I can’t find any posts on fixing an intermittent headphone issue. I know that the headphone jack is a weak link, but is there something that can be cleaned or re-soldered, and does someone have a primer on this?
Thank you.
Did you try using a different headphone? Are you sure the problem is with the player and not with the headphone?
And are you sure the plug is seated fully into the jack? If it is a new player, the jacks can be very tight. This is a very common question/situation from new users. Push and twist the plug to make sure it bottoms out in the receptacle and see if both channels can be heard now.
I hate to hijack the topic, but Im actually having the same problem myself. However, I HAVE infact tried multiple different headphones and it makes no difference.
I’ve also noticed that I no longer get a connection to radio, no matter what I do.
Thanks, all, but the basics have been covered in several threads, and are pretty obvious, though I guess there are some people that wouldn’t think of checking headphones and proper seating… :-7
I’m looking for something a bit more skilled in nature. If no one has a link documenting the fix, then I’ll poke around blindly and document what I do that fixes it (if I’m successful). I’ll then host a page on my site and link here.
Cheers!
On the Anythingbutipod website, they give instructions on how to open the Fuze. I assume that your Fuze is
no longer under warranty(a year in the US, 2 years in parts of Europe). . Opening the Fuze and closing it without damaging the player is not so easy. If it just means bending the contacts a bit, that should be easy enough. Resoldering the jack or getting a new jack that will fit won’t be easy. Did you try cleaning the the jack? I guess some might try taking a Q tip and removing much of the cotton from one end, then putting a bit of head cleaning solution on it and using that to clean the jack.
Thanks, JK98. I’ve seen the instruction set on opening the Sansa and have already experienced the pitfalls of the ribbon cable issue on my last Fuze (ended up with a dial that will not function, anymore, as well as lost the black lock-tab for it). :-( This Fuze was purchased the other night on Craigslist, and though the seller said it was perfect and it functioned fine for the few seconds I tested it prior to purchase, it had some major problems that I’m trying to fix (a pox on the woman who sold it to me!). I’ve lubed the dial and removed some glue residue from the ribbon cable, which fixed my jog dial issue, but now have a headphone jack that I believe has been abused and doesn’t make a good connecton to the board, anymore.
I tried the Qtip inside the jack yesterday; with no success. I’m out of ideas, short of opening it up and soldering…
Problem: Solved
I removed the cover, but left the jog dial in place so as to not disturb the ribbon cable. To do this, I broke the dial mounting bosses (they seem to be another weak link, anyway, and only a couple were still solid). This allowed me to have fairly unrestricted access to the headphone jack solder joints. I used a small, flat-tip soldering iron and, after cleaning off the tip, simply caused the solder to re-flow at four points (circled in picture below). I put it all together, and I no longer have a problem with intermittent sound!
