If I were in your shoes and experiencing a smell like that, I would wonder if there was a leaking capacitor or something. I would either check it out myself by opening it up, or have the dealer or someone else look at it.

I usually take a look inside my equipment out of curiosity any way, so it wouldn't be a big deal to me to see if I could locate the source of the odor before contacting the dealer. You might just want to see what he says first.

I don't think I would just let it go.

I would certainly have an experienced audio technician check it out. Something is obviously running too hot. Overheated componnts usually are phyically obvious to an experienced technician.

It could be a power transistor or a power supply component such as a diode, capacitor, or power transformer.

Bryston comes with a 20-year warranty, but is it continued to the 2nd owner? Good question. You should contact their service departmant.

That model does normally run fairly hot. You might try cleaning the heat sinks with some rubbing alcohol and see if the smell goes away.

You don't have the preamp or any other component on top of the amp, do you? That would not be good.

m-c-e wrote:

hi, i have recently purchased a used bryston 4B-ST power / BP20 preamp combo from a reputable used audio dealer. since connecting the setup at home i have noticed a distinct electrical scent fill the room whenever i use the equipment. it is not a burning scent just an electrical odour. when i took the equipment home i asked for one of the other 4B-ST's he had in stock rather than the unit setup for demo in sotre. at first i thought maybe it was just dust burning off or something but it has been a week and after using the system for several hours in one session the scent fills the room. I did not notice this smell while demo'ing the gear in store. should I be concerned or look at returning the gear and exchanging for another unit? thanks for your time. cheers! :)

I'd be concerned about the toxicity of the smell, especially if it's filling the room.   In the past I've had equipment smelling after startup. Despite thorough cleaning and examination as to source it still remained.  Finally took them to a recycling depot.  My health was more important than the equipment.

Bryston warranties are valid for the first and all subsequent owners.

There is no reference in the conditions that state they won't honour a warranty for a used product that is purchased from a non authorised Bryston dealer. Contact Bryston themselves with your serial numbers and they will tell you the date of manufacture which is when the warranty of 20 years commences.

Following is cut and pasted directly from a Bryston BP-20 manual.

Bryston products are warranted to be free from
manufacturing defects for a minimum of twenty
years from the original date of manufacture. This
includes parts, labour and return shipping to the
first owner and all subsequent owners. Warranty
coverage is automatic and commences with the
original date of manufacture which is kept on file at
Bryston.
In the event of a defect or malfunction, Bryston will
remedy the problem by repair or replacement, as
we deem necessary, to restore the product to full
performance.
This warranty is considered void if the defect, malfunction
or failure of the product or any component
part was caused by damage ( not resulting from a
defect or malfunction ) or abuse while in the possession
of the customer. Tampering by persons
other than factory authorized service personnel, or
failure to fully comply with Bryston operating
instructions, voids the warranty.
This warranty gives you specific legal rights and
you may also have other rights which may vary
from province to province and country to country

Hope this helps you.