HT1250 distorted sidetone

[Spatch713]

A friend of mine picked up a UHF (403-470 split) HT1250 on fleaBay and brought it over to program. After a few hours of building the ultimate codeplug and programming the radio I was disappointed to find out that their is a problem. The sidetone that sounds for a Pre-PTT MDC ID sounds "off" however all other function tones sound fine (scan on/off, menu, light, etc). I cant really describe the sound other than it's distorted, has less audio output and it's more high pitched in caparison to how all other HT1250's sound.

I should also note that I noticed the radio cycled power if the case was lightly squeezed front to back to the left above the LCD. I reseated the battery and that went away. I can tell that the case on the radio is new as the back metal casing area and tags are worn looking. He is going to attach a speaker mic to see if that rules out a speaker/case issue. My buddy says the radio was sold in great condition so my questions follow:

1. Has anyone experienced this problem before and if so how did you rectify it?
2. Could it be related to recasing?
3. Could it be a bad speaker?
4. If it is a speaker/case issue how the hell do I open this thing up?

Thanks,
Shawn
N1TGE

[com501]

Check with a speaker mike, if it sounds OK then, suspect a bad speaker. Remove the speaker and inspect the cone for metal filings, this is a common occurrence. If it looks normal, and your tests indicate the speaker is still bad, replace it.

[CircleBat]

serious ground problem or flex shortingout... could also be the speaker

[com501]

Just FYI, for the last 100 speakers I replaced or cleaned out last year, I had ONE that was distorted audio from another cause.

You would be amazed what that little magnet can pull through the grill cloth.

[Spatch713]

I will try the magnet trick as soon as I get my paws back on the radio. Can anyone fill me in on how to take it apart? I assume the flex cable is fragile?

[d119]

Just FYI, for the last 100 speakers I replaced or cleaned out last year, I had ONE that was distorted audio from another cause.

You would be amazed what that little magnet can pull through the grill cloth.

Ain't that the truth - I second that. I've seen iron filings in there like you wouldn't believe, especially if the radio was used in a metal manufacturing environment, or frequently fell in the dirt.

I usually take a magnetized screw driver to the speaker and lightly pull away all of the crap in there before reassembling it. Night and day performance difference.

[N6LAU]

I will try the magnet trick as soon as I get my paws back on the radio. Can anyone fill me in on how to take it apart? I assume the flex cable is fragile?

Your best bet on how to take it apart is to hunt down the basic service manual for the HT1250 radios in .pdf format. There should be instructions in there on how to disassemble and reassemble. Not sure if any special tools are needed for that or not as I haven't had one apart myself. If you have no luck in finding it shoot me a PM.

Joe

[Spatch713]

Thanks Joe. Good idea!