Tír Na HiFi

My brother had been using my old AVI amp until quite recently, when it started to act up, staying on full volume and going into Standby when you tried to adjust said volume. He replaced it and we thought it was time to retire it (I think I was still in college when I bought it second-hand, so it's given good service).

He gave it back to me over the weekend and I'm now suffering from a pang of nostalgia and wondering if it's fixable. Cloney were in the "probably not worth it" camp a while ago and in fairness they're probably right. Still, I opened it up yesterday to have a look and, well, I hadn't a clue what I was doing.

So, it's a few different PCBs. Is there even the remotest chance I could find out what's wrong with it? Are there any visual clues to look out for?

I know this is probably a job for a professional, but I'm curious.

Take a few photos Simon.....

Very good chance its those push buttons on the front.....

Ta Fran! I'll open it up again when I get a chance, but the buttons were exactly what I wanted to see on my attempt yesterday. When I got in there, though, the buttons were integrated onto the circuit board and I couldn't really do much. Anyway, this is all meaningless without pics probably, so leave it with me.

If they are contact buttons - like on a remote control, then its likely they just need a good clean.

If they are push buttons - physical click - then maybe one is stuck in.... if you're lucky.

After that its on to fault finding......

I had thought they were contact but they actually have a physical click and all seem to be moving and clicking normally.

Looks like I might be at home a bit more than expected over the next few days, so should get a chance to open it up again.

Electrical cleaner spray

You could rotate that alps motorised pot by hand (you might have to disconnect power to it) and see if it turns up or down volume. Best to use crappy speakers.... also good to check for DC on the outputs....