CSi A4 Popping Noise?
PsiPhiDan
Posts: 12
Hi All,
I have a CSi A4 (had for maybe 6-8 years) and it's suddenly having a strange problem where it (rarely) pops during some loud moment of dialogue (sudden yelling or something). I haven't been able to track a pattern yet, but it doesn't happen at lower volumes. I never listen super loud - maybe 25dB or so on my old Denon receiver (20ish on new Sony). The popping problem occurred on my old and new receiver (new one is Sony STR-DN1080).
I called Polk. They suggested I take each component and test it individually. So... I took apart the speaker, connected it straight to the center channel wires coming from the AVR, and played music/TV/whatever for a few minutes at volumes louder than I usually listen to. Not the tweeter OR the two woofers popped. Seeing as how the popping is inconsistent when I watched TV before, I'm not shocked. But I'm frustrated and not sure what to do next. Could a bad crossover make something pop? It'd so rare and only at some volumes/sounds, so I just don't know. The speaker sounds excellent otherwise and each component sings when I isolated it. Any ideas what to do next? What, other than loose connections, causes popping noises? Anything else I should try while my speaker is open? Thanks in advance!
I have a CSi A4 (had for maybe 6-8 years) and it's suddenly having a strange problem where it (rarely) pops during some loud moment of dialogue (sudden yelling or something). I haven't been able to track a pattern yet, but it doesn't happen at lower volumes. I never listen super loud - maybe 25dB or so on my old Denon receiver (20ish on new Sony). The popping problem occurred on my old and new receiver (new one is Sony STR-DN1080).
I called Polk. They suggested I take each component and test it individually. So... I took apart the speaker, connected it straight to the center channel wires coming from the AVR, and played music/TV/whatever for a few minutes at volumes louder than I usually listen to. Not the tweeter OR the two woofers popped. Seeing as how the popping is inconsistent when I watched TV before, I'm not shocked. But I'm frustrated and not sure what to do next. Could a bad crossover make something pop? It'd so rare and only at some volumes/sounds, so I just don't know. The speaker sounds excellent otherwise and each component sings when I isolated it. Any ideas what to do next? What, other than loose connections, causes popping noises? Anything else I should try while my speaker is open? Thanks in advance!
Comments
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Try plugging out into the left or right speaker output and turning up the volume. Could simply be having issues with the avr- Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit.
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Try plugging out into the left or right speaker output and turning up the volume. Could simply be having issues with the avr
That's a good idea. I think I might put my speaker back together and test a bunch of content to better find precisely when it happens (see if it's repeatable at a certain volume for a certain show). Then I can do some speaker swapping as you suggested and replay that and see what happens.
Polk told me today it might be my crossover. That seems odd to me, but I truly don't know enough about crossovers to know. Just doesn't strike me as something that would "pop" occasionally.
FYI: I just for a new receiver last week and I BELIEVE (not 100% sure) this happened with my old deceiver a couple times too. So I don't think it's the receiver, but I definitely want to rule it out with more testing.
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The only thing that would pop ocassionally would be the voice coils in my experience.
When crossovers fail they generally fail in obvious ways unless a component has gone out of spec, but then things wouldnt sound that good anyways- Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit. -
The only thing that would pop ocassionally would be the voice coils in my experience.
When crossovers fail they generally fail in obvious ways unless a component has gone out of spec, but then things wouldnt sound that good anyways
This is probably a dumb question... But would every center channel have voice coils? How can I find out if my Polk CSi A4 has them? Let's assume it does... Would it only be on the two woofers? Or do tweeters have them too? If they're only on the woofers, I'll definitely lean towards one of those being the problem.
I saw that underpowered speakers can pop. My CSi A4 says it accepts 20-200 watts... 8 ohms. 89 dB sensitivity. My receiver, on a benchmark site, says this:
Five channels driven continuously into 8-ohm loads:
0.1% distortion at 66.2 watts
1% distortion at 90.7 watts
So it would seem that's okay, right? -
Most all speakers have voice coils. Your center has them on all drivers.
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If you have the center set to large change it to small.
I guarantee it's not the crossover.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
Most all speakers have voice coils. Your center has them on all drivers.
Thanks! I just tested them all again today... Turned volume WAY higher than I ever watch TV at (50 versus maybe 20-30). Not a single pop. So... I put it back together for now. Going to have to wait and find out when this happens so I can better try to reproduce it.If you have the center set to large change it to small.
I guarantee it's not the crossover.
To be honest, I've had a new receiver for a week and haven't done a single thing other than set it up, get TV/inputs/wires/etc. up and running. No speaker calibration and no manual adjustments. So... That's the weekend project! I will be sure to set all my speakers to small, honestly. My sub can handle the heavy lifting.
Good to know about the crossover. That seemed odd. I honestly have no idea what's going on. Maybe my receiver had a bad connection on the center channel? I used to use the binding posts or whatever they're called. I just converted all of those to banana plugs tonight to be sure I have a good connection. I hope I never hear that popping sound again (although I suspect I will)!
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Jeez dude, you are putting the cart before the horse. Run the AVR set up programs before you do anything else.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
Jeez dude, you are putting the cart before the horse. Run the AVR set up programs before you do anything else.
If I hadn't had this problem at the end of my other receiver's life, I would have been more diligent about that. But since the problem followed me to this receiver, my assumption is that it's not the receiver. Regardless, I'll be calibrating tonight! Unfortunately, the only times I've had to do it are when my kids are asleep (and Sony warns me the speakers will be very loud during calibration!). -
Just an update... I found a few repeatable instances of the popping noise... It happens at high or low volumes. It happens in the "center" whether I use my center channel OR right channel as the center... So it's not my speaker. So... I have no idea what's going on. I've only heard it on Xfinity cable shows, and it happens only in a couple episodes of Fargo so far. But that's a huge budget show, so I'd be shocked if it was the source. No idea what to test next! Cables?
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If it only happens with one show, the issue is not at your end.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk
