Hello all!  You'll remember me!  I was the one who got a couple of Penta 1s (free) and wanted to join them up with his BV7.  Well...

I now have the cables needed coming my way, thanks to advice of Peter.  GBP25 each (B&O here in Greece wanted EUR90 each!) - and I look forward to at least hearing them.

I have found no foam rot - you'll be pleased / surprised to hear.   And I have plugged them in using normal speaker cables to hear them - and then I found DISASTER!! 

The one that works is amazing!  However, one of them, when turned on, stays orange!  (Well it goes green for a nanosecond, and I can hear sound coming out for a split second, then it all goes orange.)  Then it doesn't work, and when I turn the right hand switch to 'off' it doesn't even go red.  Do we think that the switch is dead, or something more serious...Is this the end of the road?  I hope not, because they look amazing, and sound incredible - I can't wait to get them working with the amplifiers and the BV7.  Even if I have to get B&O to mend them I think I will.

Thanks all.

The amber light is a sign that the amplifier has an electronic problem.

The sequence of lights is:

Red    Standby

Green   All systems go!

Amber  Problem

Try turning off at the mains for a minute and try again. If no lick then I'm afraid it's a service visit.

Hi Graham,

 I also just purchased a set of Penta I's off ebay. I'm waiting for their delivery. Can you tell me what to look for as far as this speaker rot or other problems.

 I have some other questions as far as interfacing a bs9000 with an AV7000 for home theatre..help!!!

 Thanks,

Keith

If you remove the lower fret you will see the four midrange drivers arranged vertically in the centre of the speaker. These are the only drivers in the system that have foam surrounds which is inclined to rot and break up with age.

If the foam surrounds are full of holes or obviously breaking up then the drivers need replacing. If the surrounds look OK then DON'T TOUCH as they could be fragile!!

I have no experience with the AV7000 so cannot answer your next point.

Thanks Graham,

 Where is the lower fret?? How is it removed?? So I don't need to check the woofers?

 

Gracias,Keith

Speaker parts.... if i need to replace speakers, etc. Is there a place to purchase parts wholesale?? where would be the best place to get from??

Thanks

The frets are the grey fabric covers on the front of the speakers.

The cloth is mounted on a plastic frame which is fragile so take care.

My method of removal involves using a butter knife or similar as a lever between the side of the fret and the plastic display panel. Lift carefully until you can get your finger behind the fret and ease it off down the side. Do the same the other side and the fret should come off!

The woofers have rubber surrounds and will be fine.

Parts are available from your B&O dealer. The midrange drivers are about £30 each

thank's graham...will do..as you say....much appreciated..

 Do you have working knowledge of how to interface the BS9000 with the AV7000??? for the best interface working relationship...???

The problem you have here is two fold. The AV7000 was really only sold in the US so we Europeans will not have any practical knowledge of it, and it is also the generation before the BS9000 so has no Masterlink connection. I am sure it is possible - maybe the North American Forum members can help?

thanks peter,

 so, does my BS9000 have a masterlink???? is that necessary or can it all be done by the Powerlinks??? thanks peter, .....keith

The BS9000 (the 6 CD player) has Masterlink. This is the system that is used to connect B&O devices together and normally one would attach TV and audio systems together using this. Unfortunately the AV7000 does not use this system but you may well eventually get a Beosystem 3 which is the successor to it.

As I posted in the other thread, there's no problem using the 9000 with an AV7000 as long as you use the BeoLink Converter box.

Well -to come back to the possible error in these Penta 1s,  the orange light problem seems to be going away, strange as it may sound.  When I turn the speaker on, it is red - which is fine, because that is telling me that there is no input yet.  Then when the siginal arrives, the green light comes on.  BUT - for a while (about a minute) there is a large (!) noise (can't describe better - kind of buzzing) coming from the uppermost speaker in the lower fret.  THen, with a large kind of crescendo, it suddenly stops. And then, the speaker works fine.  Does anyone know what that could be?  Should I simply take it to the B&O shop and ask them to 'look at it'?  Does anyone have any better ideas.

 Also, I think this speaker is overheating also, because after about two hours, if I try to cut the siginal and then start it again, I get the same orange problem - which leads me to believe that the Penta is overheating and when it does then it cuts out.  I wonder if my buzzing and the overheating are related?

Any ideas would be most welcome.  Thanks all.

I would guess possibly a solder problem or a failing capacitor. Either way, the amplifier needs looking at before a catastrophic failure. The fact it recurs so son after switching off makes me think capacitor rather than solder - but it could be either.

Peter - sounds right to me, i.e. capacitor - that would explain the crescendo as it fills / empties.  I'm not an electronic genius, but I remember at school my technology teacher showing me how a capacitor works with a toilet flush system, and somehow the metaphor has never left me..

Would I be best to take to a B&O dealership to mend, or elsewhere?  Do dealerships repair older equipment?

Thanks.

They will certainly repair a Penta. The amplifier comes off quite easily.See above!