Stereo fuse blown

[miachkanin]

Hello!

I have a stereo that has stopped working b/c the fuse directly beside the power input is blown. Originally a clear glass fuse, it's now black. The original has "T2AL250V" written on the cap.

I dropped by an electronics store where the associate gave me a replacement with "2A 250V" across the top. I popped it in, but the wire broke/snapped as soon as I plugged it in.

Is there any way to figure out what kind of fuse I really need? It should be 5mm x 20mm. I'm guessing the T and L mean something, but I can't figure out what.

[HayZee518]

to find out how much current is being drawn, connect an ammeter in series in the line, unless you have a clamp around meter that reads 0-5 amps. the numbers on a glass cartridge fuse indicate the type of fuse, type of insulation used and the amps. the other numbers could indicate time delay etc. SAE fuses are almost always automotive and are rated 12 volts. other glass fuses have the voltage stamped on them. 125V, 250V etc. rarely will you see anything higher than 250V. a fuse listed as 2a @ 250v will safely pass 2 amps operating at 250 volts or lower. now if you reduce the voltage to 120 volts that 2amp fuse will now safely pass 4 amps. an decrease by two of the voltage will increase the amp draw by 2 amps.
this site will give you several glass fuse choices:

http://www.bb-elec.com/product_multi_family.asp?MultiFamilyId=30

[miachkanin]

Thank you for your reply, HayZee.

I hooked up my multimeter to check the current, but things didn't go exactly as I hoped. I attached it to the two ends of my (empty) fuseholder, but when plugged the power in, it zapped the circuit for less than a second. Now, there is no smell of burning and none of the other parts look damaged, but another fuse (T4AL250V) further down blew.

Does this mean one of my components between the power input and the fuse is damaged, like a resistor?

Edit: Someone has outlined on another forum: T (Time delay or slow blow) 4 (Amp) AL (Axial Lead). The replacement I used wasn't a time delay, so I'll probably pick up a slow-blow replacement.

[HayZee518]

its highly unlikely that something further down the line has gone bad. look to your power supply. a full wave bridge circuit, a shorted filter capacitor, a shorted zener diode something like that.

[Larry at Approved]

the "t" is a time delay fuse. however, if it has blown and is black inside, and you have already replaced it, don't bother again, there is something shorted in the stereo. it may be in the power supply section, but more likely is the power amp section.

[valveradio]

the fuse that was inside origionally was probably the correct value, the fact its gone black means there is a heavy current flowing due to a short circuit. the bridge rectifier or smoothing capacitors could be short circuit but in my experience is unlikely. the most probable cause is a faulty audio output satge cause by incorrect impedance speakers or a wiring short going to your speakers. to see if you have a short circuit simply place the negative lead of your multimeter to "earth" or chassis and the positive to the power supply, make sure you are on the low ohms range and make sure your mains is disconnected. if the needle goes over (assuming you have an analogue multimeter) then you have a short circuit.

peter

[erikduop]

This may be restating the obvious, but are you sure the channel is defective, and it's not a problem with an input on your source or some other component? One way to verify is to output radio to your speakers - no inputs involved.

Also, make sure you swap your L/R speakers and wire to verify they aren't the problem. Is your balance set properly? Try messing with the knob, sometimes they go out. Did you try your B side speaker outputs?

If there is a blown fuse in there, it is likely in plain view with the cover off. The cover is probably only a few screws and easy to remove.
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