Tascam M3500 Noise Floor SOLVED

A

AnalogApples

Member
My M3500 was having a strange 60 cycle buzz, like a ground loop, but only on the monitor/studio outputs. The stereo outputs sound quiet. This problem is reported elsewhere, along with the problem of generally high noise floor, including hiss.

I lifted up the effects return, aux, switches control room panel. Each PCB board is linked with a snap-on PCB board attached underneath.

Carefully free that entire connector board, CLEAN EACH METAL PIN WITH DEOXIT. Then reinstall. Noise gone!!

I tried only reseating it, that didn’t help. Then I sprayed the power supply plug and worked in and out of it’s clip. Noise floor now even lower!

I’m thinking every metal on metal contact in this board has corroded and needs cleaning.

Thought I’d add my solution to the archives! Cheers friends ! Happy New Year!
 
I needed to post on update, today the noise is back with a vengeance. It’s gone if I switch to 2-track recorder input or Extension input. The noise does not appear on the main bus outputs, fortunately.

I’ll have to do process of elimination, unplugging everything until the noise stops. Maybe the neighbor has one of those vibrating beds and it’s polluting the voltage into the house.
 
Update #3: I began pulling all my cables out from the Tascam M-3500. I had some RCA cables plugged into the Stereo Out outputs, these weren’t connected to anything. When I removed them, the buzzing stopped.

Strange, so even though these are outputs, they introduce a buzz on the audio if an RCA cable is dangling from them.

I’m declaring my issue SOLVED again.
 
AnalogApples said:
Update #3: I began pulling all my cables out from the Tascam M-3500. I had some RCA cables plugged into the Stereo Out outputs, these weren’t connected to anything. When I removed them, the buzzing stopped.

Strange, so even though these are outputs, they introduce a buzz on the audio if an RCA cable is dangling from them.

I’m declaring my issue SOLVED again.
Click to expand...
Of course they do, depending on the environment. If you have unbalanced cables dangling from an output or input, the cable, which always has the potential to be an antenna, now has an unterminated shield. That shield, the antenna in this case, induces environmental RF and UHF noise. The noise has nowhere to go but to the signal conductor with the cable unterminated. What you experienced is perfectly normal.
 
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