[Silent One]

 

 

 Getting squeeky! Not that you've got it in-house, what's the wide variety of gears you hope test with? 

 

[analogsurviver]

  Nice scope - hope it does the job for you.  Mine is in kind of rough shape - needs calibration - but has worked ok to trace signals through vintage gear.  Payed $44 shipped - so was not expecting much.   At some point I may have it calibrated though.

I will tell the story of my as of lately late Hameg HM203-6 scope some other time.
 
I was most seriously considering Philips ( Fluke in US ) scope PM3065 http://www.ebay.de/itm/SUPER-PREIS-Fluke-2-Kanal-100-MHz-Oszilloskop-PM3065-/350981635332?pt=Mess_Pr%C3%BCftechnik&hash=item51b822bd04 It has one deciding advantage - the contacts for amplitude and time base , the Aichille's heel of both Tektronix and Hameg mechanical switches, is carried out with reed relais in Philips/Fluke. MUCHOS more reliable.
 
Then this Tek 468 popped up; it is serviceable, it is rebuildable, even if digital storage part gives up ghost ( custom ICs, now unobtainium save for canibalizing from another 486), analog still keeps on going strong. So far, all I could find wrong with it is the anticipated mechanical switch problem, CH II does not give a damn at 20mV/Div setting - nada. Deoxit & all that jazz imminent, I am afraid. I bid trully a hair above the winning bid of EUR 121. That did include two Tek 100 MHz probes, in themselves worth a good chunk of money. Shipping is not comparable between within US and from Germany to Slovenia, while although most probably shorter distance in most cases, is international shipping and did cost EUR 32 alone. Tek 468 is no object for ladies to carry, either ...
 
I intend to replace each and every cap to analogsurviver standard (as high as it can phisically be fitted within volumetric constraints) and then have it calibrated. I expext THAT calibration, with superiour and much longer lasting parts, will require little if any re-calibration for considerable time to come.
 
It DOES have one drawback - the fan impersonates hurricane scaled down quite conviencingly - and this is the reason I will use it to try to repair my QUIET Hameg scope ASAP; I learned A LOT about music/recording looking to the scope while listening to the music - an obvious impossibility with the Tek Hurricane ...

 

[SpeakerBox]

Maybe I will recap mine too.  Have not opened it up yet.  Probably a dirty mess inside.

 

[analogsurviver]

   

 Getting squeeky! Not that you've got it in-house, what's the wide variety of gears you hope test with? 

It is not an addition of new category of gear to my arsenal, it is the replacement (with much better capabilities) for my Hameg scope that gave up ghost

  about a month ago.
 
It did set me back for a month of measurements. Think of a situation when you were super prepared for a bike race ( on a velodrome, where you waited 5 years to be able to compete ) - and on the eve preceding the race your frame broke down...NO way to replace it, time too short, even if money was not an obstacle (no such luck in my case...- had first to earn for the scope).
 
I have a !"#$%&/()=?* rare stylus I was hunting for more than 5 years worldwide for an equally !"#$%&/()=?* rare cartridge to test - and my now late old scope gave up ghost the second that uber rare/ultrasuperb cart hit the groove of a new mint copy of a 30 years old test record -
 
aaarghh !!!
 
Will have to wait couple more days - I do not want to rush it, there are recording sessions scheduled for tomorrow and monday: as long as work supports play, work has to be given priority.
 
Otherwise, I use scope to test, repair, modify ( Korg MR1000 itch, anyone 

 ?) and/or build audio equipment - and consider it, with the conjunction of professional test records, an absolutely indespensable accesory for setting up of  turntables.
 
I will tell the story of my first now late scope I still hope will be possible to resurrect it some other time. It is a 
 
VERY
 
interesting one ... !

 

[analogsurviver]

  Maybe I will recap mine too.  Have not opened it up yet.  Probably a dirty mess inside.

Yup... - THE way to grasp the meaning of
 
primeval dust

 

[PhoenixG]

Well, speaking of records, my wife brought this "gem" home today.

No, we don't quite speak German, she just thought it'd be funny. Well, at least we finally get to see what this light does.

And now I know this guy works. It doesn't sound bad, but chorale/folk music never really sounds great.

 

[analogsurviver]

  Well, speaking of records, my wife brought this "gem" home today.

No, we don't quite speak German, she just thought it'd be funny. Well, at least we finally get to see what this light does.

And now I know this guy works. It doesn't sound bad, but chorale/folk music never really sounds great.

He he - it DOES. Choral/folk music sounding great - that is.
 
However, a different kind of "light" required - NOT saying Phono. After countless recording sessions of choirs I finally found a phono cartridge that does vocal (as the most demanding ) music justice. Too rare/scarce to give any more info, so please do not ask - or otherwise I certainly will not be able to acquire "critical mass" required to try to resurrect it in the marketplace. One swallow does not bring spring, but a small flock might....

 

[Za Warudo]

A seller recently posted a bunch of vintage amps including the Marantz 2275.  I'm thinking of making the drive there to test them out.
 
here the list of receivers he's selling:
 
Marantz 2275 (great condition)- $525
Onkyo TX-560 (serviced and cleaned) - $90
Pioneer SX-737 (near mint) - $175
Yamaha CR-620 - $160
 
The Marantz seems like a good deal, though I'm sure how much better of a headphone amp is it than the other ones.  Advice anyone?

 

[OldSkool]

  A seller recently posted a bunch of vintage amps including the Marantz 2275.  I'm thinking of making the drive there to test them out.
 
here the list of receivers he's selling:
 
Marantz 2275 (great condition)- $525
Onkyo TX-560 (serviced and cleaned) - $90
Pioneer SX-737 (near mint) - $175
Yamaha CR-620 - $160
 
The Marantz seems like a good deal, though I'm sure how much better of a headphone amp is it than the other ones.  Advice anyone?

What headphones do you own? Some vintage receivers match up better with certain cans.

 

[Za Warudo]

 
What headphones do you own? Some vintage receivers match up better with certain cans.

HE-400, Fidelio X1.

 

[OldSkool]

  HE-400, Fidelio X1.

Plenty of wisdom on this thread and I'm sure you will get some good advice soon.
 
Personally, I have two from Marantz, a 2226B and a 2216B. I also have a Kenwood KR4070. Listening to my HE-500, I prefer either of the Marantz over the Kenny. YMMV.
 
Can you take an ipod, LOD to RCA cable and your headphones tomorrow to try them all out?

 

[Za Warudo]

  Plenty of wisdom on this thread and I'm sure you will get some good advice soon.
 
Personally, I have two from Marantz, a 2226B and a 2216B. I also have a Kenwood KR4070. Listening to my HE-500, I prefer either of the Marantz over the Kenny. YMMV.
 
Can you take an ipod, LOD to RCA cable and your headphones tomorrow to try them all out?

Yeah the only amp I have right now is a X3 which has a line out.  So I plan to bring it and a 3.5mm to RCA cable to test it out.  Which input on the receiver should I plug it into?  Main In, Phono or Auxiliary?

 

[OldSkool]

  Yeah the only amp I have right now is a X3 which has a line out.  So I plan to bring it and a 3.5mm to RCA cable to test it out.  Which input on the receiver should I plug it into?  Main In, Phono or Auxiliary?

Auxiliary.
 
Listen for any faint crackling noises, which hopefully will be nothing more than noisy pots.
 
Also...after the unit warms up, I always smell each receiver for a tobacco/nicotine smell which usually indicates the previous owner(s) were smokers. I can't stand that smell and had to pass up a nice Pioneer receiver because of it.

 

[wotts]

I promised some pcitures of the SX-1980 with my recent pick-up: a pair of McIntosh XR 1051s. Oh man, do they sound great!
 

 

 
And here's the SX-880 I picked up for my buddy, with some HPM-100s and S-1010s (from Skylab!)
 

 

[Silent One]

Great cast, wotts!