Data Trasnission over houshold power lines

[Ascari]

This might be an odd title for a thread about the Eros, but what the heck.   I have an Eros that has close to a 1500 hours on it and counting.   Just recently I noticed some low level noise that I have never heard before.   My first thought was perhaps one of the tubes was starting to fail, after checking all of the tubes, it was determined that they were all just fine.   I tested all of the tubes with a tube tester.  None the less, my next thought was a possible grounding problem.   After checking all obvious grounds, I came to the forum to see if anyone has had a similar issue.   Low and behold in a different thread the subject of a router came up and the noise that it could cause.   I do have a router however it is a good distance away on another floor, and as already stated, this is a new issue.   However, the noise that was described in the other thread was a "pitter patter" type of sound which exactly what I have been experiencing.   It was at that time that I remembered that I had just added Ethernet Connectivity through my power lines in lieu of WiFi and/or direct Ethernet connection to a computer in my listening room.   With that in mind, I unplugged the Ethernet connection from the ac outlet and the noise disappeared.  Ok, now I know what the problem is.    So.    The question that I have is would the Eros benefit from have a line conditioner between it and the wall outlet?  I was thinking of perhaps a Furmann or something of that nature.  I do not want to spend hundreds on this as the truth is the noise is not that bad and I can always unplug it when I am listening to music.

[caffeinator]

Hi there,

Quite possibly, though I've not tried it.  The reason I say that is 1 - I use the powerline networking at my house; 2 - the powerline networking instructions caution against plugging them into surge protectors and the like; and 3 - I have my system plugged into a very basic surge protector type power strip and have no line noise whatsoever, even when I know there is plenty going on over the network.

Given that, I'd start with something inexpensive before going with anything elaborate.

Hope this helps,

David

[Paul Birkeland]

I need to resolve this issue also.  I have noticed that I only get the noise on the actual circuit where the powerline adapter is plugged in.  In my case, I have a powerline adapter in my workshop, and one by my router.  My workshop system picks up the noise, but my listening room does not. 

I am going to do some experimenting with an isolation transformer to see if that helps.

[Ascari]

Thanks Paul.    I have not pulled the trigger on a conditioner yet as I am still working through this.   As I said it is not a big thing, but then again....

[2wo]

I have enough trouble with my incoming AC. A lot of the general crap and a lot of DC offset  in the early evening. So I don't like the idea of putting all that digital stuff on as well. I live in a split level house, so running hard wire Ethernet is easy.

I think your idea of just unplugging it, when you want to do some serious listening, might be the way to go...John         

[Ascari]

Just a quick update.
I decided to put a simple switch between the wired ethernet box and the wall outlet.   Total cost..  $7.00     Not a perfect solution but one that absolutely works.   My PC just flips over to the WiFi automatically.  When I am done listening, I just flip the switch and that's all there is to it.    Not perfect since I have to flip a switch, but not bad either.   

[Doc B.]

Not perfect since I have to flip a switch, but not bad either.

[jtori]

I recently added a mesh extender to my network.  This solution doesn't use the powerlines as a way to improve signal strength.  It's improved connectivity and speeds throughout the house, and because of where I placed it, I'm able to utilize an ethernet connection with one of the the PCs I use as a music server.  It's worked so well, I will be adding another one in my main listening room. 

[PS2500]

MoCA is another way of doing this. It's less well known than Powerline (probably because it's more restrictive), but if you already have a coaxial network, you can achieve full Ethernet speeds. It also gets rid of the issue with mains noise. MoCA carries the signal over coaxial cable for most of the distance between the router and your network devices. The coaxial part is actually output from MoCA adapter 1 and received by adapters 2, 3, etc. Actually, this image explains it better than I can.

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/G/01/aplusautomation/vendorimages/f767ad13-3d6f-4cd1-b721-f771726d8126.jpg._CB526101057_.jpg


The coaxial network itself is any room in your house that has a functioning coaxial outlet. It's then possible to connect MoCA adapters (using a coax cable) to each outlet you want to use, and an Ethernet cable from the adapter to your device or to an Ethernet hub if you have multiple devices in that room.

A drawback of this system is the cost, because the adapters are about $80 or $90 each, so if you need to connect many rooms, it can get expensive. Personally, for the speed and stability, I think it's worth it.


It won't work with some cable TV setups, as they use the same network. You can check this on Amazon and other sites - you do need to research beforehand if you're considering MoCA, because for some people's setup, it won't work no matter what. If you are running it alongside cable TV, you many also need to install a PoE filter to prevent the signal going where it's not wanted. If you don't have cable, none of this is an issue.

[Paul Birkeland]

I tried a ground isolator that's just two antiphase diodes between the ground lug on the IEC power entry module and the chassis.  This removed the noise that I was getting from my Powerline ethernet setup completely, and it also proved to be a viable solution to noise from a cheap USB powered DAC that I have.