So at my wife's request, I hooked up a Roku to my main system. Roku is a device for internet streaming movies and tv. The connection between the Roku and my preamp, a Meridian G68, was a 12 foot optical cable.
The first night, I hook up the Roku and it works perfectly.
The next night, I move some cables around, then I hook up the Roku again, exactly the same way as the previous evening. I get picture but no sound. Weird. I pondering what I might have done wrong when out of the speakers... POP. POP! POP!!!
Uh oh.
I dive for the amps, switch them off. The POPs stop immediately. But...
Now there's a TERRIFYING HIGH PITCHED PULSATING NOISE coming from somewhere in the room. I finally realize it's coming from the sub, a JL Audio Fathom 113. I dart across the room, switch it off.
I stand frozen, savoring the final moments of the fantasy that maybe things aren't that bad.
Here are some questions in no particular order...
1. I suspect the amp in the sub is fried. Does that sound right?
2. Where did those POPs come from? Could a damaged optical cable do it? Or maybe the optical cable wasn't fully seated?
3. Do I really have to ship this 150 pound sub to Florida? Or do you think there's any chance of finding someone local to fix it? (I'm in L.A.) The sub is out of warranty, btw.
4. I tried to take the panel off the rear of the amp (I know, lethal voltages inside) with the thought that maybe I would just bring the amp portion of the sub to someone local to fix. I removed about 12 screws from the rear panel and still it doesn't budge. Why can't I open this thing?
If you have any suggestions, I'm all ears. If not, thanks for reading.
I have been in contact with JL and they have been very helpful. They explained their repair program, where for $300 plus shipping costs, they will repair any damaged parts of my sub and bring it up to current specs. It’s a great program!
My biggest and only issue is....I DON’T HAVE A BOX FOR MY F113!!!! I stupidly threw it away thinking I would no longer need it! JL doesn’t have any F113 boxes to sell me. They are on backorder from China with no ETA. I have reached out numerous local dealers to see if they have any boxes, but I have had no luck!
By any chance would any of you kind folks on this forum be willing to let me “borrow” your F113 box so I can use it to ship my sub to JL for repair? If you are in NY, CT or NJ I will come and pick up the box from you. If you aren’t local, I will pay to have the empty box shipped to me and I will ship it back to you once I get the sub back from JL.
If they are on "backorder" how is the company shipping out any new product? The problem with your request of "borrowing" another owners box doesn't guarantee what shape it will return in. Are you paying for that box to be returned to the original owner? You receive the "box", then you ship it to Florida, and then it returns to you. You then will have to ship it back to the original owner? Who pays if the box is damaged? Do you understand my point? Unfortunately I think you may have to wait it out until the replacement boxes arrive. It took me one time to learn to always save my original boxes. Be persistent with them maybe they'll send you one.
I certainly have thought about the potential damage to a box from that I may borrow from someone. The multiple shipping transfers (getting the box to me, me sending my sub down to JL, JL sending my sub back to me, me sending the box back to its owner)....the box could certainly get damaged.
What I can commit to is purchasing a new box from JL ($82) whenever they become available, and I would give that box to whomever was so kind to lend me there’s. That would be the least I could do for such a big favor.
What I’m trying to do is save time. My sub has been out of commission for two weeks so far, and I have a big party planned at my house in about a month. I REALLY want my sub back by then and anything I can do to save myself some time to get my sub repaired and back to me, is what I want to do.
The new boxes at JL will arrive sometime in the future....they just don’t know when. JL knows that I am trying to find another box to borrow, and they also know that regardless of whether I am able to find a box to borrow, I will be buying a new box from them. I will give that brand new box to the lender if their box gets damaged.
To answer your question about how JL is able to ship new product....they have boxes for their new production. They do not have any “spare” boxes to sell to customers needing them for repair or other transit purposes.
This is what JL has told me. I’ve been speaking with Shane from JL who has been very helpful and transparent with me.
Use a hairdryer to gently heat the periphery of the backplate where it has the gasket seal underneath. After a couple of minutes going around, you should be able to lift it from the cabinet.
Sorry to hear of the issues you are having with the v1 subs. I am in the market for a new subwoofer and saw a number of good deals of the Fathom v1 but this thread has pretty much eliminated that option.
Are the v2 subs good to go in terms of reliability or is that too new to determine at this point?
It’s not just the v1 Fathoms though. I’ve got a pair of e-sub112 that both failed within 12 months!
Same issues. They were making pops for months. I thought it was noise on my mains, but they both died within weeks of each other.
The UK distributor was very helpful. Took them back & replaced the Amp plates. I’ve asked repeatedly for a detailed explanation as to what exactly failed & for some guarantees the faults have been put right (so they won’t fail in another 12 months), but I don’t get any answers.
IMHO, JL Audio need to come out & let us know what these issues are & what they’re doing to rectify the problem. Or risk denting their reputation.
Every single E112 and E110 I’ve owned, and every one of my friends have owned, have all had their amps replaced. A few of them TWICE. I have moved on to the Paradigm Defiance X series (NOT the V series, those are not anything special) subs. They are just as musical, way cheaper, and have incredible room correction built in. Only problem is their size. They are a bit bigger than the comparable JL. Anyone want to buy some E112s? ;)
Yep I can confirm that, I have 3 fathoms that needed amp replacements. They are the least durable subs I’ve ever owned. Everytime they died was with no music playing, the subs were just on and "pop" and the amp died. Plenty of mass market cheap subs out there in the market that have better reliability than JL.
Got my F113 fixed for the 2nd time. No issues since, as I have NOT left it on in standby mode, as I believe the standby power supply is the root of the problem.
Just had mine give up the ghost today. Power outage happened while we were out so can’t confirm there was any audible signature to the failure but it was plugged into a surge protector.
I've owned JL Audio fathom subs for some time. My fathom 113 v1 did have a failure after a power outage. Sub was repaired by JL Audio but they recommended using a surge protector to avoid any chance of amp failure. Currently I own 2 fathom 212 v1 subs each with a SurgeX SA-20 surge protector. The subs have worked flawlessly for 8 years and counting. Surge X units highly recommended!
Well, just to add to the group misery, one of my F110v1 just up and died. Being in Canada, the shipping and whole border thing (customs were a bear to deal with last time) has me wondering if I should just buy a cheap and powerful class D amp like crown and just be done with it. JL drivers are great but their Chi-fi alibaba plate amps are crap.
Singingtheblues, I wouldn’t hold my breath, however JL has obviously owned up to the issue somewhat by offering their quite reasonable $300 flat rate fix for out of warranty repairs. My guess is that’s about what their cost is on those plate amps from China. I bet they replace 100 amps for every blown driver or control panel section.
I’d say they’re acting dishonestly & risk damaging their brand beyond repair.
When both my e-sub112 failed, yes they repaired them FOC, but they completely ignored repeated requests for information. I just want to know that the replacement amp plates aren’t the same crap as the original ones? Can I rely on them to last or should I get rid now? Every time I ask I get no reply.
A year ago I was singing the praises of JL Audio Subs. I would have recommended them to anyone. Now I wouldn’t touch them with a barge pole & would warn others to stay clear.
Yeah my F113 died after 2 years or very very limited use, they required the amp be sent back in the original box and it was expensive. Glad to see they aren't charging as much but disappointed to see why they are failing. My Wilson sub with integrated Marsh amp has worked flawlessly for 10 plus years, knock on wood but then again it's a Class AB 85lb monster not a cheap chinese digital amp
I wanted to share a video I made of the power on capacitor repair. Some of you experienced different problems, more related to the actual main amplifier caps going out… but this is a step by step video of the power on cap issue and repair, when your JL Audio Fathom is not coming on all together. Hope this helps some of you out there.
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