Sound System silent when cold

[ueww40]

I have a 2004 Tahoe with a 6-CD OEM radio which worked fine all summer. Now that temps are going down to near freezing all of a sudden the entire sound system is dead when I start out in the morning, not a peep. The system is Bose and I don't think it is the radio, because it has power and everything seems to work like normal including the CD player but there is no sound. No FM, no AM, no CD, no nothing. After 2 or 3 hours of driving with the heater on and the car is nice and cozy all of a sudden the sound comes on loud and clear and everything is fine from then on until the next day. I suspect that there may be some corrosion or something like it with some of the Bose amplifier connections which I would like to check but I don't know where GM put that amplifier. Does anybody have any suggestions what could cause this and where the Bose box is?

 

[Fless]

The Bose amp is under the center console. Unscrew and pull out the console box and the connections are visible there. Removing it is another matter, but you can see the connections.

To verify that it's the amp or a connection around there, after it's exposed (and it's cold) you could use a blow dryer to warm it up to see if it comes on faster.

My first wife got cold from time to time but she was never silent.

 

[sleighparker]

I have a 2004 Tahoe with a 6-CD OEM radio which worked fine all summer. Now that temps are going down to near freezing all of a sudden the entire sound system is dead when I start out in the morning, not a peep. The system is Bose and I don't think it is the radio, because it has power and everything seems to work like normal including the CD player but there is no sound. No FM, no AM, no CD, no nothing. After 2 or 3 hours of driving with the heater on and the car is nice and cozy all of a sudden the sound comes on loud and clear and everything is fine from then on until the next day. I suspect that there may be some corrosion or something like it with some of the Bose amplifier connections which I would like to check but I don't know where GM put that amplifier. Does anybody have any suggestions what could cause this and where the Bose box is?

I would love to know the answer to this problem, which I have been battling for a few years. Used to be just in cold weather. Now the sound is off for first 20 min of driving — then cranks on and makes me jump every time!

I tried replacing every fuse I could find (which did solve my aux power outlet problem). Got a new amp and pulled apart console to replace - no luck. Checked the pink and orange power wires coming from head unit - these light up fine. The head unit def works, and when the sound finally comes on I’m pretty sure both front speakers are working fine.

I’ve learned a lot thru YouTube videos, but I’d really like to nail this down. Only 120k miles on my 2003 Yukon and I love it for everything else!

 

[29tomt]

I have a 2004 Tahoe with a 6-CD OEM radio which worked fine all summer. Now that temps are going down to near freezing all of a sudden the entire sound system is dead when I start out in the morning, not a peep. The system is Bose and I don't think it is the radio, because it has power and everything seems to work like normal including the CD player but there is no sound. No FM, no AM, no CD, no nothing. After 2 or 3 hours of driving with the heater on and the car is nice and cozy all of a sudden the sound comes on loud and clear and everything is fine from then on until the next day. I suspect that there may be some corrosion or something like it with some of the Bose amplifier connections which I would like to check but I don't know where GM put that amplifier. Does anybody have any suggestions what could cause this and where the Bose box is?

2003 Tahoe. Same problem. Replaced amp. Did not fix the problem. Fuses ok.

 

[RustyTahoe]

please help im on my second radio since it has got cold and still nothing

 

[nonickatall]

If electronic is not working when it's cold but works when it's get warm it's mostly two issues where this can come from.

Either you have a cold solder joint (I hope this term is also used in the USA. That's what we call it in Germany), i.e. a solder joint where the solder has broken due to the constant temperature changes over the years, or a defective capacitor. Capacitors are small electronic components that work like small batteries and work electrochemically.

These tend to fail after a while.

The first problem, of course, is finding the device that is causing the problem. That could of course be the radio. If the output stage does not send any signals to the amplifier there, then of course there is no sound. It can of course also be the amplifier, possibly also cable connections in between, which is not so likely.

Finding the device that causes the problem is difficult, of course, and you have to take a used device and exchange it for it.

Maybe find someone who drives the same car and swap the devices as a test.

Once you have found the device, an electronics technician can usually repair the device. A mechanic with electronic experience can see defective capacitors, which you can usually tell are broken and you can also see cold solder joints.

Capacitors can be soldered in new ones and cold solder joints can be resoldered.

 

[MassHoe04]

I agree with the theory for no sound in cold temps possibly being loose solder joints on component board.

If it can be determined that the head unit is the problem, it would be easier to find a replacement rather than pay shop labor for a technician to troubleshoot.

I used to see electronics/computer/television repair shops in almost every community around. Now... I don't know of a single one.

Even if 100% originality was the goal, another used factory head unit would probably still be cheaper than trying to fix a broken one.

Almost everything is disposable these days.

 

[nonickatall]

I agree with the theory for no sound in cold temps possibly being loose solder joints on component board.

If it can be determined that the head unit is the problem, it would be easier to find a replacement rather than pay shop labor for a technician to troubleshoot.

I used to see electronics/computer/television repair shops in almost every community around. Now... I don't know of a single one.

Even if 100% originality was the goal, another used factory head unit would probably still be cheaper than trying to fix a broken one.

Almost everything is disposable these days.

Yes you are right, same in Germany.

But the view is modern that it is good for environment, that government make stronger rules for everything, meanwhile product cycles getting shorter and shorter. And nothing is made for fixing anymore. All a big joke...

I always rather look for old stuff to repair than to buy new. My compressor in my garage is from 1971 and it will run when i am long gone. My two car lifts are from 1980, they are bulletproof reliable, because the German engineer who made the construction, calculated that 3,5 tons + 10% Safety must use 8mm steel, so they took 12mm.

Today china engineer do a construction, calculates that 3,5 tons must use 7.6 mm Steel, so they take 7mm because 10% guaranty cases are in the calculation included.

But back to topic. If there are enough used units on he market and you get one for small money, its better to take a used one. If not, you can try to fix yourself. Solding is not a big problem and everybody can see defective capacitors which to exchange is not rocket science.

 

[ueww40]

Interesting all the replies and I know what my next move will be, but I have not yet worked up the enthusiasm to take out the front seats and remove the center console but I do have a spare radio (which has a different unrelated problem) which I will use for testing first. That should at least isolate the problem to either the bose box or the radio.

 

[Jon W]

Have the same problem when its cold outside no sound! I pulled out the on star chime amp behind my head unit wiggled the wires and kept messing with it and the sound came on. Hoping this is the problem and I will update after a replacement is installed.

 

[29tomt]

Have the same problem when its cold outside no sound! I pulled out the on star chime amp behind my head unit wiggled the wires and kept messing with it and the sound came on. Hoping this is the problem and I will update after a replacement is installed.

Did you find the problem? Tkx

 

[29tomt]

Did anyone ever solve this?

 

[nonickatall]

I have sometimes as well the problem, when I start the truck that I have no sound at all. Radio is on, but there comes no sound. I switch of the truck, start it again and the sound is there.

That happened more in the winter, when the truck was cold, than now, so my suggestion is, that there is probably a small relay on the board of the amplifier, that stuck at this moment.

Does anyone know how the bose amplifier is switched on by the radio? Ot is it startet from ignition?

 

[GuillermoDelTahoe]

Another case here. It is all of my speakers ONLY WHEN COLD. I am sure of this.

One symptom I have is there is a faint (consistent) popping noise from the speakers.

If it was a single speaker connection it would only affect that one speaker. So must be something in or connected to the amp. The amp is so hard to reach I am reluctant to troubleshoot that. What would one do other than check/tighten wire harness connections? Cut back, and re-pin the harness terminal?

 

[ueww40]

After tolerating this for a few years now, I decided to put my mind to it and make it a project. I removed the bucket from the center console so I could see the Bose amplifier underneath and put a hair dryer to it and sure enough after about 3 to 5 minutes of applying heat the radio started playing. I waited til the next morning and turned on the radio - nothing. Now I unplugged and plugged in the connectors a few times in case the problem was with the connectors and maybe some corrosion, but that didn't make a difference. Then I applied heat again to the heavy aluminum body of the amplifier unit away from the plugs and 5 minutes later the radio came on. Now I was pretty much assured that the problem was with e Bose amplifier. To my surprise it was very easy to remove the amplifier from the center console. There are some really good help videos on YouTube on how to remove that baby. You don't need to remove the center console to do this. Undoing the connectors is easy and so is unscrewing the 2 rear mounting screws for the amplifier. They are easy to get to with a 7 mm socket and a long extension. But the 2 front screws are not that easy. You need a 7 mm wrench to get to them and you work strictly by intuition and gut feeling. It depends on how talented you are how long it will take you to get them out. But you will not get them back in unless you make it easy on yourself and drill 2 holes in precisely the right spot through the metal frame above it (see attached picture). Once you have done this it becomes relatively easy to install the replacement unit. Follow the tutorial video, there are a few other tricks you need to observe. I went to the local salvage yard to get a hopefully good replacement and I did and I had this thing out of the donor car in 20 minutes flat and the thing works like a charm. After all this time problem is finally solved.

 

[chunk6649]

I got my father's Yukon a couple months ago. He had the same issue and took it to a shop and they have him a crazy quote to replace the amp. He decided to just keep using his phone and BT speaker for music. I assumed I had to replace the amp to get it to work. I ordered one on eBay. While waiting for it to ship I replaced the head unit. It wasn't the amp. It was the head unit. Thankfully the eBay seller sucked and never shipped the amp. I was able to cancel my order.