Update:
I opened the amp and the caps looked new. Not expanded or bubbly; did not see any leakage. I had forgotten I also had an Adcom 515 power conditioner. The reason I know little about the set up is that the system was picked by a consultant named Lewis Lipnick who was an audiophile and played the contrabassoon with the National Symphony orchestra. The system is almost ready and I am working on double wiring the speakers.
I opened the amp and the caps looked new. Not expanded or bubbly; did not see any leakage. I had forgotten I also had an Adcom 515 power conditioner. The reason I know little about the set up is that the system was picked by a consultant named Lewis Lipnick who was an audiophile and played the contrabassoon with the National Symphony orchestra. The system is almost ready and I am working on double wiring the speakers.
Be extremely careful to avoid shorting the amplifier output terminals,
either at the amplifier, or at the speaker terminals.
Even one thin strand of wire would cause a serious problem in the amplifier.
either at the amplifier, or at the speaker terminals.
Even one thin strand of wire would cause a serious problem in the amplifier.
I gotta love how people justify that a mere "look", visually at a component, and assume things are ok.
I always wondered about that. I am using a speaker switch to go between the Adcom amp and a Denon AVR. I am currently wiring the switch and may redo some of the connections so there is no chance of loose strands of copper.
Apparently you have a speaker selector switch, and want to wire it backwards for use as an amplifier selector switch.
The switch can be even more of a problem. One mistake and one or both of the amplifiers will be shorted out,
and be severely damaged. I would not use the switch at all.
The switch can be even more of a problem. One mistake and one or both of the amplifiers will be shorted out,
and be severely damaged. I would not use the switch at all.
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I hear you. But the amp worked the last time I used it. An online amp tech asked me to measure the voltage at the speaker terminals when the amp is turned on with nothing attached. My voltmeter measured near zero in both terminals. According to the online amp tech that was a good sign.
Minimal DC, and normal AC volts is the right response, I think.
Analog meters are handy in such cases.
I may be wrong.
And please, use dedicated speakers, switches can damage amps, that is expensive gear.
And if you must, add speaker protection circuits, or something similar to protect the amps.
Analog meters are handy in such cases.
I may be wrong.
And please, use dedicated speakers, switches can damage amps, that is expensive gear.
And if you must, add speaker protection circuits, or something similar to protect the amps.
This is what I ordered. I would only use the switch with the amps turned off. You think the switch may short?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B093GSS8P7?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
Attachments
If possible, use line out from Denon (or monitor) to feed the Adcom.
Safer, and no switch to worry about.
It looks like a toggle switch, may not handle the loads.
And if it is used by say a child....that is another issue.
Safer, and no switch to worry about.
It looks like a toggle switch, may not handle the loads.
And if it is used by say a child....that is another issue.
My option is to have the stereo and the AVR system with separate speakers. Or to create a listening room in the basement. In either case would have to buy a new set of speakers. My wife is negative about this but at the end she accepts. She is quite happy with the Sonos speaker in the kitchen.
Used speakers show up cheap, everybody is changing to personal stuff like ear buds.
Look around.
Look around.
So the amp works, good.
However, my earlier comment, as a long time professional servicer, was to point out that I hear many people peek around inside electronics, with "capacitors" on their minds (due to the insane paranoia of "bulging bad caps" discussed and tossed around on the internet) and expect to see what they've "heard about". - and if nothing is obvious at a glance, they assume they're fine.
Capacitors can go "bad" internally with no visual signs.
A "visual" look is not a reliable or professional way to determine health or reliability.
That can only be determined by someone experienced and having the right diagnostic equipment.
Anybody reading this, take note.
A good looking 'Samhwa' cap was the cause of intermittent failure on a dot matrix printer, it would stop printing, reset to power on, then resume, in the middle of the page, and obviously lose data, so I had to use another piece of paper.
It is a local TVS made Proton from 2005, with an external brick supply, checked out everything, then basically changed the capacitor inside the machine with a local 'Keltron' cap, the other two next to it were 'Keltron' anyway!
Problem solved.
'Keltron' is a licensee of Sprague, they are reputed in India.
Get a cheap graphic type capacitor meter, they work well enough.
Check the caps after using the unit at low to medium volume for a week, that allows them to reform.
Then replace if needed, use good quality capacitors.
It is a local TVS made Proton from 2005, with an external brick supply, checked out everything, then basically changed the capacitor inside the machine with a local 'Keltron' cap, the other two next to it were 'Keltron' anyway!
Problem solved.
'Keltron' is a licensee of Sprague, they are reputed in India.
Get a cheap graphic type capacitor meter, they work well enough.
Check the caps after using the unit at low to medium volume for a week, that allows them to reform.
Then replace if needed, use good quality capacitors.
The basic cap checkers are useful devices, however, I've had plenty of electrolytic caps that read as OK on them, and yet when tested with my ESR meter, they were way out of tolerance.
Has ESR facility, $15 here, enough for basic stuff.
Image off the net, no ties to seller, pretty generic item, many sellers should be there.
I do not disagree. I was mainly concerned with a cap leaking its contents into adjacent structures causing a short circuit. I am trying to find a local person to check out the amp. I live in Rockville, Maryland.
I just hooked the amp and bypassed the speaker switch box. The amp is as quiet as a tomb. The music sounded way better than on the Denon AVR. The music even had more bass without the benefit of my woofer. There was a lot of detail. What a difference! I also moved the speakers away from the wall and my wife thinks is blasphemy. I played wav files from a HD connected to the USB of a Blu Ray player. I use the digital out into a Schiit DAC and that goes to the Adcom pre-amp.
Should I do nothing if it the amp is working OK? My plan was to have someone take a look.
Should I do nothing if it the amp is working OK? My plan was to have someone take a look.
@julian658
"I was mainly concerned with a cap leaking its contents....."
Preventative Maintenance is a smart idea, just like keeping a car in good shape to insure it's safety and longevity.
But as mentioned, in some cases its taken a bit too far.
That is what I was explaining before - the "widespread internet-driven worry/paranoia" that's been created among people due to reading too much from those internet guru's who obsess over things, and tend to make others nuts.
As for the noticeable difference in sound from the Denon AVR - it's because of digital processing from within.
An audio-only amplifier on the other hand, if sticking with pure analog amplification, is more suitable for music, keeping the sound the way it should be heard.
We hear sound in analog.... speaking to someone in person.... listening to an orchestra live.... birds chirping in nature.... etc.
None of that is processed electronically.
"I was mainly concerned with a cap leaking its contents....."
Preventative Maintenance is a smart idea, just like keeping a car in good shape to insure it's safety and longevity.
But as mentioned, in some cases its taken a bit too far.
That is what I was explaining before - the "widespread internet-driven worry/paranoia" that's been created among people due to reading too much from those internet guru's who obsess over things, and tend to make others nuts.
As for the noticeable difference in sound from the Denon AVR - it's because of digital processing from within.
An audio-only amplifier on the other hand, if sticking with pure analog amplification, is more suitable for music, keeping the sound the way it should be heard.
We hear sound in analog.... speaking to someone in person.... listening to an orchestra live.... birds chirping in nature.... etc.
None of that is processed electronically.