Help, my Altec Lansing ACS 48 is going-edit: gone retarded, it won't always turn on!! Heelllpp me you speaker techies!!

[erikiksaz]

I have this thing plugged into a wall outlet, and it doesn't always turn on. And when it is on, it's not because I turned it on through the on buttons, it's because i manually plugged the socket into the wall outlet. Depressing the buttons does NOT turn anything on or off. Turning this thing off requires me to manually unplug the socket. And after it is on, the Volume Down button does not work, the only button that works is Volume Up. I decided to crack open the control satellite, and everything checked out so far. The fuse looks fine to me, it's not blown or anything. SOOO, what can possibly be wrong?

BTW- when it is on, the speakers work fine, despite the fact that i can't turn down the music through the control satellite.

 

[d33pt]

i think the contacts for that button is probably dead... look at them and maybe clean them out with some alcohol

 

[erikiksaz]

They're not really contacts, they're little button like thingamajiggers, i wouldn't be able to take those things apart.

 

[Cessna172]

Do these speakers have a DIN-type plug connecting them to the subwoofer? If so, does wiggling that plug on the back of the sub make it turn off and on?
If this is the case, you may have the same problem I had with my Altec 295s--the solder contacts for the connector that accepts the DIN plug came loose and weren't making contact with the circuit board. I cracked the sub open, re-soldered them and it works flawlessly now. But, you may have some other issue--I don't know.

 

[kami]

<< thingamajiggers >>


LOL...well that explains everything. Those thingamajiggers are hard to fix.

 

[Thegonagle]

You turn the thing on by pressing both volume buttons simultaneously, correct? And the volume down button doesn?t work? You?ve got a bad button. If you?re adept with your soldering iron and slightly creative, you can replace it with parts from Radio Shack. Otherwise, I?d just replace the set with something from Yamaha or Boston.

EDIT: Good idea, Cessna. Check the DIN plug connector in the sub box first!

 

[yllus]

My first set of Altec Lansing ACS56 Digitals had approximately the same problem when I got them - plugging the set into the wall for the first time turned them on, and the controls never worked properly - twirl the volume knob or press the buttons and it'd change nothing. The LEDs had a tendency to light up funny, too. I ended up plain RMA'ing the suckers and waiting a month for the new set.

Your speakers are on the way out, if you're out of warranty coverage plug them in and leave them on, because sooner or later they'll stop turning on like my first set did. By the way, the Altec rep I talked to attributed the problem to a defective master speaker (the one with the controls on it). Good luck!