Cambridge Soundworks Desktop Theatre Repair

[@chillausmc]

I still have this system and it is performing wonderfully for gaming and movies. To have fiber-optic input back then from PC sound card was a step up. Nice job, Great vid

[@jackdeath]

If you want to eliminate the entire crackle, then lube the 6 United potentiometer A10KX6 where the nob axis meets main housing with either 3 in 1 oil or WD40 spray & stay gel lubricant. Move it back and forth about 10 times or until it stops squeaking, and your troubles are gone. This was a very common problem with this model, which was a production flaw. People were returning units because the main pot was so stiff the nob would slip or come off, and Creative Labs solution in China was to glue the nob onto the pot. They completely ignored the amplified crack cause by metal vibration of a stiff pot.

[@Zo8gfdfghfghfgjrsneratnw4eh]

Hey, i'm still using it also and replaced the lousy speakers with 2 of my old Control 1G speakers, added 3 more of them ,which i got very cheap. Now the system sounds pretty good.

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

Wow.. has it really been over 7 years since I made this video. I'm still using my ones too and no problems since I last fixed it. Very glad that you're still getting good use out of your own set. Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment. Cheers!!

[@bobiel9048]

I needed 3 items to clean up multi-ganged potentiometer: screwdriver to open box, chopstick with taped to it q-tip and 70% isopropyl alcohol. 1. Remove 4 screws on the bottom of the box. 2. Remove top and bottom plastic covers. 3. Soak q-tip in 70% isopropyl alcohol. 4. Between top and bottom PCBs reach with chopstick/soaked q-tip to the top on the potentiometer and brush it few times, so the alcohol can get into pots' tracks through top holes on them. 5. Rotate pot few times back and forward. 6. Let the alcohol evaporate. 7. Screw the box covers back.

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

An electronics video for today. The crackly volume knob on my PC's sound system has been bugging me for years, but now it's developed an intermittent low hum too.... That must mean it's time for me to fix it :-)

[@birdy356]

Hi jim, after repair, the cambridge system worked fine. But now after years I am working on it again. I now wanted to make nails with heads(I don't know if that's what it's called in english) and replace the two big capacitors, one in the power supply and one on the PCB, although visibly nothing is wrong, we'll see what it gives ;-) ferdi

[@rhynw27]

Hi Jim, thank for replying, I took out the screws which mine has also, but it wont come apart, it is as if it is glued together. So I am going to cut the plastic to open it up.

[@markcumbriauk]

Hi, where did you get the power supply capacitor from, if You can remember.

[@api1995]

Good work! Got this device (DDT2500) here with a very different problem. Nice to see something known since you stripped it, too ;) Greetings from Germany

[@birdy356]

thanks Jim, had the same problems for years, encouraged by your video I tried it for my self and... What a very nice system it is. ;-) thank you ferdi

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

That's excellent news firdy - I'm really glad that this video helped you out. Cheers!!

[@federicomalacrida5732]

Hi,what amp ic use this. Thx tou.

[@jingnankc2998]

Hi bro I have 1 set of that speaker! But my problem is I lost all Satellite Position Sticker and the speaker and wire is not connect watch other and I found out I have 3 of 3m wire and 2 of 5m wire and And I want to know Is 5 of that speakers is the same watt ? The speaker have Red and Blank plugin wire so how to know which one is the correct connection ? Thank before hand for your reply

[@ljubomirdukovski4951]

Hi Jim Conner nice video for cambridge soundworks 5.1 desktop repair. I have the same soundworks at my home, Cambrigde soundworks DTT-2500. I need your help. I have the same problem with the volume potentiometer. The problem is that it does not spin. The pipe in the middle is broken, and the wipers are not turning around. The pipe is some kind of metal that i cannot glue it. Can u give me an advice. I cannot see what kind of potentiometer is, it only says taiwan alpha. The potentiometer is 18 pins with 6 separate parts, consisting those 18 pins. Can u tell me is it B20k or B30k potentiometer, with the same metal pipe inside them. Can u give me some website where i can order it, if they have the original part, or a replacement. I really appreciate your help. Thank u in advance.

[@Sunsetcolours]

It is A10KX6. You can buy it on Aliexpress.

[@Sunsetcolours]

If you mean volume/main potentiometr

[@rhynw27]

Hi Jim, how do you open that power supply so easyily, it is like the one I have will have to be cut open ?

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

Hi Ryan - On my supply there are four phillips heads screws that go in from the bottom corners - I just used a normal screwdriver to get it open. Cheers!!

[@andernland]

that mutch great. Same Problem with this phantastic unit. Will fix it soon!!

[@_GummyBear_]

i have a similar one (subwoofer and amp are together) dunno why left speaker sound too bass and right speaker normal. when i swap wires (from left to right) right speaker sounds bass and left normal. i think something from the amp

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

The bass and treble controls are stacked potentiometers (a bunch of variable resistors physically connected together). There are five layers on each stack for the five channels that the amp produces (or possibly three in your case as you don't say whether it's front-left or rear-left). If the bass control pot for the left channel is dirty then that would explain the loss of bass from that channel. Winding the bass control back and forth a couple of dozen times may well wipe the resistor track clean and restore the bass, but if that's not enough I'm afraid it's time to open it up and clean it with some contact cleaner (or wd40). Hope that helps. Cheers!!

[@KhangStarr]

Nice work, Jim!

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

Thanks Khang. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment - hope you have a great Christmas and a happy new year. Cheers!!

[@miniweetabix]

Thanks, this was very useful for me needing to replace the subwoofer switch!

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

Glad you found it useful DrHazart - Have a good weekend. Cheers!!

[@meehan302]

Great work Jim. I like the desoldering gun. All one needs is to know How. Have a pleasant Christmas and a peaceful New Year Best wishes. Patrick.

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

Thanks Patrick. Google is my friend for gaining thr know how - I got that pencil eraser technique from an 'instructables' article :) - Hope you have a great christmas and new year. Cheers!!

[@OrbiterElectronics]

Great job on the sound controller Jim. Liking all that new gear you got too :) Merry Christmas mate John

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

Thanks John. Having the right tools for the job makes it all so much easier. I am loving the desolder gun and magnifying light... Still need to read the instruction manuals for the rest to work out what all the buttons do :-).... Happy Christmas to you too. Cheers!!

[@n9ne2006]

I have a Cambridge Soundworks megaworks 250D speaker set up that I bought used to install in my office (as i have the 5:1 system at home and LOVE it) however one of the speaker outputs on the back of the system doesn't work :( so i can only get sound out of one speaker.. is this something you think you could repair? Obviously willing to pay!

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

Hi +n9ne2006 - Do you get even the slightest crackle out of the non-working speaker output when you mess with the volume/bass/treble/balance controls? ... If you do, then it's very likely that you've got the same problem that I had with dust/grime inside the potentiometers preventing the signal from getting through. Although I'd love to be able to offer to attempt a repair for you, I'm afraid I do not have any time to spare to do it - my workbenches are all already full of half-completed projects which I need to finish and make videos about. Sorry I can't do the actual repair... but if there's any way I can help by text-chat/messages/email, I'm more than happy to assist. Cheers!!

[@hamburgerkop]

my speakers work fine but the supwoofer stoped working this is not the first time but normaly it just comes back alive but now its not help pls

[@lefsef]

Hello there! I have a similar system called "DTT 3500" and I did hear crackling as well when turned on, for quite some time. A few months later the unit made only crackles. From reading in forums I saw that I had to replace some capacitors (which my local repair shop did) but that did not correct the matter. Do you have any experience on this unit, and if yes do you know how to fix the issue? Thanks in advance of your responce! :)

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

Hi lefsef fesfel - I don't have any experience with that particular unit myself, but for any kind of crackling problem, the first thing I'd investigate would be the volume/balance controls... On my amp, the variable resistors had an opening in the body which allowed dust to get inside, and the dust on the carbon tracks was what caused all the crackle for me. Hope that helps. Cheers!!

[@lefsef]

Jim Conner thank you for your fast reply. I have inspected my unit and it is clear of dust. Others have said to replace capacitors which I did, (none was blown out) and others said to replace parts which no longer come out. The crackling started happening when on a rainy day I had twice a power failure in short succession in my home...

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

I wonder if the diodes forming the bridge-rectifier inside the power supply are starting to break down.... That could cause the crackle you're hearing and they might have become damaged by power problems from the mains. If you have a bench power supply you could use with the amp or an oscilloscope so you could look at the output of the PSU then it would be an easy thing to check, but sadly not a lot of people have such equipment kicking around at home. If you have a multimeter with a diode test function, it's certainly worth measuring across the four diodes in the PSU to see if any of them are behaving differently to the rest. Hope that helps. Cheers!!

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

Also... well worth trying to spray a little contact cleaner in the variable resistors and changing the volume from max to min and back a few dozen times... that will help to wipe off any gunk from the carbon tracks

[@timothysharrington7932]

Hi Jim, thanks for the video! It's amazing the power of KZbin as a resource for learning. I have the same DTT2500 with issue, mine is deceased, no power. I've tried replacing the power supply but still no response, not even a power light comes on. I'm not electrically knowledgable, so can I send it to you for repair? Seriously. I'm determined not to put this in a landfill. Would an electronics repair store have the knowledge to repair this, my guess is it would cost an arm and a leg. Thanks! Tim

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

Hi Tim. Although I'd love to be able to say yes to something like this, I'm afraid that I just don't have the time available to do repairs (or even to make youtube videos for the last 9 months). Hope you find someone who can fix it though as it really shouldn't go to landfill. It's quite a nice speaker system. Mine is now providing me surround sound in my workshop. Cheers!!

[@timothysharrington7932]

@@ThingsWhichArentWork Roger that. Thanks Jim

[@101blog]

Nice Video Jim, amazing how much crap got into even the carbon trak at the back of the stack. BTW if you move the tip around whilst heating the solder then again when you sucj the solder out it helps clean allthe solder out. That said I don't think it makes much difference with big pins and holes.

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

Thanks John - Yeah - already moving the tip around in exactly the way you describe (though probably hard to see in the 10x speed shots) - Those potentiometers were a doddle to remove. The desolder gun works great as long as there's a bit of space between the holes and the pins, but when the pins are a tight fit it is next to useless. Thanks for watching and commenting. Have a great Christmas. Cheers!!

[@B.Ruslan1978]

Nice office.

[@Gasssssss75]

Thank you very much for your video! I've had that humming noise for years now being too lazy even to buy a new system. This time i found your video and decided to give it a try. The result is perfect! This little system is still better than a lot of 5.1 sold today. Unfortunately i was unable to find the correct capacitor so i opted for the closer one the shop had. (10000uF 63V 85°) do you think this could cause problems in the future?

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

Very glad this video helped you out Guido. I never found the correct capacitor for mine either and left the lower-value one in from this video. I haven't hit any problems at all. Cheers!!

[@jacokrzem9650]

Good morning, I have such speakers, I do not have a problem with them. Well, when increasing the volume, the amplifier driver resets, the lights start to flash again, and the game plays again and again.

[@erwin643]

Wow, thanks for the video!! When I saw that 18 pin pot, I thought "I'm fucked. Time to buy something else." Problem is, I love this surround sound amplifier (I'm old school too). It only cost me $5.00 at at a flea market (with power supply!)!!!! And, I just got a new flat screen TV with optical cable output!! I had no idea it was a ganged potentiometer that you could take apart and clean!!!! Would alcohol be too harsh? Thanks again, you bloody Brit!

[@Sunsetcolours]

A10KX6 on AliExpress costs $ 5.

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

Thanks for that pointer Andrey - I've had quite a few people ask where they can find replacement potentiometers in the 4 years since I made this video and never knew a source - I'll point them in the right direction in the future. Cheers!!

[@Sunsetcolours]

@@ThingsWhichArentWork Anyway, you did an excellent job. It's just a bit complicated :) I also tried to find this potentiometer in Moscow. As a result, I ordered it from China.

[@strikerromanov]

@andrey ur a fucking hero

[@electrodacus]

It looks like you want to make more and better videos in the future to increase your subscriber base and number of views. If that is true good luck.

[@ThingsWhichArentWork]

Well.. it's always nice to have an audience, but mostly I'm doing the KZbin thing because I tired of trying to keep photo links updated across a whole bunch of different web based forums - I figure by putting things on KZbin, I can save myself a lot of maintenance work in the future, and a lot of typing up-front from writing forum posts. I also rather like the fact that I now get pestered on a weekly basis by my face-to-face friends if they don't get their regular look at what I spent my weekend doing :) - I don't envisage KZbin ever making me into a rich man though (no adverts/monetisation on any of my stuff) as I know my interests are pretty far from the mainstream. Thanks for watching and thanks especially for taking the time to comment. Cheers!!