Bar 48 No-Power Repair Thread

[GroundPounder]

Joined this community just to post a thank you to the folks who did the heavy lifting on this fix. 

 

I'm not an electronics expert by any stretch of the imagination, but the information in this thread made the replacement of the OEM power supply a breeze. 

 

Thanks all! 

 

Much appreciated. 

[damrobin]

On 5/17/2022 at 5:23 PM, pconwell said:

I wanted to add my experience getting the Bar 48 back up and working. I can't speak for the Cinema 600 as this thread is for the Bar 48 - so my experience may or may not apply to the Cinema 600.

 

Symptoms: The control panel and lights on the Bar 48 started flickering, then a few days later stopped working all together. Since the speakers still worked, I ignored the issue as an annoyance. However, after another day or two, the speakers became very staticky and then stopped working all together. 

 

After disassembling the guts of the Bar 48, I tested the volage on the 5v side of the power supply - being very careful to not touch any of the 120v parts on the same board. I tested the voltage between GND and VDD. It would show 5v, but then rather quickly started to drop. Around 4.6v, the lights would stop functioning. The STB is 3.3 v out (more on this below) and it turns the 24v power supply on and off. I'm guessing that's why my lights stopped working (dropped below 4.6v) but the speakers were still working (still above 3.3v). Eventually, the 5v side dropped below 3.3v and the 24v side turned off - or at least that's my guess.

 

Side note: I don't have the proper tools to fully test capacitors, but I tested C05 and C06 as suggested by @ongtw75. C05 appeared to be not holding voltage, but otherwise seemed okay based on my rudimentary tests. C06 seemed to be fine. I replaced C05 with two 100uF capacitors but I still saw the same issues as described above. I didn't have the patience (or necessary replacement parts) to test the other capacitors, so I just moved on to replacing the entire power supply.

 

Observations and Reverse Engineering: Based on other posts in this thread and my own testing, I am fairly confident the power supply is set up as follows:

 

5v side:

VDD -> GND: 5v which is used to power the control board (lights, buttons, IR remote sensor, bluetooth, etc)

STB -> GND: 3.3v when the soundbar is on*

STB -> GND: 0.1-ish v when the soundbar is off*

 

24v side:

V+ -> V-: 24v to drive the speakers

 

*STB -> GNC is used to control the 24v side of the power supply. This supplies 3.3v from the control board back to the power supply when the power is turned on, so previous instructions to connect this to 5v+ are incorrect. You can either leave this unconnected or you can use it to trigger a relay (see below). If you really want to wire it to something, wire it to ground, not 5v+. But, if you are not wiring in a relay, the STB wire doesn't do anything so you might as well leave it be.

 

Solution: I ordered this power supply and this relay. The relay is not necessary - but if you want to recreate the original functionality of killing power to the speakers, then the relay will do the trick. Otherwise, you can wire the speakers directly into the 24v side of the power supply and just leave them "on" all the time. Probably not going to hurt much either way, I just like the idea of keeping the functionality as close to original as possible.

 

To keep things clear, I'll refer to the 3.3v STB wire as XXXX (the pattern marked on the wire), the 5v+ wire as Pink, the 5v GND wire as White, and the 24v + and - as Red and Black respectively.

 

To begin, I made sure everything was unplugged. Next, I clipped all the wires connected to the old power supply. You likely want to verify that your colors match mine before you go snip happy.

 

Next, I stripped and connected the AC mains power to the appropriate terminals on the new power supply. Mine was labeled AC-220v. The polarity does not matter.

 

Then, I connected the Pink wire to the 5v+ terminal on the power supply. You will probably want to verify with a multimeter, but mine was the DC2+ terminal on the power supply. This will supply power to the controller board. I also connected a pigtail to the 5v+ terminal as well, which I will connect to a relay (this is optional).

 

Next, I connected the White wire to the 5v- terminal, marked as DC2- on my power supply. Again, I connected a pigtail as well for a relay. At this point, you can test your setup if you want to. The controller board should power on. You should even be able to connect to Bluetooth, etc - but you won't get any sound yet.

 

If you are not planning to use a relay, you can simply connect the Red wire to the 24v+ (DC1+ on my power supply) and the Black wire to the 24v- (DC1-) and you are done. The XXXX wire can be connected to the 5v ground (DC2-) if you really want to - but there is no need to connect it to anything.

 

If you are planning to use a relay, instead connect Red to the NO (normally open) terminal and Black to the COM (common) terminal on the relay. Then connect your 5v+ pigtail to the DC+ terminal on the relay, and the 5v- pigtail to the DC- terminal. Lastly, connect the XXXX wire to the IN (trigger) terminal on the relay. Make sure the relay is set to HIGH switching. Now, whenever the soundbar is turned on, the STB (XXXX wire) will send 3.3v to the relay trigger (i.e. setting it high), causing it to close the "normally open" circuit.

 

You can reference the attached schematic drawing. It doesn't really matter, but just note that the blue wire is 3.3v going from the controller board to the relay (when the soundbar is turned on). Again, STB (aka the XXXX wire) does not need to be connected to any 5v sources (or 24v sources for that matter).

circuit (4).svgUnavailable

Am I missing something? How is the relay going to provide 24v to speakers if you do not connect 24v from power supply to relay?

[Bacact]

I joined just to post I was able to fix my Cinema 600 using the Amazon sourced power supply listed earlier in this thread.  I reused the stock PCB standoffs, then drilled and countersunk a new hole at the reduced spacing.  It all came apart and went together pretty easily and is self explanatory once you’re inside.
 

The hex driver sizes are 3mm for the housing fasteners, and 2.5mm for the PCB stand-off fasteners.
 

The 120V wires are not polarity specific, and the 24V lines go into the new power supply as labeled (red to +, black to -; left side of the new board’s wire block as shown in photos earlier in this thread).  
 

On the 5V wires I joined the red and white wires into the 5V  “+” output of the power supply’s wire block, and the black wire into ground. 
 

Seems to work just the same as before.  I also did a factory reset of the soundbar for good measure (hold down power and source buttons for 10+ seconds).  

Thanks to the posters who came out with this info!
 

[Peggy Cowans]

https://community.klipsch.com/index.php?/topic/202941-bar-48-no-power-repair-thread/#comment-2666950

 

Don’t know if I’m doing this right. I am 76 years old and wish I knew what you guys just did to fix your bar 48. Mine just quit two days ago. And I am so lost without it. If I purchased the item from Amazon, take my bar part and replace the old one with the new part, will my bar 48 work?  Help!

[OO1]

22 hours ago, Peggy Cowans said:

https://community.klipsch.com/index.php?/topic/202941-bar-48-no-power-repair-thread/#comment-2666950

 

Don’t know if I’m doing this right. I am 76 years old and wish I knew what you guys just did to fix your bar 48. Mine just quit two days ago. And I am so lost without it. If I purchased the item from Amazon, take my bar part and replace the old one with the nrectlew part, will my bar 48 work?  Help!

in  principle , it  should if you plug it in correctly 

[BrokenBar48]

I think I might have the same problem.... Used my Bar 48 to play music through Bluetooth for a couple hours. Turned it off before going to bed. Woke up the next day to find the blue light on the subwoofer still on and no lights on the sound bar. Normally, it turns itself off after a while there is no signal, but not this time.
So I go to turn it on in the morning and nothing happens. I press the power button, then try the power and source together, nothing. Out of desperation I press many many times on the power button and the lights on top faintly flicker and then nothing.

However... I've let it sit until tonight. With everything cool to the touch, I plugged the power cable to it just to see if anything has changed. And it did. Rapidly pressing the power button many times now turns it on. The sub pairs to the bar and the left channel works. The remote control also works. The center, the right channel, the volume lights and the icons near the buttons do not. Bluetooth pairs to my phone, the aux cable works and I'll assume the optical output works as well.

One more thing: I can turn it on with the remote, the sound bar works for a fraction for a second, the lights flicker and disappear, but the subwoofer keeps on working fine.

I've already ordered a new power power supply like the one pictured in the previous posts, maybe that'll fix the issue. Could it be something else more serious?

[Chad59]

I signed up for this forum just to post my thanks for this thread. I also wanted to mention one difference for my Cinema 600 in particular. My wire colors were different: STB was red, VDD was white, and ground was black. I ended up connecting red and white to +5V from my power supply, and black to ground, and everything worked great! Here's what my original power supply looked like, which is what made me suspect the wire colors were different.

[OO1]

On 7/16/2023 at 10:49 PM, BrokenBar48 said:

 Could it be something else more serious?

  these PS  are pretty much  the main issue  

[jsub31]

my 600 just went down

thank you all for this great info

Q#1-

if klipsch sends me a replacement unit, is this problem just going to repeat itself?

 

Q#2-

if I DIY the repair using the power supply you shared from Amazon, will I have a better chance of a permanent fix than getting a full replacement from Klipsch?

[KevinB]

5 hours ago, jsub31 said:

if klipsch sends me a replacement unit, is this problem just going to repeat itself?

Hi @jsub31 and welcome to the Klipsch Community Forums.

 

You didn't say what hardware revision your Cinema 600 is. If it doesn't say, then it is the original 600 that was very unreliable. The current revision is Rev 3. 

 

If you qualify for a warranty replacement and they give you a Rev 3 Cinema 600, it should be much more reliable than the original.

 

I would ask for a warranty replacement. You have nothing to lose. I would only only attempt a repair if I couldn't get a warranty replacement.

[OO1]

17 hours ago, jsub31 said:

Q#2-

if I DIY the repair using the power supply you shared from Amazon, will I have a better chance of a permanent fix than getting a full replacement from Klipsch?

 

it' s pretty  much the same  parts , although klipsch does not cut or splice wires , the power supply will be mounted with connectors to a 2nd  PCB board  , 

 

if you replace the power supply yourself ,  you will  have to cut off the wiring from the old power supply to the PCB and reconnect the wiring to the new power supply with screwed  terminals 

[prong281]

I found this thread after my Bar 48 stopped working and I was able to fix it following advice in this thread. Thanks so much to SixerFixer for starting it and everyone who has contributed.

 

My Symptoms

The first indication that my Bar 48 was having issues was when it wouldn't turn on with my TV. I was able to get it started again by disconnecting then reconnecting the power cord. This only lasted a few days and then the sound bar wouldn't turn on again. Actually, that's not entirely true. I couldn't get any of the LEDs on the top or the front to light up, but I did get some distorted sound out of one bar speaker and the subwoofer. Then it died completely. 

 

I live in Australia and called the local Klipsch service agent. After hearing my symptoms, they said it sounded like the main board had failed and, if they could get one, it would be about A$300 to repair.

Thats's when I found this forum thread.

 

My Repair Process

To test if the problem was with the power supply board and not the main board, I used a USB phone charger and an old stripped back USB cable to supply 5 volts to the power supply board. On USB cables, black wires are GRND and red wires are +5V. When I did this my Bar 48 could turn on again.

 

Being impatient I ordered one of the replacement dual power supplies from AliExpress. It will arrive in 2 weeks. While waiting for delivery I read the rest of the thread. Should have done that first because I then read ongtw75's post (10 March 2022) where he identifies the fault with the power supply is with the two capacitors CO5 and CO6. I bought 2 replacement capacitors (220uF 16V Low ESR) from my local electronics store and replaced both CO5 and CO6. Soundbar is now back up and running. I'll keep the replacement power supply (when I get it) in case I need it in the future.

 

Repair Issues

• I'm not an electronics buff so playing around with the circuit board was a bit scary but I figured I didn't have anything to lose as it was stuffed anyway.
• I didn't detach the board from the soundbar so had to turn the whole soundbar over to access the reverse side of the board.
• Soldering the new capacitors to the board is fine work and you need a fine tip on your soldering iron. Make sure you don't bridge the pads with solder. I tested this with a multi-meter after soldering them in.
• I've included a pic below showing the location of the solder pads for capacitors CO5 and CO6. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[yournytech]

My install of the Amazon Power Supply worked. Fighting the glue is the hardest part I found. My 5V DC wires were MUCH smaller in size, and needed help before inserting into the new PS. All in all it works! I did not secure the new PS inside the cabinet. I did place the (original) plastic shield on the bottom of the PS Board on the 120V AC side... just to be safer. Pics below!

 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1OAEiJtlP81jjEj7uUXWp8AVPBLsuRbn4/view?usp=drive_link

[FuzzyWoofer]

Just wanted to thank all the members that provided the information to fix the BAR48. The BAR 48 had no LED lights or sound but somehow connected to the rear speakers and subwoofer. I received the power supply from Amazon on THU and had the sound bar working FRI night.  A $15 dollar fix saved me some cold hard cash.  Thanks again.

[Holly B]

On 1/29/2022 at 1:05 PM, SixerFixer said:

Good morning, I was wondering if someone can assist me please. I purchased a cinema Klipsch 600 in November of 2021 and the sound bar died on me approximately a month ago.

I came across this forum online and I was very excited to see that there was a forum dedicated for klipsch.

I followed the link and I have purchased the exact same power supply 24 volts 4 amps 5 volts 1 amp and follow your instructions down to the letter the green light comes on which does suggest power going to the power supply however the sound bar still is not booting up,

I was wondering if someone may have an understanding as to why this is happening. Thank you guys so much.

 

On 1/29/2022 at 1:05 PM, SixerFixer said:

 

 

 

 

Does the Klipsch Cinema 600 use the same power supply as I swapped out from the Bar48 (ETOP LPS-U101D2405L)? If so, this is the one I purchased:

 

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32854245846.html?spm=a2g0o.9042311.0.0.27424c4dd5WZa7

 

Just verify when it arrives make sure it's a 5v/24v dual output power supply. The seller first sent me a 5v/12v one by accident which wouldn't have worked. It would be great if this repair can be applied to the Cinema 600 as well, as I've heard those are equally as unreliable as the Bar48!

 

With regards to my repair... the replacement power supply has been working perfectly after 3 and a half months of heavy use. It's great to see others sharing similar experiences with this repair, and encourage everyone to share their success story if they are able to revive their sound bar.

 

[bruce bedard]

Wow , good work sixerfixer, my bar 48 lasted 3 years , I followed your instructions, worked perfectly. Its sad that Klipsch doesnt have entry level assemblers here in US to install these $15 parts on out of warranty units for a service charge. They even continued with the etop power on their newer 600 , then expect you to landfill it and buy more .

[RobiticsGuy]

Thank you so much for posting this fix!  And thank you to the other person for posting the link to Amazon, that's where I ordered the power supply from, it shipped and was in my hands in less than 2 days.  I swapped it out with the old failure of a power supply and it works perfectly now!

 

The best part is that this system was given to me for free so the total cost for this system was 15 bucks!

 

Thanks again all, I appreciate you!

 

Michael C.

[SixerFixer]

2 year update after starting this thread: my Bar48 is still working great! Got tempted by a heavily discounted Cinema 1200 the other day, but I think I’m a bit too emotionally invested into this Bar48 to replace it. 😄

[OO1]

8 minutes ago, SixerFixer said:

2 year update after starting this thread: my Bar48 is still working great! Got tempted by a heavily discounted Cinema 1200 the other day, but I think I’m a bit too emotionally invested into this Bar48 to replace it. 😄

now , we know that new power supplies can last at least 2 years 

[Marcgad]

Hi Guys,

 

Thanks for this informative thread. I bought the ps in aliexpress and the output 5V is not enought even its 1A. Do you think the the output is not 1A because it cannot start up the stb and vdd. Tried connecting another external from my charger of my phone 2A 5V the soundbar turns on.