Receiver is dead! Did my speakers kill it?

Hi:

I have 5 Athena speakers, they are:

2X front:

Frequency Response: 40 Hz — 20 kHz (±3 dB)
Impedance: 8 Ohms Compatible
Typical Room Sensitivity: 92 dB
Power Handling: 200 Watts

2X back

Frequency Response: 60 Hz — 20 kHz (±3 dB)
Impedance: 8 Ohms Compatible
Typical Room Sensitivity: 90 dB
Power Handling: 125 Watts

1X center

Frequency Response: ?
Impedance: 8 Ohms Compatible
Typical Room Sensitivity: ?
Power Handling: 150 Watts


Yesterday, my one-year old Denon AVR 891 receiver was dead, tech support at Denon told me that because my amplifier is 135w x 7 channels at 6 Ohms and 105w x 7 at 8 Ohms, and because my speakers are 200w-150w-125w, my speakers were overdriving my amplifier, with time, my speakers just killed my amplifier.

my Denon AVR 891 has 135w x 7.1 channels. all channels have following same spec.

105 W + 105 W
(8 ohms, 20 Hz - 20 kHz, THD 0.08%)
135 W + 135 W
(6 ohms, 1 kHz, THD 0.7%)


I thought that amplifier should have lower watt than speakers, and I never used my amplifier at very high volume, 99% time just for TV viewing.

Rarely, I would get this very loud, very short popping sound from my speakers, just one sound, not continues, like popping a champagne cork, just louder and sharper. I thought it was my cable PVR causing it, because it happened most time when I watch TV recording.

Is this true? my speakers just killed my amplifier?

Anyone has the same problem? what should I do? buy new speakers? If I fix the old receiver, I am afraid it will happen again.

Do I need to set up Denon AVR 891 to 8 ohms, I couldn't find where to change it. I thought it was automatic.

If anyone knows why this happened, please reply!

Thank you very much!

///

Big thanks to everybody!

It's a relief I don't have to replace anything.

To ccotenj: I guess the tech at Denon had to find a reason to justify the failure of their product.

To M Code: my receiver is on top of the stand, there is nothing around it. my room temp is cool, it happened when I tried to turn it on after being off all day, so I don't think it's the heat. and is Denon DVR-891 a entry-level receiver, I spent $700 on it a year ago, I hope it is a middle range one.

To fordf250: yes, I have the warranty and my receiver is being fixed at service center.

To MichaelJHuman and ccotenj: the only thing I can think of is that one of two wire head popped out from center speaker, (the red and black ones), I am not sure if it touched the one still inside speaker. could this be the reason?

It might be just some small capacitor is blown, I will have to wait until they fix it.

Any thoughts on the popping sound?

Thanks again!

Thank you for replying.

I am using banana plugs, why they popped out? I don't know, it has happened twice on different speakers a little over one year.

Could you give me some examples about shorting? wires inside speaker? the wire with 2 heads connected to receiver?

what caused the short? I did something or some faulty thing inside speakers?

Thanks!

Well, he said his name at beginning of the phone call, but I don't remember, anyways, I think you are right, people report problems, they have scripts to deal with people. I don't think it's tech's fault, it's the company.

why they lie or give misleading info? the only reason I can think of is that they try to avoid responsibilities. If I want to spend $1000 replace my speakers or receiver, I wouldn't come here to ask questions, I would just take their words and go with it. I guess that is most people would do, not everyone knows a lot about this kind of things.

today, these companies don't make quality products anymore, they just want you to use it for a few years, then it breaks, you will have to buy a new one, the companies make more money this way. they say because costumers want cheaper stuff, but I think they are just greedy. and they want to lower the cost, so they buy parts from all over the world, and they just outsource the parts, then quality control become a huge problem. anyways, I start to think extended warranty maybe a good idea.

Thank you very much!

I guess I will have to be extra careful with these plugs, check on them now and then.

Thank you for replying!

I called, told tech guy what's the symptom of my receiver, he immediately asked my speaker's brand name and model, and told me the whole story. He was leading the conversation, I just answered his questions. I don't know what more I can tell him.

And for the last paragraph, I am business school MBA student. In many courses, we have discussed what's going on in business world. I didn't come up with these theories, they are common practice in today's manufacturing sector. Before, it's built to last, today, it's how to lower costs. we compared the raise and fall between Toyota and GM, why GM's plan to build car you have to replace after a few year, giving Toyota chance to take over GM's market.

I think if you ask around, many will tell you stories about their broken electronics, I am not saying they should last forever, but you have certain expectation from these companies.

I agree, it's just so annoying when electronics break, especially when you just brought it for a year or 2. you have to fix it or replace it, it's just such a hassle.

I have this Samsung 46" TV, right after warranty expired, 2 capacitors were blown. I googled the problem, many many people had the same problem, I watched other people's video on Youtube and fixed it myself. otherwise, I had to spend a lot of more money and time to deal with it. it's just 2 small capacitors, only cost a dollar, I had no TV for a week, I had to order them online, then spending hours to repair it. If Samsung used quality parts at first place, it will save everybody a lot of time and energy. well, I guess that's just the reality.

Hi, I hope I didn't offend you. I was just simply saying what I felt. I think if you ask anybody, they will tell you today's electronics have much shorter lives than before.

I moved in this new apartment 4 years ago, I brought some new electronics since I wanted to keep my old stuff at home. last year, they all dropped like flies. 1 space heater, 1 electric water kettle, 1 universal remote control, 1 passport hard-disk, 1 rice cooker, 1 cable TV DVR, they all just simply stopped working. not mention the Samsung TV, small ones are OK, imaging taking this huge TV to be repaired. and the time I would have to spend and wait. at same time, my parents' 20 year old microwave oven is still in my kitchen, working perfectly.

yes, people online tried to file a class action lawsuit, Samsung extended warranty for a year, I just missed for 2 months.

Indeed, I am worried about it. they are on the back of speaker against the wall, nothing or no one would disturb them, and 2 of them from 2 different speakers popped out, they are from Monster, unless they are counterfeited, they should have good quality. but I brought them from a well-known chain store. I guess something you just never know.