Fisher stereo sound distortion

[jkmaj]

Hi all: I have an older (probably early 80's) Fisher studio standard component system that i have not used for several years. It worked fine the last time i used it, but now has bad sound distortion from the speakers and the headphones. I cleaned the speaker connections and double checked the wire polarity. The problem remains. I opened it up and cleaned it even though it was not bad at all. The problem also occurs while using turntable or am / fm tuner. Since it worked fine when last used i dont want to believe the amp just up and decided to die. Some service folks said they would look at it, but no guarantee's on parts availabillity and such.
Any and all thought's appreciated.
Jesse

 

[TheViper]

When you power the unit on you push all the inner components really hard. That initial burst is much more harsh on your system than cranking it way up. With older components, they can very easily croak from that initial power on. Modern units have more surge protection to prevent this problem.

Open it up again and look closely for any burns, frayed wiring, capacitor leaks, etc...

 

[jkmaj]

All looked okay when i opened it up again...but....the sound got much better. I believe the majority of the distortion is intermittently caused by the "balance" slide control.
Thanks for the input

 

[DZeroENT]

It could be just too old, things do just "up and die", rubber for example has a shelf life, such as insulators i.e. wires, caps, diodes, etc. Remember that really old tire you saw that one day that smelled like fossilized dino poop and literally wiped away? Sorry if I'm coming off as rude, not my intent.

My point is, many components of technology have natural enemies such as oxygen, sunlight, and water (duh). Moisture also exsists in the air, and having the unit powered on created heat, thus keeping your stereo alive.

I really think it's too late to get your fisher 1oo percent again...

 

[jkmaj]

It could be just too old, things do just "up and die", rubber for example has a shelf life, such as insulators i.e. wires, caps, diodes, etc. Remember that really old tire you saw that one day that smelled like fossilized dino poop and literally wiped away? Sorry if I'm coming off as rude, not my intent.

My point is, many components of technology have natural enemies such as oxygen, sunlight, and water (duh). Moisture also exsists in the air, and having the unit powered on created heat, thus keeping your stereo alive.

I really think it's too late to get your fisher 1oo percent again...

Didn't think you were coming off as rude till you brought it up...just kidding.
good input and point well taken. i sometimes forget about the "natural
" death and decay that happens over time