Input signal query

Hi all,

Asked this on the AH Facebook group but didn’t get much of a response so hoping I will have better luck here.

I have some noise in my setup and I think it’s coming from the Heat. Currently I have a bunch of devices connected to a mixer, which is connected to my Octatrack via AB input. The OT cue outs go to the Heat, and the Heat to my Focusrite 18i20 interface. When I switch everything but the Heat off, the input meter on the Heat still shows a little black, as if a very faint signal is still coming through, even though everything is switched off. If I remove the cables from the Heat input, it goes away, and returns when I plug them back in. Is that normal? If not, where could the noise be coming from? Cheap cables maybe? The noise is coming through both the L and R input, so don’t think the cables are broken.

Any ideas what it could be? I have a rare day off on Friday and plan to do some recording, and would rather not spend half the day trying to fix a noise issue if I can avoid it.

Cheers,
Steeplemouth

Someone on the Facebook group suggested it could be a gain staging issue but I only have the Heat switched on and nothing else, and the noise/signal is present when the unit is bypassed too. I have the input sensitivity to maximum as that seemed the best fit with my Octatrack, but maybe that is because of quiet samples? What sensitivity level are people using with their OTs? Is it better to crank the volume on the OT and have a lower input sensitivity, or vice versa?

Are the said audio cables close to any power cables? That could help narrow it down. Maybe get a set of nice shielded cables just to test? Mogami is my go to.

I’ve got the same issue, using high quality balanced cables there’s a tiny bit of noise showing on the screen. However, It’s nothing I can percieve while listening.

I’m running a bunch of gear into the Heat at high input sensitivity, I just assumed it was the noise floor.

The noise floor of what? The Heat itself? It goes away when I remove the cables from the inputs.

When I record it into my DAW it’s giving my a reading of about -56db with the unit bypassed and the volume knob at 11 o’clock. Is this normal behaviour? I’ve had the Heat a while and used it quite a bit, without ever noticing this until last week so don’t know if it’s always been there or if it’s a new issue.

jeppo, same here - also have some “noise” on the input
analog heat mk2
Mackie vlz1202 pro, AR mk1 and A4 mk1

using balanced cabels everywhere
maybe the mixer is the problem but to check I have to recable it, using heat on aux1 pre fader