Thread: fix for radio volume

had a problem with a original head unit volume knob not working , turn it clockwise and nothing , turn counter clockwise and it got louder then there was no way to turn it down except to keep turning clockwise for about 6 or 7 time. i wanted to keep a stock head unit because its my beater and also i dont really like aftermarket units , dont like the way they look , yeah they sound better im sure but dont need all the fancy stuff they do especially in something i drive ledd than 50 miles a week.
so working around cnc machine all day and repairing controls and so forth i figured i would try to fix my volume problem. it turned out to be a simple 20 minute fix. here is what i did.
things you will need
1. your radio with bad volume knob
2. donor radio (i had a old original with tape deck)
3. small flat blade screw driver
4. 1/8" nut driver

once the deck is out of the car this only took me about 20 -30 minutes to do.

first you must remove the face or the radio , there are two small clips on the left side you need to pop lift slightly and pry that corner of the cover slightly forward , only enough to get the clips past the metal case.

then on the right side there is a metal tab on the top you must push down enough for the face to clear and another clip on the bottom.

once the cover is unclipped on all four corners slowly and gently pull the face straight forward. be careful there is a small ribbon cable connected to it.

gently pull off the white connector holding the ribbon cable to the face plate printed circuit board and put the rest of the unit on the side.
with the face plate laying face down remove the six small silver screws (you'll need the 1/8" nut driver)

remove all the knobs and buttons for the volume , tuner , balance, fade and also eq if so equipt.now carefully lift the printed circuit board off the face plate , be careful as the buttons are all loose now and if you turn the faceplate over all the buttons will fall off.
now with a pair of needle nose pliers remove the two nuts holding on the volume and tuner stems on the front side of the printer circuit board.

at this point grad the switch block (the volume and tune are a one piece deal) and pull from the back side as you push the knobs from the front , they are just pushed onto a terminal block with 6 pins.

this is what you will have when your finished with removal of the volume knob.


do the same with you donor radio and switch the knobs and then you have a funtional unit. if you got this far than reassembly is just as simple.

and sorry for the wonderfully low quality pics , and yes the pics where taken today and i know the date is wrong , right after i stop my vcr from blinking 12:00 i will set the date on my camera

some people might find this a waste of time , i myself like stock head units and think aftermarkets look out of place on dash boards. thats why i went thru the trouble to try to keep a stock head unit. in both my 59 chevys they have factory am radios in the dash and aftermarkets in the glovebox. its all in what you prefer.

Nicely done.

Im with you on the OEM head units. The after market ones are so flashy and stuff. I bought a Pioneer right before Branson for my Rodeo but I spent months prior looking for an OEM head unit that had a CD player. The Pioneer sounds good, works well but is just ENTIRELY too flashy. I managed to turn all the demo displays and extra crap like that but its still got this process of switching from a light background to a dark one and its taken time to learn to ignore it.

These Delco radios use a 5-pin digital rotary encoder. There is a tiny bearing ball on a track that touches contacts together when you turn the knob. Eventually, the ball will flat-spot and not move properly. The encoder is made by the Alps Electronics corp., and they will NOT sell you a new one. (I've spent a LOT of time in the past working this one out...) I was working on a modification that changes the rotary knob into a rocker switch that you press up or down to change the volume, but never finished it. The switch was tied internally to the steering wheel interface for easy wiring.

You can also turn your worn-out encoder while pulling out gently on the knob - that seems to make them work better for a while.

I just use the steering wheel controls...

thank you!!! I have this issue in the Prix and in my Grand Am

Yes Please Fix

i feel like im back in 08 lol...good fix though i guess...i think it would just be easier to buy a good radio...theyre cheap in junkyards...like 20-30 bucks..btw the OP hasnt been on here since May of 09