How do I prevent the "Overload" lights!?!?!?! (1 Viewer)

[TomCollier]

I've had my home theater hooked up for about two months now and it has been working great. I got digital cable yesterday and it all hooked up fine. But now whenever the volume gets to a barely mediocre level the receiver shuts off and flashes "overload". I unhooked the digital cable box and it still does that on both games and dvds. I think some wires may have been touched or pulled, but I unhooked everything and hooked it all back together. My main problem is I don't know what causes the "overload" to flash and I don't know how to prevent it. Any help is completely welcome. Thank you.

 

[MichaelDDD]

Tom,

Is it an "overload" indicator or a "fault" indicator? What's it for? Input level? Speaker protection?

Depending on what the indicator is for, we can start from there. Unhooking everything and unplugging the receiver for about 15 minutes is a good idea as well.

 

[ChadLB]

Just hook up your 2 front speakers and see if it still does it. Is this a Pioneer Receiver...if so what speakers are you using?

 

[TomCollier]

My receiver is a JVC rx-6020. The front and back channel speakers are all RCA and the center speaker is Bose. The indicator is an "overload" indicator and lights up when either there is a circuit breaker or the volume is turned up to high, according to the manual.

 

[Chu Gai]

A good place to start is by scrupulously reviewing all your connections and ensuring that there are no stray wires touching. If all is well, then you might consider just powering the front speakers while disconnecting the others. Gradually add them back starting with the center. I'm not familiar with that model but you may also wish to experiment by setting the speakers to small if that's an option. With lower priced receivers, and not unusual for mid-priced ones, the receivers are unable to deliver their rated power to all the channels simultaneously. Further, if the impedance of your speakers is not 8 ohms, that may well tax the capability of your receiver so you should review that.

 

[TomCollier]

Well my speakers all have the impedance of 8ohms. When you say check to see if any wires are touching do you mean the speaker wires? All the wires are pretty clean except for the right rear, it was severed by the dog so i had to tie another speaker wire to the severed end into the receiver. Could that be the problem?

 

[ChadLB]

Tom,
That might be the problem ...you might want to try a new wire .....Did you try what I suggested ...listen to somethig with just the 2 front speakers and turn it up to the volume where it overloads and just keep adding one speaker at a time.

 

[TomCollier]

I tried unhooking the rear speakers but it still overloads at a fairly low volume. Does anyone have any other ideas?

 

[Grant B]

Is there a variable analog or digital level control on the JVC?
On my older sony preamp if the input level is to high it will set off a overload light. Since you are probably using digital inputs there should be some control.
If the input level is too high, it doesn't matter how low the volume is.

 

[Bob McElfresh]

Overload is almost always caused by red/black wires shorted. This is a short-circuit which over-heats the receiver.

- Disconnect all speakers from the rear of the receiver

- Fire the system up and turn up the volume. If the unit goes into OVERLOAD - something is wrong with the receiver.

- Make sure the receiver has vent-space and is not simply over-heating.

- Examine both ends of the wire for the center speaker. Make sure there are no strands of copper and hook up just the center speaker. Turn the system on and turn it up.

- If the system works fine, turn off the power and hook up one more speaker. test again

Eventually you will find the problem wire. I strongly suspect the dog-chewed wire has a short.

 

[MichaelDDD]

I echo Bob's thoughts; you've got a shorted speaker wire somewhere. Replace them all. And keep your doggie away from the wires!

The test of turning on the receiver with nothing hooked up to it is a great idea and a sure-fire way to see if it's the receiver or not. I'm betting your receiver is fine.