Krell 402e blinking red

Sonus · Jul 24, 2017

I have my Krell 402e for over 2 years now, few days ago it shut itself off and the red light blinks two times.

The manual say 'Excessive DC at Output Contact your Dealer'.

Does anybody know who can fix a Krell amp in SF bay area?

C.A.P · Jul 25, 2017

You don't take a Ferrari to a corner shop to get worked on .. Having said that I feel you pain.. I own several Krell pieces and one that needs to go in now... I can tell you this , Box well and over box and ship fed EX .. if you can....

My buddy had a 402 do the exact same thing .. It went to Ct for a attitude adjustment

Sonus · Jul 25, 2017

C.A.P said:
You don't take a Ferrari to a corner shop to get worked on .. Having said that I feel you pain.. I own several Krell pieces and one that needs to go in now... I can tell you this , Box well and over box and ship fed EX .. if you can....

My buddy had a 402 do the exact same thing .. It went to Ct for a attitude adjustment

Ship to where?

who is CT?

do you have somebody to recommend? you are welcome to send me a PM.

audio.bill · Jul 25, 2017

Sonus said:
Ship to where? who is CT?

do you have somebody to recommend? you are welcome to send me a PM.

Krell is located in Connecticut (CT), I'd suggest contacting them at the address specified on their Contact page for service.

Sonus · Jul 25, 2017

audio.bill said:
Krell is located in Connecticut (CT), I'd suggest contacting them at the address specified on their Contact page for service.

Yep, that was the first thing i did.
i emailed - no response.
i called - waiting for someone to call me back (it has been 4 days now.)

i emailed again this morning, i will call again tomorrow, but based on this i am a little nervous giving them the unit i might not see it again.

LL21 · Jul 25, 2017

Sonus said:
I have my Krell 402e for over 2 years now, few days ago it shut itself off and the red light blinks two times.

The manual say 'Excessive DC at Output Contact your Dealer'.

Does anybody know who can fix a Krell amp in SF bay area?

A few non-techie thoughts:

1. My understanding is that if your amp is leaking DC at the output, it can burn your speakers voicecoil...in fact, it can melt your voice coil so be careful.

2. I believe if one of your transistors is gone, that can sometimes create problems like this.

If you have a very good techie, this does not seem like something that needs to go back to Krell to fix...or i should say, at least not yet. A good techie ought to be able to pop the hood, take a look and spot the problem if it is something like a failed transistor and replace it.

Sonus · Jul 25, 2017

LL21 said:
A few non-techie thoughts:

1. My understanding is that if your amp is leaking DC at the output, it can burn your speakers voicecoil...in fact, it can melt your voice coil so be careful.

2. I believe if one of your transistors is gone, that can sometimes create problems like this.

If you have a very good techie, this does not seem like something that needs to go back to Krell to fix...or i should say, at least not yet. A good techie ought to be able to pop the hood, take a look and spot the problem if it is something like a failed transistor and replace it.

Thanks, I finally got an email back from Krell, they say to send it to George Meyer in L.A, they are the only service center in the west cost.
I have no tech skills so i think i better off send it over there. i just hope the fix is not too expensive.

LL21 · Jul 25, 2017

Sonus said:
Thanks, I finally got an email back from Krell, they say to send it to George Meyer in L.A, they are the only service center in the west cost.
I have no tech skills so i think i better off send it over there. i just hope the fix is not too expensive.

Good to know...I would suggest you ring George ahead of time, tell him your 'symptoms' and then attach a note with it when you send it. I have found that good techies are often so swamped, it is often helpful (for you and them) to ensure they know the problem ahead of time when they pop the top. Best wishes and do let us know how it goes.

Sonus · Jul 25, 2017

LL21 said:
Good to know...I would suggest you ring George ahead of time, tell him your 'symptoms' and then attach a note with it when you send it. I have found that good techies are often so swamped, it is often helpful (for you and them) to ensure they know the problem ahead of time when they pop the top. Best wishes and do let us know how it goes.

Thanks!
The name of the expert is actually Morris and he is super busy, i am waiting for a callback from him before sending the unit over.

LL21 · Jul 25, 2017

Sonus said:
Thanks!
The name of the expert is actually Morris and he is super busy, i am waiting for a callback from him before sending the unit over.

Great...you're well on your way to music!

Simon Moon · Jul 25, 2017

Sonus said:
Thanks, I finally got an email back from Krell, they say to send it to George Meyer in L.A, they are the only service center in the west cost.
I have no tech skills so i think i better off send it over there. i just hope the fix is not too expensive.

I live pretty close to George Meyer.

I have had several things repared at George Meyer over the years. They do a good job.

Sonus · Jul 27, 2017

quick update:

got an email from Krell today:

Code:

Dear XXX,
 
We apologize for not being able to respond to your communications until today. For the most part, large Krell amplifiers such as these need to be returned to our facility in Connecticut for repair.
 
We have only one field service center, which happens to be in Los Angeles. Because of the vintage of this unit, I am not sure if they can help you. If their location works for geographically, you might try contacting them and seeing if they can assist. Their contact info is as follows:
 
George Meyer Audio & Video Services, 4844 W. Jefferson Blvd., Los Angeles, CA90016, Ph: 310-820-1113
Regards,

Anyhow, i talked to my dealer and decided to send the amp back to him and get the dan d'agostino momentum instead.
I didn't plan for this but what the #$#$ it is what it is ....

LL21 · Jul 27, 2017

Sonus said:

quick update:

got an email from Krell today:

Code:

Dear XXX,
 
We apologize for not being able to respond to your communications until today. For the most part, large Krell amplifiers such as these need to be returned to our facility in Connecticut for repair.
 
We have only one field service center, which happens to be in Los Angeles. Because of the vintage of this unit, I am not sure if they can help you. If their location works for geographically, you might try contacting them and seeing if they can assist. Their contact info is as follows:
 
George Meyer Audio & Video Services, 4844 W. Jefferson Blvd., Los Angeles, CA90016, Ph: 310-820-1113
Regards,

Anyhow, i talked to my dealer and decided to send the amp back to him and get the dan d'agostino momentum instead.
I didn't plan for this but what the #$#$ it is what it is ....

Well...you got an upgrade! No bad thing!

Aussienut · Sep 30, 2017

Hi Sonus,
Great to hear you got a solution. For the benefit of other Krell Evo owners, I had the same problem with one of my 400e mono blocks two years ago. As I live in Australia, sending the unit to the USA is a time consuming and an expensive exercise. In the end, I used a very experienced local audio repairer working with help from Patrick at Krell to resolve. We tried various tests over several weeks before the local technician decided to replace all the components in the excess output DC current protection circuitry. As the output DC current was very low, he suspected it must be a problem with the protection circuit and not a problem with the output driver stage. Anyway, about $100 in parts later, the amp powered up and has worked faultlessly since.

BTW, I also have Alexandria's but series 1. I use a Krell 202 pre with CAST to connect the 400e's.

gordonf360 · Apr 29, 2020

Aussienut said:
Hi Sonus,
Great to hear you got a solution. For the benefit of other Krell Evo owners, I had the same problem with one of my 400e mono blocks two years ago. As I live in Australia, sending the unit to the USA is a time consuming and an expensive exercise. In the end, I used a very experienced local audio repairer working with help from Patrick at Krell to resolve. We tried various tests over several weeks before the local technician decided to replace all the components in the excess output DC current protection circuitry. As the output DC current was very low, he suspected it must be a problem with the protection circuit and not a problem with the output driver stage. Anyway, about $100 in parts later, the amp powered up and has worked faultlessly since.

BTW, I also have Alexandria's but series 1. I use a Krell 202 pre with CAST to connect the 400e's.

Are you also using a Cast front end or not? Waiting on my 402e to go along with my 202 preamp and trying to decide if I should just go wireworld xlr or cast even though my front end is a non Krell Lumin streamer? Thoughts?

HughP3 · Apr 29, 2020

Interesting, It may be the times we are now in. Less than 2 years ago I had to have my old 350mcx monos recapped plus another issue. Krell did a great job, very good communication. Sorry you did not get the same.

Aussienut · Apr 29, 2020

gordonf360 said:
Are you also using a Cast front end or not? Waiting on my 402e to go along with my 202 preamp and trying to decide if I should just go wireworld xlr or cast even though my front end is a non Krell Lumin streamer? Thoughts?

Hi, I use to have a Cipher SACD front end and so had Nordost CAST all the way. However, I sold the Cipher years ago and changed to an EMM Labs DAC and MacMini server. For me this produced much better results than the Cipher. The pre 202 with Evo amps are running CAST at the moment. It is still one voltage gain circuit from pre input to power Amp output. As my monoblocis and between the speakers and the 202 is on the side wall, the cables are 10m in length. On longer runs I think CAST has more of an advantage. CAST is also cheaper than going into some of the hiend cable brands For XLRs. In the end its about what you prefer but I would go for CAST unless you find a XLR cable you like better.

I run balanced between the EMM Labs DAC and the 202. I had Siltech for several years but recently change to FoilFlex after auditioning their XLR cables.

AusieAudi man · Aug 20, 2022

Hi Aussienut
I just had the same 402e problem last night. Red light blinking twice and rear breaker dropped out.
I am in Sydney Aust and wonder if you could tell me where you had your 402 repaired.
I sent my 707 back to the us about 4 years ago for updating and the freight alone was $5k..
Hoping you can help.

Alrainbow · Aug 20, 2022

For one it’s dc voltage not current it protects the speakers from. Now if voltage leaks it can create a dc current it can kill the woofers but should not go above them due to Cross over caps
if it’s the protection circuit prematurely shutting things down I’m sure krell has a bypas for this to test outputs with no loads connected
it’s a shame or happened so soon
as for caps any big class A amp kills the caps by heat and constant load music or not
to sound it’s best a guide is ten years if on mostly you can go 15 years if not always on
but caps in all devices have a life and used or not change
trouble is most don’t care or know
how many older Krell’s or any amps class A get bought and sold due to bad sound
just saying things get aged used or not
and there is no method to truly test caps if they still play or not swollen

Aussienut · Aug 20, 2022

AusieAudi man said:
Hi Aussienut
I just had the same 402e problem last night. Red light blinking twice and rear breaker dropped out.
I am in Sydney Aust and wonder if you could tell me where you had your 402 repaired.
I sent my 707 back to the us about 4 years ago for updating and the freight alone was $5k..
Hoping you can help.

Hi AusieAudi man,

I used Watson Electronics in Brisbane. Link attached. http://www.watsonelectronics.com.au/

However, they no longer work on pro-audio and domestic audio. One option may be to call and ask if Micheal still works there. He fixed my amp. Otherwise Audio Marketing in Sydney (Krell distributor) may know someone in Sydney.

Krell 402e blinking red

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