Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Advice from Axiom Owners My ep 500 is making noises still

Well, I put in the replacement amp from axiom. When I shook the old amp after removing it I heard a faint metallic rattle.

I put in the new amp and I think that this light metallic sounding rattle is gone, so all was not lost.

However, I hear a vibration noise comming from my sub still. During the test tones with the sub playing at 75 db from my listening position everything is fine. When I turn the volume up at the test tone screen fairly loud the noise starts. I will have to check again but I think the noise starts when the sub gets to about 85 db from my couch which is about 13 feet away.

The noise is no problem during most LFE scenes. Sometimes during movies of course there are extremely demanding scenes... Like on finding Nemo when the little girl is tapping on the glass.

I recorded this scene with my camera so you can hear the noise. I unplugged everything except the sub during the scene. It sounds a little different then this in person but you should get the idea.

I have the gain on my sub at 7 oclock on the sub and it is set to -10 db. This creates about a 76db sound when all my other speakers are playing about 75 db, so it should be calibrated properly.

I turned the main volume up after the 1st or second time playing the scene so you can hear it better.

During this movie I think my sub was playing at close to 90 db when sitting on my couch. This seems like a normal peak when watching movies at slightly above average levels....

Click on the link to hear the sound.
http://s110.photobucket.com/albums/n89/dblackm/?action=view¤t=MOV00155.flv


Is this just 'normal' enclosure vibration from the ep500? My sub is calibrated properly with my system, but there are still high peaks of lfe during movies which cause this noise to show up

I don't think the rattling noise that you are hearing is normal. It sounds as though there is a loose baffle or piece within the enclosure. I wonder if you can take out the driver on the front and take a peak. I would definitely ask the Axiom folks for input as well.

John

Being on dial-up, a "movie of a noise" is just an impossible concept for me, but there is no "normal enclosure vibration". I do have to disassemble my SVS every 6 months or so to tighten up whatever came loose recently, but there should be no noise coming from your sub other than what is on your media. You can get port "turbulence" and noise from overdriven woofers, but EP500s are probably less prone to those artifacts than pretty much any sub on the market.

Keep at it.

Someone with a faster internet connection please listen to the noise and comment

Something sounds loose. Could be a wire too close to the driver vibrating? Loose screw perhaps? Or driver suspension flapping?

I would remove the amp again. Pick up the enclosure and shake it to see if you hear anything. Also shake the amp to make sure that isn't the source. Look inside with a flashlight to see if the wires are too close to the driver. Also look at the driver suspension closely to make sure there is no minute damage anywhere. Tighten everything that you can.

Still makes a noise? Hang garlic and crosses in the room to ward off spirits and consult Randy.

ok, so I took out the driver and am replacing it just in case that is the problem.... Seems unlikely since the noise sounds like it is comming from the back.

Here is an image that I got from audioholics:


Look at the cable that runs from the amp to the driver. My cable is longer then that by a little bit and it actually sits on the top of the plastic amp boot.

Do you think that the wire is vibrating against the amp boot?

It doesn't seem like such a small thing could cause so much noise.... But it might be the reason. Also, it does not look like there is enough slack on the wire in the pic to be able to even remove the driver, so that may be abnormal.

Also there is no caulking where the side walls meet the back wall or where the side walls meet the bottom if there is suppose to be.

Also this sound only occurs when there is a large amount of LFE being sent to the sub and the volume is fairly loud. Is this just a limitation of the ep500... Am I trying to play it beyond it's abilities?

What do you guys think?

I had to replace both woofers on my brand new EP500s. Both had bad rattles. On one the voice coil came unglued from the woofer cone causing the rattle. On the other, when I moved the woofer in and out it would not operate smoothly, thus I assume that was causing the rattle. Must have been a bad batch from China. The great Axiom folks sent me two new woofers and now everything is just fine. In fact, probably too good. My whole upstairs rattles when the kids are playing Halo 3 downstairs.

Ter,

That sounds like a suspension problem to me. Axiom should send you a new driver.

Sorry, I posted before listening to the sound you posted. But on listening to it, it sounds exactly like mine sounded. A new driver will do wonders for you. I'm trying to watch football here and all I can hear is Halo 3 downstairs. Halo 3 really gives the system a workout. But wow does it sound good.

I had a slightly loose screw holding down a circuit board on my SVS PC+ 20-39. You would not BELIEVE the horrible noise it made on WOTW when the tripods were coming up through the ground. I tightened the screw down a quarter turn or so and everything was fine.

If the wire is touching the boot it will make a lot of noise. Do something about that as a first step.

I have to agree about Halo 3's sound. I was impressed every time I played it.

ndinusa, did your driver make noises at all levels or only when you played the sub loud?

I'm with John. My bet is its the wire touching the amp boot. If not then change the driver.

I agree also that John had a screw loose.

Pretty much at all levels. But really bad at high levels. If you've already changed the amp and tightened up everything. The only thing else in the box is the driver. I'd give changing that a try.

The wire on my 1st 500 I had hung down and was laying on the plastic port. I had a rattle noise that ended up being in the amp, but I thought it was the wire. I can't believe your problem is that wire.

Ok, I replaced the driver and the amp. While I was replacing the driver I went ahead and rigged up something to keep the wire off the amp boot. See pic below:



I used some of my girlfriends cosmetic wedges (which I call 'cosmetic wedgies') to keep the wire off of the boot. I don't think I could shorten it enough and still leave enough slack to remove the driver/amp easily so I went this route instead.

Anyway, I THINK the problem is fixed now. I played the same scene from finding nemo and it sounded much better. Here is a link to how it sounds now: I had the volume about as loud as it was on the last part of the first movie I posted, and I think it sounds much better now. ( go ahead and compare for yourself)

http://s110.photobucket.com/albums/n89/dblackm/stereo/?action=view¤t=MOV00159.flv

I think the noise you hear this time is just port noise (it sounds different in person then on the movie.) When I shove my hand into the port the noise gets louder which leads me to believe it is just air comming from the port. The nosie you hear in the movie is only audible with all of the speakers off and standing near the sub. With the other speakers on and sitting on the couch I did not notice the noise.

So i think the problem may have been the driver, possibly that wire was contributing as well. I still think the noise was comming from the back of the sub so I am not 100% sure if the driver was the problem or not.

Anyway, I will have to listen to some more movie clips later to confirm if it completely fixed my issue or not.

Do you think having that extra foam inside will have an effect on the way my sub sounds?

Good job. Nope the foam won't make any difference.

One thing Ian mentioned to me when I was having strange noise problems with my first 500, was that sometimes air can escape around the amp plate, driver, etc. Sometimes even if the screws are snug, manufacturing of the openings can leave voids or saw dust which can create a path for the air to escape, causing such noises. Axiom uses state of the art CNC equipment, so most likely this is not the problem, but you may want to check the seal and snug up the screws.

I think everything is sealing fine and I do believe that everything is working ok now. As I mentioned the sound that I think I am hearing now sounds like it may be comming from the port. Even with a large port, I think that some port noise is bound to show up when the sub is pushing extreme amounts of air. As long as this noise is never audible from my couch then I think it is a non-issue.

I will report back after I have had a chance to listen to my sub more.

Let the house shaking begin!!!!

Good job Terz! Thats quite the rig up you made to keep that cable suspended.

On another note, I didn't really realize how much bass comes out of the EP500, but last night I was watching LOTR: FOTR and I went up the bathroom upstairs, there is a painting on the wall in the bathroom. the painting was buzzing so loud I thought the freakin thing was going to fall off the wall. At first I thought it was the mirror and was scared that it would break...I love my EP500

M80s + opera has a better chance of breaking mirrors!

Nice fix.