Receiver won't stay turned on

[janetsphoto]

I have a Yamaha model RX-V490 Natural Sound stereo receiver. I used to use it regularly with my other stereo components with never a problem for several years. But then I got a new Onkyo CD player and decided to switch it out and use my Onkyo receiver instead. It sat around for probably three months before I decided to hook it up to another pair of speakers in a different room. However, now the receiver doesn't want to stay on. I press the button, and it comes on with the display lighted, and then about two seconds later it simply clicks and shuts off. (Perhaps I should add that I haven't tried using the remote because I don't have one for this receiver.) I thought at first it might be a temporary electronic glitch, so I completely shut off the power and waited a bit before restoring the power, hoping it would reset itself. But the results were the same. I will add that after about the first five times this happened (on my initial attempt after connecting the speakers), the unit *did* stay on, and I streamed music through it for awhile before turning it off. I assumed everything would be okay from that point forward. However, when I attempted to turn it on again another day, it kept shutting itself off like before and would not stay on, no matter how many times I tried. Is there a low-cost solution for this problem, or is my receiver done for? I will appreciate any help anyone can give me!

 

[americanaudiophile]

It sounds like the receiver is going into protection.
This can be an internal problem or it could be a problem with the speakers or the wire connecting them to the receiver. Check that there is no stray wire shorting at either end of the speaker wire.
If you found a short repair it and try turning the receiver on.
If you didn't find a short then disconnect one speaker at the receiver.
Does it shut down?
If not then that speaker or it's wire is at fault.
If it does shut down disconnect the other speaker.
If it now turns on and stays on then the problem is with that speaker wire or speaker.
It it still shuts down then the problem is internal to the receiver.
Time to get a new one. Repair would likely cost way more than the unit is worth.

 

[janetsphoto]

First, I apologize for not responding sooner. Second, thank you for your helpful reply, americanaudiophile. I ended up relocating the receiver and speakers to another room when I got a new turntable. When I disconnected the speakers before the relocation, I realized that I probably had the speaker wires (I don't have banana plugs, so these were just the bare wire ends) pushed too far into the slots. So when I put the wires back into the receiver, I tried to be careful not to push them in too far. After that, the receiver turned on and stayed on, and it has functioned perfectly each time I have turned it on. So apparently this was the problem. I am much relieved because, even though this was not my primary receiver, I didn't want to have to replace it. Thank you again for your kind reply to my query.