[TenTec] Omni V display cure
Rick Blank
rblank@texas.net
Thu, 25 Feb 1999 03:23:11 -0000
I must confess. I am one of the "golden ear" audio crowd, I guess
that's why I like my OMNI-V so much! Several of us audiophiles
recently had a discussion on contact enhancers and what they can
and can not do for connections. One of the products we discussed
is a product called "Tweek' which was Stabilant 22A repackaged by
Sumiko, Corp. and sold in small bottles to the audio community.
I do not recommend "Stabilant-22A" anymore...While it did prove
to give an increse in the quality of sound from
different connectors, it's long term use led to some problems.
I have a friend that used the stuff religiously on a preamp with gold
plated input and output jacks. He got a job a couple of years ago in
another state and had to store his hi-fi gear for a wile. Returning
back home, he pulled his gear out of storage (yes, it was stored
properly, in the boxes, in a closet of his brother's air-conditioned
house) and noticed something strange with all the RCA jacks....it
looked as if small portions of the underlying metal had literally
blasted off from the surface taking the gold plating with it and leaving
an extremely pitted surface. I saw this myself, and, I was familiar
with the preamp and the construction of it as he had built the unit
himself (it's a Hafler preamp once available in kit form) and I had
checked it over with him back in 1986 when he bought and built the unit.
It took an entire afternoon with DeoxIt 100% and 5% strengths, a
bunch of pipe cleaners, and a treatment with Caig's ProGold to get
the connectors cleaned up...they still look like they have been
sandblasted with rough sand.....
I have since had conversations with other audiophiles and we have
shared the same experiences, this substance does nothing to
prevent base metal migration through scratced or porous plated
surfaces and over a period of time causes the plating to literally be
blown of the surface of the connector...it looks like little craters
under a microscope that go down into the base metal and "erupt"
upwards....
If you want a good connector cleaner/enhancer, the Caig products
are the way to go, I have no affiliation with any of these chemical
companies, I have just used their products extensively in high end
audio and in the restoration of boatanchors of all descriptions..a
drop of DeoxIt 100% on connector pins for things like the displays
will sometimes amaze me at how quickly and easily a repair has just
been made. A thin film of DeoxIt is all that is needed, after cleaning
the connector using the stuff, to help retard future connector
problems.
No one that I know of that has been using DeoxIt or ProGold has
mentioned anything about connector pitting or other problems, in
fact, quite the opposite, connections seem to stay cleaner longer
and give less trouble over the long run. This is something that a
respected audiophile journalist and myself have conferred over
comparing stories about chemicals and their effects on high grade
audio connectors, and we both agreee, Caig products' at the very
least, clean marvelously, at the very best, seem to enhance
condctivity at the connector junctions a bit...so, my advice is to try
the Caig chemicals, at least they won't screw up your Omni-V!
Good Luck and 73
Rick, KI5SL,
P.S., there is another chemical that is marketed as a replacement
for the "Tweek", it is Torumat TC-2 conditioner available from Audio
Advisor for $16.95 for a .33oz bottle, other hifi dealers may also
carry this...I am not sure, I think I remember reading that this is ithe
Stabilant 22A repackaged, NAPA auto stores also sell the Stabilant
22A as an electrical system contanct enhancer, but, I don't
remember the NAPA part number, etc.
I have no financial or other agreements with any of the products
mentioned in this note.
To: alex.ai2q@worldnet.att.net
Copies to: cburk001@juno.com, tentec@contesting.com
Date sent: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 14:26:04 -0600
Subject: Re: [TenTec] Omni V display cure
From: charles w burkhardt <cburk001@juno.com>
>
> Thanks, Alex; Very good to hear from you. Many replies on this one, yours
> was the most detailed. Another ham recommended WD 40-that makes me a bit
> nervous. Something called "Caig deoxidizer' was also recommended. I can
> certainly wait, since the problem is not serious. Can you post additional
> information when you obain it. Thanks, again. Charlie
> On Tue, 23 Feb 1999 10:30:36 -0500 "Alex Mendelsohn"
> <alex.ai2q@worldnet.att.net> writes:
> >I had that problem with my Omni-V as well. I discussed it with Ten Tec
> >service but the guy I spoke with didn't have any idea about what to
> >do. I
> >understood his position, because years ago I was a Heathkit service
> >technician, and there are a lot of problems that can only be solved
> >when you
> >have the equipment in front of you (there's really no such thing as DX
> >troubleshooting).
> >In any case, about ten years ago I discovered something called
> >Stabilant
> >22A. It's a clear, colorless fluid that comes in 0.5 ml glass
> >"ampules." It
> >uses isopropyl alcohol as a carrier. It's billed as a "non-conductive
> >block
> >polymer." However, when applied to contacts, it becomes conductive!
> >It only conducts on what should be conductive surfaces. Charlie, it's
> >real
> >magic. I've used it to ensure that ICs are truly high-rel in some
> >applications (shock and vibration). I've used it on electromechanical
> >assemblies my 45 year old American Flyer toy trains. I used it on the
> >connectors on the display board on my Omni-V and the problem of
> >display
> >intensity changes has NEVER recurred.
> >I removed the Omni-V's top cover, carefully pryed the display board
> >header
> >connector assemblies apart, dabbed all the pins with Stabilant 22A,
> >and
> >reinserted the headers. The problem disappeared!
Stuff Deleted
> >> >-----Original Message-----
> >From: owner-tentec@contesting.com
> >[mailto:owner-tentec@contesting.com]On
> >Behalf Of charles w burkhardt
> >Sent: Monday, February 22, 1999 9:54 PM
> >To: tentec@contesting.com
> >Subject: [TenTec] Omni V
> >Gentlemen: Used my 'new' Omni V in the recent Arrl cw test. WOW!
> >It
> >IS possible to work strong stations a kc apart! One troubling note:
> >after the rig had been on for several hours the vertical elements in
> >the
> >display became dimmer. Not enough to lose clarity but enough to
> >see.
> >No degradation in performance but do I have an immanent problem?
> >Thanks.
> >Charlie K0GPF
Rick Blank, KI5SL
AMSAT NA #26195
2331 Vance Jackson Road
San Antonio, Texas 78213
rblank@texas.net
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