Old radios are great to have around the house. They add to the decor of any room, they have a great worn-in sound from years of use, and they also most likely have a lot of nostalgic value as well. The only problem is they’re old and old things break often. Instead of throwing it in the trash, here are some tips to help you diagnose and solve your radio troubles.
Instructions
Diagnosing Vintage Radios with no Sound
1. Contact a professional. If you are really attached to your radio, you won’t want to cause any further damage by fumbling around inside of it. Regardless of your knowledge of electronics, older electronics are a completely different game. It may be your best option to browse the Internet for professional antique radio specialists and ship it out to be fixed.
2. Remove the faceplate of your radio to access the inside. If money is tight, time is a factor or you just want to mess around with the radio and see if you can get it to work on your own, then give it a shot. Place your radio on a workspace with ample room and access to a power outlet (if your radio isn’t battery powered).
3. Plug the radio into the wall or put fresh batteries into the battery port. An important and potentially dangerous part of diagnosing your radios problem is the radio needs to be on. If it’s not on, the only way you could check for problems is visually and most of the time the problem won’t be noticeable.
4. Connect the 1/8-inch cable to the small external speaker. Wrap the ground wire around the open tip of the 1/8-inch cable. These items can be found at your local electronics store and shouldn’t cost too much. You may even have the supplies lying around the house.
5. Connect the wire to the ground on your radio. If your radio is battery operated, the ground will be the flat end of the battery. For plug-in radios, the ground will be on the circuit board and is usually the largest connection you will see. When hooking up a ground to a plug-in radio, turn the radio off first so you don’t shock yourself accidentally.
6. Touch the end of the 1/8-inch cable to the different components of the radio using only one hand. What you are looking for is any kind of signal (buzzing or audio) that will let you know that the component is working and electricity is flowing through it. If there is a diagram of the circuitry or if you can deduce the path on your own, you should start checking components from the beginning to the end. Checking the signal with one hand will decrease the chances that you accidentally touch an electrified component and get shocked. Think of it as playing a high-stakes game of operation.
Tags: your radio, 8-inch cable, around house, ground will, radio battery, Vintage Radios, your radio battery