Steve Livingston is StereoMan. Steve has over forty years of technical experience in electronics, including two-way radio, radio common carrier, and over 30 years in consumer electronics repair.
Steve provides both bench repairs and in-home service as needed, and is always willing to offer a little guidance if you’re unsure how to proceed with your equipment needs.
What experience does StereoMan have?
Why does Stereoman do this work?
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StereoMan is conveniently located at 30 Park Lane Ave, one mile from I-40 Exit 44. (Smoky Park Highway). Just turn right onto Acton Circle at the McDonald’s, go past the entry lane to Home Depot and turn left at the light onto Sand Hill School Road. It’s easy to get here from Sand Hill Road as well, just turn onto Sand Hill School Road at the Sand Hill Grocery (Marathon gas station). From points west on Smoky Park Highway, turn right at Bruce Road (the last turn before the I-40 on-ramp), right again at Highland Center Blvd, then left onto Sand Hill School Road. Click on the map for a larger view. When you arrive, please park in my driveway and walk across the front yard on the path provided. I will meet you at the table under the pop-up canopy!
Jan 22, 2026
Sound bars are particularly challenging to repair, in part because the manufacturers offer next to no support for their products, and in part because they are generally very difficult to take apart, and even more difficult to put back together! So when I got a call to repair a sound bar with what was described as a “broken jack,” I had to ask a few clarifying questions before I felt there was enough chance of success to take a $25 deposit and give it a shot.
The customer showed up today with the sound bar, I took one look at the “broken jack” and I knew right away that A) it wasn’t a broken jack and B) I could probably resolve the issue in just a few seconds. Before I wrote up a work order and the customer gave me the $25 down, I said “Wait just a minute” and went back in my shop to get my smallest flush cutters. I came back out, grabbed the pin that had broken off in the jack with the tip of my flush cutters and pulled it out. All done! My customer was so relieved and happy, he gave me the $25 even though I would have done it for free. No talking him out of it!
But that wasn’t the end of the story! A couple hours later I got an email from him. He said “It might seem a simple fix, but your expertise calmed the stress. The Sound Bar is back where it belongs and working like a champ.” Great! I like a success story. And what a nice guy! A far cry from the caller who groused over the phone the other day about having to pay the deposit because “what if I couldn’t fix it, then he’d be out $25 for nothing.” Yeah buddy. My time may have no value to you, but it’s precious to me. Glad you decided not to follow up with an appointment.
Jan 22, 2026
I was hoping for a nice big snowstorm
It looks like there’s some horrible weather headed our way this weekend and in the week to come, with freezing rain, ice, and bitter cold temperatures combining to make it unlikely that I will be able to do my work. If/when there is a power outage I can’t do my bench work, and with the roads covered with a thick layer of ice, I’m not going to be making any appointments either. Bear with me please, it’s a setback but at least it’s not a hurricane!
I would like it better if my bench backlog (the time from the day you bring in your equipment to the day it gets to my work bench) was down to two weeks, but recently I have been taking in a higher volume of work and it has set me back an additional week. With regrets for the inconvenience, please be prepared for a three week time frame between the day you bring your equipment in for repair and the day it reaches my workbench.
Dec 18, 2025
“I’m a DJ. We don’t use turntables any more.”
Yes, I had a caller tell me that. I’m sure the dozens of DJ’s whose turntables I maintain are going to be mighty disappointed! Or, amused.
March 1, 2025
I’ve been charging the same rates for my services for over a decade, and am resistant to making a change in my hourly, but I do need to start charging more for my travel. It’s never been quite enough to cover my time behind the wheel and the wear on my car. So that’s what I’ve decided to do. My old rate was a flat $2/mile with a $10 minimum. My new rate is a little more complicated:
* $15 for the first five miles (just about anywhere in West Asheville)
* $3 per mile for miles 6-18 (so 18 miles would be $54)
* $5 per each two miles for 20 miles or more (so 19 or 20 miles is $59, 39 or 40 miles is $109, etc.)
To be clear, the mileage is the distance from my house, not the round trip. I will always let you know in advance what the exact mileage charge will be. Just ask!
November 24, 2025
Every once in a great while, I get a call to repair something that is not a stereo. Maybe half the time I get such a request, I tell the caller I will give it a shot if they’re willing to pay the very reasonable $25 deposit for my bench time. But there’s a higher than normal risk that I won’t be able to remedy the problem and I will tell you so, and when it’s something I know I can’t help you with, I’m going to tell you that too. I don’t want to take your money for something I know I can’t fix. Usually when I tell someone I can’t help them, they reply with some variation of “thanks anyway.” People in my experience are generally cordial and understanding.
Once in a great while I get a caller who argues with me about it. Won’t take no for an answer. Once I’ve said “Sorry I can’t help you” there’s no point in reminding me that I’ve been “not helpful at all.” I know that. I said I’m sorry. My time is valuable, so before long our conversation is going to end without a different outcome.
Apr 5, 2025
Most people would say my $25 bench fee is very reasonable, and I’m happy to keep it that way, as I find the vast majority of the time, my repair cost estimates are accepted and I am able to recoup the cost of my time beyond the 30 minutes it covers. Not always though. Sometimes it doesn’t even cover the time I spend trying to communicate with the customer. Here’s an extreme example.
On Jan 21, this person — I’ll call him “Chaz” to obscure his identity — brought me a classic Technics SL-1210 turntable in a nice heavy-duty road case, with instructions to check it out and let him know what was needed and what it would cost. He paid my $25 bench fee and I told him to expect a call on a couple of weeks.
On Feb 3 I checked out the table and found it had several issues, a couple of which would be quite costly, but perhaps not necessary, to resolve. I called to let him know what I had found and talk about his options. I got no answer, so I left a voice mail. Weeks went by and I did not hear from him, so I called again on Mar 10, again got no answer, so again I left a voice mail. Weeks went by, no word, so on Apr 1 I tried texting him.
Finally, on Apr 11, I got a text reply. “I’ve been out of town,” Chaz said. “Is my turntable ready for pickup?” Well no, it wasn’t, we needed to have a conversation about the several issues it had, so I texted him to please call me. “I’ll just pick it up,” he replied, “please let me know when I can.”
Did I misunderstand his intention when he brought it in? Did he not in fact want me to assess it and report my findings? “We need to talk,” I texted back. But Chaz was adamant. “Just please let me know when I can pick it up. I don’t care if it’s been repaired or not,” he replied. “I just want my turntable back.” As if it was my fault I’d had it for so long.
I thought it best to take him at his word, so I replied “10:00 a.m. tomorrow.” Did he show up at 10:00 a.m.? Well no. I texted him at 10:15, “Checking in about our 10:00 a.m. appointment.” Crickets.
Most people would say my $25 bench fee is very reasonable, and I’m happy to keep it that way, because the vast majority of my customers are more respectful of my time than this.
Feb 15, 2025
Sony’s STR-DE### series home theater receivers were very popular in the 1990s, but buyers might have been less eager had they known that Sony designed these stereos with a built-in time bomb sure to prevent long life. The output amplifier transistors are hefty and well protected from overheating by a massive aluminum heat sink, but the drivers are hybrid modules with no provision whatsoever for heat dissipation. Inevitably they overheat to the point of melting their solder connections. At first the sound will just shut off occasionally, but over time more serious problems will arise, ranging from failure of the module to smoke and flames emanating from the chassis. Here is an example of the initial, least catastrophic, failure due to melting of the solder connections.
The module’s pins are the ones arranged diagonally on the horizontal in the photo. Notice the obvious circular breaks around every pin. Here is a photo after removing the old solder, cleaning the board, and resoldering the pins.
Repair cost was under $75. Customer was happy to pay!
Home & Car Stereo - Home Theater
Installation - Maintenance - Advice
