(update.. interesting discovery) after power loss and possible surge, Klipsch stopped working.

[tigerbait]

Had computer and speakers on a fairly good surge suppresor.. one of the monster cable $50 strips. The power went out during a storm, turned off the strip, then put it back on when everything was fine. Computer works fine, but Klipsch do not turn on. No led, no sound. I have the v2.400, BTW. Is there an accessible fuse inside the panel? And what do you people know about the warranty claims on surge suppressing products. The box claims $10,000 warranty if surge protector fails. Any ideas?

Thanks

 

[tigerbait]

midnight bumpy.

 

[dowxp]

weird. i guess start calling up the surge protector company. or call the support for klipsch for options

 

[MichaelD]

Forgive this question, but have you plugged the speakers into a known working outlet (NOT the strip) just to see if they power LED would turn on? Surge protectors have switched and non-switched outlets. They are all supposed to be covered with the same amount of over-voltage protection. It's possbile that during the outage, something got shorted-out/screwed up in the strip. That would mean that it did it's job. If you plug the speaks into an outlet that you know for a fact works (an outlet that a lamp is plugged into is a good one to use...the lamp is either on, or it isn't!) and the speaks still don't work, then you have two choices.

1. Don't mess w/it, send them back under warranty, and let them replace it...or

2. Unscrew the back panel, which is actually the speaker connections on the outside and the amplifier on the inside and look for a fuse. I'm sure there is one. Go to electronics supply store/RadioSmack and get the fuse, see if the new fuse fixes the problem. If the new fuse doesn't fix the problem....

3. Put the old fuse back and either:

a) try to claim it under the warranty for the power strip...could take months

b) try to claim it under the warranty for the speakers...could take months


Good luck!

 

[tigerbait]

Tried them in another outlet... no go. Warranty from Klipsch is only a year, and I got mine in September of 99. I saw some pics of the inside on some site, and there appears to be a fuse, hopefully that is the only problem. Why not put an external fuse? Make people send off for warranty to service for a fuse?

 

[MichaelD]

They put the fuse in the inside so people who are afraid of electronics won't open it up. You send it to them for repair and they charge you almost as much to fix it as you paid 4 it when it was new. Typical big business. I have the PM 4.1's. Same thing, no outside fuse. My Cerwin-Vega Lt-15 HT sub is the same way. Amp is inside, so is the fuse. Open that bad boy up and replace the fuse. I hope that fixes it for you.

 

[tigerbait]

Well, I just finally got around to opening up the sub. The fuse was intact. I whipped out the voltmeter and started doing some tests. Transformer was working fine. But no power was getting to the preamp or anywhere else. I was fooling around and decided to discharge the big capacitor , and lo and behold, after a few blinks and pops, the green led lit up, the speakers worked. I unplugged the speakers. Plugged them back in, nothing .. no light, no sound. I shorted the cap again, the speakers turned on again. And they'll stay on as long as they don't get unplugged. So I put it back together while it was plugged in, and now they are working fine. I wish I could find a spec sheet or schematics page for the speakers, so I could possibly replace the cap.

I would go make my claim through my surge protector, but I don't have my receipt anymore. . I bought that thing years ago:|

 

[MichaelD]

Hey Tiger,

Wow, you came back w/news! That's cool. Kudos to you for opening that bad boy up. You actually went pretty far; further than I would've gone, most probably. You got down to testing individual components. You rule. Anyway, I've never opened up my 4.1's. (Don't have the desire and hope I never have to!) What "big cap?" Is it a power supply filter cap? I.E. right near the transformer? Or is it a cap near the power amp sections? The rating for the cap is right on it...you could feasibly get a replacemnt and solder it in yourself. If you've got the knowledge to test a cap w/a VOM, I'm sure you could physically replace that cap. If you're unsure of it's rating, desolder it, take to an electronics supply house. Betcha they ID it within 5 seconds of looking at it. They do that stuff all day.

Interesting problem though. Who would've thought that of all the components in there, that a cap would go bad? Go fig. Keep us posted and let us know how it turns out. Good luck.

 

[dowxp]

wow... i dunno how to do all that yet. hope i learn someday. goodjob!

 

[tigerbait]

I'm pretty sure it was the power supply filter cap. Right above the transformer. The thing is I already put back together and don't feel like opening it again to get the specs. I was hoping for an easy way to find it out. But I'll open it back up soon and try to replace it. I was wondering if the diode connected to the + end of the cap could also be bad, but I figured that if the diode was messed up, then it wouldn't be able to work at all.

here is a pic that i found of the inside.. you have to cut and paste (angelfire)
http://www.angelfire.com/az3/klipschmod/DSC00010.JPG

 

[tigerbait]

nm