5.1 center speaker not working all the time

[i.miller9347]

I have a Dell MMS 5650 5.1 speaker system and have recently encountered an issue with my center speaker which I found odd. Its cutting in and out, more out than in it doesn't work for 2 hours and then while I'm playing a game it comes in nice and clear then after a while there is no sound from it for another 2 hours (determined). I got it somewhat apart to see what could be the problem but the thing is just glued shut even though it had screws. The center piece obviously has power since thats the only way to turn on the speakers other than a switch on the back of the sub-woofer but this dial switch is the only way to turn on all speakers. I also know the speakers in the center piece have power since they are humming. I tried using other ports on the PC switch them between the sub and rear outlets and it works fine but so does everything else just not in the right places, so I know its not a port issue. Everything is connected to the sub-woofer box (L,R,RR,LR, and center) and there are to inlet cables to the sub, power and input/output (whichever you think, output from PC or input to sub).

This is driving me nuts since this one game I am playing uses the center speaker for the vehicles horn and voice soundtrack, ie: cut-scene voices and story overlay.

Also I have tested the center multiple times using Realtek and windows sound, every time I click on the center speaker nothing happens but sometimes the sound plays and after that I can click to play the center again and it would do it, but leave it for 30 seconds it doesn't exist anymore, I'm at a loss, any suggestions please?

 

[americanaudiophile]

There is an amp in the subwoofer that is driving just the center channel speaker. If that has an intermittent problem it can behave strangely. The cable that connects the center to the sub isn't just a speaker cable so that could have a problem.

 

[i.miller9347]

Hm, any way to fix that? Would it just be a loose wire going to the center bar or is it more complex than that? As right now though for some odd reason its starting to work almost all the time now I really don't understand why seems how I have only tampered with the bar and not the internals of the sub, maybe a spider got in one of the actuators and made a nest and now its burnt that nest off so now it has continuity, I don't know, hypothesizing there. Anyway, is there a way to prevent that from happening again? I know where your talking but the what is also my question, I have looked in the sub before to see a mess of things and things that get hot (to be expected from a unit from the early 2000's), is that what is connected to the fuse?