Onkyo SC-5509 preamp randomly shuts down
BlueFox
Posts: 15,251
in Electronics
I have had my Onkyo SC-5509 for about two years now, and it is used daily. The whole time I have had this unit I have had the strangest problem. It would randomly shut off. Sometimes it would work for days, other times it might shutdown a couple of times in a night. I knew it wasn't thermal since it has more than adequate ventilation, and is never warm to the touch. I kept on praying for it to break permanently so I could get it repaired, but it stayed random.
Anyway, I think I found out the problem Thursday night. It turns out that on the remote, right side bottom, is a button marked sleep. If you press this the unit will turn off after 90 minutes, press it again and the timer decrements 30 minutes. So you need to press it multiple times to get back to the never turn off mode. When it is in sleep mode there is no obvious indication, other than 'sleep' displayed in small letters on the display. Unless you put your face right in front of the display it goes unnoticed. Additionally, I usually have a black DVD case over the display to block it. While you can dim it, it can only be turned off in Pure Music mode, but not when watching a DVD.
Thursday night I switched from listening to music to watching a DVD, and for a brief moment the display said 'Sleep 18 minutes'. I wondered what that was and went through the manual and found out about the sleep button. Apparently, I was sometimes accidentally hitting this when I would grab the remote. Since then I have been very careful to not press it, and check the display to be sure it isn't in sleep mode. So far, it has remained on since Thursday. If we make it through the weekend I am going to be reasonably sure that is the issue.
And no, this is not a Friday night problem. While I have the HT powered up for best picture and sound, I rarely watch it on Friday.
Anyway, I think I found out the problem Thursday night. It turns out that on the remote, right side bottom, is a button marked sleep. If you press this the unit will turn off after 90 minutes, press it again and the timer decrements 30 minutes. So you need to press it multiple times to get back to the never turn off mode. When it is in sleep mode there is no obvious indication, other than 'sleep' displayed in small letters on the display. Unless you put your face right in front of the display it goes unnoticed. Additionally, I usually have a black DVD case over the display to block it. While you can dim it, it can only be turned off in Pure Music mode, but not when watching a DVD.
Thursday night I switched from listening to music to watching a DVD, and for a brief moment the display said 'Sleep 18 minutes'. I wondered what that was and went through the manual and found out about the sleep button. Apparently, I was sometimes accidentally hitting this when I would grab the remote. Since then I have been very careful to not press it, and check the display to be sure it isn't in sleep mode. So far, it has remained on since Thursday. If we make it through the weekend I am going to be reasonably sure that is the issue.
And no, this is not a Friday night problem. While I have the HT powered up for best picture and sound, I rarely watch it on Friday.
Lumin X1 file player, Westminster Labs interconnect cable
Sony XA-5400ES SACD; Pass XP-22 pre; X600.5 amps
Magico S5 MKII Mcast Rose speakers; SPOD spikes
Shunyata Triton v3/Typhon QR on source, Denali 2000 (2) on amps
Shunyata Sigma XLR analog ICs, Sigma speaker cables
Shunyata Sigma HC (2), Sigma Analog, Sigma Digital, Z Anaconda (3) power cables
Mapleshade Samson V.3 four shelf solid maple rack, Micropoint brass footers
Three 20 amp circuits.
Sony XA-5400ES SACD; Pass XP-22 pre; X600.5 amps
Magico S5 MKII Mcast Rose speakers; SPOD spikes
Shunyata Triton v3/Typhon QR on source, Denali 2000 (2) on amps
Shunyata Sigma XLR analog ICs, Sigma speaker cables
Shunyata Sigma HC (2), Sigma Analog, Sigma Digital, Z Anaconda (3) power cables
Mapleshade Samson V.3 four shelf solid maple rack, Micropoint brass footers
Three 20 amp circuits.
Comments
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Sounds like problem solved, only time this has happened to me was with bare wires crossing at the binding posts.
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It is still on, so my confidence is growing that 'sleep' is the issue. Last night I started watching Fury, and when I took a break I checked the display. Sure enough, it was in sleep mode. That button is just to easy to press, especially when grabbing the remote in the dark.Lumin X1 file player, Westminster Labs interconnect cable
Sony XA-5400ES SACD; Pass XP-22 pre; X600.5 amps
Magico S5 MKII Mcast Rose speakers; SPOD spikes
Shunyata Triton v3/Typhon QR on source, Denali 2000 (2) on amps
Shunyata Sigma XLR analog ICs, Sigma speaker cables
Shunyata Sigma HC (2), Sigma Analog, Sigma Digital, Z Anaconda (3) power cables
Mapleshade Samson V.3 four shelf solid maple rack, Micropoint brass footers
Three 20 amp circuits. -
Well....either super glue the button or have hand surgery to remove the hunk of flesh on your bear paw that touches that part of the remote.
The easiest solution there GI Joe is to loosen your kung fu grip.
Where’s the KABOOM?!?! There’s supposed to be an Earth shattering KABOOM!!! -
Now that I know what the issue is I haven't had a random shutdown yet. I can see how easy it is to accidentally touch that button when picking the remote up. Too easy, a poor design for a feature I doubt very many use.Lumin X1 file player, Westminster Labs interconnect cable
Sony XA-5400ES SACD; Pass XP-22 pre; X600.5 amps
Magico S5 MKII Mcast Rose speakers; SPOD spikes
Shunyata Triton v3/Typhon QR on source, Denali 2000 (2) on amps
Shunyata Sigma XLR analog ICs, Sigma speaker cables
Shunyata Sigma HC (2), Sigma Analog, Sigma Digital, Z Anaconda (3) power cables
Mapleshade Samson V.3 four shelf solid maple rack, Micropoint brass footers
Three 20 amp circuits. -
Not a bad idea. I will look into it.Lumin X1 file player, Westminster Labs interconnect cable
Sony XA-5400ES SACD; Pass XP-22 pre; X600.5 amps
Magico S5 MKII Mcast Rose speakers; SPOD spikes
Shunyata Triton v3/Typhon QR on source, Denali 2000 (2) on amps
Shunyata Sigma XLR analog ICs, Sigma speaker cables
Shunyata Sigma HC (2), Sigma Analog, Sigma Digital, Z Anaconda (3) power cables
Mapleshade Samson V.3 four shelf solid maple rack, Micropoint brass footers
Three 20 amp circuits. -
Psst...hey...my ideas are MUCH better.Where’s the KABOOM?!?! There’s supposed to be an Earth shattering KABOOM!!!
