Sony STR DE695 - a problem?

[jmc]

Hi

my sony str de 695 has never failed me and although it has always gotten hot, it never, ever went into protect. i've always been careful

I decided to open it the other day, take the dust off ETC when i noticed a little brownish color on the OPTICAL inputs board, under a little heat spreader (highlighted on the picture).

i decided to turn on the receiver and listenin to some music, push it etc. the heat spreader gets hot in 5 minuts to the point you have to lift your finger in 5 seconds...

funny thing is i've never used the digital inputs, so how come it gets so hot and so fast?

I would appreciate very much an answer, if this is normal or not? has the same happened to you?

i cant post links or images yet

 

[TLS Guy]

Hi

my sony str de 695 has never failed me and although it has always gotten hot, it never, ever went into protect. i've always been careful

I decided to open it the other day, take the dust off ETC when i noticed a little brownish color on the OPTICAL inputs board, under a little heat spreader (highlighted on the picture).

i decided to turn on the receiver and listenin to some music, push it etc. the heat spreader gets hot in 5 minuts to the point you have to lift your finger in 5 seconds...

funny thing is i've never used the digital inputs, so how come it gets so hot and so fast?

I would appreciate very much an answer, if this is normal or not? has the same happened to you?

i cant post links or images yet

By heat spreader, I assume you mean a finned heat sink. However no electronic component in a receiver should get so hot you can't touch it. The fact you have not used the digital inputs is irrelevant as the boards are live whether you use them or not.

I would bet that over heating is the reason for the receiver shutting down and you have a significant problem brewing.

However the cause of the problem may not have started with the component over heating.

Your receiver needs service. Using it is likely to spread the damage.

 

[jmc]

I would bet that over heating is the reason for the receiver shutting down and you have a significant problem brewing.

If you read carefuly I did not state any problem, nor does the amplifier have any problem. I doesnt and has never shut of or gone into protect.. I simply noticed upon opening it to dust off that the tiny heat spreader for the optical board is getting very hot to the toutch.

I'm am NOT talking about the big heat spreader that cools off the amplifier it self.. that doesn't get hot even.

 

[TLS Guy]

If you read carefuly I did not state any problem, nor does the amplifier have any problem. I doesnt and has never shut of or gone into protect.. I simply noticed upon opening it to dust off that the tiny heat spreader for the optical board is getting very hot to the toutch.

I'm am NOT talking about the big heat spreader that cools off the amplifier it self.. that doesn't get hot even.

Sorry, I misread it and thought you said it had protected.

I will need a picture. However it would be most unusual for any solid state component to get that hot. The board discoloration is a bad omen.

 

[jmc]

Sorry, I misread it and thought you said it had protected.

I will need a picture. However it would be most unusual for any solid state component to get that hot. The board discoloration is a bad omen.

no problem thank you for helping. here's a pic i could find on google, i highlighted the little thing

 

[TLS Guy]

no problem thank you for helping. here's a pic i could find on google, i highlighted the little thing

That looks like an old prologic receiver. The board in question is the optical SPDIF and processing board.

The item under that heat sink is almost certainly a DAC processing chip, which is not only doing the decoding for the digital inputs, but also doing the surround prologic functions.

Older chips were not nearly as efficient as modern chips and produced more heat. However I have never encountered a processing chip that gets its heat sink so hot you can't touch it that was functioning correctly. I suspect it is breaking down and generating excess heat. That would be a good bet at this time given its age.

That unit is not worth fixing if it quits, and I would bet that chip is long since NLA.

When it fails send it to the recycling center and get up to date. Things have improved a lot since that receiver first saw the light of day.

 

[PENG]

I agree that unit is not worth fixing, just keep using it and it may last for a long time even with the heat, not say it will, just may, as I had seen that sort of things in the past. Make sure it is in a well ventilated area though.

 

[j_garcia]

Heat isn't a good thing, but it won't necessarily kill the receiver obviously. They put it on top so it will quickly shed the heat and a heat sink's job is to shed that heat, so as long as it is working, I wouldn't worry about it. I also agree that when it dies, fixing it is a waste of time.

 

[slipperybidness]

Problem #1: It's a Sony

 

[j_garcia]

Problem #1: It's a Sony

You said it, not me For being an x95 series, I am kind of surprised it is still alive.