RX-855 needs some nursing

[miataguy]

My mom has the RX-855 and has used it daily for years.

Now we've a problem with the unit--she uses it exclusively as a receiver and tunes to weak FM stations.

She lives in Northeast (CT) and therefore we have humid summers, dry winters. This summer the problem has become more prevelant--the unit will distort the sound and stations will fade out, but the signal strength meter doesn't change.

I've blown out quite a bit of dust, and was hesitant to use PC board cleaners at first, in order to reduce the risk of ruining things. Blow-out seemed to help some, but the problem has returned.

My mom has no other source, so to check to see if it is in the amplifier section would take some trouble, although it is not impossible.

Could this be the tuner section, or what??


Thanks

Miataguy

[miataguy]

So I could use some help here...

My previous message may have been a bit wordy :Z , anyway what does one do to clean up one of these units?

[Taito]

You should be able to get hold of some spray that repels moisture and is non-conductive ie. safe for use on circuit boards. You could try that. Check out the radio shack or similar website.

-Ben

[miataguy]

Thanks, I've got the cleaner can (comes with a brush on the end of the sprayer) from the Shack.

Actually I'm a bit more interested in finding out whether this is a common ailment of old equipment and whether I should concentrate on the boards that have High-impedance wiring and tracing that could be more sensitive to dust contamination.

Is this going to be a big project?

[gd]

Not that cleaning out the gear is a bad idea, but...

I'm skeptical that an elaborate circuit board cleaning is going to improve tuner reception.

Why not try a new / better antenna first?... or re-positioning the one you already have?

[miataguy]

Yes, that is a good point. I guess that will eliminate that from the list.

Thanks

[Taito]

It would also be a good idea to plug in anther source to determine whether the problem is on the tuner side or the pre/power amp side. You say your mother has no other source. What about something like a VCR? It is likely that there is something around the place that you could use to check. Could it be your speakers? Are speaker connections secure?

-Ben