Bliman!

This is a new thing, but at least you'll be Fried whilst having a nicely uniform Room Response. 

I had a similar issue some years ago with an entirely different bit of gear.  Caused by horribly faulty electrical wiring in my commuter flat here in the Caribbean.   BS Wiring?  In the Caribe?  Imagine that! 

Listen to MC.   Perhaps also, it might be good to have a Qualified Electrician pay a visit to inspect your Electrical Service.   It worked for me!!

Best!

Curt

Hi, first thanks for the answer.
Why do you say that my power amplifier is not grounded?
This is new and I haven't changed anything in my set. I also don't get that you say that it is normal. Maybe I am missing something.
But I would like to get rid of it fast. Because it is very nasty to always get these shocks.

Yeah, that is what I have been thinking about as well, it looks and feels like static discharge (but a hard one that you can feel).
But I haven't got any shocks besides my power amplifier and dac.
Now I have a bed in the room that can give friction and static electricity. And I also have a heater for warming my room for a short time in the evening. Maybe that gets rid of the moisture.

Yeah it is static discharge I think. It is very nasty.
I know now how they train rats. I am fearful of touching the gear now.
Yeah in the (near) future we will go a little further with the room. In a new thread or the one we posted in.
You are great by the way

Matthias, I have to partly disagree with what you said, a healthy ADI-2 cannot cause this:

• The voltage caused by ADI-2 Pro's PSU is exactly 1/2 of the mains voltage, not 90V.
This hints to the fact that it's by design, without opening the PSU I predict there are two small capacitors of equal value connecting phase and null to the secondary, a common practice.
Or it's the result of stray coupling between primary and secondary, but this usually would result in different voltages if you turn the plug to reverse phase and null, which is not the case.

• I can, by measurement, agree that normally the resulting current is extremly low, several magnitudes below what is dangerous for humans, nothing to worry if the ADI-2 PSU is in factory condition.

• Coming to the topic starters problem:
No static discharge as low as only 1/2 of the mains voltage, in a typical home system, can give the sensation of "beeing shocked".
In fact, the effect is so small that you need to know how to provoke it and what to watch out for to feel it.

• The amount of "shock" sensation described leads to the conclusion:
Something is broken, either in ADI-2's PSU or in the power amplifier used, or something got wet inside.
Much more current then usually is flowing, if this gets worse it might become dangerous.
And, yes, the power amplifier is obviously not grounded, by design, by defect, or by miswiring of the mains cabeling.

Every device in the system can be the cause, need not necessarily be ADI-2.

A professional electrician should have a look!
This is NOT a DIY task.

• One alternative explanation:
The topic starter has either a new floor carpet, or new shoes that cause charging him personally to several 10,000V (!) static voltage, that discharges each time he touches something grounded.
As children we did this intentionally to see and feel the spark.

If it's only personal static charge it shouldn't only happen on the Hifi, but when touching other grounded metal stuff too.

I should give you more information.
I only get one shock when I touch it. You can see the electric spark from my finger or knuckles to the dac or power amplifier. Now what you count as a shock is not so simple. It is nasty and I don't like to touch the units anymore. Now it isn't massive but it isn't pleasant either.
I have no new shoes or carpet and nothing has changed in my environment.
I touched it just now and it didn't do it. But it did yesterday.
I haven't got any sparks from something else (I had none when I petted my cat, or something else, which in the winter it could happen).
Is there something that I could do to get rid of it? So I can touch my units safely. Without worrying that I get a static discharge or test it that it is the case?

I have a hard time advising you to DIY any further, but you asked, so be it:

"You can see the electric spark from my finger..." 100% means it's a static charge voltage in the range of 10,000V.
A shock from the 230V mains power does not spark, but it badly hurts.

One thing you can do safely:

In Belgium the mains wall socket has a pin that sticks out, the safety ground.

Touch this pin immediately before you touch your system, to discharge yourself.
It's safe to touch this pin (it sticks out!),
but your other hand has to be in your back pocket, just to be sure.

(1) Do you get the "spark" at the mains socket?
(2) Do you still get the "spark" now touching your system immediately before moving around?

If (1) yes, (2) no:
the problem is static electricity caused by your carpet/shoe combination in dry air (aircondition?) environment.
Annoying, but not dangerous.
Use this on your carpet/floor:
https://www.weidinger.eu/de/p/wl23898

If (1) no (2) yes:
Something's wrong with the electrical safety of your system.
Can be anything, hard to give remote diagnosis, and not a DIY thing anyway.

Thank you very much everyone.
I will test the above for a couple of days and tell you what the results were. Thank you for helping me

Ok here goes.
I am going nuts.
I got a few shocks when touching the pin from the socket(one at a time between sitting down). Then I didn't get a shock from the gear, when I touched the pin before.
But now I have another problem (maybe related, but I don't think so). Since a couple of days I am getting a crackle in my left loudspeaker (see video underneath). It happens sporadically. I have switched my loudspeakers cables. That didn't help. I have unplugged my cd player, that also didn't help. I have plugged the plug from where everything is plugged in in another socket and that didn't help either.
This is getting frustrating. If someone can help or recognize it?
Why didn't they use a great mains cable for the dac instead of this flimsy cable, it doesn't give me much confidence?
Here is the video (hopefully it works)
https://streamable.com/2a8vj6

First I don't know if I understand you enough.
I played some music and after some time the crackles again began in the left loudspeaker (I can't control when the crackles appear). I then unplugged the interconnect from the RME preamp/dac from the cd player. The only thing that is connected besides the obvious of the RME preamp/dac to my power amplifier. And the crackles continued when I disconnected the interconnect.
Tomorrow I will connect the Grace Design m902 preamp/dac to the set in the hope to narrow the problem down a bit. If the crackles appear then. Then I assume it is either the loudspeaker or the power amp. If not then the RME is the problem as far as I can see.

But I did your test. I sometimes got a small spark (very small) when I touched the pin. And then I didn't get any spark when touching the gear.
But now the last couple of days I have this crackle in the left speaker (see video). I think they are not related. And I think that I get the static shocck from laying on the bed or sitting on the bed. I don't think my rug is the problem. What is your opinion of the crackles?
Also thank you both for helping.

My power amp hasn't got a level control (lyngdorf sda 2175).
I don't get why I should unplug the left cable. What do I learn from that when it is only in the left loudspeaker?
Or what do you want me to unplug? The left loudspeaker cable? The left channel balanced cable from the RME to my power amplifier?

The crackling is on the left, yes?
Now unplug the left cable from ADI-2 to the power amp.
If the crackling stays, the power amp is the cause.

Have you seen the styrofoamed cat, funny!
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triboelectric_effect

Yes, that's the way to isolate the problem.

Take your time Bliman.   Troubleshooting any system is typically a process of elimination.   Removing ???s...one by one to find the answer.  The purpose of this exercise was to isolate (disconnect)  your Amplifier from Input Sources as a means of isolating the CAUSE of the problem.   If (with nothing connected to your amp inputs) we still hear strange noises, then it is your Amplifier that has malfunctioned.   I suspect this IS in fact the problem. 

Hang in there Bliman!   Things break sometimes.

Curt

We already excluded that, but you're close, it's a cloth to cloth rub causing the static charge.

I just had a better idea, instead of removing one connection:
Exchange the INPUT connections at the power amplifier L<>R.

If still the left speaker makes the noise, the power amp is the cause.

If now the right speaker crackles, it's ADI-2.

Three advantages:
• You get a positive confirmation.
• The confirmation will be there faster, you're not have to wait for something that might not happen (if ADI-2 is the cause).
• You still can listen to music in stereo, just with reversed channels.

I have switched the balanced cables from the RME to the power amplifier L/R (switched it on the power amplifier side) and the crackles are still coming from the left side loudspeaker.
Is it certain then that the power amplifier is broken? And would I need to buy a new one then?

I have made contact with my audio dealer. And I can bring the power amplifier in.
Thanks for all the help.

Bliman...

PM me with the status of your Amplifier.   Else, let's make this thread disappear yes?

A malfunctioning Amplifier could do weird things. Including Shocks.  None of it RME related.

Thanks! 

Curt

How hard?

• Like shaking your arm continuously - in this case something in your chain is broken (not necessarily ADI-2) and you should immediately stop using it.

• Or more like a single spark, flashing from your finger, then nothing more?
That’s a static electricity discharge that origins from you charging by moving around, e.g. on a nylon carpet.
Annoying, not dangerous and not ADI-2’s fault.

I had similar problems introduced through a antenna cable from a radio. It caused a relatively high voltage on all devices on the same circuit. I solved it by adding what I think is a galvanic isolator where the antenna cable enters the house, this removed this voltage.

This discharge is static.
I bought some slippers a few weeks ago. When I wear them and touch anything metal that’s grounded I get a shock.
If your hifi components are NOT grounded you will not get a shock.
Certain materials rubbing on a nylon carpet ect will produce static discharge.

My new slippers are in the bin, no more problems.