Need inputs for AVR HDMI board issue

[hdmaniac]

Hi,

I have a Cambridge Audio Azur 551R AVR that was brought over from UK. The HDMI in/out stopped working recently and I was given a quote from a Dealer in Chennai for around 20K and a waiting period of 2 months for them to import the part.

I have read in other international forums that HDMI problems are quite widespread with AVRs across brands and usually blown capacitors on the HDMI daughter board are the main cause and some were able to fix it by replacing just the capacitors on the board.

I know the fault in my unit is just the HDMI board as I am still using it for surround sound via optical digital so the Dolby/DTS decoder board and Amp section works perfectly.

Anyone knows a experienced service/repair person in Chennai I could take my unit for trying to repair the faulty HDMI board? If there is someone who could do it, I would like to try replacing the CAPs to see if that fixes the problem rather then spending 20K for a new board and waiting for a uncertain period.

Thanks in advance for any inputs.

 

[efernand1]

Hi

HDMI board issues are common in most AVRs...this is due to users who connect everything to the AVR as a central hub....one of my friend who is a repairer has told me that connecting a set top box via HDMI to the AVR causes this issue...the cable TV line coming to a home has some amount of electrical current flowing and hence it gets passed out thru HDMI which enters your AVR and hence we have issues with the HDMI boards....TVs also have faced the same issue....

Yes it is expensive to replace the board and especially when the brands and models we use are rare...some of our forum members keep travelling and perhaps you could request one of them to get it faster for you....

Also another caution is that not everyone is an expert repairer...some of them just do trial and error and spoil your AVR...need to be careful.....

I know proper repairers in Mumbai but Chennai i am sure some of our FMs would comment.....i just thought i share my information on why HDMI boards go bad....

All the best...hope things work out for you....

 

[venkatcr]

Try Mantra Video in Mylapore. Though he is authorised for Pioneer, he does handle all branded equipment. He sounds reasonable and knowledgeable.

You will find his address here - https://pioneer-india.in/stores/home-entertainment-services/Tamil Nadu/

Cheers

 

[hdmaniac]

Hi

Also another caution is that not everyone is an expert repairer...some of them just do trial and error and spoil your AVR...need to be careful.....

....

I totally agree and exactly my concern too leading to this post to seek expert inputs from HFV FMs who may have some prior experience with multi brand service engineers.

 

[hdmaniac]

Try Mantra Video in Mylapore. Though he is authorised for Pioneer, he does handle all branded equipment. He sounds reasonable and knowledgeable.

You will find his address here - https://pioneer-india.in/stores/home-entertainment-services/Tamil Nadu/

Cheers

Thank you for your pointer. Any particular rep/engineer name I should ask for? I will check out Matra Video in the coming week.

 

[reju]

Hi

HDMI board issues are common in most AVRs...this is due to users who connect everything to the AVR as a central hub....one of my friend who is a repairer has told me that connecting a set top box via HDMI to the AVR causes this issue...the cable TV line coming to a home has some amount of electrical current flowing and hence it gets passed out thru HDMI which enters your AVR and hence we have issues with the HDMI boards....TVs also have faced the same issue....

i just thought i share my information on why HDMI boards go bad....

All the best...hope things work out for you....

Very good point!

Another reason is due to the fact the HDMI boards inside the AVRs are normally positioned right on top and thus prone to lot of dust from the wide ventilation present on the top of AVR chassis.
So much dust gets accumulated on top of the board that it even corrodes and eventually the board stops working.

My advise is that once the warranty is over, you could easily open the top cover of AVR and use an air blower to blow away all the dust. I do it once in 6 months. This will certainly prolong the life of your equipment.

 

[venkatcr]

Thank you for your pointer. Any particular rep/engineer name I should ask for? I will check out Matra Video in the coming week.

Nope. I spoke to the owner a few times, but I never got anything repaired. I have used the services of a well known Philips engineer, and he blew my 875 video card. I took it to Dubai and he just replaced a cap. I have mentioned it elsewhere.

One of the reasons I am buying a Pioneer. They have a few authorised service centers across the country and behave like a corporate entity. Not like a fly by night operator like Onkyo, Marantz and others.

Cheers

 

[sash]

Venkat sir, is the Onkyo service so bad in India? I thought they are much better given that they have their own company owned demo rooms etc and seem to have a strong local presence. Is it only with equipment bought abroad - in that case they clearly mention on their website that they do not support such purchases.

 

[venkatcr]

Venkat sir, is the Onkyo service so bad in India? I thought they are much better given that they have their own company owned demo rooms etc and seem to have a strong local presence. Is it only with equipment bought abroad - in that case they clearly mention on their website that they do not support such purchases.

The Onkyo Chennai guys have an attitude. When I called Onkyo about my card, they refused to even look at it even though I said I will bear the cost. Then they asked me to give them an advance of 50K to open their eyes. They could easily have identified the blown cap and saved me a trip to Dubai. I would have happily paid a few thousand for that.

In any case, I think an International brand such as Onkyo should provide International warranty. Even if they don't provide warranty why would they even refuse to look at a piece, after the warranty period is over? Many brands such as A/cs say their minimum charge per visit is 500 or so. I am even ready to take the unit to their service center.

Even recently when I was in the market to buy a new unit, their attitude put me off. The guy was trying to push a 2 lakh unit down my throat.

The sad part is that Onkyo has a production center in Chennai's export zone.

Onkyo India, and Onkyo Chennai are my pet grieves!!

Cheers

 

[Vinod.R]

The scenario in Bangalore is even worse. I happen to know about it because I used to work for a dealer of Onkyo.

Onkyo branded showrooms are entirely owned by "Modern World" even though nobody would tell you this openly. Onkyo used to have a proper presence, however, now they just import the products and the entire stock goes to Modern World. Modern World (strictly speaking a dealer) dictates who should get what and how much etc. Some models used to be just with MW and no one else. This was the scenario when I left quite sometime ago. I DO NOT KNOW HOW IT IS NOW.

This meant monopoly and domination of the entire range of Onkyo products by one dealer, pricing control etc.

 

[sash]

The scenario in Bangalore is even worse. I happen to know about it because I used to work for a dealer of Onkyo.

Onkyo branded showrooms are entirely owned by "Modern World" even though nobody would tell you this openly. Onkyo used to have a proper presence, however, now they just import the products and the entire stock goes to Modern World. Modern World (strictly speaking a dealer) dictates who should get what and how much etc. Some models used to be just with MW and no one else. This was the scenario when I left quite sometime ago. I DO NOT KNOW HOW IT IS NOW.

This meant monopoly and domination of the entire range of Onkyo products by one dealer, pricing control etc.

How about Onkyo Wonderland? I got a better quote there than in Modern World

 

[Vinod.R]

That is exactly what I am talking about Onkyo Wonderland belongs to Modern World albeit indirectly. He he he!!! Buy it wherever you get a better quote, or better play one shop against the other so you get the best pricing. That is exactly what they are doing to you. Kindly keep this quote in this thread only.