What could be the problem?

Your advise and experience needed.

My integrated amp have this symtom lately. The volume/sound from the right channel will be softer and sometime totally mute while playing TT or cd. This happens mostly when the 'source direct' button is push to off. What I normally do to bring back the sound level back to normal is to play around with the 'source direct' (on and off) button.

By the way, my int amp is about 10 years old.

Thank you.

it can be the button itself or leak on caps. better off take it to qualified technician becoz if its leak on caps than things can get even worse. cheers

contact? carbon build-up? is your amp on the floor or on the lowest tier of the rack? that area's dusty zone for me... used to have my gear on the floor but not anymore... sacrifice a bit of sound quality, for a teeny weeny bit of longevity. i really hate bad contacts, noisy switches and crackling-sounding knobs. your amp's prolly due for service/cleaning.

Normally a can of contact cleaner is all you need!
the sellector button" yes the buttons! and the volume pot also,
no worry!
but make sure you swtich off mains before doing!
Easy as ABC

Now lets get back to addressing the REAL issue here:

When SOURCE-DIRECT is ON, no problem right ?

Only when SOURCE-DIRECT is Off, this means the signals will go thru the Bass, Treble (and maybe midrange if your amp has one) knobs and filter circuits. And therein lies the problem. Either these knobs have bad contacts, or the high-pass, or low-pass, or both filter circuitries have leaky caps or some misbehaving components. Or maybe the contacts of the SOURCE-DIRECT contacts are making bad contacts in the "OFF" positon. Either way, it's a simple fix. Can DIY if you're familiar with basic elec. circuits, or just leave it in the hands of the usual repairers. That dude in Old Klang Road (actually there're a few) who specialises in fixing hifi stuff could get it sorted out no sweat.

Try the contact-cleaner method first ... its easily DIY'ed at home.
Only if it doesnt solve the problem, then pay mr. Old Klang Road a visit...

Thanks guys for all the replys.

atoz wrote:Normally a can of contact cleaner is all you need!

mugenfoo wrote:
Try the contact-cleaner method first ... its easily DIY'ed at home.

Errrr......just spray on those switches, knobs and etc and let them drip dry? Can I spray the cleaners on the PCBs?

This may sound silly but I just to confirm with you guys, does the contact cleaner dry by itself (evaporating) and no need to dry the components by wiping with a piece of cloth?

Thanks.

larren wrote:
Errrr......just spray on those switches, knobs and etc and let them drip dry? Can I spray the cleaners on the PCBs?

Why do you want to spray on PCB?. If its dirt, dust, use compressed air and blow it all out, like how I do it on PC motherboards. Spraying chemicals onto a PCB is generally a no-no.

(yes, I do own a air compressor for general purpose, so I have that very conveniently)

Normally they are 'self drying' as they contains some petroleum based distillate and compressed carbon dioxide.
You spray them on contacts ie switches and the likes, not meant for PCB cleaning what so ever..
This might fix your problem if the SOURCE-DIRECT switch is at fault(contact problems). If it doesn't fix it then you know it could be the tone circuits.
Good luck!

[/quote]

Errrr......just spray on those switches, knobs and etc and let them drip dry? Can I spray the cleaners on the PCBs?

This may sound silly but I just to confirm with you guys, does the contact cleaner dry by itself (evaporating) and no need to dry the components by wiping with a piece of cloth?

Thanks.[/quote]

Those 'elcheapo' 12V compressors are for inflating them car tyres so they would go reasonable high pressures, a couple of bars I think.. don't recalled seeing any pressure regulators on them though.. using them directly for cleaning can be 'tricky'..

Thank drife and CT-Boy.

Not at all.
Personally I would go with a can (or two) of compressed air that are used by photographers. Multi usage on top of camera cleaning, PC, laptops and of course, electronics.
You can find both contact cleaners and the compressed air in Jalan Pasar.