Denon X3800 shuts down

[GKROOK]

I have a Denon X3800 AVR. Sometimes when we are watching a movie or streaming content or listening to music the X3800 shuts down. The receiver is sitting on the top of my equipment stand and and gets plenty of ventilation. When this happens I touch the X3800 and it is slightly warm or cool. I've checked the electric source and connection and everything is OK. The receiver is directly connected to it's own circuit. It shuts off on a random interval. Has this happened to anybody else? Is there a fix?
Thanks for your response.
GKROOK

 

[isolar8001]

I have a Denon X3800 AVR. Sometimes when we are watching a movie or streaming content or listening to music the X3800 shuts down. The receiver is sitting on the top of my equipment stand and and gets plenty of ventilation. When this happens I touch the X3800 and it is slightly warm or cool. I've checked the electric source and connection and everything is OK. The receiver is directly connected to it's own circuit. It shuts off on a random interval. Has this happened to anybody else? Is there a fix?
Thanks for your response.
GKROOK

Do a factory reset anytime something goes awry like this.

Then if that doesn't help.
First suspect would be CEC commands from other devices sending a "sleep" signal.
Second would be any frayed or loose speaker connections...maybe even a bad speaker.

Do a factory reset again and see if that helps after you have checked all of the above.

 

[Verdinut]

I have a Denon X3800 AVR. Sometimes when we are watching a movie or streaming content or listening to music the X3800 shuts down. The receiver is sitting on the top of my equipment stand and and gets plenty of ventilation. When this happens I touch the X3800 and it is slightly warm or cool. I've checked the electric source and connection and everything is OK. The receiver is directly connected to it's own circuit. It shuts off on a random interval. Has this happened to anybody else? Is there a fix?
Thanks for your response.
GKROOK

What speakers are you driving with your X3800, how loud do you listen to your audio content, what distance is your listening position from the front speakers. Finally, what is the size of your listening room?

 

[GKROOK]

What speakers are you driving with your X3800, how loud do you listen to your audio content, what distance is your listening position from the front speakers. Finally, what is the size of your listening room?

Excuse me for the delay in responding to your post. I've been dealing with some serious health issues. Hopefully I am past that now.
I have Philharmonic HT R & L, Philharmonic HT Center Channel and Philharmonic True Mini Monitors for rear speakers. The MLP is approximately 11 ft. from speakers and the speakers are 11 ft. apart. The listening room is of moderate size - 32x25. I have the system set up in the middle of the long side. I don't listen to it very loud, maybe -10 max to -20. I haven't measured the sound levels but will soon.

 

[Verdinut]

Excuse me for the delay in responding to your post. I've been dealing with some serious health issues. Hopefully I am past that now.
I have Philharmonic HT R & L, Philharmonic HT Center Channel and Philharmonic True Mini Monitors for rear speakers. The MLP is approximately 11 ft. from speakers and the speakers are 11 ft. apart. The listening room is of moderate size - 32x25. I have the system set up in the middle of the long side. I don't listen to it very loud, maybe -10 max to -20. I to haven't measured the sound levels but will soon.

Your Philharmonic speakers are not hard to drive and you don't listen to them at high SPLs. Your AVR is defective and I suggest that you contact the manufacturer to obtain a factory authorized repair station for resolving the problem.

 

[infoisthub]

I have a Denon X3800 AVR. Sometimes when we are watching a movie or streaming content or listening to music the X3800 shuts down. The receiver is sitting on the top of my equipment stand and and gets plenty of ventilation. When this happens I touch the X3800 and it is slightly warm or cool. I've checked the electric source and connection and everything is OK. The receiver is directly connected to it's own circuit. It shuts off on a random interval. Has this happened to anybody else? Is there a fix?
Thanks for your response.
GKROOK

Hey! HDMI Consumer Electronics Control (CEC) allows interconnected devices to control each other. However, miscommunications can cause unexpected behaviors, such as random shutdowns. Try disabling the HDMI CEC function on your receiver to see if this resolves the issue. Or you can use a high-quality surge protector or an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) to safeguard against power issues.

 

[PENG]

Excuse me for the delay in responding to your post. I've been dealing with some serious health issues. Hopefully I am past that now.
I have Philharmonic HT R & L, Philharmonic HT Center Channel and Philharmonic True Mini Monitors for rear speakers. The MLP is approximately 11 ft. from speakers and the speakers are 11 ft. apart. The listening room is of moderate size - 32x25. I have the system set up in the middle of the long side. I don't listen to it very loud, maybe -10 max to -20. I haven't measured the sound levels but will soon.

Denon AVRs typically has diagnostics that would tell you the reason for the shutdown events. If you cannot find the steps to display the fault, I can take a look of the service manual of the X3700H (available) and hope that the same procedure would work with the X3800H. Unfortunately the SM for the X3800H is not available, but if I recall, there was some YT video that mentioned diagnostics. In the meantime, you should contact Denon and they should be able to instruct you how to get the fault code/or display the causes for the shutdown.

There is a good chance that you are over driving the unit, volume of -10 could be too high, for those 4 ohm nominal speakers at 11 ft and in a large room; and would be worse if the trim levels are set to >0. So I suspect the causes of the shutdown would likely be overcurrent, not thermal but current spike that may be high enough to trigger the protective circuit. How did you get out of the shutdown mode, by turning the unit off and on?

Try to keep the volume below -20 and see if it still shutdown while watching those same movies.

 

[Antares]

Hold down Zone 2 Source+Dimmer+Status simultaneously with the unit off then push the power button.
After that press tuner preset -/+ until 2. Protection shows on the LED display then press status.
The unit will restart and give you information on what caused the protection circuit to trip off.
If it's ASO, check the speakers, if it's any other I'd consider reaching out Denon support.

 

[lovinthehd]

Curious, have you resolved this issue?

 

[Happy Joe]

I too have had shutdown issues with a Dennon x3800h;
It occurred to me, last night, that since I was trying to use it to power an 11 speaker surround system (using 2 power hungry Polk r700s, in front) that I might be abusing the power supply excessively...
So, I turned off the 4 height speakers and disconnected them (both physically and in the software); then set the system to 7. 0, without a sub, mode. (At this point I no longer use a sub other than to lower the listening room's resonant frequency; The Polk r700s have enough bottom end, for me, without needing an active sub).

The shutdowns magically stopped and the sound quality of the front speakers improved.

...Hope it helps...
Enjoy!

 

[Verdinut]

I too have had shutdown issues with a Dennon x3800h;
It occurred to me, last night, that since I was trying to use it to power an 11 speaker surround system (using 2 power hungry Polk r700s, in front) that I might be abusing the power supply excessively...
So, I turned off the 4 height speakers and disconnected them (both physically and in the software); then set the system to 7. 0, without a sub, mode. (At this point I no longer use a sub other than to lower the listening room's resonant frequency; The Polk r700s have enough bottom end, for me, without needing an active sub).

The shutdowns magically stopped and the sound quality of the front speakers improved.

...Hope it helps...
Enjoy!

The sub had nothing to do with the shutdown of your AVR, since it doesn't power a sub which has its own power amp.

The problem results from an AVR with 11 channel amps, but with a limited power supply. You could get a three channel power amp to drive your front channel speakers, and a shutdown could be eliminated when you drive your AV system at higher SPL. This external amp should have rated power outputs of at least 200 watts at 8 ohms to properly drive your Polks.

Your Polk speakers are current demanding. With an impedance curve dipping to around 5 ohms at power hungry low frequencies, and with a phase angle curve going down to over -50 degrees at about 55 Hz, they require amplifiers with an adequate power supply.

 

[Happy Joe]

Agreed; 'though I have not used a secondary subwoofer (powered or not) for years... (I do still have the old 16 cubic foot monster, out of Audio magazine, circa late 1970s, in long term, storage).

Thank you for confirming my thinking on the 3800's power supply (inadequate for the intended purpose)...
Right now I' thinking of getting an Onkyo TX-RZ70 to increase the power although It is probably marginal at high spl.. Very disappointed in the Dennon.

...When in doubt use a bigger hammer...

Enjoy!

Edit; I also still have a 200 watt entertainment Amp That could be excavated out of long term storage; Naaah, I would rather use new stuff.

Enjoy!

 

[TLS Guy]

Agreed; 'though I have not used a secondary subwoofer (powered or not) for years... (I do still have the old 16 cubic foot monster, out of Audio magazine, circa late 1970s, in long term, storage).

Thank you for confirming my thinking on the 3800's power supply (inadequate for the intended purpose)...
Right now I' thinking of getting an Onkyo TX-RZ70 to increase the power although It is probably marginal at high spl.. Very disappointed in the Dennon.

...When in doubt use a bigger hammer...

Enjoy!

Edit; I also still have a 200 watt entertainment Amp That could be excavated out of long term storage; Naaah, I would rather use new stuff.

Enjoy!

Your best option is an external amp. If your amp instorage is of good quality use it, no matter how old it is. I have 13 older power amps in daily use, and they are fine.

Receiver power amps are pretty miserable affairs, with too many amps powered by one power supply.

 

[highfigh]

I too have had shutdown issues with a Dennon x3800h;
It occurred to me, last night, that since I was trying to use it to power an 11 speaker surround system (using 2 power hungry Polk r700s, in front) that I might be abusing the power supply excessively...
So, I turned off the 4 height speakers and disconnected them (both physically and in the software); then set the system to 7. 0, without a sub, mode. (At this point I no longer use a sub other than to lower the listening room's resonant frequency; The Polk r700s have enough bottom end, for me, without needing an active sub).

The shutdowns magically stopped and the sound quality of the front speakers improved.

...Hope it helps...
Enjoy!

When the AVR turns on, how high is the volume? I recommend setting the Volume to -30 using the dB scale, not the 0-100 scale. This can be set in the Audio menu.

 

[Happy Joe]

The amp in storage was originally used in a Disco (gives you an idea how old it is). I have not had particularly good luck with old electronics they tend to have pernicious small/irritating problems, for me.

As I get increasingly antique I find that head splitting SPLs hold little attraction; I tend to want to hear every thing/all nuances at modest levels.

Simplicity is also attractive; I no longer have any urge to tri-amp or bi-amp.... If the onkyo fails I will likely go with more efficient speakers (currently rebuilding, awaiting tweeters, for my favorite, now blown NHT 2.5Is. Which were destroyed by a poorly implemented auto equalization adjustment on a n AVR that I was trying, which, in turn resulted in myaquireing the R700s).

highfigh said:
"When the AVR turns on, how high is the volume? I recommend setting the Volume to -30 using the dB scale, not the 0-100 scale. This can be set in the Audio menu."

Probably around 50 on the 0-100 scale; it worked for a while, then would kick out for a moment... solved by disabling the 4 height speakers; which gave the powersupply more aviliable overhead, IMO.

Enjoy!

 

[lovinthehd]

I have a Denon X3800 AVR. Sometimes when we are watching a movie or streaming content or listening to music the X3800 shuts down. The receiver is sitting on the top of my equipment stand and and gets plenty of ventilation. When this happens I touch the X3800 and it is slightly warm or cool. I've checked the electric source and connection and everything is OK. The receiver is directly connected to it's own circuit. It shuts off on a random interval. Has this happened to anybody else? Is there a fix?
Thanks for your response.
GKROOK

Without knowing spl level, speakers/distance from them for your primary listening position....hard to have any idea of what's going on.

 

[Happy Joe]

I received Twisters, yesterday;
all went well until one of the "Big Tornado" scenes with Atmos enabled... whereupon the Dennon x3800h shut down for a relatively long period;
This firmly establishes, in my mind, that the X3800 is simply not up to the task of powering 5 speaker (down from 7) surround sound when the speakers consist of the polk R700s in front and Klipsh R26F A's as rears.

Fortunately I have a RZ70 on order (due in about a week); If it too proves to be inadequate for the task I will likely be forced into multiple amps or receivers...

Performed some preliminary background research into amplifiers ; Noticed that an old, familiar name popped up... Crown.; although it seems totally absent from the audio web pages.
Are there any recommendations for audiophile amps in the 300 W/ch range that come to mind? ...I have been long distracted from Audio as a hobby but old age is leading me back to it....

Thanks in advance...

Enjoy!

 

[hemiram]

I've had problems with shutdowns over the years running 5.1 and 7.1 speaker setups and the solution was to run the front L+R speakers off an external amp. Or like I have it now, with the center running off yet another amp I had sitting doing nothing. My receiver stays at a sane temp, and no shutdowns any more. I'm running my fronts off an recapped Onkyo M-508, and the center is one channel of an old Pioneer, I can't remember the model. My Yamaha TSR-7810 (Same as an RX-V781) stays cool and with the fan unit on it, never gets above 83 F. Sadly, a lot of receivers just can't seem to handle 5 and 7 or more speakers at any real power level. My TSR-7810 weighs about 5 pounds less, mostly in the transformer and heat sinks, than the RX-V691 it replaced, I knew it wouldn't handle the stress of 7 speakers for sure, so an amp was used almost from day one. My Denon 4700X wasn't all that much better at tolerating 7 speakers than the Yamaha was/is, and I decided to keep the Yamaha, as I was familiar with it's menus and setups. I did like the sound of the Denon slightly better though, but my right ear is a mess at this point anyway...

 

[Happy Joe]

I've had problems with shutdowns over the years running 5.1 and 7.1 speaker setups and the solution was to run the front L+R speakers off an external amp. Or like I have it now, with the center running off yet another amp I had sitting doing nothing. My receiver stays at a sane temp, and no shutdowns any more. I'm running my fronts off an recapped Onkyo M-508, and the center is one channel of an old Pioneer, I can't remember the model. My Yamaha TSR-7810 (Same as an RX-V781) stays cool and with the fan unit on it, never gets above 83 F. Sadly, a lot of receivers just can't seem to handle 5 and 7 or more speakers at any real power level. My TSR-7810 weighs about 5 pounds less, mostly in the transformer and heat sinks, than the RX-V691 it replaced, I knew it wouldn't handle the stress of 7 speakers for sure, so an amp was used almost from day one. My Denon 4700X wasn't all that much better at tolerating 7 speakers than the Yamaha was/is, and I decided to keep the Yamaha, as I was familiar with it's menus and setups. I did like the sound of the Denon slightly better though, but my right ear is a mess at this point anyway...

Thanks for the response, it sounds like i am in a similar situation... I think that, perhaps I will look in the old equipment storage and maybe drag another receiver out and hook them both up...
Enjoy!

 

[Verdinut]

Thanks for the response, it sounds like i am in a similar situation... I think that, perhaps I will look in the old equipment storage and maybe drag another receiver out and hook them both up...
Enjoy!

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