[sfmatt]

My beloved D2 Viper doesn't output much (if anything) to the left channel unless I crank up the volume. It's been a few weeks and it's getting worse: I have to crank it up half-way 12 to get a balanced output.
Any idea on what can be done besides sending it back to ibasso? I'd rather avoid it, it took over a month last time I had to (when the battery died) and it's not under warranty anymore...

Sorry I know this has been discussed in the past but could not find any mention of it in the multiple 100+ pages threads on ibasso amps. Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[ClieOS]

Try this: turns the volume pot from one end to the other and back, repeat for 5 minutes.

Sometime volume pot inner can get dirty or oxidized (especially if you don't use it often) which will cause severe imbalance, in that case a little friction (of turning) can help clean out the dirt/rust and fix the problem. If it doesn't help, then maybe you will need to replace the whole pot.

 

[sfmatt]

Thanks. I played with the knob for a while but it id not make a difference...

Yesterday I disassembled the shell and blew compressed air on the pot, reassembled the shell and it worked! Until this morning

Plugged my headphones in and the imbalance was there again stronger than ever.

I've been researching on channel imbalance but did not find helpful advice so far. I'll experiment more and let you know.

 

[sfmatt]

Actually it looks like it's a mechanical problem. I just removed the top cover and that was enough to restore the correct balance. I think I may have tightened the screws too much in the past and the pressure on the pot could have been the root cause. We'll see over time....

 

[sfmatt]

That's not it. The imbalance was there again this morning. I thought perhaps the opamps were to blame so I tried switching them but it doesn't look like it's related. Then with the cover removed I played with the volume pot, pushing the connector left and right and indeed that's where the problem comes from, either a bad contact inside or where the pot connects to the board.

I wish I could desolder it and replace it myself but as I have the soldering skills of a monkey, I don't how I will avoid sending it back to ibasso