Amp "Hum" caused by dimmer switches


I just recently got an Acurus 100x3 amp to drive the front 3 speakers of my home theater system and I am disapointed to find out that my room light dimmer switch is causing a very noticeable "hum" that can be heard from the listening position when no audio signal/ low passages are present. I did not have this problem using the amp in my harmon/kardon receiver. I do not want to remove the dimmer and go to an on/off switch and do not have the money for a power conditioner. Am I out of luck and have to resell the amp? I bought it used from this sight so I can not return it. The amp sounds very nice when the lights are not in use. I'd love to get some sound advice! Thanks!
brentski71
Albert- Are you using a line conditioner with the Quiet
Lines? I'm having a hum problem with my amp and I have a conditioner and dedicated line. I put the amp in my second system and no hum, so it's not the amp.The hum is local in the amp and goes to the speakers. Any ideas??
Try installing a better quality dimmer - some of the "better" ones have RFI filtration caps. etc. so they output less radiated noise back onto the AC lines. I had this same problem for years, & didn't discover the source until that old round-knob dimmer finally failed & was replaced. The new one is a toggle switch type, but price was comparable BTW. Also I have seen little filters available that you can install across the AC line input & line output. I don't know the manufacturer, but someone here probably does? It appeared to be a quality cap. & a series resistor package, something like 0.1uF in series with 47 ohms?
Also try an AC line conditioner - borrow one from a local dealer for audition. A Chang Lightspeed 3200 or etc. is not that expensive, cheap if bought used & resellable if no help.
I second the recommendation to upgrade your dimmer. Lutron makes a number of high quality wall box installable dimmers. I use 11 of their Diva Series units in my home. Even when they are all on, no hum. Other problematic items are diode (capslite) bulbs, anything with a high/low switch that uses a diode (will drive class b amps (usually subwoofer) crazy).

Another suggestions would be to use a different line to supply the audio system (or dimmer). Best would be a seperate dedicated audio line. Use a very low wattage bulb with no dimmer. Or if you want the ultimate no noise dimmer, replace the dimmer with a variac (variable autotransformer). They don't install cheap, but are silent.
The Lutrons are worth a try as is using a different circuit if you can. None of those worked for me, but shielded interconnects between the preamp and amp completely eliminated the hum for me. Now, it's not easy to find shielded interconnects that aren't a little muffled, but it was the only thing that worked for me, and I did find one that I like.