Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater HELP, My EP500 got damaged!

Hi

I bought a used EP500 sub and UPS damaged it in transit. It was well boxed in the manufacturers double box surrounded with styrofoam but UPS still magaged to break off the volume adjustment knob. It snapped clean off. I can't even get a hold of it with pliers to turn adjust the volume that way.

I talked to Axiom and they said the only way to fix it is to buy a brand new Amp to the tune of $600. Does anybody know of a better solution? I can't believe you just can't replace the volume adjustment knob.

I did insure it but UPS is probably going to fight me on it because the damage is so slight they aren't going to want to pay out $600 because a volume adjustment knob is broken.

Anyone have any experience taking the amp of the EP500 apart? Could the metal rod be welded back on or is it too small to do that?

Any help would be appreciated.

Scott

I am baffled on how just the Volume knob would have been sheered off, and none of the other controllers/knobs were damaged?

I would assume the knob was laying in the packaging? You might be able to use some sort of glue for metal, and glue the knob back on, not sure. Do you have any pictures so we can see what your up against?

This is to bad it happened to you, I'm sure you were trying to save a buck, not sure what you payed? Was it a lot less than the Factory Outlet price on a new one from Axiom?

You might be able to take off the amp plate, but you need special Star Torx screw drivers.

Hi

Thanks for your reply. No, nothing else was damged. I do have pics. I will upload them to my server and post the links.

I tried to find the factory outlet store and couldn't before I bought the used one. Can you point me to a link?

Scott

Ok I found the link. I paid $775 for a less than one year old EP500. I also bought a pair of M60ti tower speakers for $575. Everything is in like new condition. I am happy with my purchase, just pissed at UPS. I should know by the end of the week if they will honor the claim. If not I hope I can fix the sub somehow. Thanks for all your help. Pictures coming soon of the damage.

Scott

Factory outlet is on home page in print above the Architetcural series.

I would be inclined to replace the potentiometer or to see if you can attach something to its shaft.

I don't know how good with your hands you are but the first thing you would need to do is to pull out the amp. You'd have to do it anyway if you decide to go the whole amp replacement route.

When you do it, find out what brand the potentiometer is, may be you can find the replacement on the web or Radio Shack. Also, when you take it out maybe there is enough of the shaft length left to attach something to it. Hard to say without seeing it, so just carefully remove the amp and go from there.

On the side note, it's hard to believe the knob got cleanly sheared off in the shipping. I would suspect a rough play from the previous owner. Can you contact him/her? I don't know what good would it do, though.

Good luck,

Gena

To put it quite frankly, that really sucks! I feel bad for you.

Anyway, you said it was "well boxed". Does it have visible damage on the box itself? Perhaps it got damaged while being packed and not during shipping. If that's the case, I would contact the previous owner with photos of the undamaged box as proof.

I would look into getting a local electronics repair shop to do the work. It shouldn't cost to much for the repair, unfortunatly this is the risk of buying used.

I agree, if UPS did the damage the box would have been damaged as well, it would take a pretty precise direct hit to shear of the knob. I put a little suspect on the former owner.

If it was insured you'd better fight back and get yourself a new amp! I had some artwork delivered via UPS and they managaged to tear it. It was a small tear, but I fought back just as hard as they did, and they paid me. That's what you paid the insurance for!

DO NOT let them get away with this. File the insurance claim, and get it taken care of properly. Glue is not the answer!

UPS can be very rough, I had a 21 inch crt shipped from the west coast and it looked like they rolled it down a hill then used it as a soccerball. It worked for like 5 years and then one day boom, no more picture. I hate UPS!

If it worked for five years, I'm willing to bet UPS's handling had no effect on it.

Here are links to the pics of the damage. Not sure if I formed the syntax right. If it doesn't work just copy and paste link into browser with the <url> tags

<URL>http://www.echocommerce.net/images/subdamage.jpg</URL>
<url>http://www.echocommerce.net/images/subdamage2.jpg</url>

Ok here are the images...it helps to read the FAQS

During my garage band era… that was a very common occurrence on guitars/bass amps knobs. What we used to do if we couldn’t find a replacement potentiometer is to use a small saw blade and saw thru the center of what remains of the knob. It has to be wide enough to fit a dime or a quarter to rotate the control.
Hope it helps...
~Jaime

Unforunately it sheared off flush so there isn't anything sticking out of the back of the amp. I couldn't even get a pair of needle nose on it to try and turn it that way. I posted pics of the damge. I think they are on the 2nd page

Thanks

Looks pretty scratched in the area around the volume post. If the post is metal, can you tap it?

Just saw the pictures... Only as last resort, you can saw right thru the bolt, not all the way. I’ll say about 25-35%. I've done it before and worked, but I dont recomended 8^0

What you mean by 'tap'? [English is not my native tongue] Is it soldering? if that’s the case, I wont recommend that, the heat may damage the potentiometer. I believe we damage a few doing that.

A "tap" in this context is a special drill-like thing used to put threads on the inside of a hole. In other words, drill a hole in the shaft (don't go too deep) and then tap the inside of the hole so you can bolt on a new knob.

The other option would be to have a local repair shop see if they can replace the potentiometer with a new part. That's probably the best way to go.

An electronics shop should be able to open up the amp, and find the replacment potentiometer and replace it that way.

I see, thanks for the definition...

Hi

Where can I get these? Home Depot?

Yes, you can get Torx bits at Home Depot or most any hardware store. Most all-in-one screwdrivers include a couple sizes of these. I'm not sure what size you need for the Axiom amp screws, maybe T20, or T25?

uh...OR you could scream at UPS and get yourself a new amp. I wouldn't even consider trying to fix this until I tried everything I could to get them to pay for the damage.

In the case of the artwork they tore...I got a FULL refund on the total value of the page. Even though the tear was small. If it was insured, they will pay you.

I'm with Craig (spiffnme). Fight it.

Fight tooth and nail to get UPS to cover the cost of replacing the amp. If that does not work, you could also remove the amp and take it to an electronics repair shop. Stress the fact that the technician find an exact matching replacement part if possible, even if it costs you more. As a last resort, you can try to have Axiom give you the replacement part number for the potentiometer and buy one online and change it yourself.

I thought he said that there was no external damage to the packaging. There are scratches in the area surrounding the broken knob. Doesn't sound like the problem was caused by the carrier.

I dont see any reason why you cant have the pot replaced. Probbly a rather straight forward job.

However if you want to just get it up and running you can either glue/epoxy something to it so you can turn it. Or if you have steady hand, try taking a dremel with the smallest cutting blade possible and cutting a notch in the shaft, then you can turn it with a small flat blade screwdriver.

I'm not so sure that the damage was a fault of UPS. Nothing else on the amp was damaged, I find it hard to beleive that would be the only thing to be damaged. If no damage was made to the box the sub was shipped in I don't see UPS being at fault.

Scott, after looking at it I'm inclined to go along with those who doubt that this could have been UPS damage. Contact the former owner; take it to a local repair shop.

Hmm...he claims everything was in perfect condition before he shipped it. He also emailed me pics before he shipped off the speakers, sub and back of sub and the knob was intact. I guess I'll wait to hear from UPS and then talk to the seller again. Thanks for everyones help. I'll let you all know how it turns out. Maybe I'm too trusting?? It's sad that I even have to doubt that he's telling the truth. What happened to the good old days?

Scott

It wasn't clear in your posts, was the shipping box damaged?

I seen this post early today and asked my neighbor to take a look, he had two questions:

1) Did the Axiom boxes show any damage in that area.
2) Was the broken piece in the box.

I asked him to look at the pics since he is one of the 6 regional managers for UPS in California.

I'm also waiting to hear about the condition of the exterior of the box like the others. There would have had to be some obvious exterior damage which would have sent up a red flag when it arrived, especially to shear off the knob like that, I'm doubting this was a result of the carrier.

My guess the pictures you saw from the seller were older pictures prior to however he/she damaged the sub. Were you home when they delivered it, and if so, you could have checked the product before the UPS guy left, and refused it right there, but I guess that is water under the bridge right now.

I'm also suprised that Axiom won't at least sell you the part, and then you could probably install it easily? Anybody from Axiom copying this thread?

For a quick fix: Buy or find in your toolbox a very narrow "jewelers" size flat screwdriver that fits within metal part of the control. Use a lighter or torch to heat it up until it can melt the plastic. Using a little pressure melt a slot into the plastic post to about 1/8" (3.5mm) deep. Let it cool. You can now use the screwdriver and the slot you created to adjust the volume.

Secondly, if you want to replace the pot yourself, I would call Axiom and ask for the values on the pot. For example, is it a 500kilo-Ohm or 1 mega-Ohm etc. I would imagine being a volume pot it would be music taper, not linear taper. I would not suggest this unless you are comfortable working around high current electronics. My guess is that there are some pretty high-value capacitors and such in the amp that could ruin your whole day plus the rest of your life if you don't know what you are doing. Any amp repair shop could do it for you at probably a reasonable price (probably the base time rate, .5 hours or an hour).

But please don't let UPS get off too easy. Give 'em some hell the best you can. Don't want them to get more complacent than they already are.

Hi

No the shipping box didn't appear to have major damage. It did look a little beat up but nothing major. Wow this forum is great. Thanks for all your help. UPS did come over today and took pictures of the damage and box. I should know by the end of the week.

Yes the broken piece was in the plastic that the sub was wrapped in. I saw it laying in the plastic after I unwrapped it and I first thought it had just popped off but to my dismay it had broken clean off the sub.

Scott

Hi Thanks for the suggestions. I emailed Axiom asking if they could send me the Pot (I hear they make good pot in Canada I'm waiting to hear back from them. It seems it would be an easy enough part to get. I'm sure this isnt' the first time something like this has happened. My only other concern is that if the box did get dropped I'm wondering if there could be other internal damage to the sub.

Scott

In reply to:

---

if they could send me the Pot (I hear they make good pot in Canada

---

So...that is what the "P" in EP500/600 stands for.

In reply to:

---

Hmm...he claims everything was in perfect condition before he shipped it. He also emailed me pics before he shipped off the speakers, sub and back of sub and the knob was intact. I guess I'll wait to hear from UPS and then talk to the seller again. Thanks for everyones help. I'll let you all know how it turns out. Maybe I'm too trusting?? It's sad that I even have to doubt that he's telling the truth. What happened to the good old days?

---

There are a lot of unscrupulous people out there trying to get rid of their abused property. I have been the victim of many such fraud attempts. I have also been the victim of package abuse by UPS and FedEx.

Your pictures and descriptions indicate to me that it was not the fault of the carrier. That sort of precise damage would require a hole in the box at the exact location of the knob. Typically, damage by the carrier is evidenced by crushed corners, edges or stained boxes (left out in the rain).

Although I don't want to accuse the seller, it would be very easy to temporarily affix the knob to the potentiometer for a picture and then just throw it into the bag. Perhaps they lost their grip carrying it, their hand slid and a finger caught the knob, snapping it off.

It is not uncommon for sellers to misrepresent their goods over the internet as pictures are unclear and they can claim that they misunderstood a question or some other excuse. I bought some speakers from an individual and specifically asked if they were the model in Rosewood and if there were any flaws (I even broke down my definition of "flaws" so there was no misunderstanding). They said yes to rosewood and mint condition. I received speakers in cherry and they came with dings and dents (not from the carrier).

Caveat Emptor. That is why so many people just buy new (or factory outlet). Unless you can see it in person or it is coming from a reputable reseller, you take your chances. It is very frustrating.

With respect to eBay, you have a limited time to leave feedback and warn other people of a fraudulent user. Sometimes a claim can last well past the duration of the time limit. Ebay's solution to that is to simply leave feedback based on the situation before the end of the time lmit. In this case, you make the seller irate and they are no longer cooperative in the claim process. And believe me, you need them to be cooperative to get a resolution from UPS or FedEx.

When my speakers got shipped to me, my binding posts were knocked off. However, there was significant damage to the box; there were 3 holes on the box, where the broken binding posts were.

I would suspect for the knob to fall off like that, there would have to be significant damage to the box. I would have to agree with the others that this is very suspicious. Hopefully things will work out for you. Good luck.

You all remember when the Fed Ex guy decided to run over my replacement amp.

srthomas, you might want to check out the pictures the seller emailed you and see if you can find out when the picture was taken. Some digital pics will have a time/date "stamp" that you can find in the "properties" section when you right-click on it. If they're older pics passed off as new, you might be able to use that to help get a little compensation.

Thanks for the tip. I did find the date property on the pics and they were taken the day he said they were. He said they were taken the night before he dropped off the package at UPS and the date property confirms this. Interesting...thanks for the tip.

It is very easy to alter a photo with many software programs, and add a date. I'm not saying he did this, but I'm still having a hard time believing with the minor exterior damage this knob could be in this condition, very strange. I hope the sub actually works once you get it all hooked up..

I find it hard to believe it was the carrier, but who knows. This is why I don't buy used from strangers.

I find it kind of strange that he would bother taking pictures the day he shipped them. I'm assuming you saw pictures before the purchase, why photograph again.

Does Axiom do any repair work?

Being a machinist, I doubt very much you would be able to drill and tap the post of the volume control: simply too much force would be needed. Besides, it's very small! You'd damage the potentiometer further before you succeeded in fixing it.

I think that carefully removing the amp and getting a reputable electronics repair job done would be the happiest solution, except of course, getting it replaced from Axiom.

Tough luck.

Is there any chance the sub was able to move around in the box ? That would explain shearing the knob & shaft off without external box damage.

Nobody has mentioned this possibility yet, but the knob could have broken unknowingly during the packing process. At this point, there's no way to tell.

Scott,

As you can see in your photo below, anyone with average Photoshop experience can make something broken, look like new. Any given photo could also have been taken prior to damage, say for the sake of recording settings and levels.



The only way to be sure that a photo is authentic is to send the seller a disposable camera that you have in some way marked in a way which could not be noticed or replicated. Have the seller take photos of the product and return the camera to you so that you may have the exposed film processed.

Sorry it happened to you. I'm with those who suggest you take it somewhere for repair. It should be fairly simple for an experienced tech.

Peter,
This is the exact suggestion i was going to make. Maybe when he was packing it up he lost his grip and dropped it in the box with the volume control catching on the edge(either knowingly or unknowingly)
Jake