Basic Troubleshooting of a NuTone IM / IMA406 Radio Intercom System 

Hi Yelawolf: It's great that you found the Pin - Chris

Hi atomikrobot300099: You're welcome. Glad it helped - Chris

@@northsideservicecompany3567 I will call your shop this or next week. I may have a rebuild for you...

Hi First112: Cleaning the switches in the Remote Stations will likely help with the problems you have described. Here's a link to our Video about cleaning the controls in your Remote Stations: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-iWGwOflvSFQ.html Chris

Hi svm125: Finding someone with experience working on a IMA406 will be very, very difficult - If you following the Troubleshooting as I show in the Video - You will find which Remote Station(s) are causing the clicking. If you want to streamline the Troubleshooting - simply disconnect all of the Orange & Orange/White Wires and all of the Black & Black/White Wires (leaving just the Red & Red/White wires connected) This will disable the Intercom functions and leave you with "Music" only system. BTW - If after doing that, the problem still occurs - your IM / IMA406 is "old and tired" and it will need to be rebuilt - Chris

Hi liv6954: You have done all of the Troubleshooting that will be able to do. It would seem based of the information you have provided, that you have a Master Station problem. If you be best to contact us directly - for more information about having your IMA406 repaired - Chris nscompany@msn.com

Hi Ken: It makes the most sense to replace all of the Capacitors if you already have the Master Station apart. I haven't seen problems with the solder joints on the Remote Stations - Dirty and worn plungers switches are a much more common problem - Chris

Hi John: It would unusual to have a burned trace anywhere in a IM /IMA406 - I don't I've ever seen that happen. I would start with the basic troubleshooting and unplug the Terminal Board Connector to see if it plays - Chris

Hi Adam: It is fairly certain that the buzzing sound on the System is caused by failed components in the 2091 Master Station. You could troubleshoot this by disconnecting all of the 3-wire cables from the Terminal Board - on the back of the Switch Block Assembly. This will probably be a pointless exercise - since it is very unlikely that the buzzing is something being picked-up from the Remote Stations. Since your 2091 is around 50 years old - there are many components that are way beyond their useful life and the Master Station needs to be rebuilt. - You can contact us about having it rebuilt - Chris nscompany@msn.com

Hi Adam: I'll start by saying the I don't really work on M&S Systems - I know a little bit about them. The clicking sound would be a relay in the Master Station - that is associated with the Intercom Functions - A common cause for it to be cycling on / off is a problem with on of the Remote Stations - or wiring to a Remote Station. Your 332 is probably a 4-wire system (2-wires for the music and 2-wire for the Intercom functions) Which wires are used for which functions, I don't know. Troubleshooting would be to disconnect the "Intercom Wires" from the back of the 332 (this should make the clicking stop) then, one-by-one, reconnect each pair of wires, until you find the pair that causes the problem. Then, figure out which Remote Station is associated with that cable - disconnect the Remote Station - reconnect the 2-wires to the 332. If the problem reoccurs - you have a bad wire - if the problem does not reoccur - you have a bad Remote Station. I have no experience with your M&S Remote Stations - so I have no idea how easy or difficult they are to repair - Chris

Hi James: The IMA406 Master Station is powered by a remotely mounted 16 Volt AC Transformer rated at 15 Watts (VA) - There are no "power wires" to the remote stations, which are passive units. - Chris

@@northsideservicecompany3567 bummer. Thanks so much.

Hi Jeff: If everything else (AM Radio - Intercom Communication) work correctly and if there isn't any background hum on the system when it's turned on and set to either Phono or Tape - You most likely have a failure in the FM section of the Tuner Board. Tuner Repairs are not for the do-it-yourselfers. They can be tricky and complicated repairs that require test equipment they most people don't have. Since your IMA303 is between 39 and 45 years old - there could be other issues and it's probably time for it's first rebuild. You can contact us directly about the repair of your IMA303 - Chris nscompany@msn.com

Hi Dan: You're not really always looking for problems with the actual wire - you're really looking for a problem at the other end on the wire, with the Remote Station. Dirty - Defective or Stuck switches in a Remote Station will create all sorts of odd readings on the wires, so measuring the wire is not a reliable method to find a problem. There are 2 different types of troubleshooting - The "Empirical" method - in which the person spends all of their time thinking about the problem and the possible solutions - and then there's The "Tactical" method - where you pick up a screwdriver and do something. Obviously, I prefer the later. While "testing and measuring" has its place in troubleshooting (I do this everyday in component level repair) its value in field troubleshooting is limited and won't get the problem resolved in short order (which is important on a paid Service Call). The Troubleshooting method in the Video is a "tried-and-true" method to find problems with this system. - Chris

@@northsideservicecompany3567 Thank you. You're unusually helpful in this day and age.

@@danm3188 You're welcome. I'm just helping in the way that a NuTone Service Center was trained too. - Chris

HI Dain Randa: The NuTone IM / IMA406 is a fully repairable model. While I can't tell you exactly why the radio has stopped play on their Master Station - it will be repairable. You can contact me directly if they're interested in having it repaired - Chris nscompany@msn.com

@@northsideservicecompany3567 is there a fix I can do myself I am in Canada

@@DainR13 Well, here's a challenge - To be able to repair the problem, you have to know precisely what the source of the problem is. Figuring this out remotely is beyond difficult and not something that can be done in RU-vid comments. You're welcome to contact when you are at there home (next to the IMA406) for some on the spot troubleshooting - Chris 925-743-8236

HI steelphanton: First you need to check the Low-Voltage Transformer to make sure it is supply the correct 16 Volts AC (not DC) You can check this where the wires that come from the Transformer are connected to the 2 wires on the IMA406 - This Video shows where that connection is made behind the Master Station: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-YriU81OX8jA.html If there is power from the Transformer, the next step would be to test the On / Off switch - which is part of the Volume Control Assembly - If you remove the cardboard Instruction Sheet from the Master Station (ivory colored with all the writing on it) you can then see the back of the Volume Control - On / Off switch assembly - The Switch part of the assembly is about as round as a Quarter and you'll see that it has 2 White Wires soldered to terminals on the Switch - You can jumper across these terminals with a short piece of wire - If the Master Station turns on - You have a bad switch (not unheard of on these) - Chris

@@northsideservicecompany3567 Thank for the information and quick reply.

Hi Angi: So, we need to start with the basics - Your IMA303 is powered by a remotely mounted low-voltage Transformer (somewhere in the house or garage) You need to find the Transformer and measure the Voltage from it (it should be between 16.8 ~ 18.9 volts AC) If you can't find the Trasnformer, you can measure the voltage at the connection on the back of the IMA303 - where the 2-wires that come from the Trasnformer are connected to the power wires of the IMA303 - If there's No Power from the Transformer, the Trasnformer will need to be replaced (and you have to find out why the transformer failed) If there is power to the IMA303 - the next step would be to check the ON / OFF Switch on the back of the Volume Control (these do fail sometimes) There are 2 White Wires soldered to the Swicth - You can jumpper across these 2 connetions - bypassing the Switch to see if the IMA303 turns on Beyond these 2 things, anything else will require the Master Station be sent in for repair - Chris nscompany@msn.com

@@northsideservicecompany3567 thank you!!!

Hi BBurrell: Basically what you considering doing is - removing the IMA406 System and reusing the wiring for another purpose. Echo Dots are powered by USB Power supplies - which are typically 5 volts DC - not 12 volts. You would need some type of USB Power hub - designed to power mutiple devices. You will need to calculate the power required based on the number of devices - the wire length and gauge could also be a factor - Chris PS: I'd take the IMA406 Master Station

@@northsideservicecompany3567 does the 16V need to go through the board on the masterstation for the door bell, or can it be wired directly? I will need 5v for the tablet replacing the master station, but weirdly the 3rd gen dots run on 12vdc @1.25 A (in practice more like 0.5 A)

@@basnobua In a standard IMA406 installation - the Chime has noting to do with the Intercom System - except for the very minor audio connection between the Chime and the Master Station - Chris

Hi Essie: Is it only 1 Radio Station that has poor reception - or all Stations? Is the problem on both AM & FM or just 1 band? - Chris

It was on one station

@@essieslaughter2708 AM or FM? Does that station come in well on other radios (car radios don't count)? Have you tried adjusting the "squelch" on the Tuner? - Chris

It works well in all other places

@@essieslaughter2708 Try adjusting the "squelch" as i show in this Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-4f0KrwJjv4c.html - Chris

Hi The Bryan Family: Sorry - I have no idea what you're asking - Chris

@@northsideservicecompany3567 I think he means the morse code lol

Hi Sir Campbell: Since both companies no longer make Intercom Systems, you can't get either. As for which is "junk", it entirely depends on which model you're talking about and if you're comparing on brand to the other, then which models are you comparing. There was always a back-and-forth between NuTone and M&S - who had the better models depended largely on who had the newest models. There were time the M&S had better sounding systems - until NuTone came out with their newest models. As for build quality, M&S products while perhaps constructed better, they are more difficult to repair due to the lack of any real "service network" therefore the lack of technical information. - Chris

@@northsideservicecompany3567 done number of high end houses and M/S always seem to me have best sound and I have yet to go back to one for a "fix"... I just never liked Nutone, done number of call systems with bad luck.. I always been on installing a system one time for good, I started in 1979 and yes I still have few old systems up and running.. Markets change time changes.. btw it cool you are still keeping it up on running for people system. systems i have put in over year people just can't live with out it.. god bless !

@@sircampbell1249 Since I was installing and servicing NuTone System in California, M&S didn't have a big presence there. There was 1 low-voltage company who was the only M&S dealer. There Installation were always well done (I could tell when I was taking them out for a NuTone upgrade. . . ) You're correct that markets and time do change - where we originally located, home prices have risen sooooo much, that all of those systems I installed became dinosaurs and the homeowners didn't care much about them any more - Chris