View Full Version : Hi Fi Cock-ups & Catastrophes!!
walpurgis
26-09-2014, 18:38
What's the worst thing (or worst things) you've done with your Hi-Fi.
Lost your big Tannoys off a roof rack? Electrocuted yourself? Blown your amp up and set fire to the house? Melted your speakers? Knocked your turntable out of a window?
I've done a few silly things.
I got a whopping electric shock through my forearm whilst tinkering with an old Teleton reel to reel recorder. I had the case off and stuck my arm through the metal frame to waggle part of the mechanism and managed to put my hand on something live. I was earthed near the elbow, but it was an interesting few seconds.
I've slipped using a screwdriver to remount speaker units and poked it through the cone a couple of times.
Melted voice coils with too much power.
Broken a couple of rather expensive styli through clumsiness.
Faffed about with the ground wire at the rear of my SL5 with the amp on and volume control set to 11 o'clock. Fried tweeters anyone?
I dropped a Watney Party 7 on a BSR deck mounted in a cheap, Fidelity music system at a party once. The jury is still out as to whether I did it deliberately or not and I'm not telling... :ner: :D
EDIT: I will say it sounded far better afterwards... hehe
istari_knight
26-09-2014, 19:05
I've chalked up a few over the years :eyebrows:
Messing around with phono cables whilst the system was turned on, result: Both KEF B200's blown in the IMF TLS50's.
First ever mod I tried was fitting gold plated binding posts to an old pair of Celestions... Problem was the binders didn't use insulating washers & as many here probably know the Celestion connection plates have a thin bit of metal with model no. printed on it, result: Fatally shorted both amplifier channels.
Setting the bias on a fully restored Marantz 2230, I'd spent weeks getting it spot on but my probe slipped, result: blown channel.
Reassembling crossovers inside a pair of SD Acoustics SD3 which had been rattled by the courier... Cocked up wiring HF filter to the bass & LF filter to the tweeter, result: Pair of blown tweeters.
A few busted styli but thats par for the course in this hobby.
Loads of AC shocks which are better than any coffee out there :D and one DC shock which f*cking hurt & left "entry/exit wounds" on my hand.
Took a pair of brand spankers Ditton 44s to a customer's house. Opened the top of the first box with an over-enthusiastic stanley knife and left a neat cut front to back in the veneered top of the cab.
Almost but not quite wrote off a pair of Gale GS401As by not closing the back doors of the van properly and pulling away a bit smartish (well, as smartish as you can pull away in a knackered Austin A55 Commercial...). Fortunately Ira G's packaging was well up to the challenge!
I have had several instances of releasing the "magic smoke that makes all electronics work" and that heady buzz of the mains through you:D
Hi Fi wise I have not had any cock ups that I can remember, although my memory is not very good.......em, what was I talking about..........:scratch:
.....remember leaving a rather nice Zep LP on the turntable of a record player and did not switch it off. it was an old machine and had a hot spot. in morning there was a rather nasty warp on it.
...oh and nearly got killed by a Russian radiogram that the mains plug that went into the machine was arse for tit and live plates welded themselves to my hand.:eyebrows: left 2, 1 inch high lumps of molten flesh on my hand. I still have the scars and that was about 45 years ago....does that count?
I tend to leave one of my record players spinning when I change records. I tried the same on another one, but had a hand fumble and dropped the record on the spinning metal platter. £20 180g audiophile repressing with a nice deep scratch in side 2.
I have to knock wood that I haven't lost a cantilever or stylus yet.
Oh, and one from very distant past - speaking of magic smoke. Multi-voltage integrated amp, moved from Canada to Germany for the second time. Set the thing for 220V, plugged it in, turned it on and "pop" smoke. It had two voltage switches.
I left a bunch of punk, new wave singles and albums behind after a ahem..quick move from "rough as f**k" digs mid 80s.
at the time this style of music, dead kennedys, black flag, early mint clash, cock sparer etc was just about dead in the water and the secondhand prices were marginal.
the price early punk stuff sells at now would make me weep.......IF I wasn't weeping over the OTHER 500 plus vinyl albums I sold off.. ditched when the format lost its way in the GREAT CD REVOLUTION!!!
In order of terror:
1. Played a Diana Krall track - damn near puked.
2. Sold, gave away, threw away 700+ Lps when CD was pronounced to be the holy grail.
3. Tried to play a very warped record - $250 repair bill to damaged cantilever.
southall-1998
27-09-2014, 00:23
Once I accidently spat on a ''hot'' KT-77 tube.
:doh:
S.
Blew me tweeters on a pair of Geminis (anyone remember them?) trying to out loud someone in the flats where I was living ('sweet child of mine' did the trick)
Moving house - I'd packed almost everything but the hi-fi and was moving around the place with a carrier bag putting little odds and sods into it. I was in the kitchen and picked up a lace tea-towel I had bought off a gypsy woman and walked through into the living room stuffing it into the bag as I went. Somehow the edge of it caught my brand new Goldring Eroica and ripped the cantilever almost right off. The gypsy said the tea towel would bring me good luck. Yeah, that worked...
Paul Lange
27-09-2014, 10:00
Mine was was quite mild, I just dropped a heavyweight LP down the back of the hifi unit the first time I opened it. My wife is the guilty party. Armed with nothing but a yellow duster , spit and determination to remove my hifi of it's audiophile dust she ripped the stylus from my new cartridge - £180 down the pan. The other time was when she wanted to rearrange the living room while the hifi was on. She pulled the wires from the back of the speakers and I can only assume the connectors shorted as when I got home from work only one channel of the amp was working. I inquired to which replied "I thought there was a funny smell".
Moving house - I'd packed almost everything but the hi-fi and was moving around the place with a carrier bag putting little odds and sods into it. I was in the kitchen and picked up a lace tea-towel I had bought off a gypsy woman and walked through into the living room stuffing it into the bag as I went. Somehow the edge of it caught my brand new Goldring Eroica and ripped the cantilever almost right off. The gypsy said the tea towel would bring me good luck. Yeah, that worked...
Your mistake was not to buy the lucky heather... IT'S A CURSE I TELL YE!!! :D
In my time as a dealer, the number of styli I've wrecked while (over) tightening cartridges in Linn arms causes me great pain when I look back. I've just fitted a good Supex 900E to a Dual cartridge carrier and the pins and needles in my fingers was a big concern (probably carpal tunnel and linked to the Diabetes IMO - the vet is aware of it :lol:).
The above has been my main issue, but I have buttock-clenching stories to tell on the damage I caused other gear through my own fault during my thirty odd years in hifi shops :eek:
Pete The Cat
27-09-2014, 14:26
I've been catapulted across the room after dabbling with a joint box while the lead was plugged into the mains.
I remember my first disaster with a piece of kit. An AT110E was crushed after magazines fell from the shelf above as the deck was playing - ironically they were Hi-Fi Answers !
Pete
Last week watched my 20 year old shan shimna speaker/ stand (concrete) topple into my back wall. Thankfully causing only slight damage to stand and wall. Hopefully won't be trying it again though!
prestonchipfryer
27-09-2014, 16:02
Wrecked an Ortofon 2M Black stylus when trying to replace old with new. :(
kenworthy100
27-09-2014, 16:39
As a student I worked part time at a Hifi dealership, a colleague helped me move an Isobarik and stand for a demonstration, I overbalanced and proceeded to drop said Isobarik from stand causing rather severe cabinet damage.
Tried to change an Arcam amp internal fuse before disconnecting from mains , you don't do that twice!!!
Theadmans
27-09-2014, 18:51
As an 18 year old I had just acquired my first car - a 1975 VW Golf 1100L.
I decided to pimp it up a bit to look like a GTI. Went down the local scrappy and acquired all the trim and badges etc. Pleased with my work I decided to pimp up the sounds in my new set of wheels.
Bought a nice Kenwood cassette player and deciding that the future of audio was the cassette - pulled out a few of my favourite LPs and recorded them to tape.
...and then for some inexplicable reason decided the home recorded tapes would look cool in authentic looking tape cases. Yes - I got a pair of scissors and cut up a 1st Press Joy Division "Unknown Pleasures" LP sleeve and a 1st Press UK Vertigo Kraftwerk "Autobahn" LP to fashion new cassette box sleeves to sit in my motor ! :doh:
. Yes - I got a pair of scissors and cut up a 1st Press Joy Division "Unknown Pleasures" LP sleeve and a 1st Press UK Vertigo Kraftwerk "Autobahn" LP to fashion new cassette box sleeves to sit in my motor ! :doh:
Do you dream sometimes that you are doing it all over again and then wake up in a sweat? ;)
In my time as a dealer, the number of styli I've wrecked while (over) tightening cartridges in Linn arms causes me great pain when I look back. I've just fitted a good Supex 900E to a Dual cartridge carrier and the pins and needles in my fingers was a big concern (probably carpal tunnel and linked to the Diabetes IMO - the vet is aware of it :lol:).
The above has been my main issue, but I have buttock-clenching stories to tell on the damage I caused other gear through my own fault during my thirty odd years in hifi shops :eek:
Do tell Dave! Were you a victim of the Linn brainwashing: tighten everything up until the treads strip, then slacken off a quarter turn?
daytona600
28-09-2014, 10:12
went on holiday for a month Returned to find a LP still playing on my LP12
It's time to fess up: Who, when they were a kid, couldn't resist prodding their old mans tweeters out of curiosity? Guilty as charged here... :eyebrows:
trio leo
28-09-2014, 11:01
Whilst working at Bespoke Audio back in the 80's, we sold a pair of speakers to a chap, later that day he rang us saying the speakers weren't working, when we got there we found out why, he had wired the speaker leads into a 13 amp plug and stuck it in a mains socket, I guess he heard a 50Hz note done beautifully for a nano second.
Another customer bought a system with an automatic turntable, he rang us saying it didn't work, so I went to his house and asked him to show me the problem, he placed a record on the deck and sat down, he was a little embarrassed when I pressed the "start" button and the arm lifted onto the record.
On another occasion I Installed a mega expensive system at a wealthy customers enormous house, he had everything, jaccuzzi, sauna, Porche the lot, the system had a pair of huge electrostatic speakers, (can't remember which now), everything was fine and it sounded fantastic, he was really happy, a couple of days later he was on the phone ranting and raving, the speakers had burst into flames and partially destroyed his lounge, he was going to sue us etc. etc. you get the picture. I was panicking and trying to calm him down, promising to immediately drive the 70 miles to his house to find out what went wrong, he then said .....Al, what day is it?, yep April 1st....PHEW!!!!!, he continued to enjoy his system for years.
.enjoy your music :)
Al
Whilst working at Bespoke Audio back in the 80's, we sold a pair of speakers to a chap, later that day he rang us saying the speakers weren't working, when we got there we found out why, he had wired the speaker leads into a 13 amp plug and stuck it in a mains socket, I guess he heard a 50Hz note done beautifully for a nano second.
Another customer bought a system with an automatic turntable, he rang us saying it didn't work, so I went to his house and asked him to show me the problem, he placed a record on the deck and sat down, he was a little embarrassed when I pressed the "start" button and the arm lifted onto the record.
On another occasion I Installed a mega expensive system at a wealthy customers enormous house, he had everything, jaccuzzi, sauna, Porche the lot, the system had a pair of huge electrostatic speakers, (can't remember which now), everything was fine and it sounded fantastic, he was really happy, a couple of days later he was on the phone ranting and raving, the speakers had burst into flames and partially destroyed his lounge, he was going to sue us etc. etc. you get the picture. I was panicking and trying to calm him down, promising to immediately drive the 70 miles to his house to find out what went wrong, he then said .....Al, what day is it?, yep April 1st....PHEW!!!!!, he continued to enjoy his system for years.
.enjoy your music :)
Al
I love these old 'in the trade' stories. Got any more?
Trashed my six month old cd player. (my first)..was just back from repair and it still wouldn't play The Orb Uf orb cd. Battered it on both side very hard with me fists . Cost 70 quid to repair but still wouldn't play the orb.
Thought I'd do an a - b with an old sylus and new. forgot which one was the new. chucked em both out and bought one I knew was new..
It's time to fess up: Who, when they were a kid, couldn't resist prodding their old mans tweeters out of curiosity? Guilty as charged here... :eyebrows:
I need to show this question to my two youngest brothers - They both denied it.
However I did once take a dozen or so of my mothers 45s outside. I found they made a passable frisbee! I never got blamed - so what comes round, goes round I guess.
Peter Galbavy
29-09-2014, 09:25
Thanksfully nothing too major - a handful of records over the years scratched to useless by being dropped on harder-than-vinyl corners, slipping out of inner sleeves and the like.
My "favourite" recently was when I moved my gear from one location to another and couldn't figure out why the vinyl sounded so dull. Ended up taking everything apart, checking all the wiring, the cartridge pins etc. Turned out that I had pressed the MM/MC switch on the back of the Phonobox when moving it to MC. Wasted couple of hours but no damage beyond pride. D'oh!
Ammonite Audio
29-09-2014, 13:50
It's time to fess up: Who, when they were a kid, couldn't resist prodding their old mans tweeters out of curiosity? Guilty as charged here... :eyebrows:
A neighbour's child once ran into my front room, stood in front of my Focal Daline speakers, then viciously prodded the centre cap of the mid-bass unit. The mother calmly told me that 'it was all right' and carried on as if nothing had occurred. Luckily I managed to pull the depressed cap out with the aid of a small hook. There is no substitute for proper grilles and covers.
. There is no substitute for proper grilles and covers.
I've found a better one. Don't allow children (or dogs) into the house at all. :)
The Black Adder
29-09-2014, 14:34
A neighbour's child once ran into my front room, stood in front of my Focal Daline speakers, then viciously prodded the centre cap of the mid-bass unit. The mother calmly told me that 'it was all right' and carried on as if nothing had occurred. Luckily I managed to pull the depressed cap out with the aid of a small hook. There is no substitute for proper grilles and covers.
I did that with my dads Solarvox speakers.... "what does this do?"... "nothing, what does that one do?"
walpurgis
29-09-2014, 15:05
My 'den' is locked unless I'm in it.
Too many fragile and costly bits and pieces in there, scarce old books, cameras and of course the Hi-Fi!
Beobloke
29-09-2014, 15:37
Luckily I've never made direct contact with live mains through a piece of hi-fi equipment (but have at work...:o) but have had many nice big capacitors discharge themselves across my hands - one even blew a soldering iron out of my hands once!
So far, though, I have managed to avoid ripping styli off and only ever destroyed one pair of loudspeakers through excessive volume - they were Rigonda items intended for a 4W per channel radiogram and took a dislike to the full fury of my 60W per channel Yamaha receiver.
My worst ever catastrophe, though, was a piece of review equipment only a few months ago, which I damaged when packing it back up after the review. I still can't believe it happened as it's one of the most expensive review items that has ever passed through my hands (literally in this case!) and I was treating it as tenderly as I possibly could. I felt sick for hours afterwards! :doh:
I've found a better one. Don't allow children (or dogs) into the house at all. :)
I believe you can obtain electrified fencing for that purpose.
Marco.
Luckily I've never made direct contact with live mains through a piece of hi-fi equipment (but have at work...:o) but have had many nice big capacitors discharge themselves across my hands - one even blew a soldering iron out of my hands once!
So far, though, I have managed to avoid ripping styli off and only ever destroyed one pair of loudspeakers through excessive volume - they were Rigonda items intended for a 4W per channel radiogram and took a dislike to the full fury of my 60W per channel Yamaha receiver.
My worst ever catastrophe, though, was a piece of review equipment only a few months ago, which I damaged when packing it back up after the review. I still can't believe it happened as it's one of the most expensive review items that has ever passed through my hands (literally in this case!) and I was treating it as tenderly as I possibly could. I felt sick for hours afterwards! :doh:
Sounds dreadful. Now I know this won't cheer you up but it could have been worse ... if it landed on your foot.
Buggleskelly
03-10-2014, 13:11
A few things come to mind.
A good 30 years ago I had a B&O set up and I wanted to replace the horrible bell wire speaker leads with some decent stuff but still using the plugs supplied. Long and the short - I was using a kitchen knife to splice the cable, slipped, sliced into my finger, claret everywhere and me ending up at the local hospital Out Patients.
Bent a Denon 301 cantilever by slightly over vigorous cleaning :doh: . Didn't notice it until I stuck on an album and then wondered why there was something off with the tracking. Gave me the good excuse to buy a new cartridge :eyebrows:
Not really hi-fi related but, in my early teens I used to build crystal sets and transistor radios. The very old soldering iron was not working so I took inspection plate off where the mains comes in - yes it was off. However, went off to do something else, came back, switched on, picked it up it and the next thing I know I was across the other side of the room. Mr Stupid here forgot it was still plugged in to the mains.
Haha...loving this thread - it's funny 'cos it's true.
MINUTES after unboxing a pair of vintage alnico 15" woofers I'd bought from the USA for an open baffle speaker project I dropped a phone book (remember those) corner first RIGHT through the cone of one. :eek:
Unlike the other stories in this thread this, of course, isn't remotely funny. :D:D
walpurgis
10-10-2014, 20:05
MINUTES after unboxing a pair of vintage alnico 15" woofers I'd bought from the USA for an open baffle speaker project I dropped a phone book (remember those) corner first RIGHT through the cone of one.
That sounds heartbreaking! :(
That sounds heartbreaking! :(
"Aghast" I think is the word to best describe the moment, but now I can laugh :D:D
Would love to have seen my face...
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