Receiver running HOT

[Delibird]

Hi all,

This is my first post, so please go easy.

My Technics receiver has recently been relocated to a new home, and has been running very hot. I can play music or video games with it powering my speakers, and after half hour, it's blazing hot on top. There are small vents cut out on the top, for the heat sink to dissipate heat, but it becomes untouchable. It even heats up the wooden shelf above it to a very high temperature.

I'm starting to worry that I will be doing damage. It's never gone into safe mode yet, but I'm afraid I'll be cooking something in the mean time. I have yet to take it apart to ensure all capacitors are looking fine, in addition to checking the rear exhaust fan.

Main question:

Is this enough room on top of the receiver? Should I give it more room to breath on top? There is about 7cm (2.7inch) of gap.

Let me know.

Thank you!

 

[hemiram]

Welcome!

IMHO, no, it's not enough room, and there should be venting in the rear and even on the bottom, if possible. Oh, bad caps won't make it hot. Did/do you have pets? If so, have you opened it up and sucked the hair out of it? I do all my stuff annually, and there is ALWAYS hair in them, even the stuff the cats don't lay on. My PC is nowhere near where my cats are, or where my dogs were when they were alive, and there was hair from both in the fans and power supply/ It's on a table 30" off the floor, and the hair is amazing.

Stacking stuff like this is bad news, and should be avoided if possible, IMHO

A simple test would be to take it out of the cabinet, hook the speakers up, and see how warm it gets. If it gets even remotely as hot, there is a problem with it. If it's as cool as it normally is, it's the cabinet. I would bet on the cabinet

 

[Grenadeslio]

If the shelf above were shortened in the back to allow the heat to escape you might be ok, otherwise it will always be an issue. More room on the sides wouldn't hurt either.

I've stacked equipment much closer but with plenty of breathing rm all the way around without issue, your receiver is encapsulated.

Swap the X-Box and disc player with the X-Box now on top of the receiver, use some Vibrapods under the game system for additional spacing. Preferably the receiver should have that space to itself, but if the game system doesn't create a lot heat also then it's smaller footprint should allow enough ventilation.

 

[toxcrusadr]

You can lay a small computer cooling fan right on top of the vents to pull air up through the receiver. Put some stick on felt or rubber circles on the corners. A 12VDC fan can be hooked up to a 3, 6 or 9V wall adaptor and it will run at proportionally lower speed. If you have one of those selectable multi voltage adaptors you can try it out at different voltages. Here's a small one at PE that's very thin and only $2.49.

https://www.parts-express.com/jmc-4010-12-12-vdc-40mm-x-10mm-brushless-3-wire-micro-fan--259-149

If you run it at reduced voltage it'll be totally silent and you don't really need a ton of air flow, just a little help.

 

[imral3]

Was it sitting in the empty space up and to the left before?

 

[Bob]

I'd put the receiver in its own shelf that has the most amount of (air) space to the sides
and the top. then run a USB powered fan to suck/blow air from heat to exhaust. there
are silent ones. (or drill holes in the back and drive a fan to suck it out the back and
use a switched power receptacle from the receiver to power the fan.

your heat buildup is probably due to lack of airflow where the receiver vents are.

 

[savatage1973]

In the original post, it is noted that there is a rear exhaust fan already in the unit; however, it may not be effective since there is no rear opening and the confined space is pretty tight.

 

[Yamaki]

One thing to check is the specs of your receiver amplifier output & what your speakers draw.

I burned up a Denon AVR by trying to drive speakers that significantly exceeded the AVR's specifications.

 

[toxcrusadr]

I missed that about the fan. It definitely needs more space for air flow around it instead of more fans.

 

[awillia6]

One thing to check is the specs of your receiver amplifier output & what your speakers draw.

I burned up a Denon AVR by trying to drive speakers that significantly exceeded the AVR's specifications.

Which Denon AVR and what were the circumstances of its demise, if you don't mind my asking?

 

[jami w.]

if it ran cooler before the move? my bet is cooling issues, is it the same cabinet your using, from the old place? or its a new cabinet in pics above?
you never mentioned it.

if the cabinet shelf is enclosed? cut out the back of shelf where reciever is only. and have it be the only piece of gear on shelf. need more venting on the top, fyi i keep at least 5" open space above reciever. an have the back part cut out.

try that see what happens, and let us know.

 

[savatage1973]

With slightly over 2 1/2" of open space above the receiver, it should cool effectively with the built-in fan (assuming it is working properly) AND that something is done to allow the hot air to escape--cut a hole in the back of the cabinet, or shorten the depth of the shelf above. As is, there is no place to vent the hot air out of the confined space, so the fan is just recirculating the hot air--great for a space heater, not so much for cooling an amp. "Christina--bring me the axe!!!"

EDIT--BTW, you are doing your XBOX no favors by having it sitting on the shelf above, which is essentially (by default) a "makeshift hotplate".

 

[Quadman2]

The Technics do run hot. This I know from having one. It's also been mentioned by others who own them by their comments on different threads before.

Make certain that you have this unit in a space/area where there's lots of free air flow. When running mine, I used to have the glass doors wide open, and took out the back section of a sectional tall type entertainment centre.

Some good ideas shared already. You will only touch the screened area once on the top of this receiver! Trust me on this.

Q

 

[jami w.]

post an leave? lol

 

[BrianKBaur]

You can lay a small computer cooling fan right on top of the vents to pull air up through the receiver. Put some stick on felt or rubber circles on the corners. A 12VDC fan can be hooked up to a 3, 6 or 9V wall adaptor and it will run at proportionally lower speed. If you have one of those selectable multi voltage adaptors you can try it out at different voltages. Here's a small one at PE that's very thin and only $2.49.

https://www.parts-express.com/jmc-4010-12-12-vdc-40mm-x-10mm-brushless-3-wire-micro-fan--259-149

If you run it at reduced voltage it'll be totally silent and you don't really need a ton of air flow, just a little help.

^THIS!

It is the only way to "Stack" anything. I use speaker gasket foam with adhesive side on the rim of the fan, and even install it in the amp chassis if there is room . Silent, and no axial vibration.

 

[twiiii]

you need to have installed a couple of whisper fans below and above the unit yesterday. Today maybe to late. If you buy ones on Amazon get the pairs that have the speed controls. You may meed to slow them down just a touch to lessen the noise they generate.

 

[Putterman]

First, I would check to see if the built-in fan works. Technics receivers of that era and earlier were notorious for non working fans. I recall seeing a workaround that bypasses the relay that turns on the fan so that it's always on. Regardless, I would take some or all of the suggestions given beginning giving the receiver room to breath, i.e. putting it by itself. An alternative to PE fans would be a laptop computer fan. I've been seeing them at some of the thrifts. With an AC adapter you could plug it into the powered outlet in the back.

 

[jami w.]

guys he's gone

 

[toxcrusadr]

Sometimes people come back. I think I made a couple posts at first and was gone for months, then I had a reason to stick around when a piece of important gear fell in my lap that needed repair.