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I've recently purchased a canon Powershot s80 which I'm very pleased
with.

However, I've noticed that if the camera is in shooting mode and the
LCD display is on, there's a slight buzzing noise coming from the
battery area. It is only noticeable if you put your ear to the camera
and it doesn't bother me, although I haven't recorded any movies so I
don't know if it affects the sound in movies. Also if the camera is in
shooting mode and the LCD display is off or the camera is in play mode,
there is no noise.

I've tried two different batteries and two different memory cards and
the noise is still there.

I just want to know if all S80s are the same or if its a specific
"feature" of my camera, as if it is I'll see if I can get a
replacement.

Thanks for any help
Alison

Hi Alison
I have just listened to my S80 and I can't hear any noise at all.
I would take it back to the shop if I was you.
By the way, I was not very impressed with the sound quality of the movie
clips I have taken. A lot of white noise (which can be filtered out with
Virtual Dub if required)
I took mine back and they tried another one but that was exactly the same.
Regards
Bill


"Alison" <> wrote in message
news: ups.com...
> I've recently purchased a canon Powershot s80 which I'm very pleased
> with.
>
> However, I've noticed that if the camera is in shooting mode and the
> LCD display is on, there's a slight buzzing noise coming from the
> battery area. It is only noticeable if you put your ear to the camera
> and it doesn't bother me, although I haven't recorded any movies so I
> don't know if it affects the sound in movies. Also if the camera is in
> shooting mode and the LCD display is off or the camera is in play mode,
> there is no noise.
>
> I've tried two different batteries and two different memory cards and
> the noise is still there.
>
> I just want to know if all S80s are the same or if its a specific
> "feature" of my camera, as if it is I'll see if I can get a
> replacement.
>
> Thanks for any help
> Alison
>

Bill

Thanks for taking the time to test your camera out. I have just tested
the movie and found that the buzzing noise can easily be heard in the
movie. I can't comment on white noise as the buzzing probably masks
it!

I also found that the buzzing changes pitch if I switch between HiRes
and standard movie modes!

I purchased the camera online so I've dropped them an email about the
problem and we'll see how good their post sales service is.

Regards
Alison

On 18 May 2006 15:09:00 -0700, Alison wrote:

> Thanks for taking the time to test your camera out. I have just tested
> the movie and found that the buzzing noise can easily be heard in the
> movie. I can't comment on white noise as the buzzing probably masks
> it!
>
> I also found that the buzzing changes pitch if I switch between HiRes
> and standard movie modes!

This sounds like what has happened with PDAs, where the LCD
sometimes "hums" when the resonant frequency of the display is too
close to the frequency of electrical signals that control it. If
this is the cause of the buzzing, you might be able to verify it by
pressing a finger on the LCD to see if it has any effect. This was
often cured by opening the PDA and gluing a small mass to the back
of the display. Sometimes the buzzing was caused by vibrations of a
small internal transformer, and gluing a small mass to the
transformer also eliminated the vibrations/noise. Unfortunately,
opening a camera is likely to be much more difficult than opening a
PDA, and attempting to do so may cause real damage.

On 18 May 2006 11:37:55 -0700, in rec.photo.digital "Alison"
<> wrote:

>I've recently purchased a canon Powershot s80 which I'm very pleased
>with.
>
>However, I've noticed that if the camera is in shooting mode and the
>LCD display is on, there's a slight buzzing noise coming from the
>battery area. It is only noticeable if you put your ear to the camera
>and it doesn't bother me, although I haven't recorded any movies so I
>don't know if it affects the sound in movies. Also if the camera is in
>shooting mode and the LCD display is off or the camera is in play mode,
>there is no noise.
>
>I've tried two different batteries and two different memory cards and
>the noise is still there.
>
>I just want to know if all S80s are the same or if its a specific
>"feature" of my camera, as if it is I'll see if I can get a
>replacement.

You don't have autofocus set to a continuous mode, do you? This is
where the camera continually focuses and you can hear the focus motor.
Known issue with many Nikon Coolpix cameras.
__________________________________________________ ______
Ed Ruf Lifetime AMA# 344007 ()
http://EdwardGRuf.com

I just have the camera in the standard settings and if the LCD isn't
switched on there is no humming noise.

Anyway I now have a replacement camera from camerasu2 which I received
the next working day after I telephoned them asking for a replacement.
Faultless service.

The new camera still has a very very quiet hum but it can't be heard on
the movies and you have to hold the camera on your ear to hear it.
With the original camera you could hear the noise if the camera was
about 4 inches from your ear.

I still wonder if this is "normal" for the S80. Could someone do a
test for me just to put my mind at rest?

1. set the camera dial to "A" automatic.
2. open the lens cover and make sure the LCD is switched on.
3. put the camera right up to your ear (with your ear on the func set
button area!).
4. listen for ANY noise.
5. press the display (triangle button) to switch the camera into Play
mode (ie not shooting mode).
6. listen for ANY noise again.

On my replacement camera there's a very faint noise at step 4 but
absolutely no noise on step 6. With my original camera there was a
very noticeable noise at step 4 but absolutely no noise on step 6.

Thanks to anyone who does this test for me
Alison

"Alison" <> wrote in message
news: oups.com...
>I just have the camera in the standard settings and if the LCD isn't
> switched on there is no humming noise.
>
> Anyway I now have a replacement camera from camerasu2 which I received
> the next working day after I telephoned them asking for a replacement.
> Faultless service.
>
> The new camera still has a very very quiet hum but it can't be heard on
> the movies and you have to hold the camera on your ear to hear it.
> With the original camera you could hear the noise if the camera was
> about 4 inches from your ear.
>
> I still wonder if this is "normal" for the S80. Could someone do a
> test for me just to put my mind at rest?
>
> 1. set the camera dial to "A" automatic.
> 2. open the lens cover and make sure the LCD is switched on.
> 3. put the camera right up to your ear (with your ear on the func set
> button area!).
> 4. listen for ANY noise.
> 5. press the display (triangle button) to switch the camera into Play
> mode (ie not shooting mode).
> 6. listen for ANY noise again.
>
> On my replacement camera there's a very faint noise at step 4 but
> absolutely no noise on step 6. With my original camera there was a
> very noticeable noise at step 4 but absolutely no noise on step 6.
>
> Thanks to anyone who does this test for me
> Alison
>

Hi Alison
Glad to hear you got first class service and a replacement camera. I carried
out the test as you specified but I can honestly say that I can not hear any
noise whatsoever and I have very acute hearing (or so my wife says).

Are you sure you got a new camera in return and not your old one back that
someone has tried to fix? Just a thought.

Regards
Bill

On 24 May 2006 01:22:20 -0700, Alison wrote:

> I still wonder if this is "normal" for the S80. Could someone do a
> test for me just to put my mind at rest?
>
> 1. set the camera dial to "A" automatic.
> 2. open the lens cover and make sure the LCD is switched on.
> 3. put the camera right up to your ear (with your ear on the func set
> button area!).
> 4. listen for ANY noise.
> 5. press the display (triangle button) to switch the camera into Play
> mode (ie not shooting mode).
> 6. listen for ANY noise again.
>
> On my replacement camera there's a very faint noise at step 4 but
> absolutely no noise on step 6. With my original camera there was a
> very noticeable noise at step 4 but absolutely no noise on step 6.
>
> Thanks to anyone who does this test for me

I'm not sure what this test is intended to show. In all
likelihood, *none* of the cameras are "defective". Electronic
oscillations (whether across the LCD or an internal transformer) are
probably the cause of the noise problem when it occurs. The only
time the problem *does* occur is probably when the resonant
frequency of the LCD or transformer is close enough to the
electronic oscillations to cause the part to vibrate, becoming in
effect a small loudspeaker. The resonant frequency of an object is
determined by its mass, and if one of the parts weighs a tiny bit
more or a tiny bit less, it could be enough to get the part's
resonant frequency close enough to the electronic oscillation
frequency to cause the vibrations that you heard. In other words,
nothing was really broken or defective, but the mass market device
(your camera, and most others as well) don't undergo the kind of
quality control that would detect this kind of problem before it
reaches store shelves. Since there was no reply to my previous
message, I assume that you didn't try the simple test that was
suggested. In any case (and in this case) requesting a replacement
was the proper thing to do. It's possible, though, for this kind of
noise problem to begin long after the initial warranty expires. If
it was a PDA, it might be quite easy to fix at home. A camera, on
the other hand, is so easily damaged by disassembly that it would
probably be better to replace it.

Sorry for not responding previous, but I did press the LCD on the
original camera and the humming/buzzing did not stop or get any
quieter. I do agree that it is probably something inside the camera
that is vibrating and causing the noise.

To answer Bill's question, I had both cameras in my possession at the
same time so I know that the new camera is actually a different one.

I think I'll send off a query to Canon to see if this is an issue with
some S80s.

Thanks for your help guys.
Alison