hello....and have a problem with a PG zx200v2

[CK1991]

Hi everybody. My name is Kevin. I picked up a phoenix gold zx200 v.2 about 6 months ago and finally got around to testing it, only to find out it doesn't work. I got it for cheap so I can't really complain too much, but I would like it to work. I know PG fixes amps, but I cannot justify spending $130 to fix an amp thats only worth maybe $70 (even though its in good shape cosmetically). The thermal protection light stays on, as does the fan, and the amp itself will not go on (I'm guessing because something in it is telling the amp to not turn on to save itself from damage.) I had a friend of mine bench check it and he said the thermal sensor was still good, but he said he's not good enough to check it any further without the schematic for the protection circuit. Are the schematics for the protection circuits available anywhere? He said he thinks either something wore out in the circuit because of age, or that the outputs shorted, which somehow shorted the protection circuit (however, it still has the original PG fuse in it, and IIRC blown outputs blow the fuse). I was hoping to use the amp because it matches a PG eq215ix and PLD-1 I got (from the same person I got the amp from.) I am hoping to use it in a cadillac fleetwood brougham I have (doing a full install (my first install actually) with the PG gear and several other old school amps (1980 rf punch150, PPI sedona 200ix, orion cobalt cs150) and some old higher quality speakers -RF punch audiophile 6.5 woofers (in custom made speaker pods) and JBL titanium dome tweets (in the dash 4x6 holes) in the front, a set of old (and decently heavy) blaupunkt 2 way 6x9s in the back deck (not super high end, but the best 6x9s I've come across so far) and 3 hifonics olympian warriors in a sealed box in the trunk.

[Stryker]

imo, not worth it...
you could pick up a zx450 for less than 200 and then it has the X-overs you'll need.

[trickyricky]

Pm'ed. I'll take the broken amp, lol.

[Eric D]

I would start by checking every resistor on the daughter card which has the power, thermal, and overload LEDs on it. Once you have verified every resistor is good, then check every transistor on that daughter card as well, checking for shorts. There is a very good chance on of the transistors is bad, but I have seen resistors go bad on there as well. It is easy to check the parts with a DMM and look for something that does not seem right.

Also, that amp has more than one thermal sensor I am pretty sure. I believe it has two, and might even have three (one on each of the heatsink plates).

[CK1991]

Ricky, I'm not ready to sell it just yet.
Eric, I'll have my friend check those. That's what he said he would have to do (go through the whole card), then start replacing parts until it worked. I'm pretty sure it only has one sensor though. If you're looking at the amp, it's in the top left corner under one of the metal plates that cover the outputs (he took all the plates off one by one when looking for it).

[Eric D]

Here is a photo of a ZX250 I had, and it shares the same main board as the ZX200 does. The part in between the 4 transistors is a thermal sensor.

[trickyricky]

From what the OP is describing, it sounds to me like the power supply is blown. All old school PG's used fuse type resistors so when those go out, they don't show any signs of damage. This prevents serious damage (just as shown in Eric's pic), lucky for those amps there are people like Eric that can repair those boards.

I would suggest you take that plate off (where the power supply is) and check those fets, and their gate resistors. Am in the process of repairing a ti500.2 that had a blown power supply, and when I applied power to turn it on the fan will turn on and there wouldn't be any "thermal" "overload" protection LED that would turn on.

[CK1991]

spoke with my friend, and he said that he doesnt want to work on it because he can't promise if it will work when he's done (he said he normally works on home gear and isn't used to the complicated protection circuitry found on that amp), so looks like I'm either gonna have to find someone else to fix it (which brings up the cost to repair vs just buy another one) or sell it and get what I can for it. If I get rid of it, I'd like to find another PG amp (to match my white eq215ix since they will be sitting on the same panel in my trunk) that is at least 2.6 ohm stable bridged (so it can run my subs).

[Eric D]

There is no complicated protection circuitry in that amplifier. The thermal protection circuit is probably at most 6 parts. Maybe two transistors and a few resistors, leading to one input of the LM339 comparator which enables the power supply of the amp.

Step one is to verify both of the thermal sensors are good (and they do go bad, I have found bad ones in PG amps in the past), then check the handful of transistors on that daughter card.

If you have a DMM, you can do this yourself with a little guidance.

[CK1991]

pulled the plates off and sure enough, my friend missed one of the thermal sensors (the one that still has grease on it). How do I test it to make sure it works or not? I have a multimeter, but have 0 idea how to use it.


also, if the problem is on the daughter card for the protection circuits, what would have gone out? (sorry for asking a stupid question, but I have 0 experience working on car amps or anything with circuit boards for that matter)

[Eric D]

First off, why are there two yellow LEDs on the amp? Make sure they are not installed backwards, and make sure the leads from one are not touching the leads from another.

[CK1991]

First off, why are there two yellow LEDs on the amp? Make sure they are not installed backwards, and make sure the leads from one are not touching the leads from another.

there is one yellow and one green. my friend who looked at the amp tried unsoldering the yellow LED to see if that would turn off the thermal circuit (which of course it didn't) and he didn't solder it back in all the way....still not sure why he thought that would be a good idea? (personally, I didn't think that was too smart of him)

[Eric D]

Now that I look at it, I see there are not two Yellow LEDs on the amp. When I looked before it appeared to me that one was in front of the other or something, but it is just the angle they are bent at and the lighting.

[zeropoint0.5]

Kevin,

the board looks mint.....don't try first fix it you're self (or you're friend), and make a mess of it....

My advice....ship it to Eric for a full repair and recapping service if you wanna enjoy it for the next 15 years.....

Every other oldskool secondhand amp you buy will need service before you can enjoy it......

with some amps it's a minor fix, others sometimes need more work before they are back fine.....

Sometimes you win, sometimes you don't....

Don't think you can buy another oldskool amp off ebay or so that is ready to "connect and play"......

[CK1991]

Kevin,

the board looks mint.....don't try first fix it you're self (or you're friend), and make a mess of it....

My advice....ship it to Eric for a full repair and recapping service if you wanna enjoy it for the next 15 years.....

Every other oldskool secondhand amp you buy will need service before you can enjoy it......

with some amps it's a minor fix, others sometimes need more work before they are back fine.....

Sometimes you win, sometimes you don't....

Don't think you can buy another oldskool amp off ebay or so that is ready to "connect and play"......

I saw a PG 200 (that was claimed to work, but the guy wouldnt accept returns) sell on ebay 2 days ago for 33 bucks + shipping, but IMO that seems a bit fishy (claim something works, then not want it returned).
I had been wondering if one of the guys here would be willing to fix it. IMO, its in pretty nice shape for an old amp, and I'd hate to let it go since it matches the eq thats going on the same side of my trunk. It has some oxidation in the paint and light rust spots on the mounting flanges (guess thats what they're called)- seems to be common on PG amps of that era, and a couple light scratches in the paint on the cover, but overall it looks nice. I bought it from the original owner, who pulled it and the matching eq215ix and PLD1 from his car a couple years ago and had them in storage.

I also need to find a fuse for the eq. I can't find a fuse that size in 2 amp rating and don't want to put a 3 amp (smallest I could find) in it.

[Kirghiz]

Most of the old school Phoenix Gold, PPI, and other brands from that era had caps installed that go bad after a period of time and catch fire. Any amp you buy off ebay you have to assume needs new caps. Its a standard thing. My advice would be to pm Eric, work out a deal, and let him fix your issue, and recap it while he's in there.

Eric's the man when it comes to working on these.

[CK1991]

Most of the old school Phoenix Gold, PPI, and other brands from that era had caps installed that go bad after a period of time and catch fire. Any amp you buy off ebay you have to assume needs new caps. Its a standard thing. My advice would be to pm Eric, work out a deal, and let him fix your issue, and recap it while he's in there.

Eric's the man when it comes to working on these.

I have PMed eric about the zx200. I also have a PPI sedona 200ix and an orion cobalt cs150.2 that probably need work (haven't tested them yet, but I'm guessing they have issues- especially the orion because it had 2x25 amp fuses in it instead of 2x20 amp fuses like it should have had.)
I'd love to get 2 more PG amps instead and just go all PG in the trunk. I'd love to get some M series amps for the other side wall of the trunk...those gold fins look sweet!

[trickyricky]

I wouldn't be surprised if those capacitors ate a trace and that's what causing the amplifier to not turn on. I wouldn't even try powering it up with the original caps, while it may work, your putting that amplifier at high risk. Those caps are leaking, don't believe me....yank them out.

[zeropoint0.5]

I wouldn't be surprised if those capacitors ate a trace and that's what causing the amplifier to not turn on. I wouldn't even try powering it up with the original caps, while it may work, your putting that amplifier at high risk. Those caps are leaking, don't believe me....yank them out.

X2

[zeropoint0.5]

Most of the old school Phoenix Gold, PPI, and other brands from that era had caps installed that go bad after a period of time and catch fire. Any amp you buy off ebay you have to assume needs new caps. Its a standard thing. My advice would be to pm Eric, work out a deal, and let him fix your issue, and recap it while he's in there.

Eric's the man when it comes to working on these.

I have PMed eric about the zx200. I also have a PPI sedona 200ix and an orion cobalt cs150.2 that probably need work (haven't tested them yet, but I'm guessing they have issues- especially the orion because it had 2x25 amp fuses in it instead of 2x20 amp fuses like it should have had.)
I'd love to get 2 more PG amps instead and just go all PG in the trunk. I'd love to get some M series amps for the other side wall of the trunk...those gold fins look sweet!

indeed Eric D. is the man you need for the fix/repairs.... Ask him the same time, maybe he still has some amps left for sale..... good luck.......