Echo & Alexa Forums
General Category => Echo Technical Support => Topic started by: Kyle76 on November 03, 2016, 02:33:29 pm
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My original Echo Dot Ver. 2 developed noise when wired to speakers via the 3.5mm jack. The noise continued whether music was playing or Alexa was speaking. I did a quick internet search and found out I wasn't the only one who had experienced this behavior. I called Echo tech support, and after getting transferred to a higher level, was immediately offered a replacement unit. My new unit seems to work fine, but I got the feeling this is a known issue. My original unit worked fine initially, but after I unhooked it and rehooked it up to the speakers, the noise began. Just an FYI, if you experience something similar.
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Hum from an electronic device is often due to a bad ground connection. In fact, it happened to me with a Dot when first connecting the Dot's audio out cable the first time. The Dot's jack is very tight at first, and although it felt completely inserted, it was not; hence a hum, so I removed and plugged in cable a few times to Dot and made sure it was fully inserted, and hum was, and has been, gone.
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I have the same thing happen to a new unit I purchased and I checked a room where I don't use the Dot very much and it was doing the same thing on an older unit. I am thinking it might be a bad software update.
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I too heard an annoying hum when connecting my Dot to an external speaker/amplifier. It was a constant noise regardless of the volume setting of either the Dot or the speaker. Luckily the speaker had both phono and 3.5mm jack inputs and I was able to connect the Dot via the 3.5mm jack and then connect the outer part of the phono connector to earth. This caused the hum to almost disappear - thereby backing up mike27oct's observation that a bad ground connection is often to blame. For an earth, I used a nearby radiator pipe.
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The problem is the jack into the Dot is not pushed in all the way. A plug of a new Dot is very tight, so remove and push the jack into the Dot plug a few time to loosen it up until it is flush with the case.
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Ground Loop: https://www.audioholics.com/home-theater-connection/ground-loops-eliminating-system-hum-and-buzz (https://www.audioholics.com/home-theater-connection/ground-loops-eliminating-system-hum-and-buzz)
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There is a ground problem because the ground connection is not making contact because the jack is not fully plugged in!
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That is true. The Echo Dot's audio jack is unusually tight. And most people think it's plugged all the way in when it really isn't. Just give it a firm push and you'll see that the buzzing/humming noise will go away when your audio plug is pushed all the way in.