JVC VN-900 Any Good?

[RHJ III]

I picked up a JVC VN-900 Integrated Amplifier in it's original box and packaging today for $50.00. I was actually picking up a pair of Marantz Imperial Speaker System Model 6 speakers but you know how it goes. I hooked it up and it needs the usual cleaning of the pots and switches, a few pops and sizzles here and there. The face-plate is immaculate and quite stunning with the interestingly shaped SEA EQ knobs.
What I'm wondering does anyone have any time spent with this model? pros and cons, sound quality etc. Is it worth it to have the work done it to make it 100% functional? The thing is built solid, its heavy weighing in about 30lbs. The inside electronics look beefy and very well organized. I don't know much about JVC but this particular model looks and feels very nice indeed. Any input would be most appreciated, thanks -Richard3

 

[johnebravo]

I've had a VN-700 since I bought it new in 1974; it still gets used almost every day. It's built like a tank, and it's been a reliable performer for a long time. It's very similar to yours, with the exception that the SEA controls have only 5 bands, and there's no pink noise generator.

http://www.thevintageknob.org/jvc-VN-900.html
http://www.thevintageknob.org/jvc-VN-700.html

 

[RHJ III]

Thanks for the links and reply johnebravo. It's good to hear yours has lasted that long. That is a definite check in the plus column. So how would you describe the sound and the power?

 

[GD70]

I picked up a JVC VN-900 Integrated Amplifier in it's original box and packaging today for $50.00. I was actually picking up a pair of Marantz Imperial Speaker System Model 6 speakers but you know how it goes. I hooked it up and it needs the usual cleaning of the pots and switches, a few pops and sizzles here and there. The face-plate is immaculate and quite stunning with the interestingly shaped SEA EQ knobs.
What I'm wondering does anyone have any time spent with this model? pros and cons, sound quality etc. Is it worth it to have the work done it to make it 100% functional? The thing is built solid, its heavy weighing in about 30lbs. The inside electronics look beefy and very well organized. I don't know much about JVC but this particular model looks and feels very nice indeed. Any input would be most appreciated, thanks -Richard3 View attachment 1064999

Great deal for that amp! I suspect you will be quite happy with the sound and power of this amp. Well worth getting it functioning properly. As you can see in my signature, I'm a big JVC fan! Great sounding gear under the radar.

 

[johnebravo]

Well, it was my main amp for probably 25 years, until I bought a more powerful preamp and power amp set up. I still use it nearly every day in a secondary system, however. I always found that it had plenty of power, or at least more than enough for my purposes -- I'm pretty sure the VN-700 is rated for 35w rms. I listened to it for years with a pair of Altec Model 9s which are relatively efficient speakers, so volume was never a problem. A little DeOxit from time to time, and it's still cooking away. It has a nice set of versatile controls, and lots of inputs.

 

[drumbum]

Listening to my VN-700 as I type this. Mine has had a rough life, a little scuffed up cosmetically, but not too bad. Have it paired with my JBL L-46's and as a pre for a crown com tech 210 (100w) as the 35w was lacking a little with certain styles of music, and the jbl's 88db sensitivity.
The rest of the stack consists of an Onkyo TA-630d cassette deck, a Technics tuner, and a Realistic 12 band EQ w/ stereo expander (IMX).

I think the VN-900 is 50w per rms.

The build of these integrateds is cool for the fact that the boards are a card and slot style. Nice to be able to pull driver boards to repair.

Plan to recap my 700 some day.


WOW, a vn-900 and marantz imperial 6's in one haul. EXCELLENT!

 

[drumbum]

I picked up a JVC VN-900 Integrated Amplifier in it's original box and packaging today for $50.00. I was actually picking up a pair of Marantz Imperial Speaker System Model 6 speakers but you know how it goes. I hooked it up and it needs the usual cleaning of the pots and switches, a few pops and sizzles here and there. The face-plate is immaculate and quite stunning with the interestingly shaped SEA EQ knobs.
What I'm wondering does anyone have any time spent with this model? pros and cons, sound quality etc. Is it worth it to have the work done it to make it 100% functional? The thing is built solid, its heavy weighing in about 30lbs. The inside electronics look beefy and very well organized. I don't know much about JVC but this particular model looks and feels very nice indeed. Any input would be most appreciated, thanks -Richard3 View attachment 1064999

Yes it is worth it.

 

[RHJ III]

Great feedback fellas, I appreciate it. I am definitely leaning towards getting this unit back to full running order. I looked at the inside today, almost dust free. I am not sure how long it has been it it's original box, very clean.
Does anyone use this unit for records? It has an adjustable phono stage with 3 settings.
Thanks drumbum, I also snagged a pair of Smaller Advents with the fried egg tweeters at the same spot for $20.00, woofer surrounds shot, tweeters look perfect. The Marantz Imperial Model 6's are in their original packing, boxes and are almost perfect, grills are mint. I am thinking of running the Imperial 6's with the VN-900. Anyone have any thoughts on that? I don't want to hook the speakers up until the VN-900 is pop and sizzle free.
Here is a pic of the phono input, close up of the interestingly shaped SEA knobs, and a better overall shot.

 

[drumbum]

Green, green, green with envy. Yeah, I have two pair Marantz imp 6s and two pair smaller Advents, both stacked, but I don't have boxes and pristine face plates.

You, my friend, DID WELL!

Any speaker refurb advice needed, don't hesitate to ask.

 

[drumbum]

Great feedback fellas, I appreciate it. I am definitely leaning towards getting this unit back to full running order. I looked at the inside today, almost dust free. I am not sure how long it has been it it's original box, very clean.
Does anyone use this unit for records? It has an adjustable phono stage with 3 settings.
Thanks drumbum, I also snagged a pair of Smaller Advents with the fried egg tweeters at the same spot for $20.00, woofer surrounds shot, tweeters look perfect. The Marantz Imperial Model 6's are in their original packing, boxes and are almost perfect, grills are mint. I am thinking of running the Imperial 6's with the VN-900. Anyone have any thoughts on that? I don't want to hook the speakers up until the VN-900 is pop and sizzle free.
Here is a pic of the phono input, close up of the interestingly shaped SEA knobs, and a better overall shot.
View attachment 1065288 View attachment 1065289 View attachment 1065290

Dang I keep forgetting to quote.

I need to find out where you're shopping.

 

[johnebravo]

Great feedback fellas, I appreciate it. I am definitely leaning towards getting this unit back to full running order.

If you think at some point it would be helpful, I have the schematic for the VN-700 and other original paperwork and that's got to be extremely similar or practically identical to the VN-900.

 

[drumbum]

If you think at some point it would be helpful, I have the schematic for the VN-700 and other original paperwork and that's got to be extremely similar or practically identical to the VN-900.

johnebravo, I have the service manual for the vn-700, but not the other original paperwork. I would be interested in seeing what you have.

Would you have the owners manual by chance?

Thanks

 

[johnebravo]

johnebravo, I have the service manual for the vn-700, but not the other original paperwork. I would be interested in seeing what you have.

Would you have the owners manual by chance?

Thanks

I have an owner's manual along with the schematic diagram for the guts. If you PM me an email address, I can try scanning the owner's manual and sending it to you. (If you want the schematic too, I'll be happy to do that too, but that might take a little longer since it's too large for me to scan myself at home.)

 

[RHJ III]

Thanks again for all the helpful remarks. I will be dropping the VN-900 off for inspection in a couple of days. I will post what I find out.

 

[drumbum]

A big thank you to johnebravo for taking the time to scan and email the owners manual for the VN-700.

Way cool!

 

[RHJ III]

Well I haven't gotten the JVC into the doc yet, holidays finally over completely. I hope to get it in and serviced in the next couple weeks. I'll keep you guys posted. Thanks again for all the help and the conversation. Rock on!

 

[RHJ III]

Thanks again for all the helpful remarks. I will be dropping the VN-900 off for inspection in a couple of days. I will post what I find out.

Got her back couple weeks ago and now have time to post.
I had the unit tested and tuned up professionally. The inside was so clean the tech wondered how many hours it was even used. The lack of dust indicated most of its life, if not all, was in the original box. I have to say it sounds really nice, very nice indeed. I played some Rush 2112 from CD and a few others, nice. It is one of those little audio gems. JVC gets little love from the audiophile world, and for good reason, at times some of their gear was average at best. But most JVC gear got the job done just fine. This little beauty sets the bar a lot higher with the sound and the look. Such a clean appearance with one small red glowing light. I have to say I am impressed. I am curious about the phono stage with the 3 adjustable Ω settings, but alas I have no turntable.

 

[JMiP]

...
I am curious about the phono stage with the 3 adjustable Ω settings
...

I have nice JA-S77 integrated from JVC that I like quite a bit and has the same feature (but it's a switch on the front of the unit). The manual for the amp states that the 47k ohm setting is the commonly used setting since most TT cartridges are than many ohms. However, you can set it to the 100k ohm position for better highs. With my old Grado cart, I couldn't hear any difference at all between the three positions, but after I upgraded the cart to something much better, bow howdy can I hear the difference between the 47k ohm position and the 100k ohm position. I don't know if I'm messing anything up by doing that, so I just the leave the setting to the 47k ohm position.

 

[Wally1955]

Aloha
Victor AX-V1000 with remote control great catch in the Tokyo Bay
Unfortunatly seems there are some issues luckly 2channel are working great guess its worth to bring this fellow to full working force again
what you think guys?
Cheers