Problems with Yamaha Subwoofers

[Tom Steele]

Hi,

I am curious if there is anyone who can help me. If not, then at least I want to warn everyone of my experience.

A couple of years ago, I purchased a Yamaha YST-800 sub from Etronics.com. They had a good price, shipping was reasonable and I was happy with the experience.

My sub was located away from my Yamaha Receiver, so it wasn't on a surge protector.

The power went out about six months after I bought the sub, and when it came back on, the sub appeared to be turned on (green led is lit) but it no longer made any noise.

I contacted Yamaha at this point to see about a warranty. After all, the power going off, then back on, didn't hurt anything else in the house.

Yamaha rather bluntly informed me that even though they made the subwoofer, and I had purchased it new, that they do NOT HONOR their warranty on anything they make unless it is sold by an "authorized Yamaha dealer." I was also bluntly informed that Etronics.com is not an authorized Yamaha dealer. It did not matter that the sub came in brand new packaging, and was made by them.

So, with nothing to lose, I opened it and checked for a fuse - which there was one - but it was fine. I work for a radio station and had one of our engineers look at it. After having him try about $80 worth of transistors in it, and frying them each time it powered up, I gave up and got a new YST-800.

I got it from Etronics again. Why you ask? Well, it is my experience that MOST ALL of my electronics equipment lasts forever. I NEVER have problems with my stuff. SURELY the subwoofer thing was a fluke and I had just gotten a bad apple. And the YST-800 is a great sounding sub.

I've had that sub for about 8 months now. Today the power went off. I have moved since then, and I had rectified the surge protector problem from before. In other words, the sub was on a good surge protector today.

The power was off for about 30 minutes. I was reading a book, laying in front of the sub (near a window for light) when the power came back on. It was a smooth transition. No clunking, or off/on/off/on cycling. Just a click and things started turning back on.

I heard the sub make a sound like something was powering up. Then I heard a sound like a match lighting up. My heart sunk. Sure enough, when I turned on the Surround Sound receiver, the sub exhibited the same symptoms as the previous one. The green led is on, but it makes no noise.

I opened the back, and the fuse looks fine.

My questions. WHAT could be frying on these subs? Is it something I can easily fix. I'm rather handy with a soldering iron, but I've forgotten way too much college physics to likely chase down the problem unless it is a common thing. I can find no instances of this on the internet.

I am basically left with two great speakers, and boxes, and two fried amps. Would one of the amps at www.partsexpress.com do a good job, and would that be a good way to fix the problem?

My thinking is to create a Yamaha Subwoofers Suck webpage and point all the search engines to it and tell my story and go buy a Velodyne CHT-12.

Any advice, tips, or help would be greatly appreciated!

-Tom Steele

[Tom Steele]

Not sure if I put this in the correct forum area. Mods, please feel free to move it to the correct area if I am in the wrong place.

Thanks

-Tom Steele

[C. Papadopoulos]

Well... i have the Yamaha YST-SW800 sub for almost 2 years now - and it's been working fine for me even when i had it off for long periods (plugged off). Since the problem occurs right after the power comes up , i suspect that it's something on the way your utility company gets the power back to you. Meanwhile - is your surge protector capable of stabilizing the power to 240volts (110 if you are in US) ? If a spike exists during the power up then most probably that's the problem. Maybe the sub is very sensitive to spikes - your tv & radio may not! Concerning the transistors fried up ... that means that that the problem is somewhere behind those transistors. I am very pleased with my Sub unit. Well... you should use UPS unit since your electricity company is not that 'stable'.

Friendly,
Chris Papadopoulos
Cyprus island
awechris@hotmail.com

[JohnA]

I am basically left with two great speakers, and boxes, and two fried amps. Would one of the amps at www.partsexpress.com do a good job, and would that be a good way to fix the problem?
-Tom Steele

The Plate amps from PE should work fine provided they fit into the existing cutout, just find a new plate amp with similar specs. and try it. PE offers a 45 day return so if they don't it just return it. :)

[annunaki]

Tom,

Does your surge protector have a connected equipment warranty? If so, why not use it (warranty) to get it (sub) fixed? Also, I would not put the blame squarely upon Yamaha. It seems as though you may be getting a significant spike in voltage as the power returns at that outlet. Looking at this objectively however, one could say that Yamaha engineers may have used lower tolerance parts in the power input stage, making the subwoofer susceptible to such problems. Either way it is due to the power coming in and not the sub itself.

A plate amp from parts express is definitely a great option here.

A side note:

Even if your sub was covered under Yamaha's limited warranty, you may still have had to pay for repairs. Why? If the problem was deemed to be from a power surge, it falls under a category that the manufacturer does not have to pay for. Asking a company to cover something like that would be like asking a car manufacturer to cover a tree falling on your car, or having them replace the engine after holding the gas pedal to the floor for 30 min. with the car in neutral. That is what homeowner's or renter's insurance is for.

Sorry if it sounds like I am playing Devil's advocate here, but that is the way it works. :confused: :)

[alan smith]

:mad:
Tom (or Electrical Engineers),

I bought my Yamaha YST-SW800 back in 2001, and it worked great for years - even survived several power outages over those years!

However just a few day's ago the power went out and mine behaved exactly as yours did - green status light on. No buzzing, humming, or any sound either!

I did the same thing you did, I opened up the case checked the connection leads to the speaker then replaced and tried two brand new acrylic 12amp 250 volt replacement fuses for $6.00; however this didn't do a damn bit of good. I also don’t work with electrical components (I have a multi-voltmeter from Radio Shack), but I wouldn’t know how or which components to check. - My guess fried amp!

Any electrical engineers or students out there that can help me???

By the way mine WAS attached to a surge suppressor (but a cheep one, plus it's old and I have heard that after a few years of voltage 'hits' a surge suppresser can stop protection to attached components.

But none of my other equipment (all of which are older by at least 6 years have never failed); so I'm pretty pissed off with Yamaha.

P.S. I bought mine at Crutchfield (a certified dealer), but I’m sure the warranty is expired by now!

:mad: :mad: :mad:

[cgk]

We had a lightning strike a few years ago. Fried all of the GFCI circuits in the house. It also took out our rice cooker, DVD player, fax machine, and (the only one that bugged me) my Marantz CD player. We had an electrician come out to the house and fixed the circuits. He also wrote up a note listing all of the electronics that got cooked. My home owners insurance picked up the tab (less the deductible, though).

[mustang_steve]

Usually the fuses in most electronics have to do with UL requirements more than protecting the device from damage.

In most cases if the fuse blew out during a particularly nasty surge or spike, it's probably damaged.

Best bet is smell test....if it has an offensive smell that makes your nose burn (Ozone), find where it's coming from. If there is no smell, it's all in testing what components you can (resistors, diodes, caps, transformers, etc) to rule those out...after that, it could be the ICs (Integrated Circuits)...in those cases it might be a lost cause unless you are really good at soldering, depending on what packaging is used for the IC.

Not trying to be a party pooper, just mentioning some things that could be of help somehow. Also chek out the internet for explanations on the different components, as it will help you greatly, plus seeing what certain components look like is of far more help than one of us trying to explain it in text :)

[chrisd1965]

Tom - I have the same sub with the same problem. I downloaded the service schematic opened the unit replaced at the shorted transisters in the power board. When I plugged it in the same thing occurred blowing all the power components on the power supply board. I suspect there may be caps or other components on the board that failed that I overlooked. I'm going to replace all the blown components again along with the two 1ohm 2watt resistors that failed and give it one more try. If it fails again I may consider replacing the power board which can be purchased from the following website for $159 + ship

http://www.partstore.com/sl/lamps-batteries-remotes/indexc2405.html

If I do get it working again I will put it on a small UPS to protect it from abrupt power switching and potential spikes. I suspect the unit is highly sensitive to power spikes that can occur when power is restored after an outage. I work for a power company and when power is restored there is usually a large spike on the line when the power transformer is energized from the high voltage side.

You can download the schematic free from this wedsite....

http://fileshare.eshop.bg/

Hope this helps!

Chris

[Matt34]

I think Tom has probably moved on by now since his last post was over 2 years ago.

Better late than never, right.;)

[Seth=L]

I think Tom has probably moved on by now since his last post was over 2 years ago.

Better late than never, right.;)
I can be sure he is not here anymore, he isn't registered anymore.

[mike c]

aww. I was considering buying a yamaha subwoofer too.

[Seth=L]

um..I bet.:D

[stratman]

The powers that be should remove those old threads that aren't helpful anymore.:)

[Seth=L]

The powers that be should remove those old threads that aren't helpful anymore.:)
Sorry, but that is a bad idea. What good could possibly come of that? People come searching for these answers and many of them don't want to join a forum just to ask someone, and I don't blame them as I used to be the same way. And there isn't much point in deleting them, it isn't often they get resurected hence not extremely annoying or anything. This is all my OPINION of course.:D

[Sheep]

Sorry, but that is a bad idea.

Well duh, a cave man came up with it. :p

SheepStar

[Seth=L]

Well duh, a cave man came up with it. :p

SheepStar
Ha, I just realized that. How silly me feel.

[stratman]

Both of you, wait there, I'm getting the old club! (wife walks in)

[Seth=L]

Both of you, wait there, I'm getting the old club!
Ha, you think I am falling for that, I am outa here.:D

Ok, no more thread crapping.

[Yamahaluver]

I have two 7 year old Yamaha YST SW800, both survived a surge that killed my 53" SONY RPTV and Yamaha DVD player, they are used almost on daily basis for watching movies, my friends also own various Yamaha subs, till date, they all run fine, of course Yamahas are not invincible and from time to time there will be problems but in terms of frequency, way less than other brands in general.

[Sheep]

I have two 7 year old Yamaha YST SW800, both survived a surge that killed my 53" SONY RPTV and Yamaha DVD player, they are used almost on daily basis for watching movies, my friends also own various Yamaha subs, till date, they all run fine, of course Yamahas are not invincible and from time to time there will be problems but in terms of frequency, way less than other brands in general.

Yet another poster not reading the date.

We know you make love to Yamaha, oh yes, we know....

SheepStar

[Yamahaluver]

Yep, been out for a long while, totally forgot. Time for me to count some Sheep ;)

[furrycute]

No time no see Yamahaluver! Sure missed your comments on all things Yamaha.:)

[Yamahaluver]

furrycute,

Thanks for remembering me, I am back now for good after a brief tryst with death. :):):)

[furrycute]

furrycute,

Thanks for remembering me, I am back now for good after a brief tryst with death. :):):)


What happened? Was it that serious? Hope you are doing well.

Thanks for all the advice you gave me years ago about those Yamaha MX-1 amps. I really enjoyed them while I had them. But when I moved into an apartment, I had to sell them, along with my speakers, just don't have the room for them in my new apartment. But one of these days when I get a bigger place, I'll try that Yamaha flagship digital amp.

It's a pity Yamaha doesn't make conventional stereo amps and preamps anymore. The MX-1 is quite something (each one weighs almost as much as one of my floorstanders).

[canadian_grk]

Hello People,

I also have yamaha yst sw800 subwoofer for many years now...great punch...One day recently a breaker shorted out and sent back a power surge and fried the hell out of the subs amp...Had to replace the amp 150 euros...

Now I turn off the power switch on back side and use a 1500 volt UPS for my sub and 46 inch sony tft and a seperate 1500 volt Ups for Yamaha stereo.

Now I am confident my stuff is safe of all power surge problems.

You don't need an expensive Ups..I bought 1500volt Inform Ups for 100 euros with tax....Who cares if it's Turkish....Get's the job done...great.

G Pappas
Athens-Greece

[Yamahaluver]

Tiganis G Pappas,

Are you familiar with the guy in Athens audio club who uses 4 Yamaha MX-1000 amps in his HT system?

[Seth=L]

You get what you pay for, that is what I say. I have owned two Yamaha subs and they were both cheap. They performed like cheap subs perform, not very well.:D That said they do present a decent value for what it is worth.:)

[Yamahaluver]

YST-150 is in the cheaper end, for good top of the line stuff check out the 800, 1500 or the new Soavo sub.