Klipsch Promedia 5.1's - Amp repair

AARGH!

Gawd
Joined
Jun 13, 2003
Messages
766
For those of you like me, who have had their Klipsch Promedia 5.1's die from amp failure (either no sound from satellites or subwoofer), and don't want to let them go or substitute for something not as good or takes up more space (ie receiver) there is hope. After perusing the Klipsch forums I found Elliot aka Elliot-tronics. Guy is well reviewed in the forums and can take care of the amp repair/upgrade without having to resort to the "fan route".

I just sent my amp to him, so will keep you all posted on how it goes. I've had these speakers for 6 years, and my wife has my original Klipsch 4.1's that I don't even recall how old they are. Love'em to death, shame they stopped making them, but looking at the market I can see why.

AARGH!


Updated 12/16/2013 by magnetik per user complaints.
NOTE:
Complaints lodged against Elliot-tronics so far include:
- Amps not returned in a timely manner, or at all. Sometimes returned not working as he said they would. If the amps are returned at all, it's several months (or a year or more) later which is always much, much longer than he promises the customer.
- Missed and/or lied about multiple shipping dates with multiple customers
- Him being extremely responsive to emails at first, only to ignore them later when they inquire about their amps. Piss poor service after he has their amp and their money.
- These are the main complaints; there are more if you read the thread.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Did you make sure it wasn't just a blown fuse before sending them in for repair?
 
I had the problem, to fix it, i just bought a cheap 100 dollar sub and 200 dollar receiver and used the satellite speakers and honestly I have even better sound now.
 
$120 and will be fixed and better than new, is preferrable as I don't have that much money to spend, love these speakers, and don't have room for a receiver that I don't really need anyways.
 
Unfortunately mine wasn't a single speaker problem, but an amp (inside subwoofer) problem. I think going back/forth to Canada would increase the costs a bit much, and only had to ship to Texas for my repair. But good info for those just looking for parts or repairs in general in Canada.

Can never have too many options!
 
AARGH!,could you please tell me how to get in touch with this guy that is going to fix your Klipsch's?
I need some work done on mine,too.
 
shame they stopped making them, but looking at the market I can see why.

While they were pretty good for computer speakers, being a former owner of the 2.1s, I can tell you that it is NOT a shame that they stopped making them. They aren't worth fixing. Step up to some real speakers if you're bothered about the quality of computer speakers.
 
While they were pretty good for computer speakers, being a former owner of the 2.1s, I can tell you that it is NOT a shame that they stopped making them. They aren't worth fixing. Step up to some real speakers if you're bothered about the quality of computer speakers.

Ah speaker snob, thanks for your unwanted and unecessary input. Cost vs. Quality (and space requirements) and comparing whatever version of the 2.1's you had to the 5.1's, I'll have to disagree with you ALOT on that one.

I'm only bothered by folks who have to come in swinging their e-penis and bring nothing of value to a discussion..
 
Ah speaker snob, thanks for your unwanted and unecessary input. Cost vs. Quality (and space requirements) and comparing whatever version of the 2.1's you had to the 5.1's, I'll have to disagree with you ALOT on that one.

I'm only bothered by folks who have to come in swinging their e-penis and bring nothing of value to a discussion..

+1 :D
 
Got my amp back on Wednesday but didn't have time to set it up until yesterday (placement of subwoofer is between mine and my wife's L shaped desks so takes some coordination to get it back in without ripping wires out everywhere).

SOOOOOOOO happy to have it back! Sounds awesome, and could tell it was actually dying a slow death till it conked out as it sounds better than new!

Elliot is great btw, responds quickly and is very helpful!! Highly recommend and can now enjoy Crysis in its full audio glory!
 
While they were pretty good for computer speakers, being a former owner of the 2.1s, I can tell you that it is NOT a shame that they stopped making them. They aren't worth fixing. Step up to some real speakers if you're bothered about the quality of computer speakers.

Hah! Are you for real. Try the 5.1 ultra hooked to an X-Fi Elite Pro with the EQ tuned. I love my audio and I can't agree with you there. You sound like a dumbass. Klipsch pretty much own for spending only 400$. Once I have like 8k lying around I'll pick up a Klipsch Reference series. Whatever you are using can't compare to that if you are looking for real quality.
 
AARGH,
so you used this Elliot guy???
what did it cost and I assume you just sent him the guts of the AMP/SUB correct.

I had a Promedia rev. 1 that I repaired through Klipsch, eventually I sold it and now have the Ultra......I love it and have had no trouble for about three years, but I'm starting to get nervous and sure would like to fine someone who could fix this if I ever needed it.
 
AARGH,
so you used this Elliot guy???
what did it cost and I assume you just sent him the guts of the AMP/SUB correct.

I had a Promedia rev. 1 that I repaired through Klipsch, eventually I sold it and now have the Ultra......I love it and have had no trouble for about three years, but I'm starting to get nervous and sure would like to fine someone who could fix this if I ever needed it.

For my repair it was $98.79 (includes return shipping so price will vary). You basically unscrew the panel from the sub (outer screws) and remove the assembly and unplug two wires. I had to unscrew one of the other screws to get a grip to get it loose from the subwoofer. I wrapped it up in anti-static wrap and took it to shipping place who packed it up.

I could not be happier! He responds usually in a couple of hours if not same day to emails. Looks like I will be sending him my wifes 4.1's here shortly as her sub has died (not that she noticed).
 
Mine died recently. I replaced two FETs (soldered all of six pins and replaced a little thermal goop) on the satellite side of the pre-amp. Problem solved. Most of the problems are going to be in the two power boards or the pre amp due to their high heat levels and the fact that they will bear the worst of any surge other than perhaps something crazy happening to an audio input.

As a preventative measure I went ahead and replaced a chipped ceramic cap aas well as moved a power resistor away from the power supply board to somewhere cooler with a couple of short wires. I just ordered a 120mm 240VAC fan that will run undervolted via the output of the relay on the AC input board. I am planning on punching a hole in the front of the sub enclosure so the fan can force in cool air. Way I figure any acoustic side effects are minor compared to a dead amp. Hopefully the lower temps will give me many years before I have to fix them again. hopefull by then I'll have a degree and a good job to buy me something larger.

I heard about the Elliott guy on the Klipsch forums. According to those that used his services he does good work and has good service. For me, it wasnt worth the time and money since Im an intern in a electrical failure abnalysis lab...
 
I am planning on punching a hole in the front of the sub enclosure so the fan can force in cool air. Way I figure any acoustic side effects are minor compared to a dead amp.

I would strongly recommend that you don’t open up a hole into the speaker chamber of the subwoofer for several reasons:

- It would completely ruin the acoustic properties of the speaker chamber, loss of volume and frequency response.
- The alternating pressures of the chamber would make the fan rattle.
- The subwoofer already exchanges air though the port when in use. The louder and more power that’s being used, the more air is being exchanged.
 
It would make the speaker unwind too easily. You'll go over Xmech and kill the sub quite easily.
 
Hmm, I had to google xmech cause Ive never really studied speaker design. The possibility that the cones could move too much never occured to me.

My second idea then would be to mount the fan to the bottom of the enclosure next to the port and have it held up off the bottom with spacers. The general idea is that whenever air gets sucked in by normal operation the fan will force it on to the hot parts of the amp.
 
My Klipsch Promedia 5.1s have just started acting up for the 5th time in just under four years. So this thread is quite timely!

So far, I've replaced the amp three times, and the control unit once. Klipsch support, both on and off warranty, has been excellent for sure, but there is obviously an issue with the design or implementation here.

Don't get me wrong, for what they are the Promedia 5.1s are very nice. But I'm tired of dealing with their issues.

I think I will be giving "Elliot-tronics" a try on the amp/control unit repair, once I determine which piece is buggered, but before finding this thread I had gone looking for replacements.

That process was, itself, quite depressing. Very little selection in the retail market (I am not buying speakers without listening to them, even for PC applications and the ship/test/return of mail order is just too slow and painful for something like this).

A smattering of mid-level Logitech offerings, the new Creative stuff, some basic Altec Lansing pieces, some stuff I'd never heard of, and lots and lots of BOSE was all that was to be found in a 20 mile radius. Odd, since I'm in Redmond, WA which is quite a geek hotbed ;)

I wasn't even bothered about having 5.1 again on the PC, since I've long since stopped gaming there, and I'm not going to watch movies on a 30" screen. So 2.1 was fine.

To be fair, the Logitech Z-10's and the Creative T40's weren't bad at all, and if packaged with a semi-decent (none of this 5" driver as a sub-bass driver crap) sub-woofer would have been suitable replacements. Sadly those options need a separate sub right now (I imagine they'll both get packaged with one shortly), which is a bit annoying. Everything else was complete dross and I wouldn't let it in the house if you paid me.

The BOSE Companion 3 and 5 were COMICALLY poor (and amazingly well stocked). Really just bleedin' awful. And massively overpriced for what they are. Seriously, some of the worst speakers I have ever heard. The reproduction was hollow, sounded like it was being played in a big metal drum. There was no interesting bass or treble to speak of, either, which is a pity because if there was any mid-range output it was either conviently absent in BOSE's demo stuff or the speakers were just electing to omit that from the frequencies they did want to mangle.

I understand that BOSE fills a need. It is compact, easily hidden and it does work (for suitably small values of "work"), but christ I didn't realize they had gotten this bad! Save your time/money and listen to something/anything else!

Anyway, I gave up looking, and stuck a pair of B&W CDM1s that were gathering dust on the desk, re-instated an old Velodyne 12" sub, and paired them with a Sonic Frontiers tube amplifier and a Meridian 541 control amp (glad I kept all that stuff) and called it good ... and I am NOT going back to "PC" speakers ... no way ... no how ... you can't make me!

Even if I now have no room on my desk!

Apologies for the meandering post ... too much wine tonight I think.
 
No such thing as too much wine (unless your driving, or a mean drunk)!

You won't be disappointed with Elliot. I found him on the Klipsch forums of all places, where he has a big following. I concur with the desk real estate issue, as I got a U shaped desk with two monitors, and a laptop on it (and 3 Mybooks, and various other related crap). Desk space is hard to keep nowadays.

Hope ya get em fixed soon!
 
Mine died recently. I replaced two FETs (soldered all of six pins and replaced a little thermal goop) on the satellite side of the pre-amp. Problem solved. Most of the problems are going to be in the two power boards or the pre amp due to their high heat levels and the fact that they will bear the worst of any surge other than perhaps something crazy happening to an audio input.

As a preventative measure I went ahead and replaced a chipped ceramic cap aas well as moved a power resistor away from the power supply board to somewhere cooler with a couple of short wires. I just ordered a 120mm 240VAC fan that will run undervolted via the output of the relay on the AC input board. I am planning on punching a hole in the front of the sub enclosure so the fan can force in cool air. Way I figure any acoustic side effects are minor compared to a dead amp. Hopefully the lower temps will give me many years before I have to fix them again. hopefull by then I'll have a degree and a good job to buy me something larger.

I heard about the Elliott guy on the Klipsch forums. According to those that used his services he does good work and has good service. For me, it wasnt worth the time and money since Im an intern in a electrical failure abnalysis lab...

Punching a hole in the sub will change acoustics of the sub. Just put the fan in and make sure the sub port is on top. Just moving the air around the box and letting it vent naturally through the port should be sufficiant.
 
Well I talked to an engineer in my lab and we kinda agreed that putting a hole in it wouldnt do much.

I did a quick calculation and determined that the shortest wavelength of sound the sub produces is ~3m. So I figured a 0.12m hole shouldnt bother things too much.

Also I did some quick and dirty math and found that a sealed sub would have to exert something on the magnitude of *1.5kJ per cycle* on the *inside* air of the sub of a *sealed* enclosure to compress the air. Thus a ported sub operates at ambient air pressure at all times and xmech is not a factor in my mod.

The fan has been installed and so far so good. I cant hear the fan over my computer and the backplate seems fairly cool. I'll need to listen for a while and really crank it up to know for sure but Im confident.
 
This is related to fixing the control module for the Klipsch Promedia 5.1. Does anyone know if radioshack or some other place sell the headphone input plug or the Mp3/Jack output plug soldered onto the chipset? They kind of look the same. I don't know if they are different.
 
They should e pretty standard jack. I dont think either one would have an insertion switch though I have never looked. If they only have three signal pins then they should be easy to find. Some Radio Shacks might still carry them. There is always www.digikey.com (the selection can be intimidating....).
 
Well I talked to an engineer in my lab and we kinda agreed that putting a hole in it wouldnt do much.

I did a quick calculation and determined that the shortest wavelength of sound the sub produces is ~3m. So I figured a 0.12m hole shouldnt bother things too much.

I'll be sure to let the speaker companies know that the ports they put on their speakers don't do anything. Thanks for telling us, and hope your sub doesn't blow up from unwinding too quickly.
 
So far so good. They sound beautiful and doent burn my hand anymore.

dandragonrage:
When did I say that they dont do anything? The port is about three times the width of my hole. Its purely for acoustic reasons. It is the size it is because if it was too small it would be inneffective. If it was too large it defeats the resonate properties of the cabinet. I feel that my hole falls on the small end of the scale.

As for my sub blowing up I'll be sure to tell the entire field of thermodynamics that speaker engineers have discovered how to compress a relatively large volume of unsealed air with less then 200 watts of peak mechanical force. (What Im saying is that your concerns are only relevant for systems up in the kilowatt+ range to even compress a sealed enclosure).

Dont believe me? Go stick a watt meter on the air compressor next time you fill your tires. Small ones run in the 100s of watts and take a bit longer than 1/30 th of a second to generate any significant pressure against a volume (such as a tire, even if it is sealed but still at atmosphere). Compare the size of the average tire to your sub enclsure. Then take into account that a speaker is designed to vibrate air and not compress it. Thus if we call an air compressor's effciency 'e', the the efficiency of a sub isnt even going to be anywhere near e/4. But assuming it is that would mean a 1600 watt sub would be roughly equivalent to a small, cheap air pump and still would barely even push the air.

.
 
At the very least, your sub will push air through that hole and cause chuffing noises. No matter how much science you try to use on us, we all told you it was a bad idea and it still is.
 
No chuffing hear and not surprising since the fan is keeping a constant flow through that hole.

The only negative I've noticed is a slight increase in higher harmonics that can now sneak out. I might fiddle with the crossover function of my sound card but it hasnt bothered me enough. I get a faceful of mid from my front channels that would cover it up if my case fans and room fan didnt already.

My whole point of the science is too illustrate that at the low power levels of my sub, nothing severe is going to happen.

I know the thought of putting a fan in subwoofer is horrifying to the average audiophile, but the reality of it isnt so bad, better than dead equipment from too much heat.
 
No such thing as too much wine (unless your driving, or a mean drunk)!

You won't be disappointed with Elliot. I found him on the Klipsch forums of all places, where he has a big following. I concur with the desk real estate issue, as I got a U shaped desk with two monitors, and a laptop on it (and 3 Mybooks, and various other related crap). Desk space is hard to keep nowadays.

Hope ya get em fixed soon!

Thanks Joe, (glad you are happy) I'm new in this forum and just to let everyone know that I usually visit forums on weekends because I stay so busy during weekdays ( if you need immediate help just send me an e-mail), so if you have any questions about Klipsch Promedia amp repairs just let me know..and just for general info, if you cut holes on the sub you will reduce the bass dramatically and will cause distortion and also reduce the life of your sub speakers, and fans are not going to save your amp from blowing up (but they do help a little) and using a separate amplifier will not always sound better than the built in amp (unless you have a hi-end Yamaha , Onkyo, Denon or similar receiver with sub out option) if you really want to get your amp to last years and sound better than new, then just send me an e-mail and I will gladly repair & upgrade your amp properly,
P.S I will not give or sell any technical advise to anyone but if you need your amp repaired & upgraded just shoot me an e-mail to my yahoo or eBay acc and I will gladly do it for you...
Cheers,
Elliott
Electronics Tech since 1990...
(been playing with electronics since age 12,)
 
My Klipsch Promedia Ultra 5.1 recently crapped out on me. Was hoping to fix the problem myself. Been doing research, and found at a post on OC Fourms saying that it could be a simple one piece, (the relay), replace and re-solder fix. Any body attempted?

Was thinking of sending it out to be fixed, but I fear that they will only crap out again....

:rolleyes:

I do love the sound, and currently don't have the money to buy an another set of speakers that would compare to theses bad boys...
 
Crapped out how? Elliot fixed mine and they are still going strong, so no complaints here.

My Klipsch Promedia Ultra 5.1 recently crapped out on me. Was hoping to fix the problem myself. Been doing research, and found at a post on OC Fourms saying that it could be a simple one piece, (the relay), replace and re-solder fix. Any body attempted?

Was thinking of sending it out to be fixed, but I fear that they will only crap out again....

:rolleyes:

I do love the sound, and currently don't have the money to buy an another set of speakers that would compare to theses bad boys...
 
The amp seems to kick on, I hear a clicking sound from the internals of the sub woofer,
But no sound out of any speakers, through both inputs, the ones in the rear of the woofer, and the input on the volume controller box. I still have sound coming out of the headphone jack on the volume control box, so it seems to me that it has to do something with powering the speakers.

I looked for burnt spots on the boards, but I couldn't find any.

Again I have read a quick fix on OC Forums, about how somebody just replaced a $2 relay, and she said she got them to function again, I was really wondering if any body had tried that fix?

though it seems like contacting Elliot is the best remedy, Ive read he does good work.
 
This is how I fixed my Klipsch 4.1 setup:

http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1333618

I made that post, hoping it would help at least someone! Your problem sounds like a different one than I had (different system) but I think the 5.1 systems had some crappy resistors too...

edit: don't be scared of fixing it yourself. desoldering takes a little bit of practice and reading to understand how to do it right- but it's not that hard, it's inexpensive, and you'll learn something.

Sending your system off to some guy and paying him over 100 bucks is kinda.... well.... how would I say this....

NOT [H] at ALL! lol
 
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