One thing you might try is touching the input lead (either pin 2 or 3) of the '386 with your finger while the volume control is turned to full loud. If you hear a louder noise than you're hearing now, the trouble is not with the audio section. If, however, the noise is quite low, one of the electrolytic capacitors at the '386 could be bad. In that case, I'd check the one between pins 1 and 8 first, then the one at the audio output to the phones. GL