CurtPalme.com Home Theater Forum

Munkynutz · Joined: 24 May 2021 Posts: 1

I have a Pioneer VSX94-THX AV receiver that is in need of repair. It's freezing up and then I can unplug it and plug it back in and it will work for a short time then shut down. Does anyone know anybody that can work on these and fixt them or is in now to old and junk?

**Curt Palme** · Posted: Mon May 24, 2021 10:24 pm Post subject:

No decent repair shop will take in any surround sound receiver. They are far too complex to work on, and most have problems with overheating chips that need reballing (google that!) Smile

, and that sounds like what yours needs. The unit heats up, the solder joints under the SMT chips crack, and you're DOA.

**kal** · Posted: Tue May 25, 2021 2:00 am Post subject:

With a forum name like Munkynutz, maybe he's familiar with reballing? Wink

(sorry, couldn't resist!)

More reflow/reballing info here if anyone's curious:

garyfritz · Joined: 08 Apr 2006 Posts: 12088 Location: Fort Collins, CO

Laptops had a similar problem maybe 10-15 years ago. The Nvidia GPU ran hot though to eventually melt the solder, and then your laptop was DOA. The CPU &etc was still working, but the internal screen and external graphics port were dead.

My then-wife’s laptop had this problem. I turned it on, wrapped it in a towel, and let it run until it overheated and shut down - and then it worked fine. It got hot enough to reflow the solder joints. You can do similar things by baking it in the oven, or using a heat gun if you know what component has the problem. It’s a long shot, but if your Pioneer is a boat anchor otherwise, couldn’t hurt to try?

See e.g.

https://www.dell.com/community/Laptops-General-Read-Only/The-curse-of-the-overheated-graphic-chips/td-p/5129052
https://hackaday.com/2011/02/24/heat-gun-gpu-reflow-fixes-laptop/
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Temporarily+Repair+a+Lost+Cause+Graphics+Card+by+Heating+it+up+in+an+oven/2240

**Curt Palme** · Posted: Tue May 25, 2021 11:25 pm Post subject:

Yep, the HP DV series were known for it as well. I actually sent one down to some repair place that I found on eBay, and they did a really good job for the $100 they charged. It worked fine after that for 3-4 years. Consumer receivers though.. not so much.

The oven trick has never worked for me, but it does for some..

garyfritz · Joined: 08 Apr 2006 Posts: 12088 Location: Fort Collins, CO

You had better luck than I did with my PS3. I took it to a local repair place 2-3 times and they would fix the RROD for maybe 3–6 months. I eventually gave up and got an actual DVD player for my theater.