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Help: My newly upgraded AA Capitole gives no sound

I recently got back my capitole CD player after a Signature Edition upgrade in AA factory France. It has a serious problem: NO SOUND. Everything else seems to be working perfectly: disc reading, display, control buttons, remote etc.

On three or four occasions I managed to get the sound whilst continuously interchanging the channels on the remote (SPDIF/COAX/T&T etc.) or through the buttons on the player itself but whenever the player is stopped (e.g to change disc or to shut down), the player refuses to produce any sound on resumption of play even though the disc is spinning and the display clearly indicating that it is playing (i.e. pressing play button).

When it does decide to play, it plays flawlessly with wonderful sound until the end of the disc. When it is playing (with sound coming out of the speakers) and REPEAT MODE pressed, it plays on and on for days until stopped. But as soon as stopped, the problem comes back.

Same problem when an external transport is used via digital input.

Checked the internal cables, they are all properly seated. The Circuit Board is in good condition and no visible signs of any damage.

Two-way communication with AA France is almost non-existent and terribly frustrating. Am stuck with a new upgraded player costing over $10,000.

Has anybody come across such problems with their Capitole or Prestige? Can you help in identifying possible causes? Could it be a software/chip problem incompatibility with the new transport (installed FOC by AA factory within the upgrade. The Chip version is 5.6.
Any help would be much appreciated.
Many thanks.

lall
audiofun
799 posts
 
This is interesting and I am watching Audio Aeros response carefully. I have been very weary of buying items from overseas due to issues such as this. Having said that...I have owned the Kora 100SB Triodes and when one of the units ran amok, Kora was fantastic in their responses to me and getting the product taken care of. I also have a Graaf Modena and I have to say that Graaf has been very responsive when asked about the stereo to mono conversion kit.

What i am saying is that manufacturers should really be careful how they present themselves on these forums because we as the consumers are paying attention to every thing they write and how they respond the us the customers after we have dropped major coin for their product(s).

Now this does not absolve the buyer either, I guess it comes down to who has the paper trail to back up his/her story.
lall OP
122 posts
 
Audiofun
Good and objective post. I invite all those who would like some convincing before accepting my story, to send me a private mail through Audiogon. I would be more than happy to send scan copies of the bunch of documentary evidence I am holding.
For sake of ethics, however, I think it would be advisable to give Audio Aero a few days to respond and if they do rectify their post, then we need not go that far to add fuel to fire.
chayro
2,984 posts
 
I take no sides in the above dispute. However, I think that if one wishes to purchase the more "exotic" gear from the smaller overseas manufacturers, it is better to purchase new through a well-established US dealer who will assist with service issues. I have passed up many a great deal on some wonderful stuff, as I didn't know how I could obtain service if something went wrong.

Personally, when I do purchase used, I stick to stuff with a strong US-based service network.
lall OP
122 posts
 
Just a quick word to say that I have sent a private e-mail to Mr Jerome Andre of Audio Aero informing him that I have replied to his post on Audiogon.
amperidian
67 posts
 
I hope he replies.

... i'm sure there's a few people looking forward to it.
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