Help!Possible issues with parasound a23?
mthebull
Posts: 41
in Electronics
Might be something wrong not sure. I have a new to me a23 and I’ve read that they run warm. Mine, when plugged in with nothing connected to it runs really warm on the topside where the heat sinks are located on each side but not in the center. On the bottom side underneath the heat sinks I would say pretty hot. Is this normal? Also when powered off the on/off button glows red not blue and when powered on it glows a brighter red never turning blue after 5 seconds like the Manuel says. Both channel lights glow blue indicating that they are working properly and the overheat light is not on. Any thoughts? I don’t have a way to test it right now with speakers and preamp to put a load on it.
Comments
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Any thoughts? I don’t have a way to test it right now with speakers and preamp to put a load on it.
I would suggest running it in a normal environment. Then see what happens.
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. -
Nothing connected? No speakers?
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Unfortunately I can’t right now, I just didn’t think it was normal to get that warm/hot without a load and the red light behind the power button making me think it was in circuit protection or something like that. This is all new to me, my first amp so don’t know what the norm should be
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Well, running your amp in a unrealistic manner isn’t the best way to evaluate 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. -
Well, running your amp in a unrealistic manner isn’t the best way to evaluate it.
Unrealistic meaning plugging it into the wall and hitting the power button? -
I've never supported turning an amp on without speakers connected.
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How much space do you have above the amp? After John Curl gave me advice on biasing my HCA-1000A higher, it would get hot in my stereo cabinet with about 2 inches of space above the amp. I moved it out of the cabinet (nothing above) and it runs slightly warm.Stan
Main 2ch:
Polk LSi15 (DB840 upgrade), Parasound: P/LD-1100, HCA-1000A; Denon: DVD-2910, DRM-800A; Benchmark DAC1, Monster HTS3600-MKII, Grado SR-225i; Technics SL-J2, Parasound PPH-100.
HT:
Marantz SR7010, Polk: RTA11TL (RDO198-1, XO and Damping Upgrades), S4, CS250, PSW110 , Marantz UD5005, Pioneer PL-530, Panasonic TC-P42S60
Other stuff:
Denon: DRA-835R, AVR-888, DCD-660, DRM-700A, DRR-780; Polk: S8, Monitor 5A, 5B, TSi100, RM7, PSW10 (DXi104 upgrade); Pioneer: CT-6R; Onkyo CP-1046F; Ortofon OM5E, Marantz: PM5004, CD5004, CDR-615; Parasound C/PT-600, HCA-800ii, Sony CDP-650ESD, Technics SA 5070, B&W DM601 -
How much space do you have above the amp? After John Curl gave me advice on biasing my HCA-1000A higher, it would get hot in my stereo cabinet with about 2 inches of space above the amp. I moved it out of the cabinet (nothing above) and it runs slightly warm.
It’s sitting on a desk in the open -
I've never supported turning an amp on without speakers connected.
I didn’t know it was bad to do this. What’s the reason? I really don’t know -
Yes, if there is no input or output. You need to ask the manufacturer if your test results are valid.
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. -
Agree with Bud. Reach out to Parasound, they're a friendly bunch.
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I have an A21....
I've never used it like you did , but I would think the red light is abnormal ....
I'd call parasound .... Richard is a great guy to talk to
BkPS Audio S300 , WiiM Ultra , Yamaha wxc-50 , Salk SuperCharged Songtowers , Kimber Kable 4TC, Sony 42” - BEDROOM
B&K EX-442 ( it will go in my casket when I die ... ) , PS Audio 4.6 preamp ( old school , but it still jams on ... ) , Eversolo DMP-A6 , Boston Acoustic voyager 7’s - POOL
Parasound A21, Eversolo DMP-A8 , Kimber Kable 4vs , Ascend Acoustics ELX Ribbon Towers , Sony XBR-A8F 65” OLED - DEN , MAIN system
Onkyo TX-nr609 , Polk atrium 7 , Boston acoustic sound ware (4) , Boston acoustic sub , B&W center , Sharp 65” TV - PATIO -
WillI have an A21....
I've never used it like you did , but I would think the red light is abnormal ....
I'd call parasound .... Richard is a great guy to talk to
Bk
Will do in the am, thanks for the replies.Agree with Bud. Reach out to Parasound, they're a friendly bunch.
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There support outstanding.
service@parasound.comLiving Room
Parasound HINT 6, Yamaha Aventage RX-A 1060, Oppo 103D, Cambridge Audio Azur 851N, KLH Model 5s, Polk CSi A6, Samsung 65" LED
Office
Yamaha A-S501, Auralic Aries Mini, LSiM 703s
Douglas Connection ICs and Cables -
Never power up a tube amp without a load (speakers) connected. It doesn't matter with solid state amps.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
Never power up a tube amp without a load (speakers) connected. It doesn't matter with solid state amps.
That’s what I was thinking with solid state, I think I may have an issue with the amp since it’s glowing red behind the power button instead of blue. Found a couple of old posts that confirm this. Gonna call parasound tomarrow to see what they say. -
It's normal for the red LED to come on for a few seconds but then it should turn blue when the circuits are allowed to go active. Consider it like a safety checker. The indicator staying red probably means there is an internal issue that should be fixed. The heatsinks in the A23 are on the outboard sides inside the cabinet. The transformer is in the center and produces no heat. It's not normal for an A23 to run hot unless it has been driving a heavy load.
My guess is there is a defect in the auto-manual turn on/off circuit. You could flip that switch on the back to its manual (middle position) and see if that resolves the issue temporarily. The LED should turn blue.
Good call on checking with Parasound. They are very responsive. -
@mthebullI must ask, why do you have an amp and no speakers?
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afterburnt wrote: »@mthebullI must ask, why do you have an amp and no speakers?
I have Polk 2.3tl’s but no interconnect and have them apart to start the upgrade process(crossovers, dynamat, hurricane nuts, etc) -
@mthebull oh ok, I was starting to think that you were some kind of degenerate freak. I never turn my A31 off so I am not sure how the lights behave but I do think you are having some kind of malfunction.
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Everybody who buys used gear should own a multi-meter & a cheap pair of test speakers. Whenever I bring home an amp, assuming it's solid state, the first thing I do is measure the DC offset, then it gets connected to the test speakers and played for a couple hours before connecting to anything else. Doesn't need to be anything fancy, mine are a pair of RatShack Minumus 7's. Time to hit up craigslist.
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afterburnt wrote: »@mthebull oh ok, I was starting to think that you were some kind of degenerate freak. I never turn my A31 off so I am not sure how the lights behave but I do think you are having some kind of malfunction.
Spoke with parasound , tech said it could be as simple as blue led burnt out, or internal issues. I’m gonna find a cheap speaker so I can test and see if I get sound. -
Everybody who buys used gear should own a multi-meter & a cheap pair of test speakers. Whenever I bring home an amp, assuming it's solid state, the first thing I do is measure the DC offset, then it gets connected to the test speakers and played for a couple hours before connecting to anything else. Doesn't need to be anything fancy, mine are a pair of RatShack Minumus 7's. Time to hit up craigslist.
Good advice, I’m learning! -
afterburnt wrote: »@mthebull oh ok, I was starting to think that you were some kind of degenerate freak. I never turn my A31 off so I am not sure how the lights behave but I do think you are having some kind of malfunction.
Spoke with parasound , tech said it could be as simple as blue led burnt out, or internal issues. I’m gonna find a cheap speaker so I can test and see if I get sound.
One should always have a bunch of junk speakers around. I know I do. -
I guess sometimes you just get complacent, I’ve never had an issue with buying used. This may be the first
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When I turn on my a21 it goes red for a second or two then straight to blue ....
But , it is on a trigger, so always in standby...
BkPS Audio S300 , WiiM Ultra , Yamaha wxc-50 , Salk SuperCharged Songtowers , Kimber Kable 4TC, Sony 42” - BEDROOM
B&K EX-442 ( it will go in my casket when I die ... ) , PS Audio 4.6 preamp ( old school , but it still jams on ... ) , Eversolo DMP-A6 , Boston Acoustic voyager 7’s - POOL
Parasound A21, Eversolo DMP-A8 , Kimber Kable 4vs , Ascend Acoustics ELX Ribbon Towers , Sony XBR-A8F 65” OLED - DEN , MAIN system
Onkyo TX-nr609 , Polk atrium 7 , Boston acoustic sound ware (4) , Boston acoustic sub , B&W center , Sharp 65” TV - PATIO -
afterburnt wrote: »@mthebullI must ask, why do you have an amp and no speakers?
His speakers were so good, they just disappeared in his room... -
Ok... yeah they are soooo goodmdaudioguy wrote: »afterburnt wrote: »@mthebullI must ask, why do you have an amp and no speakers?
His speakers were so good, they just disappeared in his room...
