Bose A20 Repair/Refurbish?

[Mr. North]

4 months outside of the 5 year warranty, my Bose A20 decided to crap out. I believe I need a new cord as the sound cuts in and out when I wiggle it. Really annoying.

I contacted Bose USA and after a little haggling they were willing to do a full refurbishment for a flat $165 US. That is until they realised I was calling from Canada. At which point they directed me to Brantaero.com. I called Brant Aero to discover I would not be getting anywhere near the same deal. After describing my headset's battle scars they started listing off how much it would all cost. For starters it's $50 just for them to check your headset. $200+ for the cord I suspect is broken, $40 for new earmuffs, etc.. etc.. Plus shipping of course.

Very quickly approaching the $500 mark which is half of what the unit cost in the first place. I find that rather unreasonable. Does anyone else deal with Bose in Canada? Why is there a different level of service between Bose Canada and the USA?

Thinking of having it sent to the USA and having it shipped back to one of those PO Boxes at the boarder.

[lazyeight]

Where are you located?

[jschnurr]

How handy are you with a screwdriver, wire strippers, and soldering iron? If it is just a broken wire, there is nothing magical to fixing it. I patched up my old Lighspeed for a couple years until the actual electronics went kaput.

[longjon]

Did you try the local avionics shop or even Future shop for a solder repair?

[gwagen]

Don't try the US route, bose will look up the serial number, see they were sold in Canada and return them to you at your cost unrepaired.

Brant Aero is the only bose repair option in Canada, but their service is excellent. I know many sets that have gone in and come back completely refurbished and upgraded, not paying
for all the components replaced.

If they do replace your cord, you will be happier anyways, the bluetooth in the newer cord is worth it. Ear cup foam wears out, not a warranty item anyway.

A new pair with bluetooth are 1299 CDN+ tax. Makes $500 seem a little more reasonable.

I'm certain you will receive your headset back in as new condition.

I know not the same deal as you would get in the USA, but if you aren't used to getting the short end of stick here in Canada yet, especially in aviation....well what can I tell you...

[ctmorawetz]

Don't try the US route, bose will look up the serial number, see they were sold in Canada and return them to you at your cost unrepaired.

Brant Aero is the only bose repair option in Canada, but their service is excellent. I know many sets that have gone in and come back completely refurbished and upgraded, not paying
for all the components replaced.

If they do replace your cord, you will be happier anyways, the bluetooth in the newer cord is worth it. Ear cup foam wears out, not a warranty item anyway.

A new pair with bluetooth are 1299 CDN+ tax. Makes $500 seem a little more reasonable.

I'm certain you will receive your headset back in as new condition.

I know not the same deal as you would get in the USA, but if you aren't used to getting the short end of stick here in Canada yet, especially in aviation....well what can I tell you...

+1. I got great service from Brant Aero when they repaired my headset a couple of years ago.

[mato]

While on the topic of headset repairs I would like to get my Zulu (original) refurbished.... Anyone know where to send it? Id be happy to pay a few hundred to have it in like new condition...

[co-joe]

So Steven Segal flies a Cirrus?

[C-GKNT]

While on the topic of headset repairs I would like to get my Zulu (original) refurbished.... Anyone know where to send it? Id be happy to pay a few hundred to have it in like new condition...

Lightspeed themselves. I have send several back and so far have not been charged anything (in warrantee or not), excellent service. IIRC, cross border shipping was a minor issue so I timed it to have them returned to a friend I was going to visit in the US.

Glenn

[Cessna 180]

Too bad you weren't at Oshkosh. They were fixing out of warranty headsets for free.

[Prodriver]

+ 1 on Brant w/ Bose, sent in two older A20 and got them upgraded with the new auto on and blue tooth music, very nice, but Bose eng. forgot to add a 2.5 mm jack that works with a sat phone cord like the Lightspeed.

Lightspeed in Oregon was great and totally upgrades your headset as well, make sure you get the new Barbed Mic to hold your foam on the mic boom.

[JasonE]

Don't buy a Sierra. I've had problems with both mine. I was able to get 1 fixed at Oshkosh. They couldn't do any software updates on site, and charge $75 plus shipping for that! (Even under warranty).

I tried an A20, it fit my head much much better and was quieter. The Zulu is better than the Sierra because it has a metal head band. You can tweak it to fit better. My head appears to be oversized for the Sierra.