[AudioPhewl]

Quote:

Originally Posted by liquid steel /img/forum/go_quote.gif I just got my amp in from Lawrence. Plugged it all in... Balance is fubar'd Right side is quiet, left is loud Tested it as a preamp to my HK AVR146 with the same result. Checked on old sony cans, Senn CX300, and Senn HD600's. All the same outcome Emailed Lawrence to see what he recommends... anyone have any ideas?

Sounds like the same problem mine had. Is it quiet out of the RCA outputs on the rear of the device, specifically when the green LED is not illuminated?

~Phewl.

 

[sennsay]

Quote:

Originally Posted by liquid steel /img/forum/go_quote.gif I just got my amp in from Lawrence. Plugged it all in... Balance is fubar'd Right side is quiet, left is loud Tested it as a preamp to my HK AVR146 with the same result. Checked on old sony cans, Senn CX300, and Senn HD600's. All the same outcome Emailed Lawrence to see what he recommends... anyone have any ideas?

Hi liquid, if you haven't already done so, lift the lid off the Zero and check to make sure all the op-amps are seated correctly, they may have possibly shifted in transit. You want to look at the op-amps labeled OPA2604 on the main board (from right hand side looking from the front) and then on the headphone amp, at the front of Zero by the vol pot, push down on the two op-amps labeled 5532, there is one in each channel. Try this first. You could also make sure that all the cable connectors that link the main board to the head amp are secure in their sockets. Leave the lid off after doing that and fire it up again to check for sound.
If there is still no joy, switch off and leave for a few minutes. If you have electronic tweezers or a small set of long nose pliers, pull the two op-amps from the head amp CAREFULLY and gently swap sides, ie L to R and R to L, making sure that you locate them the correct way in their sockets, ie with the semi-circular notch on one end of each op-amp facing to the back of Zero. Be careful you don't bend the legs on the op-amps. Switch on and see if the same channel is down, if the 'off' channel has swaps sides in your cans then you can pretty safely say that you have a dud op-amp.
See how you go with this first and let me/us know how you go.

P.S. Just thought that if you have a model Zero with the updated op-amps you might have LT1364s in the head amp and pos twin OPA627s on a small board in place of the OPA2604. Makes no diff, you need to do the same checks.

 

[falke401]

Im having troubles with mine too. I just got it today and Im getting no sound at all. I have tried the coaxal and optical input. Im going to pull the lid off to see if anything came lose


Edit: OK i found a plug that was off. Plugged it in and now like the person above almost all the sound is coming out of the left and makes funny noises when I turn the volume knob.

 

[liquid steel]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sennsay /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hi liquid, if you haven't already done so, lift the lid off the Zero and check to make sure all the op-amps are seated correctly, they may have possibly shifted in transit. You want to look at the op-amps labeled OPA2604 on the main board (from right hand side looking from the front) and then on the headphone amp, at the front of Zero by the vol pot, push down on the two op-amps labeled 5532, there is one in each channel. Try this first. You could also make sure that all the cable connectors that link the main board to the head amp are secure in their sockets. Leave the lid off after doing that and fire it up again to check for sound. If there is still no joy, switch off and leave for a few minutes. If you have electronic tweezers or a small set of long nose pliers, pull the two op-amps from the head amp CAREFULLY and gently swap sides, ie L to R and R to L, making sure that you locate them the correct way in their sockets, ie with the semi-circular notch on one end of each op-amp facing to the back of Zero. Be careful you don't bend the legs on the op-amps. Switch on and see if the same channel is down, if the 'off' channel has swaps sides in your cans then you can pretty safely say that you have a dud op-amp. See how you go with this first and let me/us know how you go. P.S. Just thought that if you have a model Zero with the updated op-amps you might have LT1364s in the head amp and pos twin OPA627s on a small board in place of the OPA2604. Makes no diff, you need to do the same checks.

Just checked these

Nothing was loose or out of the norm, gave everything a nudge anyways, just to be sure... no fix

Popped the opamps out (LT1364's), switched sides... no dice

 

[falke401]

Liquid steel, Im in the same boat as you with the LT1364's. At least I'm not alone.... Everything looks fine and plugged in.

 

[liquid steel]

I just had both of my roomates blind-check as well.

Had them come in, asked them to listen to a few clips of songs that they were familiar with. Didn't say anything about the balance being wrong, or anything being off.

Both noticed the imbalance within a minute. I am not going crazy.

 

[Pricklely Peete]

Looks like QC is slipping again.....sorry to hear of the problems guys. That sucks when brand new units show up and have problems....

Try pulling the main pcb and see if any sloppy soldering has shorted a trace a two, also look for untrimmed leads, these are hand stuffed hand soldered pcbs, if you find untrimmed leads...snip them and any sloppy soldering (left over bits), clean the board of it very carefully.....do not touch the DAC or receiver chips. They are very static sensitive !!!

If that solves nothing email the vendor you got them from for a solution. Are both units from Lawrence or someone else ?

Peete.

 

[falke401]

Its kinda odd we both have the same problem at the same time. I think Lawrence got a bad batch and didnt test before sending. One thing I do notice is of the 2 lights on the small board, the one on the right is not as bright as the left.

Mine is the Lawrence "head-fi deal"

 

[liquid steel]

Mine is from Lawrence. I emailed him to see what he says to do. I really hope I don't have to send it back to china

edit: my LED's seem to be uneven as well. Might just be the angle I am seeing them at, but still...

 

[Pricklely Peete]

Liquid Steel is there any way you can test line level out ? Just to see if it's the DAC or the H/Amp board that has dropped a channel.

Check the pins on the volume pot, see if they are soldered properly, may be a cold solder joint.

Just trying to think of all the possibilities to test before sending it back.

Peete.

 

[viscosity]

im really enjoying my system with just the opa-sun upgrade...

just thought id throw that out there

 

[viscosity]

only upgrade i may do in the future is a dedicated tube amp. and some decent speakers cause im sick of logitech pc speakers, need something.....more

 

[Pricklely Peete]

Quote:

Originally Posted by falke401 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Its kinda odd we both have the same problem at the same time. I think Lawrence got a bad batch and didnt test before sending. One thing I do notice is of the 2 lights on the small board, the one on the right is not as bright as the left. Mine is the Lawrence "head-fi deal"

That's a short I'm almost sure of it......pull the pcb and look at the underside...see if theres an untrimmed lead, solder where it shouldn't be etc....

Peete.

 

[Pricklely Peete]

It's also possible the 627AU opamps are buggered. Do you have another dual channel opamp to test the DAC section with to determine if the BB chips are the culprit. ?

Peete.

 

[liquid steel]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pricklely Peete /img/forum/go_quote.gif Liquid Steel is there any way you can test line level out ? Just to see if it's the DAC or the H/Amp board that has dropped a channel. Check the pins on the volume pot, see if they are soldered properly, may be a cold solder joint. Just trying to think of all the possibilities to test before sending it back. Peete.

I checked it as a preamp to my reciever and speakers, and it was still out of whack. Is that what you mean? (analog out to reciever)