Weird hum problem with 1068

[Pez]

Finally got my 1068 last night and hooked it up, unfortunately there was a pronounced hum coming from all the speakers.

Here is where it gets strange. The outlet I was using was the same outlet I was using with previous equipment and there was no hum then. In fact, the outlet itself and the surge protector I am using has less connections now than the prior setup. Just out of curiosity I hooked up the surge protector up to another outlet on the same wall and the hum was essentially gone. I could hear something that was extremely faint coming from the speakers but it was so inaudible I don’t know if that could be considered a "hum". I couldn’t hear it unless my ear was hard pressed against the woofer.

I am not sure what to do at this point. Based on what I have read it seems like its the 1068 but wouldn’t the hum have been there when I tried the other outlet? And if its not the 1068 why didn’t my previous setup have this problem?

Here are some details of my system to help figure out this problem:

Prior Setup:
Denon AVR-3803 (hooked up to surge protector)
Earthquake Cinenova 3 channel amp (hooked up to surge protector)
Sharp 36" TV (hooked up to surge protector)
Sony DVD and VCR (hooked up to surge protector)
Cable Box (hooked up to surge protector)
Def Tech CLR3000 (hooked up to surge protector)
Def Tech BP7001sc (one plugged into same outlet as surge protector)

New Setup:
Rotel 1068 (hooked up to surge protector)
Rotel 1075 (hooked up to surge protector)
Sharp 36" TV (hooked up to surge protector)
Sony DVD and VCR (hooked up to surge protector)
Cable Box (hooked up to surge protector)

The surge protector is a Monster Power HT800. As you can see there are several less things that need to be plugged in on the new setup since I don’t have powered speakers anymore. Should I return the 1068 and get a new one? Could it be the amp? Why is this happening now and not before? I would greatly appreciate any help.

BTW, in case anyone is wondering what brought about the change is gear thats a story for another day (a long story that has to do with life circumstances, most notably being small living space and WAF).

[markmaple]

Did you have audio and video coming from a single component? This was the key to my problem. Rotel acknowledged this problem and replaced my unit.
If changing outlets gets rid of the problem, it sounds like a different problem. Did you change any connections when you tried the other outlet?

Here is the thread that I started about my unit.

http://www.htguide.com/forum/showthread.php4?t=142

[Pez]

I have audio and video coming from every component; TV, VCR, DVD, and Cable Box. I didnt change any of the connections when I switched outlets. I think on this site I read where a 1068 owner disconnected some of video connections which cleared the problem. I tried removing some connections but that didnt work (when I was using the outlet with the hum).

Due to hum issues with some Rotel products I thought that was the problem. After all, my previous equipment didnt hum and there was several more power cords then. But when I switched outlets I figured it was a ground loop issue. When I get a chance I will disconnect everything and start hooking everything up one by one and try to solve this. I kinda need the stuff on the outlet that hums but its not absolutely critical.

[markmaple]

When working with my dealer, they indicated that cable TV was the most frequent cause of ground loops. I believe this could even happen indirectly via the TV through your connection with the processor. Keep that in mind when you are trouble-shooting and taking the cable TV completely out of the equation. Good luck!