The Stax thread (New) - Page 552

What steps would this refurbishment include?

Did you buy the 717 from lobstersan on audiogon? That was a good deal it looked like.

In a couple years time when I catch up on some debt from moving and buying a TV I'd like to buy an O2 and 717.

Yes, I did. Got a deal with the shipping as well. I have high hopes for the 717 and hope it will out strip my expectations.

Stripping them down and then building 'em up again. This has to be done right though since the drivers are held in place by the housing so remove the wrong screws and you would have a nice pile of unobtainable driver parts on you desk...

I only ask because my sr007's left driver seems to make a very faint high-frequency squeal when slowly moving my head. I've been wanting to take it apart and inspect all the cables for fraying and solder joints, but I've been too afraid I'd destroy it in the process. Are there walkthroughs or will I be forced to basically play it by-touch?

The SR-Omega and SR-007 are very different designs so none of the above applies. This noise is most probably due to something (hair, dust) shorting out the bias so you would have to find and remove it. The drivers are sealed so I start at the able joint and the very thin and fragile silver ribbons that connect the drivers to the cable. No walk through I'm afraid so please be aware that one slip of the screwdriver and the driver is a paperweight.

No available schematics or diagrams either? I also noticed that the sound can last up to 20 seconds after I shut the amp down, so it's most likely an issue with the bias connection to that driver.

The certified repair shop has received nothing but bad press and seems to be quite pricey, so it sounds like I'll either be putting up with the noise or pulling the driver apart.

Thanks again for the feedback.

Stax never releases schematics not that you would need any. These things aren't meant to be opened by anybody but Stax and for a good reason.

Since the sound continues even after the driver is off then you have some debris inside the driver and it has to be replaced. One of the dust covers has been breached so if you don not want to fork over for the new set of drivers (they are matched so you need two) you could open it up and try to blow on the diaphragm and stators and then reassemble and test. The particle is probably so small that you can't see it but you would also have to find the hole in the dust cover so that it doesn't happen again.

Congrats; that's precisely what I'm looking for. Any suggestions on where to start hunting? TIA, -Tim

I am contemplating buying a SRM-1mk2 amp that is 20 years old, but I'm a bit reluctant about its age. I remember reading that the condensers in old amplifiers may start to dry up after 15 years or so. Now I'm sure the Stax amp in question is working just fine at the moment, but what can I expect for the future? Is it reasonable to expect it to last another 5, 10 or 20 years?

If you are not sure, a wild guess would still provide me with some indication and thus be better than not getting any answer at all.

Thanks.

The only caps that dry up are pretty easily replaceable in the SRM1-MK2, even by someone who doesn't fully understand the circuit. It's really not a major problem.

Don't forget I have an SRM-1 Mk2 Pro listed for sale

And one with caps that are working just fine, I might add.

Mine is 20+ years old and works perfectly.

Thank you and all the others for your answers. Should I presume then that these caps are also readily available?