect here.
Your camera flash wiped out the cable label on the speaker side. What's the label on those connectors?
posted by Sauce Trough at 12:32 PM on August 4, 2023
I'm confused because the speaker picture shows a speaker-wire connection going to the screw terminals, but the receiver photo doesn't show the corresponding connection on its speaker terminals. That would be the wiring I'd expect here.
Your camera flash wiped out the cable label on the speaker side. What's the label on those connectors?
posted by Sauce Trough at 12:32 PM on August 4, 2023
Those are powered speakers, meaning they have integrated amplifiers. Your receiver is also an amplifier, so it’s most likely overloading the speakers. You want passive speakers if you’re using a receiver.
posted by outfielder at 12:37 PM on August 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by outfielder at 12:37 PM on August 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
Is that shiny object in the upper right hand corner of your speaker’s connecting plate a knurled thumbscrew?
If so, those are usually meant for ground wires. Your receiver has one, and something is connected to it.
Try connecting those together and see what happens. If that doesn’t help, try connecting the speaker to an independent ground.
posted by jamjam at 12:41 PM on August 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
If so, those are usually meant for ground wires. Your receiver has one, and something is connected to it.
Try connecting those together and see what happens. If that doesn’t help, try connecting the speaker to an independent ground.
posted by jamjam at 12:41 PM on August 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
ah, never mind what I said -- I think outfielder is correct. looked at the manuals for those speakers and they don't appear to have the appropriate connectors to connect to a receiver. that sucks.
you might be able to work around this by keeping the wiring you've got and switching the line / phono switch to Line.
posted by Sauce Trough at 12:44 PM on August 4, 2023
you might be able to work around this by keeping the wiring you've got and switching the line / phono switch to Line.
posted by Sauce Trough at 12:44 PM on August 4, 2023
alternatively, you could just wire your turntable directly to the speakers, since they seem to support that. If your turntable is your only sound source, the receiver is superfluous.
if you do that, make sure the PHONO/LINE switch is set to PHONO.
posted by Sauce Trough at 12:45 PM on August 4, 2023
if you do that, make sure the PHONO/LINE switch is set to PHONO.
posted by Sauce Trough at 12:45 PM on August 4, 2023
Response by poster: Sorry! So yes, I can connect the turntable directly to the speakers and the sound is clear, but it's quite a bit quieter than I can get them if I have the speakers connected to Bluetooth; is that expected? I always thought I needed a receiver to get from the turntable to the speakers.
In the image I have the Right Speaker connected from the top jacks (labeled Analog In/Out which I know the flash blocked, sorry!) to the Receiver Audio Input 4 OUT; and then from the bottom jacks the right speaker is connected over to the left speaker with speaker wire.
posted by mrk021 at 1:01 PM on August 4, 2023
In the image I have the Right Speaker connected from the top jacks (labeled Analog In/Out which I know the flash blocked, sorry!) to the Receiver Audio Input 4 OUT; and then from the bottom jacks the right speaker is connected over to the left speaker with speaker wire.
posted by mrk021 at 1:01 PM on August 4, 2023
Those are powered speakers, meaning they have integrated amplifiers. Your receiver is also an amplifier, so it’s most likely overloading the speakers.
Untrue. The RCA inputs in the right speaker are connected to the Line Out on the receiver, which is basically correct, except there's a signal level mismatch in some way, and that's likely because the Line/Phono switch to the left of these inputs appears to be set to Phono where it should be Line.
posted by Stoneshop at 1:05 PM on August 4, 2023 [4 favorites]
Untrue. The RCA inputs in the right speaker are connected to the Line Out on the receiver, which is basically correct, except there's a signal level mismatch in some way, and that's likely because the Line/Phono switch to the left of these inputs appears to be set to Phono where it should be Line.
posted by Stoneshop at 1:05 PM on August 4, 2023 [4 favorites]
Sauce Trough: looked at the manuals for those speakers and they don't appear to have the appropriate connectors to connect to a receiver.
The RCA inputs they have are line level inputs which can be fed from any amp, receiver or other sound source that offers a line level output.
posted by Stoneshop at 1:09 PM on August 4, 2023
The RCA inputs they have are line level inputs which can be fed from any amp, receiver or other sound source that offers a line level output.
posted by Stoneshop at 1:09 PM on August 4, 2023
Is it possible that there is a speaker selector or volume control on your receiver that is the source of the noise? Symptom would be: jiggling the slider, turning the knob, or pushing the button results in a simultaneous increase or decrease in crackling.
If that is the source, then cleaning the contacts on that control will fix the issue.
posted by zippy at 1:15 PM on August 4, 2023
If that is the source, then cleaning the contacts on that control will fix the issue.
posted by zippy at 1:15 PM on August 4, 2023
Klipsch's marketing bumf makes a point of saying you can wire a turntable directly to those speakers without needing a receiver in between. If you do that, make sure the little switch on the speaker's back panel is set to Phono. If it's set to Line, the inputs won't be sensitive enough to give you anything like the volume you should get and the tonal balance will be badly off as well because you'll be missing RIAA equalization.
Phono inputs are designed to accept the very very small signals that come directly off the coils of a moving-magnet phono cartridge, which are only about a twentieth of the voltage typically seen in line-level audio.
So on the flip side, setting that switch to Phono when it should be set to Line as it should be for the way you've got it hooked up now, will make your receiver's line-level output grossly overload the speakers' phono preamplifier. That will cause some fairly horrible distortion, as well as applying RIAA equalization that isn't called for and which will boost the shit out of your bass and cut your treble way back.
posted by flabdablet at 1:19 PM on August 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
Phono inputs are designed to accept the very very small signals that come directly off the coils of a moving-magnet phono cartridge, which are only about a twentieth of the voltage typically seen in line-level audio.
So on the flip side, setting that switch to Phono when it should be set to Line as it should be for the way you've got it hooked up now, will make your receiver's line-level output grossly overload the speakers' phono preamplifier. That will cause some fairly horrible distortion, as well as applying RIAA equalization that isn't called for and which will boost the shit out of your bass and cut your treble way back.
posted by flabdablet at 1:19 PM on August 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
I always thought I needed a receiver to get from the turntable to the speakers.
You need something to turn the pickup level signals from your record player to the line level most powered speakers want and usually this would be a receiver; these speakers can also work with pickup level signals.
As the receiver is providing line-level signals you need to set the switch on the right speaker to Line, not Phono even if you're playing records.
posted by Stoneshop at 1:20 PM on August 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
You need something to turn the pickup level signals from your record player to the line level most powered speakers want and usually this would be a receiver; these speakers can also work with pickup level signals.
As the receiver is providing line-level signals you need to set the switch on the right speaker to Line, not Phono even if you're playing records.
posted by Stoneshop at 1:20 PM on August 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
Yeah I would suggest putting on some music with the volume up (a bit, not all the way), and playing and twiddling every knob you can see that's involved. Then give each connector a little wiggle in turn, including the power cable. If one of them seems to change the static, there you go. My desktop speakers need a touch of this every once in a while.
If it persists, you can try checking the hi-fi with other speakers and see whether you get the same effect. It could be that there's corrosion on the copper inside the housing.
On preview, oh yeah I bet it's that switch adding gain.
posted by BlackLeotardFront at 1:21 PM on August 4, 2023
If it persists, you can try checking the hi-fi with other speakers and see whether you get the same effect. It could be that there's corrosion on the copper inside the housing.
On preview, oh yeah I bet it's that switch adding gain.
posted by BlackLeotardFront at 1:21 PM on August 4, 2023
Line out from the receiver is correct, and the speaker should be set to line in. The switch is currently set to phono and that's your problem. Forget about the turntable at the moment. You have a phono in on the receiver, use that for the turntable.
posted by Ferrari328 at 2:27 PM on August 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by Ferrari328 at 2:27 PM on August 4, 2023 [1 favorite]
Sorry, I couldn’t see the line/phono switch label and didn’t notice they are being fed from line out and not the speaker outputs from the receiver. My bad!
posted by outfielder at 2:56 PM on August 4, 2023
posted by outfielder at 2:56 PM on August 4, 2023
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posted by jonathanhughes at 12:32 PM on August 4, 2023