i-Fi volume control malfunction

[ifi123]

at the end of the dock. i cut about 2ft of the cable and solder it directly to the dock board.

before that, if i wiggle the DIN cable either left or right channel will go out. occasionally the dock will shut itself down.

[fuzion78]

My iFi volume control is not working properly,i have to turn the knob "a few roundssss" before the volume could be increase / decrease.

my is also 230V. What i did was i acutally ground the panel. i was actually thinking of using a EMI / EMC filter (3 pin) to improve the audio quality.

if i remove the 'resistor' i wouldn't able to power up the iFi because apparently it has been cut thus leaving the power and fuse lead an open circuit. it was wired to the burnt marks on the right but i moved it to the left so it looks neater.



bad news, another pops and short crackle within 24h left on with iPod Nano 2G (8GB) docked. good news is yes, no more hissing sound. before the caps replacement i can hear some hissing when it charges the ipod and it's noticeable.



i have a feeling i need to change the 4 bigger caps into better one. well, i probably change 5 of them. thing is i need to find 'taller' instead of 'fat' capacitors so it can fit without having to use cable or separate small PCB. probably do it next month when i got the time.



what happened with your iFi?

[tc3sean]

Does anyone have an idea if a certian bank of Caps are for just the subwoofer channel?!

[Kipperman]

My sub is also dead. I replaced the large 25V 4700uF cap but its still dead. left and right satellites are mostly ok.

@tc3sean - what have you replaced so far that has NOT helped your sub?

[tc3sean]

I have replaced the bigger 5 caps all at once.

[ifi123]

I am replying to my post back in December '10. Within light to moderate usage, I can conclude that my iFi has been working 100% now.

However, certain position of dock cable (mini DIN) especially if it's like how I used to setup, can cause the iFi to shut itself off. Now I'm pretty sure that if I change the whole 9pin mini DIN cable altogether the problem will be solved, except it's quite difficult to find the plug and cable.

For those who have malfunctioning dock, please do try to play around with the dock cable. It appears that the cable is fragile and it may cause the shutting off issue. Also try to replace the 4700uF 25V capacitors since it supplies power to the dock. Many thanks to everyone here who assisted me especially dbert and fuzion78. It's very nice to have the iFi back w/o problems.

[Copland]

Sorry, am new on this forum, let me know :

I have a subwoofer not working on my IFI, the sats works fine and the volume contoler too,

except for the sub. would you say changing the main Caps will make the woofer work ?

Thanks

[novito]

I am new to this forum also. I have problems with the dock - the volume cannot be controlled and stays on very high.

I can't understand all this technical information, but bottom line - can the dock be fixed? If so, can someone provide a (fairly) simple explanation of what needs to be done so that I can give it to some audio tech to fix? Or can you give me the name of someone I can send it to, that can fix it?

Thank you!!!!

[ronwes]

The dock can be repaired.

Just look through the positings and you will find that you need to repair the big caps on the print plate located in the sub. These caps are pretty standard and common and any ordinairy repair shop can do this. I recommend not to do this yourself as you need to have the skills replacing the caps.

In a previous post you will find which one to replace and just print it, together with the picture that is also on one of the posts.

It worked with my IFI and so it did with others. The costs are relative low. The caps cost you a few bucks each and of course you need to pay the repairman for his time (about half an hour of work). Succes

[ifi123]

me and some other guys here managed to fix our iFi docks with one capacitor replacement, as ronwes mentioned. it's a 4700uF 25V capacitors. you can definitely send it to someone who do this kind of soldering jobs since it's pretty straight forward. the cost of the capacitor itself is probably a dollar or two.

please read page 7 of this thread.

[Bambooken]

Another failed ifi system owner here.

First off, thanks to everyone who have posted your experiences with this problem. It's good to know that some of you have been able to fix yours.

My right channel is still dead - even after replacing the 5 big caps: (4) 35v and (1) 25v - I was hoping this would do the trick.

Note: the annoying hum is gone though.

Is there anything that anyone might suggest I try now? It sure wold be great to get this working again. I alway enjoyed the sound reproduction. I'm now thinking of spending the $150 on the Kiega replacement amp. Based on the dimensions of the mounting plate, it will require a bit of retrofitting.

I'm open to ideas or suggestions here.

TIA

Ken

[Bambooken]

Good for you dbert!!! Great that your iFI works again!!!.

For those who have channel problem (e.g. one working while the other not). You will have to check the condition of the capacitor sandwich inbetween the board. If i not wrong, there a 6 x 470uF 35V.

Be careful when desoldering the capacitors. Those soldering pad is horrible!!! (TOO SMALL FOR GOOD CONTACT and might come off easily if not handle with care)

Capacitor to use? Panasonic FC series or Nichicon FW series. Not the best money can buy but value for mone

Does anyone have direct experience with this, replacing the remaining "sandwiched between the boards" capacitors? I hate to throw any more money at this thing, but if there is anyone with prior experience and the same problem (one channel not working), please let me know.

TIA

Ken

[fuzion78]

Why not get a car amplifier in replace instead?

[ifi123]

don't forget to try the aux jack behind the subwoofer to rule out the dock itself.

[Bambooken]

Thanks, I tried this already

Anyone know if replacing the other capacitors might help? Again, I've replaced the 5 large ones already.

Right channel remains dead

Thanks

[dbert]

I just thought I would chime in with an update.

Seven or eight months later and mine are still working fine.

I still have never used the standby function for any long duration though.

[ifi123]

nice to hear that dbert.

mine start popping randomly after 3 months after the 4700uF 25V replacement. i decided to re-cap the whole board (except one bipolar cap which use NP brand instead of Rifeking) and found the popping remains. rewire the whole DIN cable to 24AWG cable (louder sound from ipod) and same, random popping except now the dock no longer flickers when it pops.

i gave up and send it to local technician. i'll update if he found what is appears to be the culprit. in the meantime, listening to logitech seemed like a steep downgrade.

[dwy1342]

Thanks for all your help on this post. Bought the iFi for my daughter x-mas 09. I was blown away by the sound. She left for college and came home and it was caput. Believe she left it on. Recently decided to have a go at it and found your posts. Sure enough, the caps were blown. 12 dollars to digiking for 5 caps and 75 to the repair guy and I got power. Only thing is the dock is very squirrley, Basically , you have to hold,tape and wiggle the i pad and/ or i phone to get it to fire on all three speakers. Got to hold your mouth right too. Bought an aux cable and the thing is perfect. No glitches and sounds as great as ever. Volumne control works fine. Both aux inputs work equally as well. I suppose the only purpose the dock has otherwise is to charge the device.

I have a theory that the pins inside the connector(where the device slides on) get worn or bent, either from use or people not using the proper plastic widget. Same thing is wrong with my wife"s i-home. Would just like to get your thoughts on this.

Would have been a cheap fix if I had the skill and tools to do the solder job. Again, thanks for all the insight,

[ifi123]

dwy1342, iFi was using 12V firewire to charge old iPod device. newer device (iPhone 3G and after, iPod Touch 2G and after, iPod Nano 3G and after, etc) are using 5V from USB. it's true they're using different pin, you need to buy a ipod charger converter (12v to 5v) if you want to use iFi with newer iPods but im not sure if it works perfectly.

[dwy1342]

Thanks ifi123. Probably not a good idea to guess at the technical wizards who change standards on us lay people every two years. So, if I understand correctly, my iFi was purchased dec 06. It uses 12V firewire to charge the older ipods etc.(my daughter tells me she had a mini when we got the system) The newer devises use 5V to charge with a USB and since they went that route, the pin connectors(male and female) are different and not compatible with the iFi dock. Thus, I need a converter to go from newer devices to the ifi dock. I looked and it seems converters are readily available. any suggestions on a specific model or manufacturer? Thanks for the assistance.