Yamaha Help RX-V385 (1 Viewer)

[CarsonB]

Hello all,
First post here and I need some help...

I have a Yamaha RX-V385BL receiver, everything about worked great, or so I thought, until recently.

It is wired through an HDMI ran through the attic/wall and down to the TV (Samsung UN65RU7100FXZA), using a Logitech remote with a hub for control. I use mostly an Apple TV to watch. The overall setup was in existence before the current TV.

I never could get my Samsung Bluray player, UBD-M8500/ZA, to send both audio and video through the receiver, only audio, but since we rarely use it, I never went much further in diagnosing the problem.

Recently, the AppleTV has been very slow to respond to startup, I blamed it on the Apple tech, as it is a few generations old. Bought a new 4K version, and found the problem remained. As I started to troubleshoot, several issues became apparent...

The receiver when switched to the HDMI input will only flash the HDMI signal lights for a few seconds at a time, never transmitting a signal. The TV screen maintains its no signal detected screen. This happens no matter which HDMI input is used or which device is being used for the input. I ordered an HDMI repeater to boost the signal, kinda blindly hoping it would remedy something. It did not. If the device is connected directly to the cable, bypassing the receiver, everything works great.

In fact, when the device is connected directly to the cable, the picture quality is exponentially better than it ever was running through the receiver. I don't know if this is a byproduct of the receiver, or if it is a result of the Yamaha. As I said the setup was in place with an older TV and I never realized what I was missing.

Now for the weird part, if I move the receiver to the TV and run another cable, everything works as it should, but anything else hooked to the 'through the wall' cable works when directly connected to it. I really, really, really don't want to replace the "through the wall' cable if at all avoidable.

Sorry for the novel, just trying to download all the relevant information. If anyone has any ideas or suggestions, please let me know. I'm thinking the solution is either replacing the receiver or sending it back to Yamaha, but seeing the picture quality change, I am leaning towards replacement.

Thank you all in advance.
Carson

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

Good job of troubleshooting – I’d agree that you’ve narrowed the problem down to the receiver. I did a search and expected to find the 385 was an older model, but it seems to be only a couple of years old?

I’d say the lesson there is to avoid bottom-of-the-line receivers. AV receivers these days are extremely complicated components, what with all the audio and video processing, streaming, Bluetooth, etc. I don’t see how one can be made as cheap as what the 385 sold for without sacrificing quality, which ends up being long-term reliability. You’ll probably have better long-term luck with something at least in the middle of the product line.

Regards,
Wayne

 

[CarsonB]

Thanks for the reply. Yes, the Yamaha is less than a year old. It replaced a V367 that worked great until a lightning strike, a hard lesson learned there...
The Yamaha should still have some factory warranty, but if a replacement is needed, what would be a good option. Really needs to be in the sub $400 range.

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

I’d certainly take advantage of the warranty, since it’s available.

As far as a replacement recommendation - sorry, I don’t know if (or how) anyone can predict how a receiver is going to behave with a long HDMI cable. Just pick something in your price range and hope for the best.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt