My new Onkyo minisystem!

So there the receiver was, minding its own business, when I decided that I needed these speaker connection plugs (don't know what their name is) to ease connection because

1. I take the CDP / receiver away from the speakers to listen to headphones in other places

2. I wanted to bind the subwoofer to the speaker outputs too

So I bought all these connection plugs, ALL METAL, screwed the wires onto the plugs, plugged the plugs in the speaker outputs, ALL TOUCHING EACH OTHER, and started trying to play music, just like that!

The craziest part was that the system did not go up in smoke immediately. All this was two days ago. The first time the left channel was intermittent. I thought I was having a bad connection and just wiggled the plugs for the left channel until the problem went away. I didn't even get the clue when I saw that the position that worked was one that seperated the red plug from the black plug...

I took the CDP / receiver out for headphone listening earlier today, and when I took it back to hook up to speakers this time, I wasn't so lucky... both channels were shorted, both speakers went intermittent and then *poof*, there was a spark inside the amp, and the thing is dead

The first thing I thought about was speaker wire short circuit. But I spent 5 minutes trying to see how the wires could have touched each other through the plugs before realizing that the plugs themselves were all metal!

Well, I have to say I've been unbelievably stupid, but nevertheless I have a urge to kill the makers of those plugs...

Let's just hope I can get a replacement unit

**visions of butter-knives**

and this arrangement is better than a headphone amp?

tsk tsk

Sorry about your loss Joe...

Is there no chance that its just a thermal fuse blown inside the unit?

If its new (for Xmas) send it back for a warranty repair... or, if its second hand... might be worth taking a peek?

Oh man, I can feel your pain. Well, not really, but I do feel sorry for you, especially after you've sorta been raving about it for some time. My advice for you is to send it back to the dealer to get it replaced or repaired, or just ditch the system and come back to headphones

Quote:



It's better for everyone, grinch. Onkyo is a whole company with a customer support staff and buffers. It's much better than Joe bugging poor Dr. Meier every twenty minutes.

Aw man, Joe, that sucks. Hope you can get it repaired. It should be much cheaper than a new system, I hope.

Sorry joe. Is it under warranty?

Yeah it's within 10 days new. I'm getting a new unit as soon as they have stock I sort of even feel sorry for the customers that have to pay a premium for big-name commercial products like these because of jackasses like me

Gee thanks kelly

D'oh. <Homer slaps forehead>. Don't worry, Joe, you can always say that you were crushing beer cans.

Next time I just have to remember to insulate the damn plugs right? Would some tape do the job ok?

Joe,

I think it was the subwoofer that did you in. somehow i think you put two 4 ohm speakers in parallel, causing the amp to see 2 ohms - and instant smoke. was this a big subwoofer on that little receiver?

Yes Joe... Any method that avoids metal, or wire... touching, metal, or wire should be fine... as long as you're not taking the amp out of its intended range...

...Are the speakers recommended for / supllied with your system... if so, then yes, it should be perfectly fine just to wire them up, but if not... then as wallijonn says, if you're driving a 1, or 2 ohm load... then you'll only get about 1 or 2 watts before meltdown anyway...

Didn't the sub have all the connections FROM the system, and then all the connections TO the speakers onboard... why did you wire them all together???

[edit]

By the way Joe, i'm glad... looking at your avatar... that you can see the funny side of this

Yes...

It was a powered subwoofer though--I would have thought the input to the subwoofer would be more like a line stage? (high impedance)

I still wanted to drive the speakers out of the onkyo amp instead of the subwoofer as the sound was so good to start with and

1. I didn't want the speaker output to go through more wires
2. I didn't want the crossover of the sub to cut out the bass of the speakers as they have trouble reaching down to the sub's cutoff frequency as it is...

I'll measure the resistance of the subwoofer inputs just to be sure...