After more than a year of normal operation, the datalink for the phono connection on the BM5000 stopped working. I connected my Beogram 5005 to another socket and the datalink worked so I know it's not the turtable. All other datalink socket connections work. Any suggestions for common failure points? Thanks.

Dom

Hi Dom,

The most common problem with the phono DIN cable on this set up is the tight angle at which it sits in the input socket of the beomaster 5000 which can affect the connections to the pins in the plug. It appears that this isn't the problem though as it works with other input sockets but it is definately worth checking the plug in any case to discount this (always try the easiest things first). It may simply be an intermittant fault which only manifests itself when squeezed into the phono input. If not then the next thing to check is the connections to the socket itself inside the beomaster.

Chris.

EDIT I'm not 100% sure but there are 2 datalink pins on the DIN plug of the Beogram 5005 of which only one is used for the signals to the turntable. I think it is the opposite one to other datalink connected items such as beocords/cd players etc.... so it could be that the one for the phono control has come adrift inside the DIN plug which could explain why it works on the other sockets. I may have made this sound more complicated than it really is though

Tape and CD use pin 7, Phono uses pin 6 except when the record player has a built in RIAA when it too uses pin 7. However TV/AUX uses pin 6 as well just to complicate things. I take it that you plugged it into the Aux socket. I would do as Chris suggests and look at the DIN plug and socket first. Commonest (and cheapest) fault would be a loose wire to either the plug or socket.

Hi Dom,

Peter and Chris are quite correct.  Pins 6 and 7 in the DIN plug are the potential failure point.  Whilst only one pin is needed for data (pin 7 except for TV's and non-amplified Beograms), connection of the other pin (Data Ground) gives a more reliable data stream in electrically noisy environments (eg. near to air conditioning motors, etc).

If you aren't confident with soldering, I would recommend trying a replacement cable.  Let me know if you need any help in obtaining one. 

Best regards,

Steve.

Peter/Chris/Steve,

Thanks, you were all correct - at least one lead was broken in the plug. I have no problem with soldering and I was able to get the black outer portion off of the plug, but how do I remove the center section from the metal shell? I have never taken a DIN plug apart before.

Dom

The metal shell should be able to be separated into two halves. I must confess to finding some of the old plugs a bit tricky to pull apart - I have at times bought new ones instead! Worth resoldering all the connections anyway. Pleased it is a cheap fix!

Peter,

You are quite correct about the shell being in two halves, normally splitting apart easily once the plug is opened.  However, there were some (late 1980's) plugs used by B&O which had a one-piece metal shell, requiring a different (and rather tricky) arrangement to open:-

1) Prise off the plastic outer cover (towards the cable)

2) Cut/desolder the screen wire from the one-piece plug shell

3) Depress the two plastic clips on either side of the metal shell

4) Slide the metal shell off to reveal the wires inside

If you find you've got one of these plugs, I would just cut it off and refit a new one - makes life much easier!  BTW, I have some nice metal cased Neutrik 7pin DIN plugs with gold plated pins available.....

Best regards,

Steve.

Steve,

Thanks for the advice. I replaced the plug but still had the same problem. I finally opened the cabinet and checked the socket, but found nothing out of sorts. In the end, I replaced it with another Beomaster 5000. The datalink wors perfectly on that one, but it has two small problems I'll ask abot in another thread.

Dom