Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion Meridian - Systems Are there any jumpers on DSP6000 board for display type

Hi

I recently purchased a pair of Mark III DSP6000's which were seriously damaged in transit. Smashed glass, dinged corners and serious damage to the head units which probably puts them beyond economic repair.

I was wondering if I could use the boards to upgrade another pair of Mark 1 speakers that I have to 24/96. The concern that I have is the change of display and I was wondering if it's possible to use the Mark 3 boards with the Mark 1 LCD segment display otherwise I would either need to purchase new glass or mangle the Mark 1 glass to allow the Mark 3 matrix display to be visible.

There are 3 jumpers on the board (think 6Kc14.pcb?) and I was wondering if any of them would allow me to select the older display type?

Any help appreciated:

1) Any way I can configure the Mark 3 board for use with Mark 1 displays?
2) Is there any different firmware that would solve the problem? If so is it upgradable easily or would I need to remove the EPROM?
3) Any idea of cost to source replacement glass.
4) Any idea of cost to repair / replace the head units?

Thanks in advance.

Steve

It is sad to hear that a set of dot matrix 6ks got ruined in transit. I have heard about many horror stories of 6ks being damaged when shipped. It is all about logistics when buying or selling something like these. There are very few new replacement parts for 6ks. Back when the glass was available, it was very expensive in excess of a grand each. You may be able to swap all the displays and boards out to make one good set of 24/96 6ks as you mention. As the firmware is the same regardless of the display, it should work out OK. I am sure others will chime in. I remember that depending on when the speakers were made there can be some differences in the silkscreening.

Hi Steve,

I'm very sorry to hear about the damage - the dot-matrix versions of the DSP6000's are pretty rare beasts!

You can swap over the rear panels between the speakers but if you are swapping between 7-segment and dot-matrix displays, you will need to change the firmware. There are two versions for 24-bit DSP boards, one for 7-segment and one for dot-matrix. Just obtain the correct version (I'm sure a friendly HH dealer can assist) and load it into each speaker. You'll probably have to swap over the entire back (both lower PSU part and upper electronics part) as they changed the PSUs between versions (the later versions are more like DSP5500's with just the transformer on the lower plate.)

If the cabinets are damaged beyond repair, then it is certainly worth salvaging the boards and driver units, or at the very least putting the damaged speakers up "for spares or repair" once you've swapped over the rear panels!

It is also worth getting the amplifier boards re-capped if you can, as this will make them sound as new.

Good luck,

Steve

I am heartbroken to read this- I am such a huge fan of the DSP6000s and those dot matrix ones are indeed very rare. I recently bought Bruce's 7-segment factory 6000s and drove down to NC with a set of the original boxes to ensure safe transport back to NJ. The original boxes or custom crates are probably the only way to rest easy when shipping these.

I had some very badly damaged DSP5000s that were damaged in shipping that I completely restored- they looked like they fell down a flight of stairs. I think you are correct in that the repair is likely beyond what makes sense economically, I spent hours on those, so it was more of a passion project and the challenge of doing it as a project.

I will send you a PM. You can salvage the boards and drivers as Steve mentioned and upgrade your 18-bit ones to 24/96. The drivers and power supplies can be sold or kept as spares. Sorry to read this.

Hi Bruce

If anyone does have access to the 7 segment BIOS and can share that would be much appreciated.

I'm considering re-manufacturing the glass panels and you mentioned the silk-screen process. I was wondering quite how they achieved such a uniform and thin coating over the graphics. Do you know what ink/paint was used for the process and how I might match it?

Thanks

Steve