Electrical interference

[shortride]

Every since I've had my Icom R-75 there is a ticking sound that generates a 1 to 1.5 on my signal meter. I've turned everything in my house off one at a time to try to determine the source of the noise. It doesn't matter the time of day, the ticking sound is always there. I'm fairly convinced that it's frequency related because the ticking sound and signal increases or decreases depending on the frequency. I can turn the ATT on and still hear the ticking. Everything in my shack is grounded very well.

I realize it's difficult to isolate the exact source of the noise but I thought I would ask in case someone may have an idea what could be causing it.

 

[popnokick]

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Is it still there when you disconnect the antenna from the radio?

 

[jim202]

You really haven't given us much to work with. Have you tried running your radio off of a battery and killing the main breaker feeding the house?

My next thought would be a fence charger used to keep cattle or horses inside their fenced area. These can cause problems for miles.

At what rep rate are the clicks?

Is the clicking there all the time or does it go away at night?

Any chance you have a bug zapper in your yard?

 

[shortride]

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Is it still there when you disconnect the antenna from the radio?

The ticking goes away when the coax is disconnected.

You really haven't given us much to work with. Have you tried running your radio off of a battery and killing the main breaker feeding the house?

My next thought would be a fence charger used to keep cattle or horses inside their fenced area. These can cause problems for miles.

At what rep rate are the clicks?

Is the clicking there all the time or does it go away at night?

Any chance you have a bug zapper in your yard?

The clicks are approximately 2 per second with a 1 second delay every 3rd or 4th click. It sounds exactly like an old style wind up clock but skips a tick every 2 to 3 seconds.

The clicks are there 24/7 as far as I know. I have checked it in the middle of the night or anytime during the day.

There are no bug zappers in my yard.

I have not tried running the radio off of a battery. The R75 is currently on a new MFJ 70 amp power supply.

If I disconnect the coax the ticking goes away. The ticking starts at about 22.300 mhz but is very indistinguishable and drops out completely at 29 mhz. The signal is the strongest and loudest on or close to 26.585 mhz. About an S-6 to S-7 on the Icom meter.

I'm about convinced that there's something in the area that's transmitting some kind of signal.

What ever it is, sure is annoying.

 

[rfradioconsult]

Do you have cable TV with a modem for your Internet, a lot of CATV systems use that general frequency range for the uplink signal. Where in SE OK?

 

[shortride]

Do you have cable TV with a modem for your Internet, a lot of CATV systems use that general frequency range for the uplink signal. Where in SE OK?

Yes I do have an internet cable modem. I am in Idabel Oklahoma, the far S.E. corner of the state.

How would the internet cable modem cause the ticking only with the coax connected to the receiver and stop if I disconnect it?

I will try shutting down the internet and unplug the modem power and see if that could be it.

 

[shortride]

Do you have cable TV with a modem for your Internet, a lot of CATV systems use that general frequency range for the uplink signal. Where in SE OK?

Good try, unfortunately that wasn't the source of the ticking either. Thanks for the input.

 

[popnokick]

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If there is cable TV in your neighborhood the source may be coming from a neighbor's modem/cable box, or the utility pole(s) and CATV electronics used in the distribution system. It's called a "leak" and is very common on CATV systems. The source may not be in your house or with your cable modem at all.

 

[jack103]

It's the relay you-hear clicking off and on.

http://forums.radioreference.com/icom-receivers/182314-icom-ic-r75-clicking-sound.html

 

[shortride]

It's the relay you-hear clicking off and on.

http://forums.radioreference.com/icom-receivers/182314-icom-ic-r75-clicking-sound.html

I guess it could be considered clicking off and on. It's not in the r-75 radio because I get the same sound on 2 another radios. It's definitely an outside source that's causing the clicking sound.

Thanks for the help.

 

[rfradioconsult]

If you have a battery powered SW receiver tie it out in your neighborhood and see what you can pick up.

I know SE OK well, spent lot of time during the summers in Broken Bow.

 

[Squad10]

The ticking goes away when the coax is disconnected.



The clicks are approximately 2 per second with a 1 second delay every 3rd or 4th click. It sounds exactly like an old style wind up clock but skips a tick every 2 to 3 seconds.

The clicks are there 24/7 as far as I know. I have checked it in the middle of the night or anytime during the day.

There are no bug zappers in my yard.

I have not tried running the radio off of a battery. The R75 is currently on a new MFJ 70 amp power supply.

If I disconnect the coax the ticking goes away. The ticking starts at about 22.300 mhz but is very indistinguishable and drops out completely at 29 mhz. The signal is the strongest and loudest on or close to 26.585 mhz. About an S-6 to S-7 on the Icom meter.

I'm about convinced that there's something in the area that's transmitting some kind of signal.

What ever it is, sure is annoying.

Sweep the frequency range best you can with your R7100 using both AM and FM modes and report your observations.

 

[ridgescan]

I had the same trouble here, in conjunction with noticable power hiccups. I called my utility company, had him listen to my radio, he went up in the bucket and replaced the ground strap coming off the power lines to my building. This stopped that clicking I had across certain bands and even MW. The next day they came back and put an all new service drop from the power lines to my building (no need to thank me, neighbors) and now we have nice steady full-amps power.
Judging by what you described as clicking in certain bands and not all bands, I suspect it's not a problem with your r75.
Have you tried the "NB" button yet? That one usually kills this type noise. I will run the noise blanker only with preamps off if I need it-it tends to munch some voice on stronger signals when activated.
HTH

 

[shortride]

I had the same trouble here, in conjunction with noticable power hiccups. I called my utility company, had him listen to my radio, he went up in the bucket and replaced the ground strap coming off the power lines to my building. This stopped that clicking I had across certain bands and even MW. The next day they came back and put an all new service drop from the power lines to my building (no need to thank me, neighbors) and now we have nice steady full-amps power.
Judging by what you described as clicking in certain bands and not all bands, I suspect it's not a problem with your r75.
Have you tried the "NB" button yet? That one usually kills this type noise. I will run the noise blanker only with preamps off if I need it-it tends to munch some voice on stronger signals when activated.
HTH

I can use the NB and it may change the tone of the clicking sound a little but not enough to help much. I did have some issues with poor cable TV reception quality a few days ago. The local cable company came out and found the service lines had water in a few connectors.

Sweep the frequency range best you can with your R7100 using both AM and FM modes and report your observations.

I did check the frequencies listed above and the clicking noise is most loud and with the strongest signal on AM. I can tell it in there on side-band but not at all on FM.

 

[Intellifax]

Sounds like a leaky electric fence. Rarely caused by the charger, its usually a bad splice, a cracked insulator, or bad ground. Check this link for more info: http://www.arrl.org/files/file/Technology/Electric_Fence/Electric_Fence_Procedure.pdf

 

[shortride]

I live in town and I doubt there are any electric fences but I could be wrong. There is a railroad about 600 yards from my house.

 

[jack103]

TICKING

Maybe you are hearing the railroads audio frequency track circuits.Or a code osculating relay.

 

[toad99]

Do you have a cordless phone in your house? Also UPS battery backup devices can cause HF noises. It could also be something in your neighbor's house. I hear a constant 1 sec tick in my R75 around 1700-2000 kHz but I haven't found the source yet. It sounds just like the time signals on WWV.

 

[shortride]

Do you have a cordless phone in your house? Also UPS battery backup devices can cause HF noises. It could also be something in your neighbor's house. I hear a constant 1 sec tick in my R75 around 1700-2000 kHz but I haven't found the source yet. It sounds just like the time signals on WWV.

No cordless phones or battery backup systems in the house.

I've got two antennas in my back yard. When the end-fed wire antenna is connected I can still hear the clicking sound but not near as loud or as strong a signal. The only differences in the two antennas is that one is a vertical ground plane at 38 feet. The end-fed horizontal wire antenna is approximately 30 feet.

As I mention in a previous post, there is a railroad near-by and I found a railroad tower with a couple antennas on it about a half mile away.

I wonder if there is any kind of filter available for this sort of situation.

 

[rfradioconsult]

Instead of speculating and guessing where your interference is coming from get yourself a portable SW receiver and go out looking for it. Try the ARRL site for some pointers on interference locating. As much as you would like for the on-line RR community to point you in the right direction you need to be doing the leg work.