Rotel RSP-1098: DSP desynchronization clicking

[Blazar]

My 1098 was working fine when I first bought it. Then a couple of weeks later I bought a RMP-1095 5 channel amp and hooked it up. It worked fine with brief periods of use and then something interesting happened.

When I used it for an extended period of time, my 1098 started making relay clicking noises during watching movies and then started simply FAILING and the synchronization of dolby digital simply went to hell... lots of screeching and scratching noises through the speakers.

If I turned of the unit and turned it on again, it would work for a few minutes, then start clicking, and then go to "hell" again.

So I figured maybe it was interference from the 1095, this did not improve the problem. I even unpluged the 1095 completely. Then I proceeded to turn off everything in the apartment, no use. Finally gave up and went out for a while and came back... it began working fine after I turned it on again.

Later as the gear warmed up, same problems again.

I think I figured out one of the reasons why people are having problems with their 1098...

HEAT!!

The 1098 has no fans and is simply air cooled. Simply having the amp underneath the 1098 in the stereo cabinet made the 1098 quite a bit hotter to the touch.

Solution: I moved the 1098 higher on the equipment rack and put the amp at the very bottom. Now with usualy operation the 1098 is cooler than it was and no more problems...

Alternative hypothesis:
Perhaps it is interference from the amp that drives the unit crazy? Maybe... but unlikely. Once the 1098 got hot enough, turning off all the rest of the gear including the amp still would not fix the problem until the unit cooled down.


Everyone on the forum having this desynchronization or "clicking" problem during normal movie viewing please TEST this and report back. This might be a simple solution to may people's problems.

[Blazar]

Some carifying points:

1. during the malfunctioning, pcm audio and analog function was normal.

2. During the malfuntioning, along with the click from the relay, the "Dolby Digital" text would show up on the TFT.

Changing interconnects and also disconnecting all the un-necessary interconnects, including the ones to the amp, had NO effect. All I had was the optical to the DVD player or the coax to the DVD player, both of these configurations did not remedy the problem. I even unplugged everything else from the wall outlet.


I am planning to get a new audio rack with a more open setup instead of a closed cabinet. This will allow much better ventilation. The corner that I keep the equipment gets very little AC, and has lots of windows so gets fairly warm. I'll report back if the clicking returns despite these efforts

[aud19]

I'm glad you seemed to find the solution. Just goes to show you how important good ventilation really is!

Jason




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[Azeke]

I have the RMB-1095, RB-1080, both on the bottom rack, and the RSP-1098 on the top rack. I had the option of closing my rack, but I didn't, to minimize any heat dissipation issues.

Welcome to the Club.

Glad to see you found a viable solution,

Azeke

[Blazar]

thanks for the welcome, i've been reading on the site for a few weeks. Hopefully I have made a useful contribution... Let's see what experiences people have with this "fix"

Now, if only some of the Firmware wishlist would get implemented, it would be great. Particularly I am looking out for some improved control over the TFT. There should be a direct IR code to simply turn on or off the TFT.

[whmacs]

Hi Blazar,
That's a interesting point about heat, When my dealer installed my RMB-1075, RB-1070 and later, the RSP-1098, they made a point to tell me that the amps should be the highest items in the rack to ensure that their heat output doesn't cause problems with other gear. Here is a picture of my rack:
Equipment Rack

cheers,
Stephen




My Home Theatre

[Blazar]

Yeah the only problem with that ams on top is with "stereo cabinets". Free standing racks or cabinets become far too top heavy with amps up top and they are prone to falling accidentally, particulary with a kid around.

Otherwise the amp on top idea sounds like a good idea in terms of heat dissipation.