Thank the Lord!

[Jim Alfredson]

So recently I modified a dresser/hutch to be our TV hutch/stereo system stand. It's cool because we can hide all the stereo components behind "drawers" and the TV behind doors so our little one can't get at them when she gets old enough.

I told my wife not to run the stereo system when the "drawers" are closed because the components won't get enough air and may over-heat.

Well this morning she says to me, "Honey, the black amp thing won't turn on so I can't listen to music. Did you unplug it?"

My system is a Arcam CD72 player going into an Adcom GFP-750 preamp then into an Adcom GFA-5400 amp powering B&W CDM-1se speakers. The "black amp thing" she was referring to was the preamp. Sure enough, it wouldn't turn on.

Oh crap, I thought. And I remembered waking up one morning with Zora and doing our morning routine... going out into the living room, feeding, then watching some TV together. And the other morning I heard a faint buzzing sound and realized the sound system was on and the "drawers" were closed. I turned the amp and CD player off. The amp was really really hot. I looked at the preamp and it was already off. Now I know why.

So I was freaking out today. $1250 preamp and I don't have the money to buy another or get it fixed. I figured some of the components must've burned up. I tried not being mad at my wife as we are both absent-minded these days, caring for the little one. But that didn't work and we did get into a tiff about it. I was pretty upset.

So I email Adcom and explain the situation. They just emailed me back (at 2:00am) and said, "Please take the top cover off and examine the fuses. Let me know what you find."

WHAT?!?! There are fuses inside the thing!? Wouldn't they be more pratical outside the preamp? So I take the top off (it has stupid "allen wrench" type screws that are very tiny and hard to get out) and sure enough, there are three fuses in there, one of which is blown.

THANK GOD! But why in the hell did they put them on the INSIDE?! They would've saved me so much grief and making my wife angry at me!!!

Ha!

[Spontooneous]

Let us now praise the lowly fuse.

I have a very nice Rotel turntable that was abandoned at a thrift shop because it wouldn't go. But all it needed was a fuse. After the 99-cent repair, I'm now enjoying my $10 Rotel very much.