Help with Anthem AVM20 Problem (1 Viewer)

[Evan S]

Michael, that could be the reason we haven't had the problem. I too have mine hooked directly into the wall also for the reason you mentioned as well as for the fact my renters insurance would cover any sort of electrical damage suffered if something goes wrong like that. I checked with them first before plugging it in "naked".

 

[Doug_Fr]

Guys

My AVM20 was plugged straight into the wall so it cannot be the same issue as is referred to in the SF email.

 

[Bob-N]

Doug,

That may be true. However, your unit can still be subject to internal power surges that may blow that 12Vdc fuse. They did mention that it was a fast blow fuse and they are typically a pain to use in circuits (from a nuisance POV) for this reason. They tend to be a bit more susceptible to surges since they react quickly to any significant surge.

Good to know that it was only a fuse which is easily replaceable (as long as it's not a pico fuse or solder-in type) with a slow blow type.

Bob

 

[Doug_Fr]

Any way this could be related to hooking the 12v trigger to my amplifier?

 

[Bob-N]

That might be a good place to look. I don't remember the maximum current draw for the trigger (50-100mA?). If that trigger is tied into other 12V circuits and your amp draws much more than the AVM20 trigger source can supply at the same time, you could overload the circuit as the inrush to the amp trigger could have blown that fast blow fuse.

Eww, bad run-on sentence but you might be onto something. Check the amp trigger power requirement and compare it to the AVM20 trigger supply and see if that's a possibility.

Bob

 

[Doug_Fr]

Has anybody used the trigger to power-up a Sherbourne 5/1500A? I'm on the road for a few days so I can't check the manuals?

 

[Dennis Oblow]

I Have my Avm20 plugged into a Rotel RLC900 line conditioner with no ill effects at all

 

[Doug_B]

When I had a dealer's demo AVM-20, I blew the 315 mA fuse :b . Since I did it late on Xmas eve, I had to wait until the 26th to get a new one and verify that the fuse was the only problem. I was sweating. BTW, it wasn't a surge protector that did it in.

Doug

 

[Mifr44]

"When I had a dealer's demo AVM-20, I blew the 315 mA fuse. Since I did it late on Xmas eve, I had to wait until the 26th to get a new one and verify that the fuse was the only problem."

Hmmm, I wonder if your "event" is the one that started Anthem to retest the AVM-20? If so, then they have known about this problem for some time, and have decided to fix the problem on an individual basis as fuses started to fail. Maybe with some publicity they will do a recall to have the fuse switched at the dealers or by owners themselves.

"BTW, it wasn't a surge protector that did it in."

Well, that makes two fuses failures without a surge protector or line conditioner. It seems that the AVM-20 is a bit sensitive to power surges of any kind (well, that's my guess). I hope that the switch of the fuse will correct these incidents too.

Michael

 

[RichardMA]

The dim front display and nothing else sounds almost like

some kind of "standby" mode. However, plugging it in and

unplugging it for a day would probably take it out of that

mode, if it was a mode.

I would take the demo,if it had the same warranty.

Why? Because it's already been "burned in" and if something really bad in it was going to fail, it would

have already done so.

 

[Mifr44]

RichardMA,

"I would take the demo,if it had the same warranty. Why? Because it's already been "burned in" and if something really bad in it was going to fail, it would have already done so."

In many cases, this would be true. But as was mentioned by Doug_B in post #28 of this thread, he blew the fuse on his dealer's demo unit over Christmas time. I just think that a small surge or a poor AC line increases the likelihood of blowing this fuse.

Michael

 

[Doug_B]

Hmmm, I wonder if your "event" is the one that started Anthem to retest the AVM-20?

Definitely not, because I never told them or my dealer. Now how much is it going to cost me to keep this quiet? BTW, I'm pretty sure I did something stupid to cause this versus some random power-related event.
Doug

 

[Mifr44]

Doug,
"Definitely not, because I never told them or my dealer. Now how much is it going to cost me to keep this quiet?"
Let me see, there are a LOT of remastered CDs I would like to get my hands on... So, the fuse is easy to get to, huh? This might save me a trip to the dealer in the future and having to disassemble my system should I experience a blown fuse.
"BTW, I'm pretty sure I did something stupid to cause this versus some random power-related event."
From the sound of it, it seems like you experienced exactly what several others on this thread have mentioned. That 315mA fast-blow fuse is just too sensitive for the task. I suppose if you hit the power button repeatedly within a few seconds you could cause the fuse to blow. But in that case, I would rather suffer the inconvenience of a blown fuse than a shorted circuit or a blown power supply.
Michael

 

[Ron Alcasid]

Sonic Frontiers tech support gave me the same blown fuse explaination. It seems reasonable. However, I cannot find anyone who carries a 315 mA slow blow fuse. Anyone know where I can get these things?

UPDATE: I found these at digikey.com. Search for part number F970-ND.

 

[Doug_B]

So, the fuse is easy to get to, huh?

The fuse is on the top circuit board, and I don't recall having any problem getting to it. If memory serves, the 1A fuse is in the same vicinity.

I have had no problems with my purchased AVM-20 wrt the .315A fuse, so I won't change it to a slow-blow until necessary.

Fuses are good versus the alternative when there's a real problem. Actually, I had a major fuse issue with my Odyssey Stratos HT3 (3ch) amp, which would blow when turning the unit on, due to the initial high current draw when charging the 180,000uF caps. I had to resort to various tricks to get it on. Eventually, my problem and the same from another owner prompted Klaus at Odyssey to investigate and eventually upgrade the fuse spec from 6.2A to 10A. I think the 6.2 was fast-blow and the 10 slow-blow, but I'm not 100% sure.

Doug

 

[Doug_Fr]

OK -- new AVM20 arrived yesterday and set it right up. Sounds great, works great but we'll see!!

Question -- anybody use set up the IR stuff -- using the Anthem as connector and hooking up receivers and emitters?

Also, anybody using a universal remote? Or, trying to modify the Anthem remote using the 6 pin connector?

Let me know

Thanks

 

[Evan S]

Doug, post your question on AVS regarding the IR transmitter. I know there is a user on that board named Fitsman with the AVM-20 who uses it for that purpose. Perhaps you can Private Message him regarding this if you are a member of that board too.

 

[Joe Ar]

Hey guys,

I just had my AVM20 do the same thing as Doug_Fr So after freakin out I went to my trusty computer and hopped on this forum the next day and wala!!! Doug_Fr had the same problem. I'm so glad it appears to be a fuse and nothing else. I contacted Nick @ SFI tech support and they are sending me the fuse. Just to let everyone else know I had my AVM20 hooked up to a Chang Lightspeed 3200 line conditioner in the digital outlet. The problem happened to me when I used to remote control to turn on the AVM20, it went on, then off and then nothing.

 

[Doug_Fr]

Joe

Let me know if the new fuse fixes the problem. My dealer and SF/Anthem never told me about the fuse problem. Instead, I waited 4 weeks for a new unit and they took the old one back. I'm kind of surprised that they didn't mention the fuse because I was in contact with them almost daily begging for a fix!!

 

[Doug_B]

Joe,

I contacted Nick @ SFI tech support and they are sending me the fuse.

I assume you're talking about a 315mA slow-blow instead of the previous fast-blow, right?

Doug