Harman Kardon is saying "PROTECT"

A

Adam41591

Audioholic Intern
Thought someone might know what's going on with my Receiver. It's a Harman Kardon AVR-146 and my setup consists of Infinity Beta 20 Bookshelf speakers, a Brand new Velodyne Impact-10 subwoofer and a Pioneer BDP-320 Blu-ray player. I run the audio through a digital optical cable if that helps. So, the problem just happened today. I was watching Star Trek on Blu-ray and at the 54:15 time-code Kirk breaks through the atmosphere and there's this huge "BOOM" that plays out. It sounds great, but right after that my Harman comes up with the message "PROTECT" and shuts off:(. This is the first time this has happened and I have no idea why. I've had the volume louder than what it was set at before it turned off. I tried it twice more right after it happened, same thing. Right now I'm letting it cool down and I'm very hesitant to turn it on again. Not much to be found on Google so I'm hoping someones out there. Thanks for any help you can give me guys.:eek:

Adam
 
highfigh

highfigh

Seriously, I have no life.
Thought someone might know what's going on with my Receiver. It's a Harman Kardon AVR-146 and my setup consists of Infinity Beta 20 Bookshelf speakers, a Brand new Velodyne Impact-10 subwoofer and a Pioneer BDP-320 Blu-ray player. I run the audio through a digital optical cable if that helps. So, the problem just happened today. I was watching Star Trek on Blu-ray and at the 54:15 time-code Kirk breaks through the atmosphere and there's this huge "BOOM" that plays out. It sounds great, but right after that my Harman comes up with the message "PROTECT" and shuts off:(. This is the first time this has happened and I have no idea why. I've had the volume louder than what it was set at before it turned off. I tried it twice more right after it happened, same thing. Right now I'm letting it cool down and I'm very hesitant to turn it on again. Not much to be found on Google so I'm hoping someones out there. Thanks for any help you can give me guys.:eek:

Adam
Disconnect the speakers after shutting it off and turn it on again. If it still shows Protect, you may have launched it. That may also mean that you only blew a fuse, if it has them.
 
A

Adam41591

Audioholic Intern
I disconnected the speakers and it doesn't seem to be turning off or coming up "PROTECT". I'm going to plug the speakers in & see what happens. Lets hope nothing bad happens. But tell me this, if everything works out fine, what could the problem have been? Thanks for the quick reply.

Adam

Also, what would "Launching" it mean?
 
P

PENG

Audioholic Slumlord
I disconnected the speakers and it doesn't seem to be turning off or coming up "PROTECT". I'm going to plug the speakers in & see what happens. Lets hope nothing bad happens. But tell me this, if everything works out fine, what could the problem have been? Thanks for the quick reply.

Adam

Also, what would "Launching" it mean?
What was the volume level when it happened? If it works like normal again after you turn it off and back on again after a few minutes wait then it mostly tripped the protective circuit due to the current output exceeding the set point. In that case next time you play that disc lower the volume a little.
 
lsiberian

lsiberian

Audioholic Overlord
You probably have wires touching on the back.
 
highfigh

highfigh

Seriously, I have no life.
I disconnected the speakers and it doesn't seem to be turning off or coming up "PROTECT". I'm going to plug the speakers in & see what happens. Lets hope nothing bad happens. But tell me this, if everything works out fine, what could the problem have been? Thanks for the quick reply.

Adam

Also, what would "Launching" it mean?
It's possible that the 'Boom' damaged the speakers, or one of them. If you watch a woofer that's being driven hard, it moves a lot and if it moves past the point where the voice coil is in the gap between the magnet and pole piece, it can twist or skew to one side and scrape, causing the winding to short circuit. This would result in a much lower DC resistance and impedance and that can cause the protection circuit to be activated. If it doesn't go into protection with no speakers connected, I suspect that the speakers have ben damaged, especially if they're small.

'Launch' means damage. In audio, when an amp or speaker is damaged, it's often referred to as 'blown up', 'puked', 'launched', 'toasted', or some other description.
 
T

TLN1

Audiophyte
owners manual

No sound from any speaker; • Amplifier is in protection mode • Check speaker wire connections for shorts at receiver and
light around power switch is red due to possible short speaker ends
• Amplifier is in protection mode • Contact your local Harman Kardon service center
due to internal problems
 
J

jamie2112

Banned
It sounds like you have some bare speaker wire touching other terminals and that would make your amp go into protect.Do what Hifi says and if it works cool,if not call Harman.......
 
M Code

M Code

Audioholic General
No sound from any speaker; • Amplifier is in protection mode • Check speaker wire connections for shorts at receiver and
light around power switch is red due to possible short speaker ends
• Amplifier is in protection mode • Contact your local Harman Kardon service center
due to internal problems
Check his 2nd post, the Protect is on even when NO loudspeakers are connected..
He has blown something inside the amplifier, most likely a pair of devices..

Just my $0.00... ;)
 
Patrukas777

Patrukas777

Senior Audioholic
I disconnected the speakers and it doesn't seem to be turning off or coming up "PROTECT". I'm going to plug the speakers in & see what happens. Lets hope nothing bad happens. But tell me this, if everything works out fine, what could the problem have been? Thanks for the quick reply.

Adam

Also, what would "Launching" it mean?
Maybe your avr is SCARED...and it wants you to PROTECT it :D

Have you been watching scaring movies lately?;)
 
anamorphic96

anamorphic96

Audioholic General
Did you ever set your bass crossover to 80hz when you switched the speakers to small ? You may have overloaded the amp.

Also as mentioned make sure the speaker wires are connected correctly and not touching anything.
 
walter duque

walter duque

Audioholic Samurai
Do you have a factory default seeting on that receiver. I am not familiar with your receiver, but on some units you pull off the volume knob and you have a factory reset hole. Just a guess..
 
A

Adam41591

Audioholic Intern
Did you ever set your bass crossover to 80hz when you switched the speakers to small ? You may have overloaded the amp.

Also as mentioned make sure the speaker wires are connected correctly and not touching anything.
Actually guys, I think the problem was that two speakers wires were connecting. I've been watching for a whole day, and nothing seems to be happening. Speakers look just fine and everything seems to be in order. I have set the crossover at 100hz and I'm pretty sure that's right for the Betas. Thanks for all the help guys. Heres to knocking on wood.
 
anamorphic96

anamorphic96

Audioholic General
Actually guys, I think the problem was that two speakers wires were connecting. I've been watching for a whole day, and nothing seems to be happening. Speakers look just fine and everything seems to be in order. I have set the crossover at 100hz and I'm pretty sure that's right for the Betas. Thanks for all the help guys. Heres to knocking on wood.
With the Beta 20's setting them at 80hz is perfectly fine. 100hz is really high for a full size bookshelf speaker of that caliber. 100hz is usually only needed for small HTIB satellite speakers. The Beta 20's have a -3db point at 58hz so they are more than capable of 80hz. I use Paradigm Mini Monitors which are very similar in size and performance and 80hz is a perfect crossover point.

It will also create a better blend with the sub. The higher you crossover a speaker, the more the sub will be localized.
 
P

PENG

Audioholic Slumlord
Actually guys, I think the problem was that two speakers wires were connecting. I've been watching for a whole day, and nothing seems to be happening. Speakers look just fine and everything seems to be in order. I have set the crossover at 100hz and I'm pretty sure that's right for the Betas. Thanks for all the help guys. Heres to knocking on wood.
Now that you have clarified this a little more, even without the info I asked in post#4:), I am quite sure you had it turned up pass the point the 146 is designed for and therefore shut itself down before it gets damaged. This is a smart thing for the manufacturer to do as it not only save you the hassle of having to send the unit in for repair but also save them having to repair their products on warranty just because the user get carried away occasionally.

Obviously crossover at 100 hz should allow you to crank the volume higher than you otherwise could get away with but then you may sacrifice SQ somewhat.
 
P

PENG

Audioholic Slumlord
Check his 2nd post, the Protect is on even when NO loudspeakers are connected..
He has blown something inside the amplifier, most likely a pair of devices..

Just my $0.00... ;)
Typically the designer of a protective system would want the circuit to latch so it remains in the tripped condition until someone has to chance to check things around, clear any probable root causes, and then do a reset. In home use case, this "reset" action could be done via an auto reset after "time out",a manual reset button, by unplugging the unit, wait for a predetermined time and plugging it back in, or some other procedures that the manufacturer may provide in the manual.

So no, it does not always mean something inside is blown unless the unit would not "reset". In this particulare case, the OP did not provide sufficient info in his 2nd post to tell us whether he manage to reset the unit, or the unit eventually reset itself after a "time out".
 
A

Adam41591

Audioholic Intern
I've been using for the setup for awhile now & nothing seems to be going wrong.
I will be setting the crossover to 80hz after writing this & I hope that works a little better. There's a lot to learn in this field, but it's so worth it:D Thanks so much guys, I really can't think of a better place to go for people who just like to have fun with audio. Now I'm off to listen to some music!:)
 
lsiberian

lsiberian

Audioholic Overlord
I've been using for the setup for awhile now & nothing seems to be going wrong.
I will be setting the crossover to 80hz after writing this & I hope that works a little better. There's a lot to learn in this field, but it's so worth it:D Thanks so much guys, I really can't think of a better place to go for people who just like to have fun with audio. Now I'm off to listen to some music!:)
Sometimes 80hz isn't the best point. I'd listen to find the right match for your system. I've had systems that much preferred 100hz.
 
M Code

M Code

Audioholic General
Typically the designer of a protective system would want the circuit to latch so it remains in the tripped condition until someone has to chance to check things around, clear any probable root causes, and then do a reset. In home use case, this "reset" action could be done via an auto reset after "time out",a manual reset button, by unplugging the unit, wait for a predetermined time and plugging it back in, or some other procedures that the manufacturer may provide in the manual.

So no, it does not always mean something inside is blown unless the unit would not "reset". In this particulare case, the OP did not provide sufficient info in his 2nd post to tell us whether he manage to reset the unit, or the unit eventually reset itself after a "time out".
The mentioned HK AVR uses a separate processor for the protection circuit. Whenever the AVR is powered up, Stand-By power switch is activated, then the protection processor checks for faults found. If the fault was a shorted loudspeaker wire and this was removed then the PROTECT message will be deleted. And in his 2nd post he mentioned he had discsonnected the loudspeaker wires However if the PROTECT message remains then the processor is being told of an internal issue. HK uses the Power ON/OFF cycle for Resetting the protection circuit to save repetitive button operation when such a problem exists...

Just my $0.00... ;)
 
A

Adam41591

Audioholic Intern
Thanks for all the help you guys. I think the problem has gone away since I haven't seen the message since the first time. This really is my favorite site for Q&A's and I think this thread can be closed, unless someone else has a question. Laterz!

Adam
 
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