The Fisher 500B--what's a fair price?

VELVET ELVIS

New Member
Hello-
I'm looking at a really nice 500B that has been restored and upgraded significantly. To quote the owner:

"Original Fisher and RCA Tubes, Power supply capacitors replaced, coupling capacitors replaced with original type oil caps, rectifier replaced with diodes, and resistors added to protect transformers in case a tube fails. Bulbs replaced. Tuning eye works perfectly. Wood cabinet is in perfect condition. Sounds amazing"

The series of pictures show a beautiful piece. I've not seen it in person yet.

I'd really love to obtain tube unit that is somewhat hassle free and beautiful sounding... good choice? Thoughts on a fair price?

Thanks
 
I own a comparably "upgraded to the max" Fisher 500B - I paid about $300 for the unrestored unit in sound physical shape, and all the upgrades/labor including choice NOS tubes was about $800 so I'd say somewhere in the $1100 range would be fair. It does indeed sound amazing. It looks amazing too - a total classic and very good choice! :yes:
 
"original type oil capacitors"? I don't think there were any in the 500B (I could go downstairs and look were I not so lazy).

That said, I would think, with cabinet, not less than 800 smackers if all the claimed work is true and the tubes are NOS replacements (or good originals) and the outputs matched. Were cathode resistors added (oh, yes, apparently they were)?

It would be good to check to ensure that the bias supply was suitably modified after installation of silicon rectifiers to ensure the correct supply voltage.

All this being said, I couldn't imagine spending a thousand bucks for one of these, even if perfect. They're good - but not a thousand bucks good.

I do have a bit of experience with the last generation of vacuum tube Fisher receivers (although I cannot claim to be a real expert).

The "A-lister"...

DSC_9817 by mhardy6647, on Flickr

The "B" team...

Fisher1400 by mhardy6647, on Flickr
 
Thanks Crestwood and mhardy... great feedback and NICE gear mhardy!!

The seller is seeking $750 for the unit which looks to be in mint shape. Of course, I'll need to visit with it and take it for a test run, but I appreciate all the info.

I'm a Sansui guy through and through, but The Fisher stuff has always intrigued me. I own a mint set of XP-10's that I purchased from the original owner for $40 and have always appreciated the build quality of those.
 
$750 for a totally restored and trouble free 500b is a fair price. On the other hand, I had 5 of that model over the years, completely restored them (every capacitors replaced plus all other things mentioned above), kept two and sold three, but I never sold one for more than $500. Another thing is, check if every electrolytic is replaced. If the seller did the restoration himself, ask if he can install a thermistor for you.

Oh, and one really important thing is, if the preamp tubes are all original (telefunken or mullard), the price is great, if they are replaced with JJ or even US made tubes, that's a slightly different story.
 
I must say that is one nice looking piece. See if he would sell you the Thorens TT setting beside the Fisher. You wouldn't want to break up a great pair like that. :D
 
Thanks Crestwood and mhardy... great feedback and NICE gear mhardy!!

The seller is seeking $750 for the unit which looks to be in mint shape. Of course, I'll need to visit with it and take it for a test run, but I appreciate all the info.

I'm a Sansui guy through and through, but The Fisher stuff has always intrigued me. I own a mint set of XP-10's that I purchased from the original owner for $40 and have always appreciated the build quality of those.

If you note my 500C sits atop a Sansui 1000A. The latter is... well... it looks nice. The Fisher, as far as I am concerned, is a much nicer piece of hardware in all respects (although the Sansui did have the option of plug-in SUTs, which is kind of cool -- and very nice output transformers). To be frank, I have the 1000A 'cause the price was right; I should really gut it for the OPTs, but it is in good shape and I just don't have the heart to do that :p

750 for the 500B with cabinet sounds perfectly reasonable -- although I'd concur that it must be fully equipped with "good" (i.e., high-snooty factor European and US output) tubes to command "top dollar".

The 500B is worth a lot less than the 500C. I think $750 is fair to high.

Why do you say that? I certainly don't see it thus... but I am not in the business of buying and selling Fishers, so I don't speak with much authority.
But I don't see the 500B as inferior to the C in any way in terms of real-world performance or intrinsic quality, indeed the magic eye is a plus aesthetically, I'd opine.
 
The 500B is worth a lot less than the 500C. I think $750 is fair to high.

Agree that 'sold' prices for 500c vs 500b are higher on that website. That being said, unless you need a headphone jack the 'B' is more visually appealing IMHO, and the sound is the same. My restored 500b is dead silent with volume maxed and no input - something to check before purchase.
 
Why do you say that? I certainly don't see it thus... but I am not in the business of buying and selling Fishers, so I don't speak with much authority.
But I don't see the 500B as inferior to the C in any way in terms of real-world performance or intrinsic quality, indeed the magic eye is a plus aesthetically, I'd opine.

If you look at eBay completed items, 500Bs tend to go significantly lower than 500Cs for whatever reason.
 
Thanks to all for dropping in and providing excellent information on this iconic piece. I really appreciate your insights!

Paul
 
I'm picking up a 500B in the morning. Looking forward to sharing my experience. Paul, lets compare notes!
 
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