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In Reply to: RE: Boat Anchors, Door Stops... posted by Sibelius on October 21, 2014 at 13:38:15
Yes, One is a cd player as someone below nailed. An original Rega Planet with a failing laser "assembly" not a simple repair and evidently the proprietary parts cost more than worth spending.
The other was actually a surprise. A old Wavelength 300B integrated. It's not clear what the problem is. Wavelength thought it was a bad high voltage cap, but that measured fine. The local tech (with a great rep here on AA and elsewhere) said even if he could isolate the particular issue there were so many other issues he could see that needed to be repaired, and even then he didn't think it would be safe to operate. Suggested sending it to Wavelength, but last time I asked about that it was a looooooong backlog and a hefty cost to evaluate it, plus shipping back and forth. Not really a boat anchor per se, just not sure its worth the repair cost and safety risk.
Lastly one I didn't even bother having him look at. A Supratek pre. It's a jumble of wires that I don't think anyone wants to touch. Bad volume and input selectors, with the mfr. defunct more or less. I suppose it's repairable by someone who can DIY, that ain't me though (no skills and bad hands).
So I learned my (expensive) lesson on these (at least the last two): mainstream or bust I think for those of us with limited or uh, non existent repair skills.
All in all though I got a few thousand hours out of them, and they sounded great when they worked, but I think my money would be better spent on more reliable gear that is less choosy about repair options.
Hmmm, maybe Sim Audio?
Follow Ups:
I am definitely interested in the Wavelength. You may contact me through PM if you are interested in selling it.
Sorry for your loss, but IMO tube gear has to be the easiest of all equipment to repair (point to point or PCB based). Barring failure of a power transformer or fried OPTs, there's really not a lot to them. I think your tech was being lazy for not wanting to tackle the project because 'it's a jumble of wires'. That's a crock of BS if you ask me.
Supretek would have done really well for themselves to have invested in about $5.00 worth of terminal strips inside their product.
If the original piece used glue to secure the parts (which is unethical), repair of it without correcting that would be unethical too.
A friend of mine is restoring an OLD Marantz tuner. I was at his place recently, and saw it. Wow, what a maze of resistors, caps, etc. He's determined to "make it go", and has the skills necessary to do it. But holy moly, what a project! I have a photo of it, but it would give y'all nightmares.
I, on the other hand, have more mundane issues. An Integra CD carousel changer where the laser sled don't slide. An H-K 505 with crackling knobs and switches. A Sony combo CD/VCR where the CD drawer won't open (fortunately, I like Mozart's Eine Kleine Night Music, which is in the tray). A Tascam 44 with a pinch roller that won't pinch. None of these are boat anchor issues... I just haven't found a roundtuit to help get me started.
Several years ago, I donated an HP Laserjet Series II to Goodwill, and took a $50 tax deduction, which kinda sucks since it cost me $1,500 new.
:)
I feel for you. The Wavelength may be worth repairing if it originally sounded great. It's quite old isn't it? (I've never seen an integrated in his offerings). I was turned onto Supertek about ten years ago, but backed off for just the reason you mention.
Observe, before you think. Think before you open your yap. Act on the basis of experience.
Well, Wavelength Audio is supposed to have a good reputation. If it is THAT old, it will make a terrific DIY rebuild project for someone I suspect. It is so hard to do chassis work, that someone will take it on as an electronics project and be happy to preserve the chassis.
Sorry about those Planets. I would be very reluctant to buy something so unusual looking at full price unless their factory was just around the corner. Most of us have had good luck with SONY, Luxman, Marantz, for their upscale models, as they appear to be well-made.
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