LG LHB975 wireless speaker sync repair

I would like to offer my experience with the LHB975 wireless speaker synchronization problem.

After about 18 months I noticed that my rear speakers no longer worked. The red light on the rear receiver would not turn blue. After several tries going through the sync procedure in the owner's manual without success, I turned to the internet for some help. Although I found dozens of people with this problem (some had the sync problem with both the sub-woofer and the rear speakers), the vast majority had it with only with one or the other. Since the unit was out of warranty, (LG will not recognize this as a defect in the system and extend the warranty) I had no choice but to do it myself, or pay some exorbitant amount to have it fixed.

As you read this, keep in mind that this fix is for units that either one or the other wireless device is not working. If both are not working the problem probably lies somewhere else.

It turns out that the fix is quite simple if you have a little mechanical ability. The toughest part of the fix is opening the rear wireless receiver! The sub-woofer is very easy to open. (Do I have to tell you to unplug the units you are working on?)

The key to this fix if the fact that BOTH devices use the same wireless receiver card (LG P/N: EBR65859702) to receive their signal. This card is easily identified on the receiver board in that it is elevated, held on by 3 silver screws and is connected by a ribbon cable. To confirm that this part is the problem, simply swap the cards between the devices (make sure you identify the suspected bad one with a piece of tape to prevent them from getting mixed up). If the problem is fixed by swapping the cards, simply order another (about $50 + shipping, not cheap, but beats sending it out).
For an exploded diagram of these units and a parts list, go to the Sears parts web site.

Hope you have the same success I did.

Edited by jerseyfind - 10/7/12 at 12:59pm

48woody,

Glad I was able to help I hope more owners with this problem will find this post since this seems to be a common component failure that LG will not support.

If you go to this Sears part site and find the LHB975 exploded diagrams. Click on wireless sub parts it will be listed as item "A54A" with the part #
EBR65859702 (this is the LG P/N not the Eleven Engineering #).
These parts are out of stock with Sears (probably because of the high failure rate) but if you Google the P/N you can find it elsewhere.
You can get it for $45.02 + $7 shipping at "appliancepartspros.com"

Let me know how it goes.

Bummer to hear that. It's bad enough they can't make cards that last much past the warranty period, but they can't last out of the box.

Hopefully the next card will work. Where did you get it from, and how was their customer service?

I find it amazing that the quality control on these wireless cards is so bad that you have to order in at least 2 in order to get one that works! I got lucky and the one I ordered worked fine the first time. At least Sears (in this instance) has good customer service. Probably worth the extra $$ to get the part from Sears in order to save on the other end. Doesn't say much for LG either since they are using this vendor and not insisting they perform to a higher standard.

Thanks for sharing your experience. Hope the part continues to work.
Edited by jerseyfind - 8/6/12 at 9:58am

Hi,

Not sure what you mean by "moving around a bit", but assuming that you are not bouncing it around it should be fine. The only way to see if the wireless card has failed, is to do what I have suggested above.

Let us know your outcome.

Good luck.
Edited by jerseyfind - 9/7/12 at 10:49am

My pleasure, and thank you for the compliment. I hope more people with this problem will be able to find this post since it will givie them an alternative to being held hostage by LG.

Aha, there is the rub. The sub is very easy, but the receiver has one of the best hidden seams I have ever seen. The seam is on the edge and goes all the way around. You have to get it started at the bottom, then try to get an old credit card under it and slip it around popping off the internal tabs that hold it together. It is difficult but not impossible. Just take your time and don't force it. A little flex to the plastic will help. Unfortunately I can't walk you through it in that it is like trying to teach someone how to tie their shoelace over the phone. Can't be done. Stay with it and you will get it.

Can anyone else who has done it help him?

The ONLY relationship between the rear speaker wireless receiver and the sub-woofer is that they use the same part number wireless card to receive their signals. Other than that, fixing one will not affect the other. The idea behind the exercise is that by swapping the cards you can figure out if the problem is in the wireless card or elsewhere (thus saving you from buying a part that you don't need). E.g. if your sub-woofer doesn't work and you put the card from the rear receiver in it and it works (or vice versa) then the original card in the sub-woofer is bad.

Since you already have a new wireless card, the experiment you did will only confirm if your new wireless card is good (you didn't say if your sub continued to work with the new card in it, but I'll assume that it did since you didn't say it stopped working). Now you have to go the next step and put it in your rear wireless receiver.

Sorry to say that the wireless enclosure is several levels above the Cheese Doodles bag, but take your time, don't get frustrated, and it will happen. Remember you can flex it a little to get the tabs to release. Once you get one started the others will be easier. Good luck.

"So does this means that the new card I put in is operational, too?" Yes

"If so, that means I didn't need to replace the original card because my sub-wooferer was working prior to the new card." Yes

"So, if your fix is destined to work for me, it simply means now that the wireless card is bad...am I getting this?" No

What this means is that you have 2 known good wireless cards, that if installed in your rear wireless receiver it might fix the problem. If it doesn't the problem is elsewhere (I estimate that you have a 90% chance of fixing it with the card replacement however).

As I stated before, the idea behind the exercise is that by swapping the cards you can figure out if the problem is in the wireless card (because the problem will follow the bad card) or elsewhere if the problem in the rear wireless receiver persists after the swap (thus saving you from buying a part that you don't need).

So, since you already bought a replacement card and tested it (by putting it in the sub-woofer and it works), simply put the card (either one) in the rear receiver and if the existing card in it is bad this will fix it. Remember, you might have to do the synchronization procedure (in the user manual) after you replace the card.

Let us know if it works.

EXCELLENT!!

You're welcome. This is why I posted in the first place. Glad to see you were able to open the receiver and that the wireless card was the problem. Well done!

Daniel,

Thank you for your kind reply. I'm glad I was able to help. Just too bad LG made these posts necessary. Enjoy your bass in the meantime until your part arrives!!

Unfortunately you are not the first to experience an OBF on these cards. Whom did you buy it from, and what has their customer service been like? Please share this information with us so others can make a decision on whom to buy from.

Thanks

Never had that problem. I understand what is happening, but if the new card has the same part # it would not make sense to have cards at different frequencies since they would then have to be replaced in matched pairs. Further, if there is no indication of frequency or mod, how would you know what you have? Have you tried unplugging both units for 15 minutes or so and then just plug them in? Also, it could be that the new card IS bad in that it doesn’t quite match the spec and it is just out of range. I would push for a replacement.