[BritBoB]

I can't believe the trouble I'm having with these headphones and wonder if there are any other people who own a set or someone with some technical knowledge that might be able to help. You can see my previous thread here:

Faulty Return to Audio Cubes - a log

...but to cut a long story short they started having an intermitant fault where the sound would crackle loudly and cut out briefly. I returned them and recieved a new set which now, after less than 50 hours use have developed the same problem!

I will give all my technical details in the hope that someone might have some idea of what I could try. The wireless Dolby Surround heaphones are connected to the digital optical output of my Marantz SR5200 amp. Connected to the digital optical In's on the amp are my Topfield TF5800PVR and my Sony DVP-NS900v DVD player. I have tried connecting DVD player and Topfield directly to the headphone amp but this has not improved anything. I have also tried changing the optical cables that I am using and the batteries in the headphones themselves but again no effect.

Today I thought about the power input. The headpone amp comes with a power adapter that converts AC 100V 50/60Hz 26VA to DC 12V 1000ma. When I bought the headphones I was supplied with a travel converter that converts 220-240V 50/60Hz to 100V AC 35W Max (for European use). This is what I have been using but now wonder if it could be the culprit. On the rear of the converter it has a label stating "Caution: In continuation use (30 minutes or more) the maximum output capacity is 28W". I had not noticed this before, or the high temperature of the converter when plugged in (which is all the time). I am going to go down to Maplin later and try to buy a more robust power converter, but does anyone know if this could cause a problem?

Any help or advice would be most appreciated as I don't want to have to return the product again.

Thank you very much.

[BritBoB]

Wow my luck with these is just getting worse. I bought a new power converter and after 5 minutes of use the whole headphone amp stopped working. I get nothing now. It's as if there is no power at all going to the amp. I have tested the output of the ac/dc converter that came with the headphones and that seems to be working fine. I'm sarting to wish I never bought these. If I get the chance i think I'll cut my losses and ask for a refund!

Is there any new development with your recent problems? Have you returned back again your headphones?

If ever you have your problem fixed, I would suggest to no longer use the voltage converter unit and instead use a AC/DC adapter that will have the good specifications for your headphones. For example one with the following specs:
Input: 220-240V 50/60Hz
Output: DC 12V 1000mA

I just ordered the same headphones from www.pricejapan.com. I hope I will not have the same problems as yours. Except for the problems you had, were you satisfied with the performance? What are the pros and cons?

Thx and Good luck!

[BritBoB]

Hi mikeduchesne,

I have been sent another new set of headphones and they sent me a new power converter that I was told was more sturdy. I have been treating it very carefully this time and unplugging the whole thing whenever its not in use but unbelievably the same problems are occuring again! I have been told by Audiocubes that no one else has complained of similar problems but to have the same issue 3 times is very frustrating. I am not returning this set as it is costing me far too much for postage.

I have tried to get a dedicated AC/DC adapter but it seems as though the plug that you plug into the amp is unique to pioneer and so none of the ones available (I have only tried Maplin as I don't really know where else to try) will fit but I think this is what I really need to get. Do you or anyone else have any ideas where I could get an adapter that would fit? Any help would be most gratefully accepted!

As for the performance of the headphones when they do work, which again was for about the first 50 hours of use and now intermitantly without the fault - sometimes days, sometimes minutes, I think they sound great. I use them almost exclusively for watching TV and Films and find the sound very imersive. The surround effects when using DD, DTS and Pro Logic are more subtle than with my speaker set up but more realistic for it. I find the clarity amazing and am able to hear things that I have never heard before on many films. The headphones are very compfortable to wear. I do find that the base is less impressive than a speaker set up with sub woofer (I do not use the base boost on the amp) but there is more than enough to keep me happy and it sounds correct for the overall sound of the headphones. Also some DVD's seem to have a lower sound output and you find that you are turning the heaphones to the highest volume level, but there are not many I have encountered. Overall I am extremely pleased with them when they do work and I choose them over my speaker set up whenever I am watching films alone.

I hope that yours work well and that you have no problems like I have. Please post back when you have had some use out of them and let me know what you think, or if you have any idea where I might find an AC/DC adapter that will fit the amp.

All the best.

I have emailed Pioneer themselves now to see if they have a suitable converter available as I'm not sure where else to look.

Hi BritBoB,

As soon as I receive my se-dir2000c headphones, I will try to find an AC/DC adapter that has the right specs and see if the plug fits with the amp's plug.
Since I live in Canada, the adapter's specs I'll be looking for are:
Input: AC 120V 60Hz
Output: DC 12V 1000mA

For me, solution A is to find an adapter with the above specs that has an appropriate plug for the amp, i.e. Pioneer compatible.

Solution B is to anyway buy such an adapter and then simply replace the plug of that adapter with the plug of the Pioneer's adapter by making sure I tie the appropriate wires together with regards to polarity.

If ever I get solution A and you still can't find a similar adapter in the UK, I offer to either ship one that's appropriate to you or give you the web address of a store in Canada or USA from which you could order one.

If ever I get to solution B, then you could also go for that solution too. What do you think?

Anyway, I'll get back to you as soon as possible.

[BritBoB]

Thanks mikeduchesne for your very kind offer.

Your first post bizarely coincided with my headphones becoming faulty again so you have spurred me into action to find a replacement adapter. I emailed Pioneer UK with the details of the product and what adapter I needed and, from their website, their official parts stockist in the UK. Pioneer have yet to reply but the parts stockist got back to me within the day and told me the product I needed, the price and a phone number to call them on to order it. Unfortunately it is quite expensive (less expensive than returning the headphones to Japan again!) but if it makes the headphones work properly I am just happy to have an end to this long saga and a nice working set of headphones. I have ordered it today, but it is not in stock and will take up to 14 days, but certainly better than nothing. I also explained the problem to them and asked that if it didn't improve the performance if I would be able to return it and that is fine too. Lets just hope that it works or I'll have to be back in touch with Japan again.

I also had a look at the Canadian Pioneer website and they too have an official parts stockist called ARGO NEXUS INC. in Toronto. The link to the details of how to contact them is:

http://www.pioneerelectronics.ca/pna...252975,00.html

I hope this is some help to you and am still eager to know how you find the headphones and if you have any problems.

All the best,
Bob

Hello Bob,

Today I got in touch with a sales representative from Pioneer and first asked him if the se-dir2000c was supposed to become available in America and he answered no. But he wasn't sure about the se-dir800cII, which is an improved version of the se-dir800c. That reassured me about my eagerness to acquire the se-dir2000c without waiting for it to become available on the canadian or american market. But I still wonder why are they waiting to spread the sales elsewhere in the world. Is it that they don't think the product is good enough to be outside Japan?? I don't know, I'm a bit puzzled about that.

Then I told him that I ordered the se-dir2000c from Japan and that I needed an appropriate adapter. He's supposed to get back to me by the end of the week. I will also give a try to the parts stockist as you did.

To get back to your problem, have you ever asked Audiocubes to send you a new voltage transformer to see if that fixes the problem?

I know it's too late, but maybe this could have done the trick for you:
http://www.voltageconverters.com/itemdesc.asp?CartId={A884AB5C-5D30-427E-98DEVEREST6-2649B6ABFD12}&ic=GS1000
But if you can get one from Pioneer or parts stockist, it would be better. I guess that since the adapter is expensive, it must be a regulated one.

I also found the following one which seems to be regulated, comes from England and has 7 available adapter plugs:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Switch-Mode-Powe...QQcmdZViewItem
Maybe you could try that one in the meantime since it is pretty cheap! (approx. GBP 7.00, shipping included).

On my side, I'm eager to get my DHL tracking number. Until then, my money is in Japan and I still got nothing

BTW, pardon me if my english seems strange, french is my mother tongue!

Wish you the best, you deserved it!

Bye
Michel

[BritBoB]

Hi Michel,

Audiocubes sent me a new voltage converter with my third replacement as they htink that it was that causing the problems. They said it was a better one than previously supplied but it looked just the same and had the same warning on the back that states if it was used for more than 30 minutes the wattage output would drop and this is the one I am using now and the fault has returned. Before I returned the last headphones to them I tried to buy a UK AC adapter but even ones with multiple adapter plugs did not fit and thats when I was told that it was not readily available. I also tried a UK voltage converter like the ones on that link but after 15 mins the whole thing stopped working completely and I don't dare to try that again! I'm just hoping now that the voltage converter I have used has not damaged the amp and that when the new one from Pioneer arrives the problem will disapear. I hate this part now when I have to wait to find out if Im going to have more problems or not.

I haven't noticed any problems with your English and it is certainly far superior to my knowledge of French which is almost non existant!

I hope yours arrives soon - have you been waiting long?

Thanks,
Bob

Hi Bob,

I ordered my headphones last Thursday and still have no news about a tracking number or so. I just sent an email to ask them what is the status of my order.

By the way, can you tell me what is the input voltage mention on the Pioneer adapter. Is it 100V only or is there a range?

I think that Suave also ordered from Audiocubes, it seems he didn't have any problems with his Pioneer's. Very curious what happens to you.

Michel

[BritBoB]

The AC adapter supplied is a Pioneer WWR1020-A:
Input:AC 100V 50/60Hz 26VA
Output:DC 12V 1000mA

Hi Bob,

Here's a little update on my situation. I got my headphones on Monday and tried them for the first time yesterday. I'm really impressed with the quality of the sound!

I have tried a DTS/Dolby demo DVD to see what they have inside and up until now I'm quite satisfied.

Regarding the power source, I finally decided to go for a voltage converter instead of an AC adapter. I thought it was more safe to choose this since you told me that the plug was very particular to Pioneer and I didn't want to alter or modify the original adapter so to continue being covered by the warranty.

On your side, have you received your new adapter?

I have some questions for you:

Have you finally found out what is the use of the "Bilingual" button on the RC?

Do you always put the headset back on the charge after each use? I have read in another thread that someone screwed up his batteries by letting them rest on the base even if the light went down. I have let my headset on the base for the whole night yesterday and when I got up this morning, the light was still on. Is this normal? Does it indicate that it is always charging the batteries?

Have you observed a perfect balance of sound between both earpads? I'm having the impression that the volume is a little bit louder on the left earpad.

Have you ever experienced the AAC type of sound input? If yes, how can I try it? Is it by burning a CD with AAC type format files or with DVD?

Thank you for your help.
I sincerely hope that your problem get fixed in the shortest period of time. On my side, I will wait to have a good number of days and hours of use without problems before feeling confident I won't have the same problem as yours. Hopefully, my 100W voltage converter will do the job properly.

All the best!
Michel

[BritBoB]

Hi Michel,

Glad to hear yours have arrived safe and sounds and are working well. I am still waiting for my adapter but I don't expect it will come until next week at the earliest so I have not used my headphones as I am worried about damaging them if the wrong voltage is going through. I finally got a very disapointing reply from Pioneer UK (over a week after I emailed them) suggesting that I buy a adapter/voltage converter from a local electrical shop so obviously they didn't even bother to read my email! At least the parts supplier was useful.

To try and answer your questions:

I still have no idea what the "Bilingual" button does and have never had cause to try it out. Maybe I'll give it a go if I get them working again.

I don't put the headphones back on to charge after every use. I think that the charger charges for 10 hours no matter how little the batteries have been used and I don't think this is ideal for rechargable batteries. You can get quite a lot of use from the batteries - I have gone 10 days or so (with an hour or 2 use every day) without needing to recharge them and only tend to put them on to charge about once a week. You can sit them on the base unit just in front of the charger so they don't charge. I do keep a spare set of charged batteries handy though in case they do run flat in the middle of use.

I have also found that sometimes the volume feels louder in one ear or the other, but very infrequently. I usually find that if I re position the headphones on my head that does the trick. I think they are quite sensetive to positioning on the ear and have read on another thread that the base can distort if they are not worn properly too.

I have never had anything from the AAC source and again have no idea what would use this decoding. Like you say, possibly a CD burned using AAC would, and posibly some DVD's may use it but I'm not sure.

I hope I have been a little help. I have aslo read that the headphones take quite alot of burning in to reach their peak, around 80 hours regular use apparently. Unfortunately for me I have never been able to use a set for 80 hours without them becoming faulty so hopefully I've got that to come!

Enjoy your headphones and I'll let you know if my new adapter sorts my problems out.

All the best,

Bob

[BritBoB]

Well my farce continues. The adapter that I was told would be suitable arrived on Friday and too my dismay it couldn't have been more wrong. For a start it had a european plug (which I could have dealt with if the rest had been right but was told it would be a UK plug). Then I notices that it's output was 9V DC 800mA. I clearly asked for 12v DC 1000mA! So that has been posted back, adding another £5 postage to my total of costs and I have asked them again if there was one available that will fit the SE-Dir2000C. Unfortunately they have not been as swift in replying this time and have not heard from them yet. I will give it day or two more before writing again.

I tried out the amp with a wired set of headphones and found that the fault does not effect them. I hope this is not a bad omen that it is something wrong with the wireless headphones themself and not the power supply as I have been advised. It seems odd that the headphones could break 3 times, although it seems odd that the power supply could break 3 times as well so who knows. I suppose if I am unable to find a soultion to the wireless phones I could always invest in a semi decent set of wired phones and use them with the base unit instead. It would cost up to £60 to post it all back to Japan again then the possibility of £30 customs charge on return which, if I didn't return them, gives me around £100 to buy some wired phones.

Does anyone have any suggestions at wired phones that might compare to the sound I got from the wireless supplied. A few reviews of the Sennheiser HD595 sound very good so I could consider them, has anyone tried these?

Annyway I'll see what happens with the power supply first.

It looks like they sent you the AC adapter of the SE-DIR800C. You really are not lucky.

Do you know if your power source is stable? Have you been using a power surge protection or so to plug your headphones into? I'm considering this as a possibility since it is the third set of headphones that gets broken in a short while. It's really curious.

I know it may not be of any help but maybe using a voltage regulator could have solved the problem such as the first item in the following link:
http://www.voltageconverters.com/vol...egulators.html

Have you checked the output of the voltage converter that Audiocubes provided you with? Make sure that the voltage is close to 100V with a probe. Mine outputs around 97.5V AC with 100W of power.

Do you know if anyone else in an area near you also possess the SE-DIR2000C? You could try your amp with his headphones and his amp with your headphones to find out more closely where the problem originates from. Suave is from the UK I think but where exactly, that is the question.

On my side, I'm still very pleased with my headphones. I can't wait to have used them for at least a hundred hours before beginning to feel safe with their reliability.

[BritBoB]

Hi Michel,

It would be interesting to try my headphones with someone else locally, I'll have to see if I can arrange that at any time. I have tried mesuring the voltage with a probe, but the one I have isn't really suitable - it tells me there is a steady flow from the transformer but not what voltage it is.

To be honest I'm not sure it has anything to do with the voltage. The first set I had went after 50hrs use. When I was sent a new set the voltage converter was still the same one and they also worked for 50hrs. Surely if it had been the converter this second pair would not have worked at all. The third set was sent with a new voltage converter and these too lasted around 50hrs. I think the problem lies somwhere else but where nobody seems to know!

I have hit a bit if a brick wall now to be honest. I have been in touch with AudioCubes again but they don't want anything to do with me now and say it can't be a fault with the product it must be something in my set up that is effecting them, but they are unable to tell me if anything was found to be wrong with the sets that I have sent back. I have tried everything I can think of with my set up. I have changed the digital optical cables, I have tried with digital coaxal and analogue input. I have tried with DVD player, CD player, digital TV box and PS2 but nothing improves it. I have tried using different plugs in the house to run it in case there was a problem with that particular plug socket, I have even tried covering over a burglar alarm sensor that is in the room as I think that may work on infa red too but nothing has fixed the problem. I have tried new batteries for the headphones and tried charging the batteries with an independent charger and not in the headphones, I have sat closer to the base unit and further away but nothing works and I am completely out of ideas.

I have also had another reply from the Pioneer stockist telling me that they have been in touch with Pioneer themselves and the AC/DC converter they sent was the correct one, which clearly it wasn't as it was incorrect voltage and plug, but what can you do - they also don't want to know.

I have found a UK website that does power step down transformers but one of them is going to set me back £40 or so and I really don't believe that is the problem any more an the money could be better spent on a wired set of headphones to use with the base. The fault now seems to me to ocur whenever I move. Any slight movement to my head or even swallowing makes the signal flicker, and at other times it just cuts out without any movement. I don't see how this can be because of the power supply to the base!

Like I said when using wired headphones in the socket on the front there is no problem at all so it looks like I am just going to have to buy a decent set and use it this way. By looking at some other threads i might even get better performance in the end but obviously at more cost. I shall start a new thread to see if anyone has any suggestions as to a wired set to go for.

I hope that no one else experinces the problems that I have been having with mine - and if I ever do find out the cause I shall certainly let you know.

All the best,

Bob

Bob,

I don't know if you tried that one, but try your headphones at someone else's home. Maybe there is an unknown source of interference somewhere where you live.

Michel

[pedrito77]

Hi, I am experiencing exactly the same problems with my pioneer 2000c that I purchased from audiocubes last November. I hear the same crackle noise that Britbob hears; I just email audiocubes to see if they can fix my problem. And like Britob in the first weeks of use the system worked perfectly. I tried a different optical cable, different sound sources (digital, analog), and different locations (another rooms); but the problem persists...do I have to return the headphones? can audiocubes send me another different system? I don't want the same system if the new one can have the same problems.
Excuse me for my english, I am from Spain.
Thanks

[pedrito77]

GOOD NEWS!!! after 3 months without using the headphones because of the terrible problems with the crack noises (I was only using it as amplifier with an external headphone)...voila!! I don't know what happened, maybe it was an interference with some neighbour or something; I DON'T have any problems; after more than 2 weeks sometimes more than 5 hours of continous use; no crack noise, none whatsoever. It is very strange because 3 months ago after 10 minutes the crack noise was constant.....
chees

[Suave]

Hi All,

I have had these headphones for nearly 3 years now and from day one I have not experienced any kind of problem whatsover from them - they perform as flawlessly today as the day I first tried them out - I just cannot understand why a few of you folks have had the problems you have written about. If it helps, what I did was source my own voltage transformer matching the exact specifications as stated in the Pioneer manual and bought a decent level of quality from a reputable brand and dealer ensuring with them prior before connecting anything up - anal I know but I spent a few bucks on these babies and did not want to burn them to shreds or damage them at first try by having the wrong voltage going through them. I would very strongly suggest the same to all of you if you have not already done so. This MAY solve some of the issues (hopefully all of them) that you have all had. Mine have been connected to the mains with the power on since the day I had them and have had no trouble at all. I know this may sound really stupid and obvious but some folks have confused a voltage transformer with a simple adapter which may have been the cause of their woes. Do not give up on them - the problem is usually simple to sort out (frustrating when one does not know what it may be I grant you) and the headphones are a real treat to listen to.

Suave!

[BritBoB]

Thats good to hear pedrito77! Since all the problems before I have not tried the wireless phones again, I've just settled in to using a wired set plugged into the amp. Maybe I will give them a go again and see if anything has improved.

Suave - I'm happy to hear that you have had trouble free use of yours. I tend to agree with you and am quite confident that it is something to do with the power imput but back in January when it was all going wrong and the trouble trying to get an new adapter from Pioneer themselves I just gave up really as I didn't want to spend lots of money on a new voltage transformer and it not improve the problem! I still unplug mine every time I use it as the voltage converter supplied gets so hot the smell of metal is unnerving. Maybe now a bit of time has passed I might be ready for the dissapointment if I give it another go - I often feel annoyed that I spent all that cash on a wireless set up and am using wired phones! Are you based in the UK? If so can you give me some pointers to a reputable company that I might be able to get transformer from. Thanks for the help.

[pedrito77]

Originally Posted by BritBoB

Thats good to hear pedrito77! Are you based in the UK? If so can you give me some pointers to a reputable company that I might be able to get transformer from. Thanks for the help.

Hi, i'm sorry for the late response (I was out on vacation). No, I'm not based on UK I am from Spain (Canary Islands) so I can't help you finding the transformer.

The headphones continue to work flawlessly...

cheers...

[BritBoB]

I tried mine again. Worked for about 5 days then the problem has started again after the second charge up. Back to the wired for now.

Hi all,

Bob, do you have a Plasma TV?

Are you always in the same position in the room when you experience the problem?

Have you ever tried with corded headphones to the base connector? (I´ve noticed the wireless base has also a jack). If there is no noise problem with the corded phones, then the problem may be the wireless transmission. AFAIK, Plasma panel affect infrared transmission (I don´t know where I have read this).

If you experience the same problem with the wired phones, then it can be the source or the base (power adaptor as you think).

If you can isolate the problem in the transmission, then look for other electronic devices that may be interfering (remote control, wireless telephone, mobile phone, PDA, laptop...) anything that can use infrared technology (or just "technology"), or obstacles in the line between the headphones and the base. If you have a mirror, it can be reflecting the infrared signal, creating an echo (that´s just something I wonder).



good luck!

I have the same problem with my se-dir2000c headphones. It started soon after buying them.

Brief and sudden "breaks", that seem to get worse the longer you use the headphones. On the other hand, it sometimes feels like its related to movement or positioning of my head. Also, for some time I had the idea that my head just wasn´t a good fit and the headphones, which turn on automatically when you put them on, were crackling due to breaf powerdowns. But I don´t think it´s that. I´ve used all the different inputs so it´s not cable related. The AC adaptor hypothesis gives me something else to try, but I don´t hold much hope. Why would then wired headphones work OK when connected to the dir2000c base? The fact is I don´t have a clue.

All I can say is that I understand your frustration PERFECTLY. This issue has some patterns, but it´s really hard to pin it down. The interference hypothesis? Something disturbing the signal? It´s hard then to understand why the problem gets worse after a while of use. It should be more random. ¿Maybe the headphones themselves, when they heat up after a while of use, cause the disturbance in the reception? This is my latest idea. I may try to uncover the reception area and see if it helps. I may damage them but I honestly don´t know what else to try, aside the adaptor thing.

AARghhh!!!

Keep you posted.

Hi Gabri,

Have you tried in a different room, with different source? (i.e. another tv inn another room).

As I understand the wired phones to the base works perfectly, then the problem should be in the transmission or in the headphones (that means: not in the signal source or the internal audio circuit). That includes from the circuit that converts to infrared(in the base) to your ears http://www.avforums.com/forums/image.../diablotin.gif
(IR circuit>medium(air)>reception circuit>speakers).
I suppose the signal that goes to the jack is identical to the signal that is sent to the infrared conversor.

The clicks can bae caused by a design bug (hard to believe as there are thousand units working with no prob), defective manufacturing of the unit (but bob has tried a few and always the same problem), or interferences (EMI).
I will discard the two first.

If the problem is originated in the base, the most common is dirty power. If you live close to an industrial area, or in an old area is quite common to have power peaks. Normally this toys have protection circuits for that (in the power converter and in the main circuit), but if your electric supply is really bad, then it can affect the electronics. That would explain why it´s not always happening and why, when it happens, it gets worse. The solution to this can be the use of a power surge protection before power converter. Another thing that can cause lot of electric noise is a microwave, or anithing with an electric motor (like a wash machine), it´s incredible how that appliances can affect the quality of electric power in-home.

if the problem is in the transmission, the best way to check it is to move to another room or to a friends house like someone has proposed. Then look for possible origins of interference.

if the problem is in the phones, maybe it can be related to the batteries (try changing them), or to a magnetic contamination from external sources (like a speaker).

Hope this helps. I will receive my dir2000c tomorrow from audiocubes (if customs ignore it). I have adquired another set of headphones, so if I have the same problem I´ll be able to test it in depth.

P.D. Sorry for my english, it´s not my native language. If there is something not clear, don´t hesitate in asking!

After reading your post I gave more thought to the electrical thing. I ended up replacing the AC/DC adaptor but... another dissapointment.

The issue is still there. I´ll look further into the interference thing but... what good are wireless headphones if I can´t use them with a little freedom? I went away from radio wireless headphones ages ago because of the potential for interference, not just sound quality... I own a pair of old Sony MDR infrared wireless headphones that have worked *flawlessly* for more than TEN YEARS now (they still work fine). I should have sticked to Sony... Ironic. OK, just whining a little.

Sometimes I can go half a movie without the problem, but the fear of it starting just ruins the pleasure. A real shame, because the sound quality is great.

Thanks for the help. I´ll keep you posted. And don´t worry, english is not my mother languaje either...

[BritBoB]

Hi all,

I'm fascinated to hear of even more people having the same problem with the headphones.

ripa - I do have a plasma tv and the base unit is sat just behind it, but it can't really go anywhere else due to length of cables etc. I have thought that it might be something electronic or infa red in the room but the consistancy just isn't there. When I had my first set they wirked for a couple of months and nothing has changed in the room. I have thought it could be the berglar alarm detector that is on the wall opposite the base unit and uses infa red but I have covered that over and still no joy. I have also tried various sets of batteries and again it hasn't helped. I have not tried then in a different room so maybe some time I will give it a go. I would also like to try power surge protection too as I know the power is not fantastically consistant here, but could power surges just effect the infa red and not the wired transmition?

Gabri - so sorry to hear you are suffering the same problems. It completely takes the enjoyment out of using them because even when thy are working all I am I thinking is when are they next going to go wrong and just can't enjoy what I am watching. I again have completely stopped using the wireless set and use wired at the minute, until I can hopefully find some solution. I also thought my head might be a bad fit and the power was breaking so I watched in a mirror to see if the light on the side went out when the sound did but the light stays on so no power break. I sometimes think too that it is to do with movement - sometimes if I eat with them on it can start the problem, but only sometimes so there is just no consistancy.

Ripa I hope you don't experience any of these problems - if you don't I'm sure you will thoroughly enjoy these headphones!

I look forward to hearing of any more things people have tried to fix the problems and any other experience with these phones.

Thanks all for all the input!

This may sound extrange, but....

I have just received the units. Thanks God I have a pair of charged batteries of the same kind.

The left speaker of the phones is the one which has the interrupt to power on the unit when you put in your head. curious but when you move that left "ear" there is a "crap" sound. That sound correspond to the "off", the "on" does not produce that sound. Can someone check if that is the same sound you have?

If it´s that, then the problem can be in the internal interrupt or any other contact from batteries to main headphone´s circuit. That would explain everything, I think. When that interrupt gets hot, the contact can loose easily.

It can also be an internal capacitor, but that would be a bit more complex to locate and solve.

P.D. Remember japaneese have very small heads. :P

[BritBoB]

when you move that left "ear" there is a "crap" sound. That sound correspond to the "off", the "on" does not produce that sound. Can someone check if that is the same sound you have?

I get a loud crakling when they go off, similar/the same as the fault noise, and a much smaller "pop" when they go on.

Then that should be.

I think the problem is then inside the phones, the on/off switch is not doing good contacts, or any other component in the power circuit is failing.

to check if it´s the internal switch, may be you´ll need to force the correct position of the left phone (adhesive tape) so it´s always in the "on" position (at a maximum).. It will not be confortable but you´ll be able to check if it´s that.

If that´s the problem, we´ll find a solution.