iFi iDefender+ External USB Audio Ground Loop Eliminator (Type A - A)

When I moved house and setup up my guitar and synth bits in the new place, I was treated to the most horrendous ground hum, staticy, zuzzing noise through the monitor speakers from the USB audio interface attached to my desktop DAW system. I never had this problem at the old place aside from a very small hum which a small Behringer Hum Destroyer/Suppressor fixed. This little iDefender fella removed most of the noise, leaving only a very faint electrical connection sound in the distance if you put your ear to the speaker and which you'd easily forget about when audio was coming through. So, it did the job it was supposed to do but it is quite expensive at £60. The reason I say "check you really need it" is because I did little more investigation and found a better and cheaper solution for my setup. As I had never had a real problem before, my Steinberg audio interface had always been connected to the Mackie monitors via mono 1/4" cables. Apparently, these are called Unbalanced. The Steinberg and the Mackies both support TRS (stereo) cables otherwise known as Balanced. No idea what all that means but professional stuff all generally supports Balanced. I bought a pair of TRS audio cables from Amazon (RUXELY 6.35mm TRS Instrument Cable) for a grand total of £12 and voilà. ALL the noise vanished. Nothing evident even with your ear up against the speaker. Didn't even need the Behringer. Problem solved. iDefender not required. iDefender returned. Balanced is clearly the way to go and I probably should have known this but I'd never had this problem before in the previous 15 years with all sorts of kit and different interfaces. Balanced TRS cables on everything from now on. That said, if that doesn't do it in your situation then the iDefender will likely get the job done.

It was quiet pricey for such a simple solution (ground loop noise elimination) but it did not work sadly for me. Will not recommend for someone who has an audio interface like Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 taking power via USB.

Lots of different opinions in the reviews but the basic fact is that this little device is made to fix one specific problem, and it fixes it very well. If you have a ground loop issue that is causing your audio interface to hum and crackle - this will fix it. Yes, it's very expensive for what you get. Yes, you need to supply your own external USB power supply. But that pales into insignificance, because it just works. I was getting horrendous interference, humming, call it whatever you like, when I had my Scarlett 8i6 plugged into my PC's USB port. With this, it's absolutely silent. I can turn my amp up to max volume and there isn't a hint of noise. So much so that I keep having to check that it's still powered on. Playing my synths through the audio interface is now crystal clear, the best they've ever sounded. I still can't quite believe it's as good as it is. So like I say. For this one, very specific problem, this little device is fabulous. But if your problem isn't a ground loop, then it ain't gonna do a thing.

At first I thought the stick was defective as I had terrible interference when used with an AudioQuest Dragonfly Cobalt. Adding external power helps, but I was still getting some noise . Powering the unit from my PC didn't work (again, I got some noise), nor did powering it from the wall using a USB 3.1 C cable. I think the problem was that quick charge or fast charge was introducing noise in this case. You want the oldest, dumbest 5V power supply you can find that still works with USB C. The solution for me was to use an old USB 2.0 A to C cable along with an iPhone wall charger With the iPhone charger powering the unit, I can turn my external amp up to 100% (way too loud to listen comfortably or safely) with no signal playing and I get no noise whatsoever - no buzz or hiss. At sensible listening volumes music is crystal clear. The eliminator comes with a USB C to barrel adapter, but I didn't have a suitable power supply on hand for that. If you do what I did and use a phone charger with a USB C cable, be prepared to try a few different cables until you find one that plays nicely with this unit.

I was having a nasty ground loop buzz through my RME Babyface Pro and Yamaha HS5 monitors since I moved into my flat. Despite my skepticism, the iFI Defender actually worked as things are whisper quiet now. Be aware, THIS IS NOT A MIRACLE CURE FOR GROUND LOOPS. I still had to do a lot of trouble-shooting in regards to my setup, as the culprit was due to my multi-effects (Line 6 Helix) creating a lot of noise via its USB connection in the same chain as the RME Babyface ; even with the iFI Defender connected. It still depends on how you chain your audio equipment together. While it may be pricey in comparison to the cheaper ground loop isolation modules on the market, it may be the only product you need to keep you from a large headache with ground loops!

This is an excellent piece of tech that does exactly what it says, eliminates ground loop issues. It totally worked for me and I would highly recommend it. Before buying this item you must establish if you actually have a ground loop issue. I had a noise coming through my studio monitors which sounded like I could hear the computer working if that makes sense, I could even hear a sound when I moved the mouse. After watching a few videos on the internet (recommended) and trying a few remedies, I opted to purchase the iDefender and was so glad I did as it resolved the issue immediately. Note, this only works on a USB powered audio interface and the item also requires a separate 5V/2A power supply. It’s a bit particular about which power supply it needs, so choose one with a barrel end connection and an in-line noise reduction magnet. There’s a short barrel to usb C adapter in the box. You must power the iDefender otherwise it won’t work. I bought this power supply from Amazon and it worked perfectly. https://amzn.eu/d/j0qptp9 Not cheap but highly effective, and highly recommended. Just do your research and get the correct power supply.

I had an issue with ground loop noise when recording music. This one didn't work unfortunately. However, the iFi SilentPower GND Defender worked and removed the noise. I recommend that one.

Ok...so just a heads up - I hate having to do this but the reason I'm giving this device 1 star is simply down to the fact that it didn't work for ME; that's not to say that it doesn't do what is advertised or it won't work for YOU - simply that it didn't deliver in my particular case. To clarify; I've just put together a new self-build computer and when I hooked up my audio interface I was getting a lot of noise from my speakers. Also tried an old interface and the problem persisted. The same noise wasn't present though using my old laptop with the same set-up. Upon researching the problem (graphics card related I'm starting to think) I came across the iFi products and thought I'd try the Defender+. It didn't help the problem and if anything actually increased the amount of noise present. If I can't find a solution then I may try one of the other iFi products but whether they are even relevant to this particular problem I don't really know.