Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Everyone loves this pad except for the "transformer noise". The purpose of this review is to explain what is going on and how to remove the noise. What everyone is calling a transformer is actually a switching power supply. A switching power supply does indeed have a small transformer in it, but the transformer is operating at 14-20 kHz (cycles per second), which allows it to be relatively small. The sound put out by a switching power supply is such a high frequency that many people will not be able to hear it at all. That is why some people say they hear nothing at all while others are bothered by it. My guess is those who find the noise annoying are people who do not listen to lots of rock music. Those of us who listen to loud music have long since lost the ability to hear sounds above 15 kHz. If you own one of these blankets and wish to get rid of the sound, put a large soup bowl or other bowl over it. The bowl size must be large enough to avoid an overheating of the enclosed powersupply. First time you try this, check to make sure the power supply is not getting too warm. High frequencies will not escape from underneath the bowl provided the power supply is on a carpet or placed on a hand towel. A safer alternative to the bowl approach is to find a one foot piece of metal pipe with a diameter large enough to put the power supply inside. The pipe will not transmit the high frequencies effectively, and should remove the noise. If you can still hear the sound, try putting a hand cloth in the end facing out. The pipe should be metal to avoid resonating with the power supply. Finally, if all else fails, buy an acid rock CD and listen to it full blast with earphones. I promise you will not notice the "transformer noise" again.