hello all,

 

I have just recieved my replacement beomaster 5500 (having had a bad experience with the last 'bargain'), and most functions appear to be operating correctly. however.....

the only thing i am getting on the left hand of the display is the word LOCKED

this light is fixed (even in standby it is on) and stays as i scroll through (and use) all components and settings. does this represent a serious problem? can i get rid of it? I actually paid going rate for this one so I'm hoping this doesn't represent a fault even if minor...

MCP is operating as normal, and nothing seems to be actually, well - locked?!

many thanks in advance for any help at all

"Locked" means that the FM tuner is locked on a frequency (it has found a radio station), so when playing radio this is normal behaviour. What happens if you switch to another source like cd or tape? It sounds strange that it shows "Locked" even in standby.

edit:

Ah sorry, I now see that you've already checked this. Then I have no advice :-(

Unplug from mains for say 10 minutes, plug back in. If it still doesn't go away, I'm afraid it is a fault.

Does the right hand side of the display work? If it does, the fault probably is a stuck output on the IC (MM5450) controlling the front panel LEDs.

I guess it could be also tired caps in the reset circuit of the processor, but that would probably manifest itself in more random problems. Or some conductive debris short circuiting a track on the display PCB.

The IC is still available, is not expensive and is relatively easy to replace (located on the front panel PCB).

thankyou everyone - especially mika

I tried the unplugging trick and i'm afraid it is still the same.

the right hand side of the display is fine so it looks like you might be right with a display problem. I haven't noticed any other problems but I only got the unit this morning so still a few more things to try.

repair is tricky as i am in rural france...I'm loath to try replacing the IC myself -is it really that simple for someone with no experience? if i get it fixed do you think it would be an expensive repair? Should I look for any debris if that could be the cause?

many thanks again, I am seriously unlucky with these amps

 

I have been in touch with the seller, who in turn contacted b and o. apparently they suggested holding down the left control button, pressing the right and then releasing together, and/or trying this in reverse. does this make sense to anyone?

I have tried this with no success - although - the timer off indicator does come on with the reverse configuration (right button down then left etc.) - this is part of the left hand display - so the entire display might not be defective? that said, it stays on along with locked when the unit is in standby mode which doesn't seem right....

many thanks again

I have tried to make the display show "timer off" instead. I turned it on and off by holding the two pushbottoms in a number of seconds, it is mentioned in the user manual.

Oh, didn't read the whole OP...

roccodog:

I'm loath to try replacing the IC myself -is it really that simple for someone with no experience?

I meant "relatively easy" for someone experienced in electronics - it's a large 40 pin IC and definitely not something you should try as a first exercise in this area. Also, there's still the small chance that the problem is something else.

If you have a can of compressed air, you could try opening the lid and blowing behind the circuit boards on the front panel. But remember that you will have a harder time negotiating with the seller if you attempt any repairs yourself. At least wait a bit, somebody else might still have other ideas for possible problems.

The left side - right side trick is good for getting rid of the "timer off" display, I guess the B&O service got that confused.