crackling sound out of right speaker


I am hearing a crackling noise coming from my right speaker.
I have done the following:
Swapped cables (from nordost to MIT)
Swapped left & right sides (left to right and right to left)
Swapped tubes in the amp
Still I have the same crackling sound when no music is playing on any inputs.
My system is:
B&W 802D
Nordost blue heaven speaker cables (all nordost interconnects)
VTL 2.5 preamp
Sonic Frontiers SFS 50
Any thoughts?
maddog66blue
Hi Marakanetz, I'm not going to jerk it up and down, however I did adjust the volume and didn't notice any difference. I don't have a replacement preamp or receiver, I'm going to be bringing both the preamp and amp into the shop for testing.
Excuse me boys, but if the problem did not jump from R speaker to L speaker, when the OP swapped speaker cables from R to L and L to R, then he need go no further; the problem is in the speaker. This is assuming I have the correct understanding of what was done. Brf keeps saying this, too. I agree with Brf, but it's not merely a matter of opinion.

Dear Maddog, It would make sense to seek outside help to evaluate your speaker. Perhaps your dealer can help. One thing is sure: none of us can help from this distance.
02-12-13: Maddog66blue
No I didn't swap IC's, just the speaker cables.
Does this mean that you interchanged L & R at one end of the speaker cables, so that what had been the right amplifier channel was then connected to the left speaker, and vice versa? Or does it mean that you literally swapped the speaker cables, changing their connections at both ends, so that what had been the right amplifier channel was still connected to the right speaker?

Regards,
-- Al
Almarg, at the amp, I switched the left and right speaker cables so basically, left is right and vice versa.
If the problem stayed in the right speaker when you did that, and given that you've tried a different set of speaker cables, and assuming that there has been no crackling from the left speaker at any time, there are only two possibilities that occur to me:

1)The speaker has a problem, as Brf and Lew suggested. Perhaps there is a short in the speaker, that is causing the amplifier to have problems that in turn result in it supplying a crackling "signal," even when no music is playing.

2)The cable going to the right speaker is in close proximity to some source of radiated interference (RFI/EMI), such as a power cord, and that interference is entering the feedback loop of the amplifier (assuming it has one), and causing the amplifier to output a signal which causes the speaker to crackle.

I don't see how the problem could be caused by a defect in the amp or the preamp or a source component, given the findings you've described.

Regards,
-- Al