R-110SW / R-112SW / R-115SW Repair Blog

[OO1]

22 minutes ago, BillL001 said:

 I will get rid of this poorly designed Klipsch sub down the road and buy a SVS or a Hsu sub as its replacement someday...

 

Thanks!   

one cannot say that the HSU or SVS are better designed than klipsch subs of the same generations , FYI ,  the newest klipsch subs use Class D amps   .   

[poulmm]

Hi BillL001

Great, you got your sub running again. 🙂 Pleased i could help you to save some $$$. 🙂

Just wanted to common on thing here:
A) As you right about now knowing if the jumper would cause fire... It can't, the +5 stand by supply is really low current supply for the Op-amps only. So don't be worry about that. 
As i write, the only thing the jumper do, is add constant +5 volt supply for the LM324 Op-amp.

I did long time test on sweep and load test on the complte PSU & Amp, and all work as it shall.
Including the "Auto" sound detect start and ~15-20min Auto shutdown function.

The only thing, i will say to DIY people out there: Mount the Resistor external on the ALU plate (main chassis plate) and add some wires from the external resistor to the PCB. Sorry BillL001 i don't like the copper solution you showed on the pictures. It could cause a serious short on the PCB. Better be safe than sorry. 🙂 

That was the reason i did it the resistor external mounted to get any heat away from the PCB. See attached picture. Also there are some massive vibrations inside this subwoofer. I don't think the "flying" resistor solution is great on the long term use. Think it would fail over time. Because of the solder pads should hold the weight of the resistor, but also the soldering it self will be bad over time. Cause all the heat and cold all the time, the soldering it self will problerly be/get a cold soldering over time. Not so nice... So make the repair the Right way them things will last. 🙂
Some will question the external resistor, now there are wires in between, but technical the wires would only add <1 ohm to the 820ohn the resistor, nothing to say. So no problems here. 🙂


The part number for the chassis resistor:
RS components :809-8718 820 ohm

OR
Mouse: https://eu.mouser.com/ProductDetail/ARCOL-Ohmite/AP851-820R-J-100PPM?qs=LJ1pyEEo5rYLMw1VfmR0rA%3D%3D

There are many other resistor model, i just found this 820 ohm, it's was easy mount type. You can use what ever you feel. 🙂

Please feel free to ask if there are any question. 🙂
 

 

Edited April 16, 2023 by poulmm
part number added

[Justin Schwin]

My R115sw is blowing fuses as soon as I plug it. Doesn't matter if it is on or off. Could this cracked thermistor be the problem? Does anyone know the size and where I can get it?

 

[BillL001]

On 4/15/2023 at 2:12 PM, OO1 said:

one cannot say that the HSU or SVS are better designed than klipsch subs of the same generations , FYI ,  the newest klipsch subs use Class D amps   .   

 

Yes, feature-wise, the subs from other brands are not necessary better than Klipsch's subs, and I agree with you on that.

 

What I meant "poorly designed", is the fact that Klipsch's design used underrated resistor that continuously bakes the capacittors around it, and also the fact that when the sub is in standby mode or even not in use at all but just plugged into AC power, that resistor will continue generating searing heat and cooking the caps.  None of the other brand subs have this particular problem, so Klipsch's engineering on this board design (or more likely, their contractor who did this design) was poorly done, and poorly tested durng product development and testing. 

 

The fact of matter is, if we just leave the Klispch subs plugged into power all the time when they are not in use, they will still burn up the caps, and this actually does not only happen to the R-115SW subs this blog was about, but many other Klipsch subs (just see the number of repair vidoes of various Klispch subs here:  https://www.youtube.com/@supremeinnovationsllc/streams and you'll get an idea just how bad and how pervasive this problem is on Klipsch's subs.   

 

Heck, I have a cheap Logitech sub that has been plugged into AC outlet for 7 years straight in a row and never powered down, and nothing on it gets burned at all and it's still working, yet my Klipsch R-115SW was fried within just a few months while plugged into the AC outlet. 

 

 

Edited April 18, 2023 by BillL001

[BillL001]

On 4/16/2023 at 6:17 AM, poulmm said:

...
The only thing, i will say to DIY people out there: Mount the Resistor external on the ALU plate (main chassis plate) and add some wires from the external resistor to the PCB. Sorry BillL001 i don't like the copper solution you showed on the pictures. It could cause a serious short on the PCB. Better be safe than sorry. 🙂 

 

 

Yes, good point!  I will wrap some insolations warppers around the copper, to prevent it from ever touching the PCB.  In the long run, I'll replace the resistor with the chasis type you recommended. 

 

 

On 4/16/2023 at 6:17 AM, poulmm said:

The part number for the chassis resistor:
RS components :809-8718 820 ohm

OR
Mouse: https://eu.mouser.com/ProductDetail/ARCOL-Ohmite/AP851-820R-J-100PPM?qs=LJ1pyEEo5rYLMw1VfmR0rA%3D%3D

 

 

Thank you Poul for the spec and purchase link!   Looks like to be a great one to use.  

 

Also, amazing to see that this is a 50W one, much higher rating than my 10W one, and way higher than what Klipsch originally put on the PCB which was a 1W tiny one. 

 

 

I have two other questions that I'd love to hear your thoughts and comments...

 

1. In your previous post you mentioned that the C-48 capacitor (at the edge of the amp board) serves as a time delay for U5 power swith chip, this made me wonder the following: what if we use a higher rated cap for this capacitor, from 100uF and 20V, changing it to 500uF or 10uF, and maybe 50V, so that when the power to the capacity was cut off by other part of the circuit, there is still enough power left in the capacitor to power the U5 chip, would that prolong the power to the chip so that its power will not get cut off?  If this can keep the chip powered, we maybe able to take off that jumper, and just let this capacitor keep the sub going when it plays low frequencies or playing high volumes, and will not be shut off.  Do you think this could be a fix for the power dopping problem?  In other words, since capacitors can provide a delay in power being switched off, would increase its power saving rating be able to keep the power on long enough? 

 

2. I noticed that sometimes when I just power on the sub, the sub produces some continuous knocking or ticking sound from its cone - see below video:

 

https://youtu.be/oVeK4VuoMs0

 

I can only stop this sound by flip the swtich in the back from Standby to off, and then to Auto and to Standy again.   But if I use the sub for a few more minutes such as playing some songs, this ticking problem goes away.  It could be something that fixed the problem after the amp board warming up after a few minutes. 

 

I recall that I had this problem after my first round of replacing all the caps except the two caps on the edge - C47 and C48, and this problem went away after I replaced these two caps.  I wonder if increasing the power rating of these twop caps could solve this problem.  Or could it be due to one of the cap's pings wasn't solder on correctly. 

 

Don't know if you ever encounter this problem, and if so, would love to hear your comments.

 

Thanks a lot! 

 

Edited April 18, 2023 by BillL001

[OO1]

1 hour ago, BillL001 said:

The fact of matter is, if we just leave the Klispch subs plugged into power all the time when they are not in use, they will still burn up the caps, 

 

 

 

klipsch warranties the Electronics of the R 115 SW for 2 years or 5 years for the rest  , there are plenty of klipsch subs that last 5-10 years ,  

 

the new  klipsch  subs with Class D amps are warrantied for 5 years , they should last at least  5  years   , klipsch are  getting better as times go by .

[poulmm]

Hi BillL001

Let me try to explain.
 

>1. In your previous post you mentioned that the C-48 capacitor (at the edge of the amp board) serves as a time delay for U5 power swith chip,
No. The Solder Jumper add constand +5V st. by supply in the U5 LM324 opamp pin 4 all the time. 
C48 do not sit on the U5 main supply supply. C48 is only a side cap in the curcuit for the timedelay shutdown. So the size of this cap have aorund +3.6 volt across it. And is slowly drops over the ~15-20min. You can check who long time it takes before is shutdown the +/-62Volt Supplys for the amp part.

>this made me wonder the following: what if we use a higher rated cap for this capacitor, from 100uF and 20V, changing it to 500uF or 10uF, and maybe 50V, so that when the power to the capacity was cut off by other part of the circuit, there is still enough power left in the capacitor to power the U5 chip, would that prolong the power to the chip so that its power will not get cut off?  If this can keep the chip powered, we maybe able to take off that jumper, and just let this capacitor keep the sub going when it plays low frequencies or playing high volumes, and will not be shut off.  Do you think this could be a fix for the power dopping problem?  In other words, since capacitors can provide a delay in power being switched off, would increase its power saving rating be able to keep the power on long enough? 
The value in voltage don't change anything. There will never be above +5volt on the C48 caps.
Changing the uF will only change the delay time. If you ad a 10uF its only takes 1/10 of the time before if shutsdown and if you do it 500uf it takes 5 times longer than org. 5x 15-20min before the sub close down.
But if you take a volt meter and messure on C48 you will see then you add a signal to the sub it's rise in voltage, but as soon there are no signal detected the voltage drops right away to 3.6volt and will keep falling, untill a signal is again added to the signal input. Then the cap is again at full voltage, and discharge down from there when no signal added to the sub.

Hope i don't confused you with this description.
 

2. I noticed that sometimes when I just power on the sub, the sub produces some continuous knocking or ticking sound from its cone - see below video:
Ihave not seen this on my sub's. I can see on the video the cone to jumping. Could be a DC on the speaker. But i would expect its a cap problem, making the DC jump in the circuit. Don't know if you have a osc. scope, but then i would try to follow the signal way to find there the noise comes from. You can't see it with a norm. volt meter. i Osc. scope is needed to error search. But try with the caps in the EQ section first or replace all caps if you dont have access to a osc. scope.

Good error Search 🙂

Edited April 18, 2023 by poulmm

[BillL001]

On 4/17/2023 at 7:16 PM, OO1 said:

 

klipsch warranties the Electronics of the R 115 SW for 2 years or 5 years for the rest  , there are plenty of klipsch subs that last 5-10 years ,  

 

the new  klipsch  subs with Class D amps are warrantied for 5 years , they should last at least  5  years   , klipsch are  getting better as times go by .

 

This is exactly what I told the Klipsch support person on the phone, and I even read their own warranty policies for their subs on this web page, but the customer support person refused to cover my sub for 5 years, by saying a burned resistor is a faulty material and it was only covered for 2 years.  What a lame execuse! 

 

The person told me this on the phone was named "David" (who knows if that's his real name or not), who has a horroble attitude, and only kept telling me that "there's nothing we can do for you, and you just to have to buy a replacement amp".  A total jerk who has no smmpthy at all to their customers. 

 

No one should ever by another Klipsch sub, given they have this kind of horrible warranty coverage for their own badly desinged product, lack of sympthy and consideration to their customers, and have such poor customer service!  

 

I know their new subs now have the 5 year coverage, but that doesn't solve any problem of borken subs for many of us the existing customers.  Their new subs may well be getting better, but that doesn't do anything for me and many others who bought their poorly designed subs, and Klipsch just just irgnored us with no help at all. 

 

Just look at this long list of people who are waiting for their Klipsch subs to be repaired - many people have been waiting for more than 2 years, and there are more unfortunate Klipsch customers continue adding themselves to this list.  Such an awful and pathetic situation for so many people, yet Klipsch doens't give a damn.   

 

A few of us on this thread are lucky enough to know electronics and how to use soldergun, understand electronics parts specs, and can repair the broken sub by ourseleves, but the vast majority of the Klipsch customers don't have this skill, so all they can do is put themselves on that waitling list and just keeping waiting, becuase Klipsch refused to do the repair or free replacement for these poor folks (just like they refused to give me a free replacement amp).  Clearly, these people refuse to send more money to Klispch to buy their amps, instead rather just keep waiting. I don't blame them for refusing to spend more money on Klipsch. As soon as I got my amp repaired, I immediately retuned my replacement amp back to Klispch, becuase I don't want to give them more money. 

 

Unless Klipsch send me a free replacement amp, in my mind they are just a horroble and pathetic company!   People like me who got burned by them, ultiamtely will vote with our wallet, and will never buy their product ever again, and will also tell all our friends never buy a Klipsch's product. 

 

Edited April 21, 2023 by BillL001

[BillL001]

On 4/18/2023 at 1:02 AM, poulmm said:

Hi BillL001

Let me try to explain.
 

>1. In your previous post you mentioned that the C-48 capacitor (at the edge of the amp board) serves as a time delay for U5 power swith chip,
No. The Solder Jumper add constand +5V st. by supply in the U5 LM324 opamp pin 4 all the time. 
C48 do not sit on the U5 main supply supply. C48 is only a side cap in the curcuit for the timedelay shutdown. So the size of this cap have aorund +3.6 volt across it. And is slowly drops over the ~15-20min. You can check who long time it takes before is shutdown the +/-62Volt Supplys for the amp part.

>this made me wonder the following: what if we ... 
The value in voltage don't change anything. There will never be above +5volt on the C48 caps.
Changing the uF will only change the delay time. If you ad a 10uF its only takes 1/10 of the time before if shutsdown and if you do it 500uf it takes 5 times longer than org. 5x 15-20min before the sub close down.
But if you take a volt meter and messure on C48 you will see then you add a signal to the sub it's rise in voltage, but as soon there are no signal detected the voltage drops right away to 3.6volt and will keep falling, untill a signal is again added to the signal input. Then the cap is again at full voltage, and discharge down from there when no signal added to the sub.

Hope i don't confused you with this description.
 

2. I noticed that sometimes when I just power on the sub, the sub produces some continuous knocking or ticking sound from its cone - see below video:
Ihave not seen this on my sub's. I can see on the video the cone to jumping. Could be a DC on the speaker. But i would expect its a cap problem, making the DC jump in the circuit. Don't know if you have a osc. scope, but then i would try to follow the signal way to find there the noise comes from. You can't see it with a norm. volt meter. i Osc. scope is needed to error search. But try with the caps in the EQ section first or replace all caps if you dont have access to a osc. scope.

Good error Search 🙂

 

Thanks a lot Poul for the explaination!  So the C48 cap can't help to sustain the power level.  I was only hoping that maybe by change a cap rating, we could do away with the jumper.  After all, the amp came without the jumper and worked fine before the R39 resistor was burned, so in theory the amp should work in its original condition without the jumper, and somewhere along the line when we replaced all the caps, somehow that caused power supply drop to the U5 circuit problem.  

 

Well, it could be that another component on the PCB was burned or damaged that caused that, not any of the capacitors we replaced.  If that's the case, we probably will never know, since we don't have the schematics of the amp.  So I guess that we'll just have to live with that extra jumper on the board.  At least tat make the sub working again in my case, and I can live with that.  

 

For that knocking sound problem, during my re-cap process, it happened once before, when I replaced all the caps except C47 and C48 caps.  After I replaced those with the new Nichcon caps, that sound stopped. It only happens again now for a few min after I added the jumper. That's why I was asking about changing C48's capacitance or power rating.  But the problem isn't significant for me, as it only happens when I power on the sub, and after a few min the knocking will stop, so I can live with this. 

 

I don't have osc. socpe now (used to have one), so I won't be able to troubleshoot it further trying to find its cause.  Honestly, I have already wasted more time than I like for this poorly designed sub (even though the process of buying new caps and resoldering them is kind of fun), and I don't feel like wanting to waste more time on it. 

 

I guess now my amp can no longer go back to its original state, even after the re-cap and changing R39 to 10W to reduce the heat.  But I can live with this as long as the sub works. 

 

Thanks again for your jumper solution that brought my sub to its working state again!  

  

 

 

[OO1]

On 4/21/2023 at 1:42 AM, BillL001 said:

 

This is exactly what I told the Klipsch support person on the phone, and I even read their own warranty policies for their subs on this web page, but the customer support person refused to cover my sub for 5 years, by saying a burned resistor is a faulty material and it was only covered for 2 years.  What a lame execuse!

 

 

 klipsch nor the consumer cannot get a  replacement amp for free from the klipsch OEM ,  anytime the sub is over 2 years old   , 

 

[JonathanK]

I have  Klipsch R-112SW that, after 29 months, has died... can only a "heartbeat" out of it (regardless of whether it is plugged into a source, or not).

Klipsch has suggested I purchase and amp (from their SPL series) for about $80 less than the sub cost to begin with... or, to send the plate amp off to one of three repair places (Texas, Oregon, or Michigan).

Do you do repairs and, if so, do you have a ballpark figure for repair cost?

Thanks - Jonathan

[Daniell]

Does any one have the circuit for a sw-350 power board??

 It won’t turn on. 

[OO1]

On 4/24/2023 at 4:23 PM, JonathanK said:

 

Klipsch has suggested  to send the plate amp off to one of three repair places (Texas, Oregon, or Michigan).

  do you have a ballpark figure for repair cost?

 

did you send your plate amp out for repair ,  did   you  get an estimate for the repair cost , the  Klipsch Reference R-112SW   is currently selling for 429$  

[OO1]

1 hour ago, Daniell said:

Does any one have the circuit for a sw-350 power board??

 It won’t turn on. 

call or email klipsch 

1-800-554-7724

https://support.klipsch.com/hc/en-us/requests/new

[Daniell]

I email them they didn’t want to help. Only sell me a new one.

[delemente]

Hello and greetings from Austria, 

 

I am trying to repair the R-112SW from my Dad. It was always in stand by and after reading your posts i think some capacitors are burned through. Do you think by changing the capacitors the subwoofer will work again? 

 

Here are some pictures: defect amp plate

 

Thanks for your help. 

 

[jdmz]

I have a heartbeat thump every couple seconds and if I play audio it makes a static popping noise. The amp looks brand new.

 

I replaced the resistor that everyone is talking about and the 3 capacitors surrounding along with the two larger capacitors to the right (1000uf).

 

Still getting the same issue. Any thoughts on what to try next? Maybe the nearby transistor?

 

[Aldeswari]

I’m having the same issue as jdmz, the thump every ~2 seconds. I can’t see anything wrong with it but half of the parts are covered in that protective/anti-vibration coating…it’s happened before but the problem stopped after turning it off for a few minutes. This time, no luck.

 

Can anyone recommend a different replacement? This is the second SPL-150 to go out on me in about 5 years…

[jdmz]

On 8/1/2023 at 9:46 AM, Aldeswari said:

I’m having the same issue as jdmz, the thump every ~2 seconds. I can’t see anything wrong with it but half of the parts are covered in that protective/anti-vibration coating…it’s happened before but the problem stopped after turning it off for a few minutes. This time, no luck.

 

Can anyone recommend a different replacement? This is the second SPL-150 to go out on me in about 5 years…

 

Update: I replace ALL the caps along with the transistor and resistor and it fixed the issue with the thumping sound. The caps all look fine so I am not sure what exactly fixed it. 

[Jdscada]

@ngen33r Are you still willing to perform repairs, I got duped by a guy on facebook marketplace, sold me a sub10, amplifier had blown fuse, did not even have klipsch subwoofer in my opinion, not their typical black or gold woofer, was orange/red woofer. I made the mistake of getting my son to pick up and he did not know how to check. Boo Hoo, oh well, just curious if could repair for a price.