2001 Outback:

 

Radio has power, lights up and tunes into stations on all bands, but no sound.

 

Earlier in the day the alternator was replaced because of a voltage regulator gone bad, which I also hold responsible for blowing out a few light bulbs in the car, as well as the low beam headlights.

 

It's a stock AM/FM/WB/ cassette/ single disc player.

 

Is there a separate amp to the radio that may have been fried due to the voltage spike? Maybe there was a fuse blown that I missed?

Probably fried the amp in the head unit. I don't believe there's a separate amp. It's pretty much a direct link from the head unit to the speakers.

 

What happened to the '96?

 

GD

test with cd and cassette. If they work, could be the antenna amp got fried and broadcast stations don't come in well.

 

I think 2001 has an antenna amp - not sure ?

I'll try the CD player, but I'm doubtful. There is no sound whatsoever, even the "dead air" hiss of no reception. It's bloody cold right now, I'll try tomorrow. Thanks for the suggestion, it's worth a try.

 

GD- I've still got the '96. It's performing wonderfully, thank you.

 

The '01 I got from my neighbor and plan to give to a dear friend who had her car totaled recently.

Friend of mine had the same problem in her Forester. No sound at all from the stock radio. But it would come and go. Just depended on what mood the head unit was in that day. Something internal went bad, dunno exactly what, replaced it with an aftermarket cd unit and no problems after that.

Chances are there isn't a separate amp for the radio/player. Only the upper end Outbacks like the VDC with the Macintosh audio had systems with a separate amp as far as I know. My LL Bean Outback might not even have a separate amp. That would most likely mean that either the unit has a problem or the connection to the speakers has come loose in the back of the unit. If the unit is bad Ebay can be a good place to find a replacement factory unit at a reasonable price.

common failure on the Gen 2 Outbacks/Gen3 Legacys. I've replaced quite a few of the stock stereo/decks in the past few years. I'm not sure what kills them, I'm starting to wonder if its the cold that kills them because the only time I've seen them die up here is during the winter.

Yep, looks like we're going to have to replace the unit.

 

Thanks guys for all your input. It is much appreciated. Now I'm off to deliver this car from the Ranch to Arizona, with no radio. Wish me luck!