Time_Lord Posted April 2, 2017 Share Posted April 2, 2017 Today I have noticed that 1 side of my power amp is not working. After every possible process of elimination, I can confirm there is no sound output going from one side of the speaker, which case I have to get it taken to a service center. I can illustrate the problem in detail, when I am switching on the unit, the side that doesn't work, I don't feel any heat on the heatsink, it is almost as if there is no power getting to the side that isn't working? does this make sense?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zaphod Beeblebrox Posted April 2, 2017 Share Posted April 2, 2017 Yes, it does make sense, though with the lack of detail supplied, it is impossible to know for certain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Time_Lord Posted April 3, 2017 Author Share Posted April 3, 2017 It is hard for certain to know what the issue is. I spent much time this morning going through every possible elimination test I could think of. Swapping cables, different source of equipment, and since it is the right channel not working, i confirm this using my right speaker on the left hand channel on amp (and it worked) but silent on right channel. Tried further rule out issues, as when doing R channel from pre amp to R channel on power amp (no sound) but putting R channel from pre amp into L channel on power amp, there was sound. I cannot smell anything from the unit, but when feeling the right channel heatsink, just remains cool, so for some reason power is not getting to the right side. Now I am not a technical expert here so unless I get the unit checked out I can only guess what could be going on. So who here has had to deal with a channel on their amp that stop working all of a sudden?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zaphod Beeblebrox Posted April 3, 2017 Share Posted April 3, 2017 (edited) Snip Edited April 3, 2017 by Zaphod Beeblebrox Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Time_Lord Posted April 3, 2017 Author Share Posted April 3, 2017 I am gonna be taken it to a service center. I just hope it nothing major. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blakey72 Posted April 3, 2017 Share Posted April 3, 2017 They don't have fuses in them do they? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blakey72 Posted April 4, 2017 Share Posted April 4, 2017 I'd crack it open and see if there's a fuse for each channel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Time_Lord Posted April 4, 2017 Author Share Posted April 4, 2017 (edited) Well i had the unit taken to the service center yesterday. Rather let someone who knows what they are doing look at it. I got the feeling the output stage on the channel concerned may of just went, but until I get confirmation from the repair guy, will just have to wait and see what he says. Edited April 4, 2017 by Time_Lord Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Time_Lord Posted April 22, 2017 Author Share Posted April 22, 2017 Well my unit had to be repaired, right channel was gone. Ah well these things happen. Blown channels on a amp are not uncommon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rogerthat Posted April 22, 2017 Share Posted April 22, 2017 10 minutes ago, Time_Lord said: Well my unit had to be repaired, right channel was gone. Ah well these things happen. Blown channels on a amp are not uncommon. Was it an expensive repair? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Time_Lord Posted April 22, 2017 Author Share Posted April 22, 2017 Define expensive? Cost me 610$. It could of been worse. This is the choice I had to make, either spend to repair or spend to get a new power amp, and considering the pricing now of products that are more expensive, I chose for the repair. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rogerthat Posted April 22, 2017 Share Posted April 22, 2017 Thanks for that. Good choice I think. You can't get that kind of power, even second hand, for anywhere near $600. How long is the Cambridge warranty? Hard to find on the web. Two years? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Time_Lord Posted April 22, 2017 Author Share Posted April 22, 2017 I think the warranty is 2 years as far as I know I don't know how my right channel could of went. But having a blown amplifier channel is not uncommon, the amount of times I read about blown amp channels on various different forums is quite interesting. My personal opinion, I think at some point the unit may of developed a fault and I probably wasn't even aware of it, like perhaps some kind of component failure. Long gone are the days when an amp can last for 20 years without any issues. Planned obsolescence is sadly the reality of many consumer products. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
todagt Posted April 22, 2017 Share Posted April 22, 2017 How old was the amp, remember under Australian consumer law the actual warranty may be considerably longer than the manufacturers warranty under statutory law. Although that said it can be difficult to enforce your basic consumer right, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Time_Lord Posted April 22, 2017 Author Share Posted April 22, 2017 (edited) Under 3.5 years old my unit was. Even with this consumer law and statutory laws for consumer goods, reality is it can be very difficult to pursue and in some cases may not even be worth the effort. At least when I got the unit, the rrp was $2800 back then. Wonder how many other people here who have also purchased even more expensive high end audio gear only to realized it lasted not even 4 years and faced with a similar decision - fix or bin. And yes I am aware of the recent AMR post. Edited April 22, 2017 by Time_Lord 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
todagt Posted April 22, 2017 Share Posted April 22, 2017 Yes, it's unfortunate really. I also think the retailers and distributors know this and that what get me wound up so much about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rogerthat Posted April 23, 2017 Share Posted April 23, 2017 Yes this and the AMR post... so so frustrating. Bryston is 20 years and Simaudio 10 years. But Brystons integrated is $6k+ retail and Simaudio seem to just start at that price if you want a bit of welly. So do you fork out the big $ and rely on the warranty or get it cheaper and pay to repair? Not an easy decision. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mivarpet Posted April 28, 2017 Share Posted April 28, 2017 (edited) My 851W is in for repair too. I had a pop and then the amp went into protection mode. When I had a closer look, the smoke escaped from the right hand side. Prior to this I had heard some low level crackling but (stupidly) put it down to interference somewhere. i rang the repairer yesterday and they said they were replacing the whole RHS power amp module. However, luck was on my side as I just snuck in on the tail end of the warranty. Hopefully I will have it back next week. Edited April 29, 2017 by mivarpet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkV Posted August 21, 2018 Share Posted August 21, 2018 I have the same problem. Unit is not even a week old. Used it for a few hours. Contacted support. Got a reply in 24 hours. No resolution yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mohan Nagarajan Posted September 14, 2019 Share Posted September 14, 2019 The left heat sink on my 851w is not as hot as the right heat sink. But I have sound in both my speakers . Is that normal? Also when I balance fully to the left I still hear slight music from my right speaker and vice versa. A little concerned and look forward to someone helping me understand this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackspider777 Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 Did your 851w developed an issue? considering this power amp but bit sceptical after seeing the issues people are having. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muon* Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 (edited) On 15/09/2019 at 4:01 AM, Mohan Nagarajan said: The left heat sink on my 851w is not as hot as the right heat sink. But I have sound in both my speakers . Is that normal? Also when I balance fully to the left I still hear slight music from my right speaker and vice versa. A little concerned and look forward to someone helping me understand this. The hotter channel right might be the bias drifting up above original setting. Edit: forgot...not normal. Hearing the other channel might mean the volume pot is worn, although I am guessing on that one. Edited February 8, 2020 by muon* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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