metamatics Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 Recently I purchased a music fidelity M6i , since I’ve had the amp it’s had a small hum coming from the transformer I would expect . So I’ve tried the Thor PS10 at 240v into the amp and hum was still audible, switched to 220v and the hum had gone . So now the hum had disappeared is it ok to run the amp at a lower voltage ? Or will just using the amp without the Thor and having a light hum be potential failure in the not to distant future ? I also tried the Isotek evo3 in the shop and that had halved the hum , but when I borrowed this to take home no solution . I’m going nutty ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zaphod Beeblebrox Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 1 minute ago, Diynamic said: Recently I purchased a music fidelity M6i , since I’ve had the amp it’s had a small hum coming from the transformer I would expect . So I’ve tried the Thor PS10 at 240v into the amp and hum was still audible, switched to 220v and the hum had gone . So now the hum had disappeared is it ok to run the amp at a lower voltage ? Or will just using the amp without the Thor and having a light hum be potential failure in the not to distant future ? I also tried the Isotek evo3 in the shop and that had halved the hum , but when I borrowed this to take home no solution . I’m going nutty ! Using a slightly lower mains Voltage will not harm most SS amps (including your MF). You may find that a lower cost option might work. That option could be a suitably rated 240VAC - 220VAC stepdown transformer. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metamatics Posted October 10, 2018 Author Share Posted October 10, 2018 (edited) 10 minutes ago, Zaphod Beeblebrox said: Using a slightly lower mains Voltage will not harm most SS amps (including your MF). You may find that a lower cost option might work. That option could be a suitably rated 240VAC - 220VAC stepdown transformer. That’s what I had in mind , I seriously don’t want to get a Thor PS10 just for this little hiccup as my gear isn’t on the highest level of performance. But as I was saying the buzz is audible from 2m away in a very quiet room . Edited October 10, 2018 by Diynamic Spelling Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cafad Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 Is the MF a 220 or a 230 volt model? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metamatics Posted October 10, 2018 Author Share Posted October 10, 2018 @Cafad it’s a 230v Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cafad Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 Cool, but I see you are in WA, so you probably have a wall voltage that is still outside it's healthy operating range. I noticed that a minute after posting so the question became unimportant. A 240 to 220 step down should be all that you need. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metamatics Posted October 10, 2018 Author Share Posted October 10, 2018 5 minutes ago, Cafad said: Cool, but I see you are in WA, so you probably have a wall voltage that is still outside it's healthy operating range. I noticed that a minute after posting so the question became unimportant. A 240 to 220 step down should be all that you need. Ok , this is the area I’m unfamiliar with , so you or anyone suggest a good performing step down tranny ? Now that I know it will be safe using 220v Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cafad Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 Try Tortech, they make quite a few step down trannys. https://www.tortech.com.au/step-down-transformer-australia/european-transformers-to-australia 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aasza Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 1 hour ago, Cafad said: Try Tortech, they make quite a few step down trannys. https://www.tortech.com.au/step-down-transformer-australia/european-transformers-to-australia @Diynamic The Musical Fidelity M6i has a Max Power Consumption of 680 Watts, so you also need to factor this in when choosing a step down Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metamatics Posted October 10, 2018 Author Share Posted October 10, 2018 26 minutes ago, aasza said: @Diynamic The Musical Fidelity M6i has a Max Power Consumption of 680 Watts, so you also need to factor this in when choosing a step down Ok that’s noted , I had a look at the tortech website and did see the differentials to with power consumers ect , I may lose a littter power maybe ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aasza Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 (edited) 12 minutes ago, Diynamic said: Ok that’s noted , I had a look at the tortech website and did see the differentials to with power consumers ect , I may lose a littter power maybe ? Choose the unit with matching power rating or the next one up. In your case get the 1000W model. (AE1000) Edited October 10, 2018 by aasza 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metamatics Posted October 10, 2018 Author Share Posted October 10, 2018 Thank you @aasza Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocky500 Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 (edited) I would suggest the bigger one for some headroom. They can have a habit of being slightly noisy vibrating themselves when you get closer to the total load. Plus you could always connect a power board down the track and run other devices if the need ever arises. You can borrow mine 2Kva? if you want to try one to see if it works but mine might be ever so slightly different as it is a Peach Audio brand made by tortech. It drops the voltage by 13V I think. Edited October 10, 2018 by rocky500 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muriwai Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 Tortech will also make for you a custom 240>step down to 230v if you ask 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metamatics Posted October 11, 2018 Author Share Posted October 11, 2018 Tortech passed me onto peach audio and spoke the gentleman, with 220v I’m going to lose power 10% with a step down tranny , and considering I’m pushing 84db speakers my volume is going to be getting up to halfway for listening depending what source i am running . The fellow said to get the MF transformer re-wind so it can take 240v ...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zaphod Beeblebrox Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 (edited) 7 hours ago, Diynamic said: Tortech passed me onto peach audio and spoke the gentleman, with 220v I’m going to lose power 10% with a step down tranny , and considering I’m pushing 84db speakers my volume is going to be getting up to halfway for listening depending what source i am running . The fellow said to get the MF transformer re-wind so it can take 240v ...... Points: * 10% is 1dB. You can't hear a 1dB difference unless it is under tightly controlled, laboratory conditions. * You should TRY a step-down transformer to: a) See if it reduces the noise b) shows you that the power output difference is utterly insignificant. * It may be worthwhile to see if your mains power is consistently higher than 230VAC. Edited October 11, 2018 by Zaphod Beeblebrox 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bzr Posted October 12, 2018 Share Posted October 12, 2018 I'd put money on the fact yours is actually a 220v with a flash sticker. Not uncommon... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zaphod Beeblebrox Posted October 12, 2018 Share Posted October 12, 2018 30 minutes ago, bzr said: I'd put money on the fact yours is actually a 220v with a flash sticker. Not uncommon... Possibly, but let's not forget the OP lives in WA. WA has the worst power in Australia. It is frequently far too high. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metamatics Posted October 12, 2018 Author Share Posted October 12, 2018 My dwelling is about 5min from the city in one of the older suburbs (federation type house ) over the weekend im getting the opportunity to borrow a couple of appliances to narrow this down . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hydrology Posted October 12, 2018 Share Posted October 12, 2018 If the Thor solved your problem why isn't this a consideration instead of a step down? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metamatics Posted October 12, 2018 Author Share Posted October 12, 2018 A step down is a consideration, when I did use the Thor I expected I would be able to have it set at 230v on the outlet , but nope it’s 240/220 ... prices for a Thor PS10 go from $1299 to $2000 new . Looking into options tomorrow from a sna member . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zaphod Beeblebrox Posted October 12, 2018 Share Posted October 12, 2018 7 hours ago, Hydrology said: If the Thor solved your problem why isn't this a consideration instead of a step down? A step-down transformer is a cheaper option and may work well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Witchcraft Posted October 12, 2018 Share Posted October 12, 2018 14 hours ago, Zaphod Beeblebrox said: Possibly, but let's not forget the OP lives in WA. WA has the worst power in Australia. It is frequently far too high. This. Why has nobody suggested he actually measures what's coming out of the wall ? Or do we all just want to throw money at 'solutions' that potentially have nothing to do with the real cause of his issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metamatics Posted October 13, 2018 Author Share Posted October 13, 2018 Borrowed a 240-230 step down this morning and this is my reading 244v . The step down did bring it back to 230v . So with the hum it is barley audibly now and can not hear from where I sit , so I have an improvement . The mains voltage was not as high as I expected , thank you @rocky500 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocky500 Posted October 13, 2018 Share Posted October 13, 2018 You might have been unlucky and just got a music fidelity M6i with a noisy power supply? Not sure if they have any more of them you could try another one or take it in to the shop and see if they hear the vibrating transformer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts