OUTDOOR M18 Milwaukee Building Site Radio WATER DAMAGED??? Can I FIX IT?

Hi, here we have water damage on a Milwaukee M18 JSRDAB+ building site radio. These are currently for sale in the UK for approx. £130+
Looking online these are supposed to be weatherproof, but somehow water (or some liquid) has worked it's way into this one.
I purchased this faulty on eBay, can it be fixed?? Or will it never have the honour to play 'Hear the Drummer get Wicked' ever again. Let's find out!
Merch is here!!!!! www.puddlt.com...
If you would like to support these videos, please click here / mymatevince
If you have an interesting 'non returnable' item for a 'trying to fix' video then my PO box is:
PO Box 2597
WATFORD
WD18 1HT
UK
Remember that this is just for entertainment and I am not an expert in these repairs. The processes in the video may not be the best way, the correct way or the safest way to fix these things. I do love fault finding and trying to fix broken things, so I hope that comes across in this 'Trying to FIX' series. Many thanks, Vince.

[@Mymatevince]

Spoiler Saver & Riddle Riddle - A barrel of water weighed 65 pounds. Jimmy put something in it and now it weighs 40 pounds. What did Jimmy add?

[@RING_FF]

شكراً لكم على الدعم، 🖤🖤 مبقى شيء على 4800K SUB💙💙💙...

[@RING_FF]

شكراً لكم على الدعم، 🖤🖤 مبقى شيء على 4800K SUB💙💙💙...

[@StezStixFix]

Holes? 🤔

[@LegendSpecialist]

Himself or baby

[@paulwalker427]

heat, boiled off the water

[@thatdude5104]

Imagine being Vince's kid and hearing him scream "Yes I've done it" from the other room at a quarter past one in the morning ;D

[@docneron4933]

Excellent work as always! Honestly, for a 120 quid construction site radio the board should’ve been drenched in conformal coating. Your nail polish most likely will make this thing more durable than the factory version.

[@StezStixFix]

Wow, what an epic journey! Fantastic to see it come back to life! Awesome video, Vince 👍

[@Mymatevince]

Nice one Steve 👍👍👍

[@jeebuschristos7978]

Since discovering your channel and binge-watching, I find myself humming the opening tune while trying to repair stuff myself. On the good side, you inspired me to try my hand at such repairs. So it evens out :-)

[@Mymatevince]

Hahahaha, that's a fair trade off. Cheers Jeebus 🤣🤣👍👍👍👍

[@acelectricalsecurity]

Again 10/10 for the effort and getting it working, no matter what the IP rating water always seems to find a way in 👍

[@1invag]

It doesn't have an ip rating on it. The device isn't waterproof. It's weather proof

[@carguio]

Great work Vince, greetings from Chile..

[@mondodaftasabrush]

Is this the definition of waterproof or water resistant ? Fixed my Lodar crane remote control after believing it was waterproof cleaned up the PCB with electrical cleaner and covered it with epoxy glue been okay and £250 saved

[@Mymatevince]

Different sites have it labelled as different things. From memory it is waterproof on Screwfix but I think it might be more dust/dirt and water resistant rather than waterproof. I would love to know how much rain fell on this before it failed. I say a fair bit as it is sealed around the edge 👍

[@watercreator]

Awesome job! Good job not giving up!

[@linedancer111]

Love your perseverance Vince, keep it up !

[@markbennett3400]

Very well done Vince.

[@RicardoPenders]

I think I would have given up repairing it at many points that you showed in this video. What a rollercoaster of a repair job was this, I thought you got it with the first broken track, then it still didn't work which is the point I definitely would have given up man. However, good for you that you've managed to fix it.

[@ruftime]

6:50 Don't apologize....your making the tool better😎

[@stevedebeukelaer1424]

Hi Vince, very nice fix your patient is gold worth. Keep up the good movie , i love your enthousiasme if you fixed something.

[@jimmythecricket25]

I give Vince loads of credit for his patience, I would have taken a hammer to it long ago. 😆

[@michaelburns8073]

Hee hee, I ran into the same problem. I often get Ryobi tools in need of repair (made by the same parent company [TTI] as Milwaukee) and I didn't have the long screwdrivers either. Had to order some longer bits off Amazon as well. And it's not just Torx, I think, it's the security bit ones. The one thing is that at least for most stuff made by TTI that they do have disassembly diagrams and can mostly get parts for them (not always cheap, though).

[@Mymatevince]

Cheers Michael 👍

[@BikerBloke600]

HI vince, Very Well Done and credit to you. Really enjoyed watching that as I'm a big Milwaukie fan, wouldn't of cared if the video lasted 2hrs. Keep up the great work. Mick 👍👏🍻

[@Mymatevince]

Nice one Mick, between the M18 battery and the radio I'm also becoming a bit of a fan....even though they have both been nightmares to work on 🤣 👍

[@jell-oputin8036]

This one was way beyond me Awesome 👏

[@ChristopherJohnson-zd8sx]

Props to you! Well done! 👍

[@AnonymousRepair]

Nice one, That was a lot of work , well done 👍👍👍👍👍

[@Mymatevince]

Thanks AR👍

[@jamiemason9548]

Hi good job done well done 😎👍

[@wisher21uk]

Great fix and well done for putting in those hours

[@technixbul]

Well done, you're getting better, that one was a good one for A+ ;)

[@Mymatevince]

Thanks technixbul 👍👍👍👍

[@ereal2]

i would have quit hours ago.nice job.

[@leona_devon]

Oh goodness Andy, those experiences sound shocking but unfortunately I had a few similar issues myself. Some of the points you raised I also had, like payment schedules, getting their insurance details, quality of build, attention to detail and generally keeping the site tidy. Mine did get completed but not without a fair few problems that I am still dealing with, for example a leaking shower and a heating system that won't switch off. Though this is only phase one of the project, I'm really not looking forward to phase two and I will definitely use a different builder.

[@slaphead2965]

Great repair. ...but PINK nail varnish!!! 😯

[@leedenson303]

Little tip on getting conformal coating to dry in seconds. Just use heat from your heat wand for a few seconds then whilst still heating it up put the light on it, should dry pretty much instantly

[@stevenbeaumont1698]

word of advice paint the edges of the pcb's with nail varnishto stop any more water damage in future. modern multi layer pcb's tend to wick water between the layers.

[@Mymatevince]

Interesting, cheers for the tip Steven 👍

[@johncoops6897]

It's not a multi-layer board. And it most likely won't be sitting under water again, so there is no need to waterproof it anyway.

[@MarcusTheDorkus]

I assume that the watertight seal is even more compromised than it already was now that you've taken the unit apart. I wonder if something like liquid gasket could be used to get the watertight seal back.

[@RonHarrisMe]

Milwaukee Brand is a decent brand, hence, the inflated price even for a “broken” unit. The PARTS make it worth the price.

[@andrasszabo7386]

You are talking about too many hours working on this radio?? I have been working on a vintage 1987 laptop for 12 hours just to have a fully working 1987 laptop in my collection :) :) :) and to think about that this laptop is useless today :) But K enjoyed every bit of that work :)

[@andysimkin5200]

Yeah but back in 1987 that laptop would have cost 2-3 thousand (so probably around 8 grand or more in todays money)...

[@retroradar_de]

Always annoyed by the ifixit extension. I have the same kit and whenever I needed an extension it was always to thick. Also it’s too wobbly to apply enough force.

[@nayantha88]

What is the multimeter your using

[@stevenglen123]

I have power, now sound. Took it apart and that voltage regulator thing with the three prongs looks like it over heated. Can I just replace it?

[@MikeB_UK]

Amazing perseverence Vince. Hat's off to you on this one. Really great to watch. I reckon most fixers would have just thrown in the towel after a couple of hours. Maybe you could coat the board in something like Dinitrol or Waxoyl to keep future moisture out and prevent any more board corrosion? I don't think conformal coating would be a good idea at this stage as it may lock some tiny amounts of moisture in, but maybe anything that prevents corrosion and is non conductive would work - hence the car water barrier product suggestions..

[@Mymatevince]

Thanks Mike 👍👍👍

[@andrasszabo7386]

Hello, Vince, Instead of routing those wires around the side of the board, I usually plug the wire into the damaged via and solder it to the trace on both sides.

[@johncoops6897]

Yep - there is already a hole there, so USE IT.

[@TheCod3r]

Fantastic job buddy, persistence pays! Keep up the great videos

[@Mymatevince]

Thank you Phil👍👍👍😎

[@christianmatthews2]

Well done Vince! This was my radio you bought from me! I had no idea it was water damaged & I’m not sure how it got wet in the first place! It just didn’t work one day! I was watching your battery repair video and saw the thumb and thought no way, I recognised the box at first, then the eBay description! I’m glad you’ve fixed it, it was a good radio and not very old either, shame I apparently ruined it! Cheers!

[@Mymatevince]

Haha, cheers for commenting Christian. Well it did look perfect on the outside. It is living a new life now with my friend who builds garden rooms. Amazingly it is still working!!!! Fingers crossed he'll get a few more jobs out of it yet. Thanks for watching the vid and selling the radio. Quite a few people have enjoyed this one 👍👍👍👍

[@christianmatthews2]

@@Mymatevince glad someone’s getting some use from it after your determination and stupid amounts of time to fix it! Fingers crossed those trace repairs and via’s hold out 🤞🏻 well done and keep up the good work!

[@americanmultigenic]

Very impressive! So, is the bottom line, a device designed for an outdoor building site . . . that's utterly NOT waterproof? Bravo at getting it working again!

[@johncoops6897]

I looked like is was under water, for quite a long time.

[@conorlanders8401]

It doesn't claim an ip rating, it claims weatherproof. my best guess would be it was hit with a hose or pressure washer.

[@MrKCDavis]

Destroying one tool to make another, is the kind of improvisation we've come to love from Vince. This, along with others you do, is really what makes the videos worth the watch. Thanks for the content :)

[@ellensburgamplifier]

Class D is right up my alley. Thank you Vince as I was stunned to see my channel pop up. Your troubleshooting skills are getting better and better so keep up the great content!

[@Mymatevince]

Haha as soon as I seen the Class D your name was instantly planted into my head 😂 Cheers Todd 👍

[@ellensburgamplifier]

@@Mymatevince Thank you Vince I think it was this that sent me over the thousand subscribers and I do thank you wholeheartedly!

[@Mymatevince]

@@ellensburgamplifier Congratulations Todd👍👍

[@brutlern]

'Good news! It's not working!".... typical Vince 😆

[@Mymatevince]

🤣 It is such a let down when you buy a faulty item to film and it works!!!!

[@williamchow1624]

I give you an A+ for perseverance fixing all the rust damage. It is amazing how much things cost in the UK as compared to the USA. Most thing in a broken state are given away for free.

[@williamchow1624]

Have you tried vinegar to address the rust?

[@MrRhb7711]

@lordpurchase9189 ❤

[@chrisred87]

"Do you think it is going to work?" Me - *Checks how long left on the video* "nope!"

[@TheCod3r]

Oh haha, by the way thanks for playing the relaxing sounds of TheCod3r 🤣 I didn't actually watch the entire video earlier, just came back and finished it and a few people in the stream mentioned it to me lol

[@Mymatevince]

🤣🤣

[@djtongi]

watched till 27:30 and i have to say: a clever and experienced electronics-guy would NEVER use a lithium battery to supply a device during testing and measuing.... there are devices, called "laboratory power supplies", that can supply the 19 volts like a battery BUT can limit the current when something goes wrong... i shouldn't have to tell this but... Edit: now i watched it to the end, you should really clean the entire board with alcohol or better use an ultrasonic cleaner, there was more corrosion on the board on some spots, that may cause problems in the future... IMPORTANT NOTICE: i have the same Radio here for years since it was released. I got one of the first ones. It has a build in problem! Sometimes, when you let the radio run and the battery runs slowly out of power, it switches off BUT with a new battery it doesn't switch on anymore! You have to do a weird procedure with plugging it in on mains (during volume knob is switched on) than turn it of, wait till the relay clicks, than turn in on, and off, than plug the mains out and THEN plug a new battery in. I don't know if i described it right... but it's a procedure like this... it seems to be normal (at least on my first revision), so if this happens to you, don't think it's damaged again. 2018 could be one of the first revisions.

[@codebeat4192]

What an amount of effort, wow. Finally you made it. Halfway the video I was thinking of reusing the case and speakers to build your own version with a RasbPi and an amp. Most creators don't do this and actually why not? Why 3D printing if someone else have made it for you already. Most people toss this away when it is not functional. It is a nice project box with plenty of space inside. I know you fixed this device however it is something to think about to reuse faulty devices for your own projects.

[@kennybacchus2629]

Outdoor m18. Milwaukee building site radio water. Damage can l. Fix. It. Okay

[@johncoops6897]

For repairing vias, you don't need to run wires all over the place.... just drill out the via and run the wire down the bloody hole! DOH

[@GadgetUK164]

Fantastic lol! Nightmare finding and fixing all the problems on that one!! Determination pays off :) Regards water damage and lost term lasting - That Nintendo Switch you helped me with is still working =D I think if you test it for an hour or two, it will probably last long term. Nail varnish is so much easier where you just want to cover over exposed connections. It's also easy to remove if someone wants to re-work the area in future.

[@Mymatevince]

I came so close to giving up OR buying another one from Screwfix to compare 🤣 I spent hours upon hours on this. Glad to hear that Nintendo Switch is still surviving. I have purchased some dark green nail varnish from eBay and it is already in my possession. Quick dry in a minute apparently, I actually can't wait to use it...1 minute compared to 20mins for the UV!!!! What do you use to remove it, nail varnish remover??? or does that damage the board. Cheers Chris 👍👍👍

[@mikajuurikivi4293]

@@Mymatevince acetone

[@The_Keeper]

@@Mymatevince You might want to be careful with the Acetone though. Apparently, some PCBs and components may not be able to handle too much exposure to it. I'd recommend that you get some non-acetone nail-polish remover. That should keep everything from melting into a sad puddle of dissolved PCBs and melted components.

[@kraken2744]

I was losing hope watching video, I can only imagine how much time you lose hope... Well done Vince 🥂

[@kennybacchus1488]

Outdoor M18. Milwaukee. Building site. Radio water

[@drcyb3r]

2:10 I had that "problem" today. I found a lot of slightly older phones with the newest one being an iPhone X sold as bulk for 80€ for local pick-up. They were sold as broken/untested with some of them turning on from someone working at a house clearance company. The faults that were listed were incorrect but I think I ended up with a lot of useful repair parts anyway.

[@markdjdeenix6846]

awesome video it i amazing how corrosion seams to kill S.M.D.logic boards

[@buzzboy1000]

Nice one! What a marathon for you. Well done, Vince. Very satisfying.

[@Paul-ib5xv]

That’s what you call persistence, well done Vince. Really enjoyed this one👍👍👍👍

[@chrisa6120]

Its not damaging your tool Vince, its a modification to suite a specific purpose. I do it all the time when needed.

[@martijn4740]

when using the uv mask just use some hot air on low temp and your uv light dry's 10 times faster

[@mandragor85]

you know that the sun radiat Uv Light right? just put the solder mask on and put it out in the sun and it hardens :D

[@kennethbarker852]

1st class video to watch thank you take care kind regards from me kenneth😉

[@Desert-edDave]

Fantastic work! That was clearly a daunting fix, I like how you stuck in there and kept at it until you found the faults. Regarding the broken vias, what about if instead of having enameled wire connect wrapping around to the other side of the board, you stripped the enamel from the magnet wire and fed that through the broken via and connected through the via itself with the thin enameled wire?

[@Mymatevince]

Thanks Dave. Unfortunately it was cut from the video BUT these vias were filled with the green solder mask. I needed a tiny drill bit that I didn't have. I did poke one through with a needle but it took quite a bit of time so I resorted to running wires instead. Cheers Dave👍👍👍👍

[@KorAllRBare]

🐨My Mate Vince😄 You Must have a lot of really late nights, Your soft low toned talking Eg @ " 51:56" is a dead giveaway.. Loving the video even though I Paused to convey this message and drop a 👉👍👈

[@Mymatevince]

Definitely Koala, this house is chipboard and thin plasterboard so the noise travels straight through. You know when I'm whispering it has gone midnight 🤣 Cheers KB 👍

[@SirCuddlesWorth]

I really hate it when I buy stuff and it's working!

[@markpirateuk]

I rescued the non dab version from a builders skip, once I had spent about an hour removing plaster & paint, I discovered the mains lead had a break in it, works well with a new mains lead fitted. The two AA batteries are for memory backup, but they run down within a couple of weeks!

[@HDXFH]

Chinese rubbish not designed to be fixed, but a grouse effort

[@MrCarl312]

1:55 The dollar symbol for the United States is $59. You have the corect symols for the UK Pound and European Euro.

[@Mymatevince]

Well spotted. I normally do that correct but messed up this time, and didn't spot it on playback 👍👍👍

[@pipmeister2103]

Hi Vince. Would you like a project. I have an echo dot 4th generation with clock. The issue is after a while of it connecting too Wi-Fi & all goes well it becomes unresponsive. Had it a while so out of warranty so a project if you want it?

[@Mymatevince]

Thanks for offering Pip Meister but no thanks 👍👍

[@CTCTraining1]

Never miss the opportunity to acquire a new tool however specialised. 😀 word to the wise ... if you are about to work on some Dyson vacuums then they need very long torx screwdrivers. Regardless, well done... persistence rewarded 🥇🏆

[@StevenWichers]

Something to look out for on these Milwaukee radios is the white gunk they use to stop the capacitors from moving around can sometimes cover a small surface mount fuse.

[@kidstar64]

What a ride! The problem with electronics and corrosion is not that the water is directly corroding it (which it would given enough time) but the fact you have traces with voltage and ground are close together and an electrolyte (the water). So when water (not distilled but water with some mineral content) comes in contact with voltage and ground, the copper traces will corrode. So if you ever get anything wet, the first thing to do is remove all power sources to prevent electrolysis from eating the traces and they clean and dry the board. So it would make sense that the voltage regulators would be the components affected the most since the leads are exposed and voltage and group and usually close together. Love the videos!

[@Mymatevince]

Cheers Mitch 👍👍👍

[@chezsnailez]

It's stuck on Karftwerk's 'Geiger Counter/Radioactivity'...

[@Mymatevince]

Hahahah, I had to Google that AND then listen to it on KZbin 🤣👍👍👍

[@pldaniels]

"Nothing worse than it turns out it's working" - it's a terrible affliction to have as a person who enjoys repairs :D

[@Mymatevince]

🤣🤣🤣

[@bernardleaf1397]

well done mate perseverance is the key thats how all of us learn

[@MichaelandCathy1999]

••• - - - ••• It’s sending an SOS. 😂🇨🇦

[@Mymatevince]

🤣🤣👍

[@LohiHarHar]

Sherlock Vince has done it again! That sound when Vince turned fm on was like from old football game when you score goal and crowd starts cheering, that was atleast my reaction. I was so bumped! Vince you are my hero and i have learned lot from you, and seen your deveploment over the years, i have also slowly started to understand more and more about electronics and i have no kind of education of that sort. World would be much nicer place if there where more nice inspiring mates like you. Cheers from Finland and keep up the brilliant work! :)

[@Mymatevince]

Thank you so much! 😁👍👌

[@LohiHarHar]

@@Mymatevince :)

[@LoftechUK]

I would have thrown it in the bin. What a nightmare repair

[@woollysoxx]

Nice one Vince. Something you said when you were testing it at first made me laugh out loud, "good, its not working". That is exactly what I think when I have bought something tech form a car boot sale! I want that feeling of fixing something even if its not going to be useful. Good luck, Allan

[@TurboTimsWorld]

Vince I don't think you picked up on that the radio (can run from) but is a battery charger, you have your radio on site and recharge your tool batteries from them. Great videos Thanks

[@danielsaturnino5715]

What a nightmare indeed. Congrats on not giving up. That's the really hard part :)

[@HDXFH]

Give it a goid spray with plastikote

[@MrAsBBB]

So well done. It’s about intelligence and keeping at it. I would like to think I know when to cut and run but only after a real fight to make something work. So far at 53 I can’t remember when I have lost the fight! Keep it up. Very enjoyable!

[@paulc9139]

What took you so long Vince😂😂

[@HavingFunRepairs]

That's was an incredibly amount of water damage. I can easily see the amount of time gone into this one. It was nice to see the Dremel get some use as well. Well done Vince!

[@Mymatevince]

Thank you Shaun, I wouldn't be without a Dremel now!!! 👍👍👍

[@6581punk]

Needed flex tape "That's a lot of damage..."

[@colinhead5996]

nice job Vince but what a bad circuit board

[@pldaniels]

Crikey that was a journey and a bit to bring it back to life. Glad it was giving you some positive feedback on the way through though; enough to keep you hooked to persist for the finish line. Abolutely right, under a normal repair hourly type job, that would have been a non-economical, but of course here on KZbin we don't care :D

[@Mymatevince]

Completely correct Paul, it was giving just enough to keep me interested! I was definitely relieved when it finally worked, hopefully it will stay working once it is put back in the wild. Thanks for watching 👍👍👍

[@wolvesone]

moding tools is common and with all that damage that thing had to have been dunked in a puddle also that song coming up on the radio at the end "celebration by kool and the gang " was the perfect fit for your win

[@Mymatevince]

Hahaha, yessss a perfect ending. I didn't pick up on that...not quick enough. Cheers Wolvesone 👍

[@wolvesone]

@@Mymatevince that song is one of my faves so it was easy for me to pick up on be safe out there across the pond my friend :)

[@arnoldwalt4962]

VINCE its 2:53am here in Botswana and i can't stop watching your video's... I know you say don't try this at home. But trying what you doing it has improved my skills in electronics.. Just last week I've know idea how to fix but i think in weeks i will be like you.. Keep it up my brother ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️🙏👍

[@BlackmooonandSunshine]

Hello Vince I just subscribed your channel. I love watching your fix videos and it's cool your learning how to fix these things lol. I'm from across the pond they say lol USA. God bless you guys in the UK take care.😎

[@RANDALLOLOGY]

Yep it proves that taking your time without losing your mind can pay off. . have a bachelor's degree in electronic engineering for over 50 years. I have fixed electronic devices that others gave up on. And I'm still got all my brain cells. LOL

[@randyr.parker2698]

Nice job Vince, persistence pays off. I don't think I'd have had that much patience.

[@Dave64track]

Great repair but if a plated through via hole is open circuit instead of running a wire all the way along from one to another all you needed to do was thread a strand of wire through the hole and solder each side it's nice and quick and looks neat.

[@SimonEllwood]

I just came to say the same thing.

[@robertomata5054]

NorthridgeFix has a good tip for the solder mask on one of his videos, hit it with hot air while using the UV light and it sets within seconds. Might be worth a try for the next repair.

[@KJ6EAD]

Just get a better UV light. The 400nm UVA is barely short enough. Try a 365nm UVA. Mine will overheat the resin in less than 2 seconds if I hold it close. I have to keep it back a few inches or turn it on a lower power setting.

[@r4dius]

Vince just put a wire inside the blown vias and solder it on each side of the board :)

[@Mymatevince]

Yes, I did that in one of them but it was cut from the video. The problem on this board was they were all filled in with the green solder mask. I didn't have a drill bit small enough to fit, so I had to gouge it out with tweezers...wasn't pretty. I need to buy some tiny drill bits. Thanks for commenting 👍👍👍👍

[@johncoops6897]

@@Mymatevince - Just use the smallest size bit you have got. Or a small screwdriver. Or cut the the end off a Needle or Pin, and drill with that. It doesn't matter how big the hole is.

[@RGD-Audio-Repairs]

TIP: When using Solder Mask thats UV light drying... Add heat from hot air station.. Dries VERY quickly, along with the UV of course...

[@tunintunin3417]

Hey Vince, I love your videos, thank you for your knowledge. A question, can a speaker like this that was designed for the US (110V) be converted to be used in europe (220V)? Thank you for any and all input.

[@LITTLEEXPERIMENTCHANNEL1]

This one was intense, I would of given up when it got to the front to back board bridges. My main thoughts were the amp drivers reprogrammed because of the water. But anything goes with electronics. Well done!

[@erikfroderberg8914]

wow! pinnacle if i may say so!

[@Vyker]

What was the word to describe the link through the board? Was he saying vires? It wasn't wires was it?

[@Mymatevince]

A 'via' 👍👍👍

[@Vyker]

@@Mymatevince a via... There we go.... Cool... Thanks Vince. 👍👍

[@NobelNobel2000]

Perfect Job, Great Thinking ... Leads to amazing Video.. (as usual).. 👍💫💥

[@drcyb3r]

28:01 CMOS means that there is some kind of a programmable part inside. It has some software inside. 8-bit is describing the architecture of the CPU (like 32 or 64 bit on a PC). MCU is the short form of micro controller unit. 12-bit A/D converter is an analog to digital converter. The 12-bit kind of describes the speed of that part. It converts analog inputs (e.g. an audio wave) to something digital the CPU can understand.

[@gbegone]

CMOS stands for Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor. It is the type of semiconductor devices fabricated on the chip. The MCU as you correctly point out identifies it as being something that can be programmed.

[@diemaschinedieviereckigeei2941]

12-bit does not describe the speed, but the resolution of the converter. Thus the analog input voltage to it is represented as a digital value with a range of 12 bit (= 4096 values). A linear 12-bit resolution is too inferior for decent audio quality, thus the converter likely is used to convert something else, presumably it reads the output voltage of the big potentiometer for the volume control setting knob (as the volume control is really done by the digital IC close to the output amp, which is controlled by the MCU).