Marantz 20B tech

belyin

belyin

AK Subscriber
Subscriber
I traded a few rare punk rock 45's for a Marantz 20B in good cosmetic condition, and all the functions work. I would like to get it serviced and aligned, but I don't know who to send it to. Terry DeWick did a great job on my MR-78, but I see on his website he is overloaded with work and now only servicing McIntosh equipment. Any suggestions?
 
I might also recommend Tom Ishimoto at Northridge Electronics, he worked with and serviced that era of gear for Marantz as their Service Manager, and continues to work on them now.
 
Congrats on your 20b. I think they are one of the best ss tuners ever made.

Is there anything that indicates that it "needs" servicing or do you just want to have it checked out for peace of mind?
 
You have one of the best tuners ever made in regards to reception and sound quality. It will be worth while to have it serviced by a tech that really knows that IF section that the tuner has. I have a model 19 receiver which for the most part is a 20b tuner with a preamp and power amp. I was fortunate to know a Marantz factory engineer from that time period who had the test equipment and knowledge to align that tuner to specs. That was about 13 years ago and it still pulls in stations and sounds better than anything I have in the house.
 
onemug said:
Congrats on your 20b. I think they are one of the best ss tuners ever made.

Is there anything that indicates that it "needs" servicing or do you just want to have it checked out for peace of mind?
Click to expand...

Thanks to all for the suggestions: it appears all the best names have very long backlogs!

I haven't listened to it in a few months, but I remember if having an annoying high frequency emphasis somewhat like a hissing sound on top of the signal (i.e., not a constant hiss.) I was told that it was checked out by a tech, but I would like to send it to someone who really knows what they are doing.
 
Is it solid state or tube? Since i don't have a SM hard to tell the design details, but I assume it is an old one, with transformers in the IF, uses a ratio detector, the old stereo demux using transformers/coils/caps, pre- PLL chips like HA1196 et al.
Since the unit is so old, it does make sense to at least check ripple on the supplies as those electrolytic capacitors are pretty old, it maybe be a simple re-cap of the PS. Don't really know until it is on the bench and hooked up to the TE.
Does the hiss happen in mono mode?
 
Yup, long backlog.. wondering if your noise is IBOC interference..
 
Is the station HD? Do you get the same type of interference on other HD stations?
 
Punker X said:
Is the station HD? Do you get the same type of interference on other HD stations?
Click to expand...

I just tried it again. It is noisiest on the local NPR station, which has 2 HD signals, so I assume I have problems with shelf noise. (My MR-78 and Pioneer TX-9500 are both nice and quiet.) The odd thing is there is more hiss when I switch to mono!
 
The Marantz Model 20B is great sounding, but like the Model 20 before it and the Model 10 and Model 10B, IBOC and SCA is not well filtered. Count thy birdies. Mike Zucarro in California is expert on these. This tuner is like the 10B in many ways in SS. Needs a really ace technician to repair. The optocouplers are a problem with age (don't be surprised if you need those replaced or even bypassed). And make sure with the service manual, that you have the service bulletins on the Model 20 and 20B. There are quite a few of them. PunkerX likely knows his way through the Marantz of this era. My commentary also applies to owners of the Model 18 and 19 receivers (the tuner section here is also this family)
 
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