B&K Ref 50 sound problem (1 Viewer)

[Rhett_Y]

Hi all..

Does anybody know if the sound problems that have been reported on numerous boards and in numoures threads has been resolved?

I am looking at upgrading, this was one of my picks but with all of the problems I was reading I deceided to wait and see....

Thanks
R~

 

[Stephen M]

Well, there appears to be some dispute regarding the severity and prevalence of the problem, which I assume you are referring to the whistling or whine that some buyers have heard in their system. I am unaware of other problems, but any dealer you buy from should have a return for full refund policy for the first week to one month after purchase. Make sure this guarantee is in writing as part of your purchase agreement.

 

[Donnie Eldridge]

I am looking at upgrading, this was one of my picks but with all of the problems I was reading I deceided to wait and see....

There really aren't any issues other than the few whom say them have the whine. Perhaps you should clarify what you mean by "all of the problems".

 

[Rhett_Y]

all of the problems

I should of been clearer in this, I am referancing the whine from the Ref 50 and that is all. I just read alot of people were haveing the problem and alot were not. I was just curious if B&K Released any patchs or software upgrades that took care of the problem, or if the problem is still "what appears" to be wide spread.

Thanks
R~

 

[BrianKR]

I am in the market for a pre/pro and B&K 50 is at the top of the my list, along with the Anthem AV20. This issue, some have experienced, I am not even factoring into my decision.

I have 2-20 amp and 2-15amp circuits in my HT room. I am all but convinced that is why "some" are having this complaint with the unit.

 

[Chas_T]

Rhett

Released any patchs or software upgrades that took care of the problem, or if the problem is still "what appears" to be wide spread

I don't think the problem is widespread Rhett. I am NOT a BK50 owner, but read this forum and many others. There are people who are experiencing the whining, but I don't think it's widespread.

The BK expert on the forum IMO is Jerry Klawiter. He would be able to provide a lot more information. He may even chime in here as he frequents this forum.

Charles

 

[Jerry Klawiter]

Thanks Charles, but I'm not a B&K expert,
I love to explore & test all the capabilities of products that enter our home, many in the recent months just for fun

Rhett,
The whine you speak of is known to B&K, it is not considered a problem, nor does it need widespread or broad attention. I have yet to hear one that exhibits this behavior in any objectionable degree, this is not meant to say it doesn't exist.
This is part of the B&K signal pathway designs, "lack of pathway filtering". Could B&K provide a simple modification to eliminate this? Yes, Will they? Probably not, reason being that most affected units that display this behavior are in most cases very minor.
They also feel the integrity of the B&K signal pathway will be compromised in some form, even if very limited, they most likely will not take this step backwards.
Don't let this stop your audition or possible B&K purchase.
If you give Jerry or George a call at B&K and ask them if you purchased a ref50 that exhibited this whine, could/can they eliminate it for you? I'm almost certain that your ref50 will arrive back home WITHOUT the whine.
This would not be a software modification.
-Jerry

 

[Donnie Eldridge]

Don't rule it out until you've heard the unit. The issue has been blown way out of proportion and as a result everyone has begun to assume it's a 50/50 crap shoot.

 

[Chas_T]

Don:

Don't rule it out until you've heard the unit. The issue has been blown way out of proportion and as a result everyone has begun to assume it's a 50/50 crap shoot.

Bad news travels fast as we all know. In this case, a few select incidents are you describe, have created this buzz that the BK50 has this major problem and of course, it's not true.

I too encourage you to audition the product and as Jerry suggests, call BK's tech support if you have qualms or questions.

Again, I don't own the BK50. I just know that it's a great product and anyone in the market who purchases in that price range, would be nuts not to audition and place it on their short list.

 

[BrianKR]

Jerry,
does line interference have anything to do with the problem described by some B&K owners? I talked to a few B&K 50 owners that said they experienced the "whine" and claimed it went away when they added an additional circuit or line conditioner or even new cables to their components.

Is it that they didn't have the "whine" and just distortion or a hum from their components or circuits.

The B&K is on my (very) short list of pre/pros to purchase. I am doing an in home audition of one right now.

I will be running it against an Anthem AV20 tonight!

 

[Vishnu Th]

I got my Ref50 a couple of weeks back, and I can't be happier. I don't have any whine, the sound is clean and I am still in the process of setting the unit, this weekend I will be tweaking it with my Avia. But overall I like this a lot.

Good luck,
Vishnu

 

[Frances_H]

Vishnu,
what version of your firmware? 1.03 or 1.04? thanks..

 

[Donnie Eldridge]

Frances,

Did you ever send in your unit for the firmware update?

 

[Frances_H]

Donnie,
I have not done so, since I've been listening more and more on PLII/audio 7 mode and can't hear those faint whine on the left surround at all (not to mention I am a master of procrastination as well) I am waiting for 1.05 or later maybe, unless you think is really a worthy exercise (unplugging all, pack, wait, resetup, recalibrate, etc.) pain in the butt for me. Is it worthed Donnie? do you know if this is something that autho dealer (i.e. Tweeter) can handle on-site? otherwise I am looking at 2.5 weeks down time at least (SoCal to Buffalo roundtrip + actual inspection)...Thanks

 

[Donnie Eldridge]

Your authorized dealer can do the upgrade. In fact, the upgrade takes less than 10 minutes to perform. They simply unscrew the front faceplate pull the card with the eprom, pop in the new card(with the update firmware) and put the faceplate back on. To avoid down time just call B&K ahead of time and they will send the card to the dealer. This way you won't have to cover the shipping cost of the unit.

As for the upgrade, unless your version is lower than 1.03 I wouldn't bother for now. But, on the other hand it won't cost you anything if your local dealer does the upgrade.

 

[Frances_H]

Donnie,
thanks for the feedback, that was what I suspect too. I will give B&K a call and see what they say about sending the card to tweeter. I didn't buy my ref from them but I bought several gears from them before...

 

[Vishnu Th]

Frances,

My firmware version is 1.04.

-Vishnu

 

[Jim_P]

I'm a new Ref 50 owner of three weeks now and I can report that the "whine" is way over blown. You can hear a little something, but you have to put your head right up to the speaker. Not something you hear from 10 feet away.

I suspect what some people are reporting are really ground loop problems that show up as a hum. I have had this hum (cable coax is the source) and corrected it a cheater plug and more recently with a power conditioner.



Vishnu Th

I've got some settings for you to try on your Ref 50. Check your Personal Messages.

 

[Joe]

I have the B&K AVR 507 and it is fine. I might be hearing the so called "whine" if I crank it all the way up without any signal. The issue is way overblown.

 

[Vishnu Th]

Jim_P,

Thanks for the settings I will try it and let you know. BTW can I get more information about Room Equalisation, how do I set it or tune my Ref50 to my room.

Thanks
Vishnu