Issue with tuning meter reddish tinge

ChicagoTom

AK Subscriber
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Has anyone else had to deal with this before?

My 2015's tuning meter has a reddish cast over part of the background. I'm not sure if it is as simple as new vellum. I'm hoping I won't need to find a new meter to fix such a cosmetic issue.

Marantz 2015 c.jpg
 
Cant tell from the photo, but I’ll bet that velum has turned brown nearest the bulb after years of service. I would at least open it up and get to the velum to take a look. Might be a good time to change over to LED fuse bulbs and replace the velum diffusers on the meter and dial.
 
All of the 2015's that I have worked on did not have a diffuser paper (vellum) on the back of the meter . Just change the light and see if there is a difference . I personally like to use warm white LED's when replacing the lights (lamps) . Some times the old incandescent fuse lamp will get dark on one end. There might be a burn mark or smoke residue on the back of the meter . Just some ideas .
 
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All of the 2015's that I have worked on do not have a diffuser paper on the back of the meter . Just change the light and see if there is a difference . I personally like to use warm white LED's when replacing the lights (lamps) . Some times the old incandescent fuse lamp will get dark on one end. There might be a burn mark or smoke residue on the back of the meter . Just some ideas .

By the way, if there is no diffuser paper behind the meter, where does the blue color come from? (I might be confused, are vellum and diffuser paper two different things??).
 
I believe the plastic back of the meter housing is blue, lending that color. I have not opened a 2015, so they may not have velum behind the meters. But the larger 22xx series does have velum paper diffuser behind the meters. I have replaced several of them and the meter color returned to its original color without the yellow or brown tint.
 
I believe the plastic back of the meter housing is blue, lending that color. I have not opened a 2015, so they may not have velum behind the meters. But the larger 22xx series does have velum paper diffuser behind the meters. I have replaced several of them and the meter color returned to its original color without the yellow or brown tint.

My worst-case scenario is that I need a new meter, which would be hard to find. And if the plastic at the back of the meter is itself burned, I kinda doubt that can be repaired.
 
There is a pair on the auction site now if it comes down to it. Loosen the two screws on the lamp bracket, pull out of housing, and you should get a good view of the back of the meters.
 
There is a pair on the auction site now if it comes down to it. Loosen the two screws on the lamp bracket, pull out of housing, and you should get a good view of the back of the meters.

Thanks Osisba! Did you mean there are 2 meters on the auction site now, because I just looked and did not see any meters, just bulbs - did I miss them?

And thank you for the instructions on accessing my meter, I was reluctant to dick around there but your instructions are very helpful.
 
Oh wait .... I mistook a 2245 for a 2015. Cross check the meter part number from s/m to see if it is the same one.

Sorry
 
Your meter is part # 1M1104208
The 2245 is 1M1104202, close but no cigar.
That also means that the brief instructions I gave don't apply either :-(
 
Glad you caught me, I was just going to open the case right now. I may give it a look anyways.

FYI, If this meter can be made to look nice again, I'll send it to Pat Fonte for recapping. If not, I plan on buying a nicer-looking 2015 to send instead.
 
Looks like I'd have to remove the tuning dial to get access to the meter, which is beyond my pay grade.

P1060225.JPG
 
Found this from an old thread if it helps:

"The way I did the meter lamp was to remove the black metal protector over the dial cord and then remove the two screws holding the lamp holder to the white lamp housing. You should be able to move the lamp holder back enough to get to the lamp behind the meter so that you can remove it and snap a new one in it's place.
It's not the easiest to get to, I did the others through the front with the dial off."
 
The meter in the photo does appear to have a browned velum. The brownish paper surrounding the blue back of the meter is the velum. It covers most of the back, which is the same color blue as the part you can see. I’ll bet the meter is fine and you just need a new velum.
 
The meter in the photo does appear to have a browned velum. The brownish paper surrounding the blue back of the meter is the velum. It covers most of the back, which is the same color blue as the part you can see. I’ll bet the meter is fine and you just need a new velum.

That helps a lot. I know you can assess with 100% confidence, but this gives me enough hope that the meter can be repaired with new vellum, which means I'll send my current unit off to Pat. It really doesn't look that bad:

Marantz 2015 d.jpg Marantz 2015 b.jpg
 
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