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This is the second Archived Forum which was active between 1st March 2012 and 23rd February 2022
Hi all,
For our guestroom, a few days back we bought a (second life) pair of Beolab 3's and connected them to the headphone output of a newish Sony TV (via a mini jack to DIN cable (7 or 8 pins, can't check right now, but certainly not less than 7); this cable was provided by the official and good -but far-away- B&O dealer from which we bought these BL3's; and of course the BL3-s are set to LINE before you ask :-).
The sound is great, with no audible hum and volume control via the Sony TV remote, but one problem:
When I switch off the TV:
a) the BL3's remain in active mode -green light- for some three minutes (very -VERY- minor hum audible)
b) after some three minutes, suddenly a pretty loud hum starts -instead of switching into standby as I think it should. The light remains green and the hum continues until either unplugging the power (duh) or switching on the TV again...
any suggestions how to fix this ?
I've e-mailed the dealer already asking whether or not perhaps the mini-jack to DIN cable isn't the correct one, but suggestions from this forum how to solve this are highly welcome,
cheers, Rene
btw: small detail: the mini jack to DIN is a single one, and I've used my (old) PL spiltter to connect both BL3's. This splitter however isn;t the problem, because I also tested it using a single BL3 (i.e. without this splitter).
Have you gone through the audio options of the TV? I have a Sony W6 and it has settings on whether the headphone socket functions as a headphone or line level output, as well as fixed or variable level output. I believe the right setting for this use would be "line".
I think the delayed start of the humming might be the TV shutting down completely after some minutes and the audio output starting to float. Then the cable picks up mains hum and prevents the speakers from turning off. If this is the case, I believe it might be helped by a couple of resistors from the audio lines to ground.
You might test the speakers and the cable with some other source as well, such as a computer or mobile phone. Start with a very low volume
Steve at SoundsHeavenly might have other ideas and/or a better cable solution.
--mika
Thanks already ! I checked the manual of the Sony TV (KDL-32W706B) because I'm travelling now and can't actually do something, and I don't not quite what you suggest but something(s) that may or may not help:
from: http://download.sony-europe.com/pub/manuals/tvhc/14HE334111_EN_print.pdf
"Select [Sound] → [Headphone/Audio Out]→[Audio Out]→[Audio Out] in the sound setting menu→Fixed] or [Variable].Select [Fixed] to adjust the volume using the connected audio system’s remote. Select[Variable] to adjust the volume with the TV’s remote when using an external audio system"
the above manual text suggests I could use instead of the headphone output actually the RCA output because that also allows for volume control /w TV remote; I guess I would only need a standard mini jack to RCA adapter which I'm sure I have. But would that make a difference ???
still wondering too whether could it be the mini-jack to din (PL) cable I got from the dealer -who just had it lying around- isn't the correct one ? (it had either 7 or 8 pins, certainly not 5).
thanks, Rene
Hi, i'd say start with unplugging the PL from the speakers and check if it goes to standby if set on PL.
if so, thats good.
Than same test but set to line: let them switch on by the sound of your tv or whatever sourse and unplug the PL and it should switch to standby after some minutes.
if that's the case, your problem is outside the Lab 3's...:)
you could try another sourse as suggested, instead of the TV.
ReneB:the above manual text suggests I could use instead of the headphone output actually the RCA output because that also allows for volume control /w TV remote
I believe your W7 is the same as my W6 in that it doesn't actually have RCA outputs. The only analogue audio output is the headphone jack - thus you can configure it as either "Headphone" or "Audio Out" levels (now using the terms as written in the manual). If you haven't touched that setting, it's probably in the default "Headphone" and that might be enough to cause the problem.
If you get clean sound when the TV is on, I suppose your cable is fine for this purpose.
Quick update whilst still travelling -- the (as I think I mentioned) real good B&O dealer replied that he found out he had given me the wrong jack to DIN cable and will send me the correct one...
will let you know if indeed all will work fine then.(but also if the other suggestions from you -txs!- worked or not.
Update: problem solved ! Replacing the first cable (7 pins) I had gotten from by the dealer with the one he arranged having send to me directly from B&O (for free!!) did the trick.
Learning point -surely some of you knew this already: one really needs the 8-pin DIN not the 7-pin Jack-to-DIN cable.
Rene
The 8th pin on the Powerlink connector is for the "overload" signal, and it isn't even connected on many Beolab models. I suspect there is some other difference in the cables, better and/or different shielding perhaps. Beolab 3 is based on digital ICEpower amps and that requires better cables to suppress interference, even when they are connected to a proper Powerlink output of another B&O device.
In any case, good to hear you got this sorted - and very good service by the dealer! Now you can turn the built-in speakers of the Sony permanently off, like I did about 15 minutes after I had it installed
Yup, pin 7 (data ground) was not getting a signal so the line sensing BL3 will stay on. You could have shorted pin 2 and 7 to fix it but I see that the new cable did the trick.
FYI:
BeoVision 11-55, BeoCenter 2, BeoLab 9s, BeoLab 3s, Beo4/5/6, BeoRemote One, BLGW, Transmitter 1, BeoLit 12, A8, H6, H8