Yikes- Fire, sparks, and pops from my entertinment system...

[jd2cylman]

So....
I'm sitting in my living room watching TV tonight and surfing TRF, minding my own business, when all of a sudden the right rear speaker makes a LOUD pop. Next thing I know, there are sparks coming out the bottom of my very nice (back in 1995, for me anyway) Onkyo receiver. What the heck!!! Next thing I know is the wonderful smell of burnt electronics is wafting about the room. Yippie
Well, I have always hated the entertainment cabinet my stuff is in, ever since the ex wife decided we needed it (it was her grandfathers). So now I have an excuse to pull it all out and start over. Just gonna cost me for a new flat screen TV and wall mount, a decent sound bar, surround sound system with a sub, and a simple cabinet for the cable receiver and blu ray player. I haven't used the 6 disc Onkyo CD player in years, nor the Onkyo cassette deck :eyeroll:
I'd love to keep the Klipsch speakers I have, but I don't know how to run them off a new flat screen TV without running them through my receiver.
The good news is, getting rid of all that will free up about 12 square feet of space in the room. The bad news is... I have to do it
I may just chuck everything and wait a while and build up some funds. I think I could get the cable box hooked directly to the TV and turn the TV speakers back on for now, cave man style.
First world problems, right?
The other really good news was the fire I saw under the receiver went out just as quickly as it started... :sigh:
No rockets or reloads were harmed in the meltdown of my receiver :smile:

Adrian

 

[Worsaer]

Oooooh. Once the Magic Smoke escapes it's all over. On the bright side, you'll replace it with something with adequate HDMI inputs and outputs, much simpler connectivity, etc.

 

[Incongruent]

Out of curiosity, were the sparks anything like the pictures below?

...Don't know how to gauge the event.

 

[Incongruent]

Oooooh. Once the Magic Smoke escapes it's all over. On the bright side, you'll replace it with something with adequate HDMI inputs and outputs, much simpler connectivity, etc.

Magic Smoke. Don't breathe that.

Sorry.

Aluminum electrolyte capacitor=
Tantalum capacitors=cclosest description I could find)

 

[rharshberger]

Ouch, I had the capacitors in a computer power supply let go on me years ago, the case was sitting next to my knee and it sounded like a pair of shotgun blasts in quick succession going off, the board and everything except the drives was fried so I feel your pain.

 

[cerving]

Blown power supply cap. Had an late 80's IBM PC clone PS do that once... it was very exciting. The good news is that if you can find the same cap, and you're handy enough, chances are pretty good that if you put in a new one your receiver will be fine, since it's undoubtedly an linear power supply.

 

[Fred Garvin]

Keep the speakers and get a few more for a good 5.1 surround system. (Or 7.1 if you wish) Get a reasonable AV receiver with the latest Dolby codecs built in and HDMI/4K channel management. Wire up your speakers, use HDMI to connect everything to the receiver, and output video to the TV and sound to the speakers. Add a Harmony remote and you've got great sound, easy connections and central management.

My system is based on a Pioneer AV...DirecTV, Xbox One, AppleTV all connect HDMI. I use my 25 year old Bose Series 3 601's (still jam!), VS1 center and 301 surrounds and a Yamaha sub. Sure, it doesn't crank out like my old Carver stuff and the Silver 7 isn't glowing....but my old ears just don't take that anymore and the current setup rumbles the house when I want....it's inexpensive and really simple. I LOVE the Harmony remote, programmed with one button activities.

Keep those Klips!

 

[hobie1dog]

Just replace the receiver, plenty always on Craigslist.

 

[jd2cylman]

I think for now I'm gonna reconnect the cable box directly to the TV and let everything sit for a bit. This would be the perfect opportunity to upgrade TV's, since my current one is a 36" Toshiba tube style. It seems like I just bought it, but I think it's already a least 8 years old. That bugger must weigh 250lbs... :jaw: Which is also what happened to our nads when trying to install that sucker in my entertainment center...
A nice 55" or 60" LED flat screen would mount nicely on my wall. So I'll save up a bit of money and look at the after Christmas sales and go from there. I may just go with a simple sound bar and surround system for now. I never use the 6 disc CD player any more (does anyone?). It's a shame, as it was a really nice system (for the mid '90's :wink: ), but sadly, time and technology have passed it (and me) by...

 

[terryg]

Just got rid of my 36" Toshiba tube tv and its smaller 32" version both of which finally died. Be prepared to pay hazmat disposal fees to get rid of tube tv's. We paid $50 to dispose of these two and had a hard time finding anyone to do it. CRTs contain four pounds of lead on average and television sets account for the largest source of lead in municipal waste. These electronics can also contain other hazardous materials such as mercury and hexavalent chromium -- all of which can potentially leach into the ground and water supplies.

 

[Fred Garvin]

?....I never use the 6 disc CD player any more (does anyone?).....

I haven't used physical media for 10+ years now. Long ago I ripped all my CDs to my iTunes library. Everything is digital now and all new purchases are digital. Sounds just great to my worn out ears. If you're an audiophile, pay extra for the high definition versions, ALAC, FLAC, DSD...etc...those things are huge and carry more information than an analog source could....and if you play them through a nice tube amp and speakers or headphones ( I have ATHM50x) the result is phenomenal.

 

[woferry]

My first 'magic smoke' experience was as a kid (maybe 12-15), was watching TV when the picture suddenly turned into a single horizontal line, audio was fine and I didn't understand how CRTs worked yet so I had no clue what was going on. Within a few seconds there was a loud bang and the TV shook on its stand, and the room quickly started flooding with a smell that made me think my throat was on fire. Seemed like I couldn't get out of the room fast enough to survive.

One summer in college I worked in a lab that had hundreds of PCs in it. It was about a weekly occurrence that one of the power supplies would fail, as the smell would spread everybody would end up sniffing around trying to figure out which of the PCs had just croaked, whether it was one of theirs or someone else's. Probably the most excitement of any given week. At a different job I was in someone's office when the PC tower under their desk started shooting sparks out the back of the power supply, that was certainly a few moments of 'fun'.

 

[new2hpr]

I'll second the "keep the speakers and get another receiver on Craigslist".
So many people are going through this change and dumping their old (likely very nice) gear for nothing. I, too, have a huge CRT (Sony WEGA XBR 36) which runs 1080i (since 2001) and a huge entertainment center that "my wife said we needed", and 5 Klipsch speakers for surround. I still need to get my Sunfire subwoofer repaired (again). My ears can't tell the difference in quality anymore, but my brain likes having nice gear.
-Ken

 

[hobie1dog]

I'll second the "keep the speakers and get another receiver on Craigslist".
So many people are going through this change and dumping their old (likely very nice) gear for nothing. I, too, have a huge CRT (Sony WEGA XBR 36) which runs 1080i (since 2001) and a huge entertainment center that "my wife said we needed", and 5 Klipsch speakers for surround. I still need to get my Sunfire subwoofer repaired (again). My ears can't tell the difference in quality anymore, but my brain likes having nice gear.
-Ken

Sorry to hijack, but what has been failing on the Sunfire sub?

 

[ThirstyBarbarian]

I am actually sitting at home right now waiting for a brand new home theater setup to be delivered today. (They're a bit late.) My wife and I decided to replace and upgrade almost everything as our mutual Christmas gift to each other.

We've had a home theater system for years now, but the various components were originally purchased separately and pieced together into a system. And over time various parts have started to show their age, especially the speakers. In the last year, the TV has started to have problems, mostly with the audio, but the picture is also not as good as it used to be. Unfortunately, our audio receiver is too old to have HDMI, so we were running all the HDMI connections from the various other components into the TV, with an optical cable from the TV to the receiver for audio. At least once an hour the audio would turn into garbled "robot talk", and the only way to fix it was to turn the TV off and on again. What a pain.

So we decided to get a new Sony 65" 4k TV. We are geniuses at upselling ourselves, so even though the old receiver still works, we also decided to buy a new Pioneer Elite AV receiver so we can run all the audio and video through it and can use the easier HDMI connections. And by that point we had built up some serious momentum and decided to replace all the speakers too --- some of those we have been using are as much as 25 years old.

I think it's going to be a pretty nice setup!

I just got done uncabling averything and moving moving it to the garage. If anyone is in the SF Bay Area and looking for some used home theater stuff, let me know.

 

[new2hpr]

My recommendation to all, get a Logitech Harmony remote. A.K.A. the marriage saver. I went from ~8 remotes and 4 pages of hand-written instructions for my wife to watch/listen to various sources to a single remote with no instruction required. Awesome product and a steal for the money. Best money spent on the whole system.
-Ken

 

[new2hpr]

Sorry to hijack, but what has been failing on the Sunfire sub?

It's been dead for quite a while, and had failed previously for the same problem. I believe it's the output transistors (big ones). This is a little 10" cube with ~2500W amp in it, and a very weird amp design. I'm an EE and I couldn't wrap my head around it.
-Ken

 

[markkoelsch]

Adrian, what klipsch do you have?

You can buy reasonable surround receivers pretty reasonably today. I am partial to Yamaha. I have two rooms with televisions ( 45" wall mount and a 60"). Both have all Klipsch speakers and Yamaha receivers. The receivers did not cost me much, and work really well. I think they were about $350.

 

[markkoelsch]

It's been dead for quite a while, and had failed previously for the same problem. I believe it's the output transistors (big ones). This is a little 10" cube with ~2500W amp in it, and a very weird amp design. I'm an EE and I couldn't wrap my head around it.
-Ken

Ken, from what I have heard that is not an uncommon issue with the Sunfire.

I am a bassist, and a bit familiar with cabinet design. I think the Sunfire cabinet is too small. This causes the sunfire to require a lot more power to project.

I would recommend if on the market for a sub to check out Hsu subs. I do not have one (mine are Klipsch), but a friend does. They are sold direct, and pretty much kick the crap out of anything for the dollar.

 

[Onebadhawk]

I really hate ta ask this,,
and I know I'm probably not going to like the answer,,,
but I just changed all of my stuff over
and I love my old receiver..
I'd sell it,, it cost a small fortune years ago..

You'd think I'd know better....

What's it worth ??

Denon 3805..........

Teddy

 

[markkoelsch]

Teddy, that was a very nice receiver in the day. Major flaw now is no hdmi, right?

Based on the lack of hdmi I would be surprised if you got more than $150-$200 for it.

 

[dhbarr]

Teddy, that was a very nice receiver in the day. Major flaw now is no hdmi, right?

Based on the lack of hdmi I would be surprised if you got more than $150-$200 for it.

Surely you need to put it out in the garage/shop with a couple of ugly speakers hanging from the ceiling?

 

[soopirV]

Magic Smoke. Don't breathe that.

Sorry.

Aluminum electrolyte capacitor=
Tantalum capacitors=cclosest description I could find)

It smells so good though...mmm...phenol.

 

[jd2cylman]

Adrian, what klipsch do you have?

You can buy reasonable surround receivers pretty reasonably today. I am partial to Yamaha. I have two rooms with televisions ( 45" wall mount and a 60"). Both have all Klipsch speakers and Yamaha receivers. The receivers did not cost me much, and work really well. I think they were about $350.

The front main speakers are Kilpsch 4.2's (I think). They're about 36" tall and 14"~16" square. My surround rear channel speakers are Klipsch 2.2's (again, I think).
These are the model numbers that stick in my head. Keep in mind, these are all over 20 years old... And my memory is even older... :wink:

 

[jd2cylman]

Trying to get the cable box working directly through the TV tonight. Not going well. The box has been unplugged for 2 days, so I'm hoping it's just taking a long time to reload all the programming. The other possibility is the receiver was plugged into a surge protector (Co-ax Max by Panamax comes to mind as the brand name), and the co-ax cable also goes through the box. I'm wondering if when the receiver blew up, it may have fried the surge protector, although there was still power at the receiver until I unplugged the surge protector. Maybe I'm just being impatient, but I think I've had the cable box on for at least 45 minutes now, and still nothing. Next step is to fish out the surge box and wire that bugger direct to the cable box.

 

[jd2cylman]

Out of curiosity, were the sparks anything like the pictures below?

...Don't know how to gauge the event.

I'd say like picture #1. Maybe #2. :eyepop:

 

[Rex R]

I would imagine it looked similar to this; https://youtu.be/njKi8C5DZMA
Rex

 

[Onebadhawk]

Teddy, that was a very nice receiver in the day. Major flaw now is no hdmi, right?

Based on the lack of hdmi I would be surprised if you got more than $150-$200 for it.

Yep,,
That's exactly it Mark...
This was a smokin receiver BEFORE HDMI...
What a shame,, I guess it's a good point somebody said,,
it belongs in the garage hooked up to a decent pair of speakers...

Technology drives value...

Teddy

 

[Fred Garvin]

It's hard to get rid of some things...I still have all my old Carver gear except the power amps....a couple TFM55's. The stack is sitting in a closet....I just can't bring myself to moving them along. Those were fun days back in the late 80's early 90's.....I was powering my Bose with the 55's....a buddy had some Cerwin Vega AT100's he was driving with a DBX BX3 and literally had to open a window for the sonic pressure....ahh, the days of being a single soldier in the barracks, with access to wholesale, tax free audio gear at the PX. Back then the hot gear (available to us) was Carver, Yamaha Natural Sound, Denon, DBX...it was a fun time trying to outbuild your buddie's systems....some of us built some truly monster systems!

 

[Onebadhawk]

It's hard to get rid of some things...I still have all my old Carver gear except the power amps....a couple TFM55's. The stack is sitting in a closet....I just can't bring myself to moving them along. Those were fun days back in the late 80's early 90's.....I was powering my Bose with the 55's....a buddy had some Cerwin Vega AT100's he was driving with a DBX BX3 and literally had to open a window for the sonic pressure....ahh, the days of being a single soldier in the barracks, with access to wholesale, tax free audio gear at the PX. Back then the hot gear (available to us) was Carver, Yamaha Natural Sound, Denon, DBX...it was a fun time trying to outbuild your buddie's systems....some of us built some truly monster systems!

Ha,,lol,,
I still have a pair of Cerwin Vega D9's...
What a smokin pair back in the day..

Teddy