Here are a few words of advice after completing work on a Kenwood 700m as an amateur DIYer. I have worked on a few amps and receivers over the past couple of years as a hobby/enthusiast. I thought I would publish a list of things I have learned in this time to help new DIYers getting into this addicting but satisfying hobby. Here goes.
Add more words of wisdom as you see fit. Happy repairing.
- Read, read, read before you do anything. There are multiple posts from very knowledgeable people across multiple boards. Absorb and move forward accordingly. If it doesn't make sense, ask questions. Most people are more than willing to answer your questions.
- Take pictures of everything from different angles before you start replacing parts. Silk screen errors occur, service manuals don't have all of the changes that have occurred during production, and it helps when putting wires back where they belong.
- Put screws back into their place immediately after you remove them. For example, when you remove the cover install the screws back into the frame so you know exactly where they go. If you are doing a tear down, there are hundreds of screws of all different sizes. Unless you have a photographic memory or use a thousand plastic bags to keep track of them you will likely end up with a handful of screws that you have no idea where they go.
- Actually look at the parts/parts numbers on the boards before you order replacements. Don't solely rely upon the service manuals. It is not uncommon for changes to have occurred that aren't in the service manual parts list. Yeah, it sucks sometimes reaching the board that is buried beneath 4 other boards but it sucks more realizing you ordered the wrong capacitor and have to place and wait for another order.
- Check, double check, and triple check component orientation before soldering. Look back at your pictures for reference.
- Use a dim bulb tester to validate that you don't have a major issue that will cause more damage if you plug that brand new garage sale find into the wall. By the way, once you pass the dim bulb test, remove the tester from your circuit when measuring/adjusting the piece you are working on. Found out the hard way on this one. Actually found out the hard way on all of these bullet points.
- Make sure your meter handles the ranges you are trying to measure. I purchased a new Fluke multimeter to replace/supplement a pocket Radio Shack model that I have had for 20 years. I never thought to thoroughly read the specs. It's a Fluke! After multiple sessions of confusion and unnecessary replacement of a few parts, I realized the new Fluke doesn't measure above 60k ohms or lower than 3volts. Ugh.
- Stock up on alcohol (for cleaning...and a beer afterwards), cotton balls, and q-tips. If the equipment you are working on is anything like the stuff I have dealt with, you will go through a lot of them.
- Take your time. Unless you are doing this for a business and are on the clock, be patient and don't rush. It is hard to slow down especially when you want to put that baby back into service but calm your motor and take it slow. This is especially hard when you have to make another parts order because you missed a capacitor (or two) that is actually bipolar. Dang it.
Add more words of wisdom as you see fit. Happy repairing.