ARCHIVED FORUM -- March 2012 to February 2022READ ONLY FORUM
This is the second Archived Forum which was active between 1st March 2012 and 23rd February 2022
I’m the original creator of this thread with an update.
It seems that the sound is absolutely the plastic expanding from heat and making a loud sound. It is not the Wifi, power converters etc. I know this as I unplugged the unit and it still make the sound hours later.
I have gone through 3 units from the first generation to the second. I also heard the store unit do it while I was standing right next to it. In other words 100% or the A9’s I have been around have this problem.
B&O support are totally useless. The stores just offer to replace or repair it. They said they have no idea what to repair though.
It is not the wall mount. Mine has been floor standing from day 1.
This is absolutely a design flaw. Other than that the unit is amazing but the pop sounds are a bit of a blemish on it and B&O’s support team.
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BeoLab 18's. Beolab 3's. A8. A9. A2. H7.
I may be zeroing in on the source of the problem with my unit.
After playing a movie for about two hours (with 1 pop) I turned off the unit and got ready for bed. I had to go back to my living room for something about 15 minutes later. On a whim I went to the side of the A9 and squeezed it a bit with one hand in the front center of the speaker and one hand in the center of the back. It then made the loud plastic pop noise. But instead of it coming from the back or inside of the unit it, as I thought was occurring, it came from the front at approximately the 2 o’clock position.
So in my case it might be originating from the front upper right where the plastic speaker cover meets the frame? I will continue to try making it pop to further narrow down the location.
For the record it seems to get worse over time. The first month out of the box it was quiet, it slowly ramped up over the past year and now pops about every 30 min or so.
I agree. It was quiet at first. Now it pops after minutes of use. Still have to take it to my dealer, to see what they say...
WickedFishstick: I agree. It was quiet at first. Now it pops after minutes of use. Still have to take it to my dealer, to see what they say...
My MK1 doesn’t do this, but then I thought it might simply be from ill-fitting plastic parts which are a little too tight, so expand and make the ‘popping’ noise you hear? There won’t be a solution apart from replacing those rear plastic components.
I was advised by B&O that the repair was to loosen the screws for the housing and tighten them again while the unit is warmed up. I did not have the correct hex key on hand to do this over the weekend but will wait for now. I looked at my unit this morning before leaving home and it does have this firmware update. I will report back one way or the other.
Do you have a link to the article or release notes?
I always thought it was hardware related, but i’ll check if this update solved it.
Thanks for the info!
My unit still makes the plastic popping/creaking noises. The latest firmware did not help.
I will try adjusting the screws while the A9 is warm to see if it relieves some of the pressure which I think is causing the pops.
Same here,
Would you be so kind to let us know if it worked? That would be great!
I had this issue since almost beginning.
After I moved to new house it was a real battle between my wooden floor (which is normal) and a speaker ;)
I loosen all front screws a bit and it seems to be fine now. I’ll see for how long...
PS. I find the customer support useless in Poland. I didn’t even bother sending the speaker to them.
I just purchased an A9 mkii and was having similar issues. I noticed it and came upon this article. The issue may be different, but my issue appears to be a materials issue between the plastic body and the aluminum ring surrounding it. I can only assume that even somewhat minor temperature swings causes a gap either between the shell and the ring, or possibly if the shell is halved, between the two halves. This may sound silly, but if I compress the aluminum ring back onto the shell before use, I don't hear the problem anymore.
The sucky part is you have to do this before every use...The things we do for good sound!
Have you tried loosening the screws around the outer edge, under the cover? Since doing that mine has stopped making the popping noises that would startle someone out of their chair. It still makes small noises every now and then. I plan on loosening the screws a bit more at some point. I have not noticed any changes in the sound(its great!) and the pieces are still held together very securely.
JT
This solves it.
It's the warping of the plastic materials that creates the popping sound.
Loosening the screws underneath the cover will solve it.
My A9 mk4 have started making these clicks and popping sounds. It is weird since I have had the speaker for about 6 months and not noticed the problem until now. Summer is fast approaching so perhaps there is something to the temperature theory some have pointed out.
Hi!
Loosening the screws will not cause any problems. It does not affect sound and/or integrity. Hopefully it solves your problem.
I am the original creator of this thread.
Just so people are 100% clear on this issues... it is NOT software related in any way. You can unplug the unit from the wall and wait days and it will still pop and snap. No software update will ever fix this physical issue.
The sounds it makes is from the plastic expanding and contracting from either external temperatures or from when you use it and it warms up.
Again it is also worth mentioning that I started with MK1 with this issue. I then replaced it with TWO separate MK2 over the course of a couple years. No luck.
B&O support was totally useless every time I brought it up to them. They kept making stupid suggestions as "try a different Wifi channel" or "connect it with ethernet" even though I made it clear it was still popping when playing no music and its not even plugged into power.
B&0 actually took my unit twice for weeks and called me back "Its working perfectly with no problems" only to take it home and have it pop within minutes of coming back home.
Shame, such a nice product with one ridiculous hardware flaw. The saddest part is B&O still seems like they aren't even aware of it.
I hope loosening the screws helps though.
My B&O dealer suggested I return the unit so a technician could loosen the screws. I figured I could do that myself. So I did. And it worked…
Good Morning,
just wondering if loosening your acres has still worked?
my unplugged 2016 A9 sounded like fireworks all night last night. Will have to give the screws ahi if you feel it worked?
Hi,
I noticed your post is a few years old. I have the original A9 and the same loud issues. Have you found a solution? thanks in advance
Nikki
I do get small pops from time to time but nothing like it was before. I'll probably loosen a few more screws when I feel like taking the cover off. Mine gets 2-5 hours of use daily.
Thank you, I shall give that a try.
I have the same issue since a few weeks now. I have the 4th Gen Beoplay a9 which i bought in february. It doesnt bother me that much right now but im curious if this helps and doesnt harm the warranty?
I’ve had my prize draw A9 mk1 for a few months now and have also occasionally heard those plastic popping noises.
But they are rare and only while they are playing rather loudly.
Jacques
Some people have said unscrewing the back screws to make them looser helps, but I don't know exactly which ones they mean.
And don't worry about the warranty. I spent 3 years and countless repairs with B&O. They said they aren't aware of the issue and offered terrible/clueless solutions to help resolve the issue.
You need to loosen all the screws that are underneath the fabric cover. There are screws in the black plastic front. Loosen them all just a bit. Try it! It really solves the issue.
Interesting.. I had only unscrewed the ones around the outside front, under the cover. I still get a pop every few days. On my particular unit I could wait until it had been playing for a while, without popping, then apply palm pressure to the front and back edges to make the plastic adjust.. and pop. Definitely a design flaw with the screw tension or the materials chosen to rub together. Who knows, maybe making the screws tighter would have also fixed the issue.
can you post a pic?
Just take off the front cover and have a good look!! There are more screws than the arrows on the picture indicate. Good luck.
thx mate!