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This is the second Archived Forum which was active between 1st March 2012 and 23rd February 2022

 

H9i hissing - high frequency sound

This post has 12 Replies | 4 Followers

neph04
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neph04 No - thumbs down [N] Posted: Mon, Nov 19 2018 8:41 AM

Hi, 

I am curious if anyone has experienced the same issue. If I turn on the headphones, the right earcup starts emitting high-frequency noise. The noise appears repeatedly for 5 secs with 1 sec pause.

Does not matter if the headphones is paired or not. Neither ANC is on or off. And the same for the proximity sensor. I have tried with more BT devices, the same result. 

I have tested two headphones h9i. Both had a similar problem. (FW 5.0.3 and 5.0.4)

The only solution to remove hiss is:

 

  1. turn off bluetooth on the phone
  2. turn on headphones (noise is still there)
  3. turn on bluetooth on the phone
  4. after headphones are connected to the phone, the noise disappears.

 

Thanks!

albatros
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Hi,

just  unboxed my pair of H9i and I noticed the same issue. It is exactly as you describe and not only audible for me but to other family members as well (of course only when they wear the headphones).

Since this is the first experience when trying a brand new gear that is sold with the "superior sound quality" tag, this definitly leaves a negative taste.

But as you I have not heard the sound yet after the bluetooth connection is established. So I think I will live with it. Since you have experienced it with different pairs, I think it is of no use to have them replaced.

In the meantime, did you (or anyone) come across a pair of H9i that does not have this issue?

Regards

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carlito
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carlito replied on Fri, Dec 7 2018 10:14 AM

Dear all

Made exactly the same experience with an already 3 months old H9i. Does B&O offer a process to report this issue?

albatros
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albatros replied on Wed, Dec 12 2018 7:41 AM

Hi carlito,

I just reported the issue to the Beoplay Support. I'll let you know about the answer.

carlito
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carlito replied on Wed, Dec 12 2018 8:27 AM

Great! Thanks

albatros
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albatros replied on Thu, Dec 13 2018 11:57 AM

I got an answer from the support.

Perhaps I should say that I decided to report the issue to the support because I started to hear this noise even after a bluetooth connection was established. I noticed it for several minutes after power on, and even during music playback it was audible.

The support recommended me to do a factory reset (slide and hold the power button to its upper position for 10 seconds). This would clear all saved bluetooth connections. After that I had to do the pairing again.

This definitly improved my situation. Now the high frequency sound is only audible for a very short period after power on.

I should add that I had muliple bluetooth devices paired with the headphones (at least four). After the reset I have only paired one device so far.

So my conclusion is that the noise is correlated to the headphones scanning for a special (maybe the preferred?) bluetooth device. If the device is found or a timeout occurs the hissing sound stops.

The support also recommended to first power on the headphones and then wait until the signal LED turns off before putting them on. This would ensure that the proximity sensor can be calibrated. This has nothing to do with the high frequency noise (as far as I know), but at the time when the signal LED turns off, now the noise already has stopped.

Other than that the support neither confirmed nor denied that this issue is special to my pair of headphones, if all H9i are affected, or if this is a known problem at all.

I will see how this develops once I haved paired more than one device again.

 

Greetings

bommerts
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bommerts replied on Thu, Jan 10 2019 2:24 AM

I have the exact same hissing problem.  I reported it to B&O support.  They told me it was normal behavior and that most people can't hear it. They offered to warranty them for me, though, just in case.  I'm disappointed in this response.  I'm hoping more people report this issue so they correct it. 

albatros
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albatros replied on Thu, Jan 10 2019 9:16 AM

Just want to report how my story continued:

The hissing noise returned after I paired my H9i with another device. When one of the paired devices was not present at power-up, the noise was there for at least two minutes, sometimes even longer.

The support in my case stated that this was not normal behaviour and recommended me to send them in for repair/replacement. I did so. A few days later I got the notification that they "identified a defect on the product" and sent me a replacement. That sounded good, but the disappointment came after unboxing the new pair of H9i: The hissing sound was there exactly as on the first pair.

So the conclusion is that there is no way of repairing the issue and even getting a new pair will not fix it. It is by (bad) design.

What strikes me is that in my case they were more willing to scrap one unit and send me a new one rather than to admit that it is a common flaw.

I just cannot believe that most people cannot hear this sound. While it is drowned when you listen to loud music, it is extremely annoying when listening to podcasts, movies and classical music.

I wonder what those highly praised sound engineers at B&O do when they tune headphones like these...

Greetings

bommerts
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bommerts replied on Thu, Jan 10 2019 6:43 PM

I'm sorry to hear that.

Does anyone from Beoplay read these forums?

Before a bunch of H9i owners give up on their headphones, it would be great to hear Beoplay's take on this problem.

iceskating_uphill
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I’m having exactly the same problem. I’ve read elsewhere, and this may be myth, that the Beoplay headphones done have enough insulation around the Bluetooth module and this causes the interference. 

I have a week to return them, which I’m inclined to do. I love these headphones, and the sound is perfect for me. But it’s such an annoying noise. My only other solution is to pair my iPhone and use my iPad (for video) wired, but I shouldn’t have to do this for £400! As much as I think the QC35 is a less exciting, and cheaper feeling, headphone - it might be the way for me to go. 

meigo1234
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meigo1234 replied on Mon, Jan 28 2019 9:40 PM

hello there,

 

well, I'm having the exact same issue ... whenever bluetooth is activated inside the h9i, there is the hiss in the right ear... where all the electronics are. might really be a badly isolated bluetooth-modul, or something like that. really a shame, as the h9i are great, apart from this...

 

I've contacted customer support, but I guess will have to find other ones

bommerts
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bommerts replied on Thu, Jan 16 2020 8:01 PM

This problem is still happening, even with the latest software updates.  I also tried a new set of the H9 3rd Gen headphones and they have the same problem.  Beoplay, are you out there?  Does anyone care?

Ray87
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Ray87 replied on Fri, Jan 29 2021 12:40 PM

Hi!

I just got my new beoplay gen3 yesterday, and i also experience a low whine or whistle sound in right side right after turning them on, it last for 5-10 seconds then dissapear.

But if i mute my music or when they Are connected to tv sometimes the sound comes back when they not Play sound, and then dissapear. 

Very strange, what should we do about it?

Could it indicate that something is about to be damaged soon? 
For this price i want to Get explained what this is, otherwise i would return them and go with another headphone brand. 

Best Regards Ray 

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