Hi, as mentioned first symptoms was the sudden drop in audio to near nothing after an attempt to wire audio to the mike plug ( second round four pin connector) for digital use. All was working fine until this point , I think i may have caused the Vol-H to get grounded. I have reversed all that I was doing and all wiring etc. to where it was last working at which time the audio would adjust so loud that one would have to cover their ears. For a day or so the audio was  still barely there and you could still tune around . as time went and I tried two lm386 and now the audio is completely gone except for the low clicking of the encoder as it turns.
All i have for testing is a multi-meter. I have checked all wiring for continuity. The radio still tunes and transmits as when it was new a couple weeks ago. I know this info is lacking and not really very tech but I will try to answer / our questions etc.
Thanks much
chuck