Hello all. I just joined the site and I'm looking forward to learning how to work on some of my audio equipment on my own.
Currently I have the following components that need repair.
The Fisher 800T
Bel Canto EVO 2i
Arcam A65 Plus
CEC 3300 CD.
I'm trying to get a service manual from Bel Canto but I don't feel comfortable starting there with diy. Probably the same for the Arcam. I'll outsource those repairs or wait until I'm more comfortable.
I would like to track down a service manual for the CEC 3300 if anyone can be of help. I found a manual for The Fisher online.
I believe I have sourced the transport (Sanyo SF-P101N) for the CEC but have not been able to locate the belt at a reasonable price. CEC wants $100. Any help here would be much appreciated.
I'm going to start my DIY attempt with The Fisher and the CEC.
Thanks for any help or suggestions for getting started.
Currently I have the following components that need repair.
The Fisher 800T
Bel Canto EVO 2i
Arcam A65 Plus
CEC 3300 CD.
I'm trying to get a service manual from Bel Canto but I don't feel comfortable starting there with diy. Probably the same for the Arcam. I'll outsource those repairs or wait until I'm more comfortable.
I would like to track down a service manual for the CEC 3300 if anyone can be of help. I found a manual for The Fisher online.
I believe I have sourced the transport (Sanyo SF-P101N) for the CEC but have not been able to locate the belt at a reasonable price. CEC wants $100. Any help here would be much appreciated.
I'm going to start my DIY attempt with The Fisher and the CEC.
Thanks for any help or suggestions for getting started.
Hey Rayma,
I'm actually picking up a tube and transistor tester from a one man repair shop in W. Florida. This guy's going to let me volunteer my time in his shop and teach me some of the basics. He said he had everything I need to get started so I'm hoping to get a good deal. Don't know the brand of anything at this point. From a repair standpoint, I have a KSGER soldering station and an old Pace rework soldering and rework station.
Thanks Red Rooster!
The first item you need is a DVM. Transistor circuits often fail to produce suitable DC voltages even with no input. I find the $30 versions useful, non-autoranging as the autoranging ones always waste your time with 2 inappropriate scales before getting to the 0-20 v one useful from the start. Meanwhile your probe may slip and the meter jumps back into 200 mv scale again. The collapse of Sears into selling garbage from ***** has left me buying my DVM from farnell. They operate worldwide, besides. Don't buy the Klein meter, it is quite accurate, inexpensive, and comes with probes that are so safe they are unuseable, except on 480 vac 3 phase control panels.
The second item for transistor power amp repair, is a light bulb current limiter box. This is a mains light bulb socket, with a suitable tungsten wire light bulb in it. I put mine in a grounded metal box with mesh cover to eliminate the hazard of the mains wire coming loose from the socket screw and flying around the table burning things or shocking me. 60 W bulb is usually right for small consumer equipment. I have a 15 A circuit breaker on mine, also useful as a switch.
The third item is some alligator clip leads, 26 to 22 gauge, insulated to >60 v. These are hard to find. The tort lawyers of the world want you to buy the $30 clip rated at 600 v sold by meter manufacturers like fluke. This device is so safe it is totally useless for debugging circuits.
You use alligator clip lead to attach your DVM negative probe to the analog ground, so that you only take measurements with one hand. Never use 2 hands on a circuit with voltages over 24, because current from one hand to the other can stop your heart.
BTW, wear no jewelry on hands wrists or neck debugging circuits. 1 v at large current through metal can burn your flesh to charcoal.
Safety glasses are useful, sometimes parts explode.
A third item is either a scope, or an analog Voltmeter with a 20 vac and 2 vac scale. This is for chasing music through a circuit when the DC voltage are okay and the music flow is not. The analog voltmeter is cheaper. Requires a .047 uf 200 v cap to avoid showing readings on DC voltages, plus a clip lead. Accuracy is not important on this, the $29 ebay meters are fine. Cheap scopes are often limited to 80 v, and PC scopes using the sound card are a good way to buy a new PC when you blow up the old one.
4th item is a battery transistor radio with an earphone jack, and a earphone to rca plug adapter, to energize your circuit. Pro equipment will require a rca to 1/4 phone plug adapter. Using your cell phone as a signal source will lead to you replacing your cell phone someday when >2 v comes out the input jack of your device under test. A signal generator is an inadequate $60 substitue for the transistor radio. Generated signals don't have the beat of rock music built in to tell you are looking at music, not ultrasonic oscillation. The pointer dances to rock music.
I never use a transistor tester, and tube tests can be done in circuit with the equipment above, for audio circuits. Not for televisions, those require a tube tester. Televisions aren't worth fixing IMHO, hundreds of expired electrolytic caps in them and the ones older than 2004 display a signal no longer transmitted by any station. The TVs after 2004 are full of IC's you can't buy, connectors you can't buy, and other Roc's eggs.
Happy hunting.
The second item for transistor power amp repair, is a light bulb current limiter box. This is a mains light bulb socket, with a suitable tungsten wire light bulb in it. I put mine in a grounded metal box with mesh cover to eliminate the hazard of the mains wire coming loose from the socket screw and flying around the table burning things or shocking me. 60 W bulb is usually right for small consumer equipment. I have a 15 A circuit breaker on mine, also useful as a switch.
The third item is some alligator clip leads, 26 to 22 gauge, insulated to >60 v. These are hard to find. The tort lawyers of the world want you to buy the $30 clip rated at 600 v sold by meter manufacturers like fluke. This device is so safe it is totally useless for debugging circuits.
You use alligator clip lead to attach your DVM negative probe to the analog ground, so that you only take measurements with one hand. Never use 2 hands on a circuit with voltages over 24, because current from one hand to the other can stop your heart.
BTW, wear no jewelry on hands wrists or neck debugging circuits. 1 v at large current through metal can burn your flesh to charcoal.
Safety glasses are useful, sometimes parts explode.
A third item is either a scope, or an analog Voltmeter with a 20 vac and 2 vac scale. This is for chasing music through a circuit when the DC voltage are okay and the music flow is not. The analog voltmeter is cheaper. Requires a .047 uf 200 v cap to avoid showing readings on DC voltages, plus a clip lead. Accuracy is not important on this, the $29 ebay meters are fine. Cheap scopes are often limited to 80 v, and PC scopes using the sound card are a good way to buy a new PC when you blow up the old one.
4th item is a battery transistor radio with an earphone jack, and a earphone to rca plug adapter, to energize your circuit. Pro equipment will require a rca to 1/4 phone plug adapter. Using your cell phone as a signal source will lead to you replacing your cell phone someday when >2 v comes out the input jack of your device under test. A signal generator is an inadequate $60 substitue for the transistor radio. Generated signals don't have the beat of rock music built in to tell you are looking at music, not ultrasonic oscillation. The pointer dances to rock music.
I never use a transistor tester, and tube tests can be done in circuit with the equipment above, for audio circuits. Not for televisions, those require a tube tester. Televisions aren't worth fixing IMHO, hundreds of expired electrolytic caps in them and the ones older than 2004 display a signal no longer transmitted by any station. The TVs after 2004 are full of IC's you can't buy, connectors you can't buy, and other Roc's eggs.
Happy hunting.
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WOW! Awesome information Jo. Thanks a ton for eliminating a bunch of wasted time and money. Cheers!
And a 2nd thanks for all of the safety information. I'm usually pretty methodical about doing things safely and I've read quite a few articles about audio diy but you've provided some great info that I have yet to run across. My wife thanks you!
And a 2nd thanks for all of the safety information. I'm usually pretty methodical about doing things safely and I've read quite a few articles about audio diy but you've provided some great info that I have yet to run across. My wife thanks you!