Classe CA-400 amp trips

I had that problem with a CA200. After much searching I finally figured out it was the speaker cable, an MIT Oracle V3. Here's where it gets wacky, it happened only when I had a CJ premier 14 preamp in the system, PV10 no problem. Took the 14 to CJ, everything was fine, was not passing DC as I suspected. Now I use MIT M2 and the 14 with no problem. I also think Classe sets the bias very high which can cause tripping under some circumstances. Your preamp could be passing DC. Good luck.

BAT preamps have a rep for sometimes outputting small amounts of dc, that could be what's happening. DC would cause your amps protection circuit to kick in. Get a multimeter and measure the dc output of you preamp. It's not very hard to do, I can't remember the ok range for dc, but I'm sure someone on here does. Sean?

I agree with Jond's assessment i.e. that the BAT preamp is probably the culprit. If you look in the Agon archives, you'll find some similar threads with similar responses. Some of this has to do with the design of the product itself, not so much DC voltage. I just discussed this with Victor Khomenko of BAT over at AA in this thread here.

Out of curiosity, are you using the pre / amp in RCA or XLR mode? Switching to XLR's may resolve your problem. You can try this relatively economically by purchasing cabling at Guitar Center, Sam Ash, etc... or any other musical instrument vendor. If this takes care of the problem, i would contact BAT to see how this problem could be rectified. They are a reputable company and should stand behind their product.

As a side note, those interested in high bias designs may want to check out a thread at AA pertaining to circuit design / bias levels / current draw / circuit efficiency. Some of the same participants in the thread above ( myself, Victor of BAT and Brian of VMPS ) contribute contrasting points of view there also : ) Sean
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I have a Classe CA 400 and had the same problem when using a Melos SHA Gold preamp. The preamp was sent to a local guy who found that it was passing DC. He modified the SHA Gold and it solved the problem. Unfortunately this was after the amp went belly up and had to make a trip to Montreal. I would advise you to take action before breaking the amp.
Good luck. John

Solidly, I'm using all XLR connections - NO RCA's.
I acquired a Monster Power Center HTS5100 and I thought it's causing the problem when my house's A/C or ref. current goes on.
Obviously, that does it for another expenditure.
As far as the DC issue, what can I do now, besides sending my BAT back to the manufacturer?

this is going to sound strage but this happen to me once (i have classe cam monos and a bat vk30) and it occured when i was wearing slippers that cause static electricity.

i touched the cd player and it caused the pre to shut down and turned back on and the amps to go into protection..

sounds strange but it does happen with a build up of static electricity..

That slipper might have been worth something.
I'm trying a lot of things at this point - repositioning the units, switching interconnects (b/w VeraStarr, Synergistic Research). At first, I thought there was a loose connection but I disconnected each one and plugged them back a thousand times - didn't work.
This minor type of problem should not be happening in a high end expensive audio world.
My last option would be to waste my time sending the BAT 30SE back and take a blood pressure pill without a tune for a week or so.

John

John, you are absoluting right, such a nuisance as your experiencing is frustrating and shouldn't happen. Good luck.

i think you are lucky...bat and classe service and turn around is first rate...

to ship, repair, and return ship in 30 -45 days is $%&*$$%@# incredible imo.

had a cd player repaired 2 times and it was gone 6 months out of the 8 month ownership. the dealer ordered me a new one.

one of my classe cam mono's went in for minor repair(dealer wanted one of the amp rebaised before i bought it- came back within 30 days from canada)

i have a preamp(bought used) sent out for upgrade and havent got it back yet ( i sent it back in february 04). i hope the upgrade will be worth the wait. in the meantime i bought a demo bat vk30 from my local dealer and really, really like the unit. needless to say i now look at the repair turnaround of any product and i really, really try to buy from my local dealer. the repairs go fast and i get a loaner in the process.

alot has to be be said for quick repair, though it is painful. i think 30 days is friggin incredible.