Part 4/8:
Undeterred, Paul began troubleshooting the issues. He replaced several large capacitors and retested the circuit, but the problem persisted. His investigation revealed a faulty diode—measuring 0.6 volts across it instead of the expected 0.3 to 0.4 volts typical of a germanium diode—indicating a collision of component specs and functionality. Despite replacing the diode, the circuit remained nonfunctional.
Further inspection of the capacitors suggested that one of the large capacitors was likely defective, though without proper testing equipment, he couldn't definitively confirm this. He expressed frustration over the difficulty of diagnosing and repairing high-value capacitors without specialized tools and lamented the ongoing technical challenges.