I just traded a friend for a Parasound HCA-3500 amp with a dead left channel.
My original plan was to scrap it for parts and use the chassis for an Aleph JZM build but I wanted to first see if it’s worth trying to fix.
Here is what I found out:
Left channel relay does not click.
If I unplug the psu from the left channel it clicks on and I can see that the B+ and B- voltages are correct.
Every fuse on that left channel was removed and tested for continuity
I performed a diode check on each output transistor when still connected and they seemed to all be fine.
I am torn between the three options below:
I am located in Houston, TX. Below are pics of the inside of the amp after removing the left channel and a pic of the left channel (I had removed one of the 100uf caps for testing)
My original plan was to scrap it for parts and use the chassis for an Aleph JZM build but I wanted to first see if it’s worth trying to fix.
Here is what I found out:
Left channel relay does not click.
If I unplug the psu from the left channel it clicks on and I can see that the B+ and B- voltages are correct.
Every fuse on that left channel was removed and tested for continuity
I performed a diode check on each output transistor when still connected and they seemed to all be fine.
I am torn between the three options below:
- Part it out and use the chassis for an Aleph JZM (I have every part to build this amp)
- Part it out and use the chassis for an F5 Turbo V2 (because of the chassis size, but I do not have any of the parts)
- Take it to get it fixed but our local tech charges quite a bit (guessing anywhere from $350-$600 to fix)
I am located in Houston, TX. Below are pics of the inside of the amp after removing the left channel and a pic of the left channel (I had removed one of the 100uf caps for testing)
Attachments
With the relay not engaging, I would assume I need to check dc offset at the relay, correct?
I have not checked for dc offset yet
I have not checked for dc offset yet
I will check the relay DC offset once I get home. As for the white film caps, are you referring to these? I count two of them on the board.
Please don't part it out. I always wanted one of those. Sell it and get a nice chassis for your diy projects. Sell it to me lol
These have some fans. Sell it if you do not want to fix it yourself. Costs elsewhere are not as high as in Houston.
My brother has trouble there getting anything repaired competently. He takes his ford trucks to Brenham, I believe. Parasound has some fans. I bid on one once on ebay. Lost the auction for twice the price that an equivalent Peavey product would have drawn in "for parts or repair" condition.
My brother has trouble there getting anything repaired competently. He takes his ford trucks to Brenham, I believe. Parasound has some fans. I bid on one once on ebay. Lost the auction for twice the price that an equivalent Peavey product would have drawn in "for parts or repair" condition.
Ok. I will try to fix it or at least get it fixed. I’ll be home soon to check dc offset then the white film capacitors to be sure they aren’t shorted.
I’m open to selling but shipping this thing will be tough…
We have a local tech that I could ask to fix it but he’s constantly busy and his prices are very high. He charges $30 just to look at it even if I tell him what the problem is.
I don’t mind attempting to repair it but this thing could take a lot of time with me not having the equipment. Any ideas where to check?
We have a local tech that I could ask to fix it but he’s constantly busy and his prices are very high. He charges $30 just to look at it even if I tell him what the problem is.
I don’t mind attempting to repair it but this thing could take a lot of time with me not having the equipment. Any ideas where to check?
Hi Dneu2011,
Please repair it or sell it to someone who will.
I do service (not trying to get business, I'm in Canada). What your local tech is charging isn't high if he does a good job. $30 for an estimate? Not bad. He may consider what you tell him is wrong, but any good tech will basically ignore you until he knows what is wrong. The first rule is: Never assume anything - ever. In fact, he may be concerned over what someone else has done to the amp, maybe before you. I get a steady diet of this myself.
Even terrible techs are busy. Good techs are extremely busy without advertising. Your local tech, if good, is worth every penny. Things he fixes will probably perform better than new. Best of all, he'll do preventative things. A good tech has a lot more skill than people realise, and his bench equipment is very, very expensive if he's up to date. My scope was $25K, never mind everything else.
-Chris
Please repair it or sell it to someone who will.
I do service (not trying to get business, I'm in Canada). What your local tech is charging isn't high if he does a good job. $30 for an estimate? Not bad. He may consider what you tell him is wrong, but any good tech will basically ignore you until he knows what is wrong. The first rule is: Never assume anything - ever. In fact, he may be concerned over what someone else has done to the amp, maybe before you. I get a steady diet of this myself.
Even terrible techs are busy. Good techs are extremely busy without advertising. Your local tech, if good, is worth every penny. Things he fixes will probably perform better than new. Best of all, he'll do preventative things. A good tech has a lot more skill than people realise, and his bench equipment is very, very expensive if he's up to date. My scope was $25K, never mind everything else.
-Chris
Chris, thank you for the feedback. I guess my biggest reasons for not wanting to go to him are because of bad experiences in the past with gear I took to get fixed, quoted $400, but was able to fix myself by finding some bad solder joints. He had told me it was a bad channel. Another experience was buying a unit from someone that had proof work was done by him but bias was not set and the unit had very high dc offset. I had to fix it myself. These were more recent experiences but he had done some good work for me in the past helping troubleshoot a couple things.
For a unit like this, I will take it to him to get a quote, even if it is a $300-$500 repair I could turn it and make a little money off it. I traded a Dac for it that was worth about $200 with a friend.
Thank you.
For a unit like this, I will take it to him to get a quote, even if it is a $300-$500 repair I could turn it and make a little money off it. I traded a Dac for it that was worth about $200 with a friend.
Thank you.
Hi Dneu2011,
Okay, with that experience I guess he isn't a good tech. I would have fired him.
Some equipment is very difficult to get into to work on. Since I don't know what you had or anything else on that $400 quote, I can't comment. One thing that drives me nuts are the hacks charge more than I do - and I have to clean up their mess and then fix the original fault. Obviously that does cost more than a straight repair, and the hacks can cause too many problems to make fixing the equipment worthwhile.
I just fixed a Yamaha PC2002. Nice amp. The hack removed a pair of blown outputs and called it fixed. Well, he also stripped 6 out of 8 TO-3 transistors sockets (nice ones). It took me two days to find and fix everything idiot boy did. Looking at it initially I thought it needed a set of good outputs on that channel. Once I got it apart the fun began.
Fixed a McIntosh MR-80 tuner. Someone had it for 1 1/2 years and basically wrecked it. So many issues created that didn't exist when the customer brought it to him. Then he just had to adjust almost everything. 3 days on my bench (I hate giving up, plus you fix one thing only to discover something else).
Bad technicians cause more lost time, and they rip off not only the customer (even if it works), but the next poor tech that has to clean up his garbage and do it right. So find a truly good technician. A bad one will cost you more than getting it someone who does the right work.
Okay, with that experience I guess he isn't a good tech. I would have fired him.
Some equipment is very difficult to get into to work on. Since I don't know what you had or anything else on that $400 quote, I can't comment. One thing that drives me nuts are the hacks charge more than I do - and I have to clean up their mess and then fix the original fault. Obviously that does cost more than a straight repair, and the hacks can cause too many problems to make fixing the equipment worthwhile.
I just fixed a Yamaha PC2002. Nice amp. The hack removed a pair of blown outputs and called it fixed. Well, he also stripped 6 out of 8 TO-3 transistors sockets (nice ones). It took me two days to find and fix everything idiot boy did. Looking at it initially I thought it needed a set of good outputs on that channel. Once I got it apart the fun began.
Fixed a McIntosh MR-80 tuner. Someone had it for 1 1/2 years and basically wrecked it. So many issues created that didn't exist when the customer brought it to him. Then he just had to adjust almost everything. 3 days on my bench (I hate giving up, plus you fix one thing only to discover something else).
Bad technicians cause more lost time, and they rip off not only the customer (even if it works), but the next poor tech that has to clean up his garbage and do it right. So find a truly good technician. A bad one will cost you more than getting it someone who does the right work.
$30 for a look-see is a bargain! In Washington DC metro area the bench fee runs between $80 and $120, and these are from shops that I have used for 25 years and received excellent service. I just checked fees for three places locally that will work on Scott tube integrated amp.
I’m going to refurbish the Scott, but decided to part out Hafler TA-1600. No one really wants to touch it for some reason; I got estimate of $300 to $400 to replace SMD caps which are known to cause the problem I am experiencing (no bass and harshness at loud volumes).
Just remember, repair techs/shops have to make a living; and it is getting harder and harder to find a good tech who is expert in some areas like tuners and tubes.
Hahaha. Dan trying to motivate me.. the schematic on this vs an F5 is wild!!