Welcome to the Audiophile Repair Forum This forum exists because knowledge shouldn't disappear when a company decides a product is "end of life." Right to Repair Every year, perfectly good audio gear

# Audiophile Repair Knowledge — Tj's Field Notes This is the stuff I've learned fixing high-end audio gear. Some from my years at PS Audio, some from repair benches, some from conversations with the

So you found yourself with a stereo. Maybe a parent's system, maybe an estate-sale pickup, maybe a relative decided you are the one who knows about this stuff. Good news: most of it is worth keeping.

When gear lands on my bench, I don't start with a screwdriver. I start with questions — and I would rather ask them before the case comes off. What exactly does it do, and when? Dead always, dead some

"It doesn't sound right" is where good troubleshooting goes to die. The more precisely you can describe a symptom, the less everyone has to guess — including you. Hum is continuous, sits under the mus

Receiver hum is the most common call I get, and it almost always sorts into one of two families. Family one: the hum is a ground loop, not bad gear. A steady drone that is there at idle and does not c

Every vintage thread eventually hits the word "recap," so let me say the unpopular thing first: not every problem is capacitors, and not every capacitor problem needs the whole unit redone. When capac

Everyone loves a finished restoration. What actually helps the rest of us is the middle part. So this thread is an invitation to post the project you are in, not just the one you finished. The receive

Turntable setup is where small efforts pay the biggest returns, and half of it costs nothing. The free wins first. Level the platter. Set tracking force with a gauge instead of by eye — even a cheap o

Every tool shelf has a story about the gadget that never earned its keep. This thread is about the opposite: the ones that earn their spot. My short list, from a working bench. A decent multimeter — n

I buy and fix used gear, and I walk in with three checks that take less time than the drive over. One: power it up and listen at low volume. Crackling that vanishes when you exercise the controls is d

The simple thread. Every week: what is actually playing on your system? The rules are loose. A whole album, a playlist, one song on repeat, a test track you keep returning to, or the radio in the shop

There is always one piece of gear that got away. Maybe it was the receiver you had in college, the turntable your parents kept in the living room, or the speakers you sold because you were sure you wo

What was the first system that made you stop and really listen? It does not have to be expensive or impressive on paper. A thrift-store receiver, hand-me-down speakers, a Discman plugged into somethin

Old gear does not automatically need a full restoration the day it comes through the door. The honest question is what the unit is worth to you, what condition it is actually in, whether it is safe to