Guys, here is the fix for the internal ONE.2 soft-start which you can try yourselves with a low-current power supply. We're going to send out caps but if you're anxious to get going, just go buy a 470 uF electrolytic cap and get on it! We're using Digikey P5168-ND but Zman used Radio Shack and it worked fine.
Here is how to fix the ONE.2 internal soft-start.
Fix part: 470 uF electrolytic capacitor (any brand). Stripe on side is negative leg.
FIX (1) - on the bottom of soft-start board, requires unscrewing power button
-- Connect across R502
-- Negative leg to the outside of the board
-- Note, don't short the cap on anything in side the unit - insulate with tape or whatever.
The fix extends the delay to around 1.5 seconds. Batteries can deliver 300A into the bulk cap. With this soft-start, it's down to 300mA after 1 second. That's 1,000 times less current. Job done, thank you Aaron.
Please note that the polarity of the cap matters. Be sure to put the negative stripe to the outside of the board as shown.Here's Fix 1 which is easier to see but requires removing the soft-start board since R502 is on the underside.
Here's a close-up:
The fix requires simply melting the solder on the ends (called "tinning") and melting the tinned ends to the already tinned sides of R502. This avoids your having to hold the board, solder, hot soldering iron, and cap all together at once. Instead, you just put the board on the table, position the cap leads properly, and use the slight pressure of the hot iron to melt the already partially solder ends of the capacitors to the edges of R502. Once the solder melts the two together, that's it. Just make sure the stripe (short lead) is on the outside towards the edge of the board. The plastic tubing you see in the photos - that's totally optional, a bit of clear tape over the leads when your finished would be fine just to prevent the leads from touching any other conductive part in the unit.
Thanks to
Scott Turner, here's the video showing how simple this is. Aside from the mechanics of opening the unit, some of which is covered in the user manual (
http://www.wihifi.com/virtuemanual/Virtue%20ONE.2%20User%20Manual.pdf), the soldering job is dead simple. If you've never soldered before, this could be a good introduction. Will require a trip to Radio Shack where you can find a $10 soldering iron which will come with more solder than you'll need, and a 470uF electrolytic capacitor.
Opening Up The Virtue ONE.2 Amplifier
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BF551Cw5mywVirtue ONE.2 Soft Start Fix (Part 1)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAnBrBK0Yr0Virtue ONE.2 Soft Start Fix (Part 2)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFDYzFMRo04Virtue ONE.2 Soft Start Fix (Part 3)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6clHH2ba5MSeveral customers have already done this fix and are back to enjoying wonderful music. It is vastly easier and cheaper for both of us, than taking the amp to the post office, sending it to us, waiting, etc. I will be sending everyone capacitors but there is need to wait for my care package. If this repair is beyond your comfort zone, please email me and we will make other arrangements. Specifically, I'm looking for a few good men in foreign countries, who will volunteer to do repairs locally. That way we can avoid the international shipping and customs fiasco.
What about the
external soft-start? Here's the thing. You can do the same fix BUT, the power button on the amp cannot be used. Leave the amp ON at all times and put tape over the power button. Unplug the high-current supply from the external soft-start.
If you leave the amp off, plug in the high current supply to the soft-start, and then turn on the amp, it will send a bunch of current into the switch. That will burn up the soft-start relay pretty quickly.
We are now working on a redesign of the external soft-start. Specifically, we'll be grafting a current monitor to it and send new ones out. The original design just doesn't work safely when it's outside the unit. Moving it inside is too hard, we're not recommending it.
