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Spectra trouble

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Will001

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I've got an Astro Spectra (model number is D04RKF9PW5AN), and it worked fine up until an hour ago. In the middle of a operator's transmission, the radio stopped receiving the repeater. I came back to ask if my radio was still coming into the repeater, and one of the operators called me on the phone and said I was sounding fine. Bottom line: TX is fine, RX is screwed up, but only on repeaters. On simplex I can receive fine. Anyone know how to fix this?


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N4KVE

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The Spectra line of radios is well know to have a caps failure. So the first question is we're your caps replaced? If not, they will need to be. Check out repeaterbuilder.com. Pages of data on how to do this. Don't wait, as the ooze from the caps eats the traces on the board. Good luck.
 

Will001

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The Spectra line of radios is well know to have a caps failure. So the first question is we're your caps replaced? If not, they will need to be. Check out repeaterbuilder.com. Pages of data on how to do this. Don't wait, as the ooze from the caps eats the traces on the board. Good luck.



What exactly are caps? Sorry but I'm a newbie to these technical terms [emoji16]


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n5ims

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"Caps" are short for capacitors. The Spectra (including the Astro Spectra) used caos that start leaking over time (both under heavy use or "new in the box") and several are in the audio section where you won't hear anything but will still transmit just fine. The thing to remember if you own a Spectra and you're not 100% certain that the old caps have already been replaced is you need to replace all of those caps NOW even if your radio is not showing any signs of trouble. When they leak (and they probably already have started to leak!), they start eating away at the circuit board traces. Once this damage is done your radio is probably toast or at best just became a parts radio (where you still should replace those bad caps!).

A good article on this issue is at this link --> Recapping the Spectra <--, although it's for the original Spectra it shows the problem, how to identify the caps (they will be in different locations on the Astro models), and how one can replace them if they have sufficient soldering skills. Be aware that the caps are surface mount parts which complicates the repair a fair bit.

If you search around, you probably can find folks that specialize on doing the replacement at fairly reasonable rates. Although I've recapped my old Spectras myself, my eyes are no longer good enough to help others do the task. Just be sure to check every board in the radio and control head since those nasty caps are on nearly every one.
 

Will001

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Thanks for all the help guys, but I fixed the problem...and no, it wasn't the caps. I actually didn't find a problem with anything in the radio, but after taking apart and putting the radio back together again, it works fine...I guess the inside of the radio just needed some fresh air LOL


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