Fisher 610 Consolette with Companion Speaker

Well today was a very good day

Just got home with a very nice (but dirty) Consolette 610 with Companion 560 Speaker for the grand sum of $20.00 :yes:

I think these will clean up very nicely - but will need some help in performing a proper restoration. They are missing their little legs but the screw in part is there on the console.

The owner plugged in the 610 (uhgggg) and said it worked. The Companion has not been plugged in. I do have a variac so will be careful.

Wow these guys are really cool!

Here are a few as found pics -

Very nice! I spy a 30A, great amp. Good to hear you plan on restoring, that's a beautiful console. :thmbsp:

The 30A is the amp for the 560 companion speaker - pretty cool. The companion speaker has three nice speakers (I am guessing 8") and I suspect the console has the same - I'll check it out a little more closely tomorrow. I can't wait to listen to this setup ...

Double cool. Keep us posted. Let us know how they work and your progress

First thing I did was run over to Home Depot and buy 8 casters that screwed into the leg holes (much easier on the back).

Did a little cleaning and took a closer look.

Still feel this will polish up nice. Took a picture inside the companion speaker cab. - does anyone know what these will sound like?

I also need help with removing the 610-ST Chassis. I assume this removes from the cabinet through the top? The amp is sitting a little out of tilt and it's applying pressure on the volume knob also the tuner string is broken (shouldn't be a big deal). So it needs a proper restoration for sure.

The turntable is a Garrard RC 120 Mark II - pretty cool.

There is a cool little red light on the bottom of the 610 (power light?)

There is also a little light in the turntable section (far right hand side).

Inspection tag on the companion speaker dates it to September 24, 1958.

Anyway the start of a long journey for sure!

Speakers are Jensen made in 58. They should sound pretty nice with a recapped up to spec Fisher driving them. Damn nice find!

Great score! I've promised myself that I'm going to have a Fisher tube console in a mid-century cabinet. Something like that would fit the bill nicely.

Sams folder for the 30A is on my web page, but I can't help with the 610.

http://www.audiophool.cjb.net/hifistuff.html

That is a beauty. Very glad to hear you're going to preserve it.

Tom - thanks. that is a huge help!

Yep the wife has already approved a high profile location in the living room when the refurb is done (no small feat)

Update and New Problem!

Well I am making progress on my The Fisher Series 610 and Companion Speaker.

To date I've replaced the Caps, checked tubes on my limited tester (none found bad), cleaned lubed and un-stuck the Garrard (works like a charm), fixed the tuner string, replaced face bulbs and a good all around cleaning.

When I had the 610-ST Chassis and 30-A Chassis out I tested them seperately and both worked and sounded great.

Now reassembled in the console - they only work on Mono - no stereo.:tears:

They do sound great but when the selector is on Stereo (for the turntable or FM) I only get sound out of the main console. Switch to Mono and the companion speaker works fine.

I am thinking possibly a dirty selector switch or possibly a bad tube - can anybody recommend an area to look at?

Here are updated photos for the record (note I still have to put the cool legs on the bottom (which I have) - coasters just make it easy to work on.

OK - I am replying to my own question ...

As it turns out in order to receive FM "stereo" broadcasts on the 610 you need a second tuner (there is an input on the back of the 610) this second tuner then feeds the companion speaker. The turntable just needs to be plugged into the left and right phono inputs of the 610 (and it does work fine).

So I am happy to report that everything works as designed!

Interesting that you would need a second tuner for FM stereo - not sure where you would put it though?

Should just need an MPX adapter, not a whole other tuner.

From the original Series 610 operating instructions :

Radio-Stereo:Turn to this position for stereo broadcasts. What you will hear is the FM Tuner in the Radio-Phonograph on Channel A, and the tuner source you have connected to the Channel B Tuner input jack on the rear panel. This selector position is for use when you have completed your stereophonic installation with the stereo-companion.

There is a mono input for the second tuner on the back of the Series 610.

Odd - but this must have been one of the first FM stereo consoles (requiring two tuners).

They're describing the old FM/AM simulcast stereo. With an MPX adapter, you can get modern FM stereo on there.

Sam - thanks - interesting - I see a Fisher MPX Adapter on EPay .. but it aint cheap!

Any MPX adapter will do. I would assume that you're looking at the very collectible MPX-100.

Hi visman, have you recapped them, or just done a good cleaning & lubing kinda thing? I have a pair of those 610 amps, & high expectations for them, when I finally get around to recapping. :yes:

You might want to look around...

I thought I posted the original paperwork for the 610 in this forum. Or was it the 510?...

It sucks getting old....:thumbsdn:

visman said:

As it turns out in order to receive FM "stereo" broadcasts on the 610 you need a second tuner (there is an input on the back of the 610) this second tuner then feeds the companion speaker. The turntable just needs to be plugged into the left and right phono inputs of the 610 (and it does work fine).

So I am happy to report that everything works as designed!

Interesting that you would need a second tuner for FM stereo - not sure where you would put it though?

Click to expand...

In the late 50s Fisher prepared you for every conceivable form of stereophonic broadcasting the 1960s might throw your way. With the selector switch set to "Radio" (note the clever use of the little triangle symbol to denote stereophonic sources) you could connect an external AM tuner to the "B" tuner jack and listen to FM-AM stereocasts. Or you could uses a second FM tuner connected to the same jack for the much better sounding but much harder to find FM-FM stereocasts.



For those willing to try to predict the FCC's anticipated ruling on multiplex broadcasting, Fisher also included a set of MPX jacks on the "top" of the chassis. (They're actually on the side when installed in a console.) With Fisher's recommended optional MPX-10 connected you'd be all set to receive the experimental Crosby stereo transmissions from WBAL, NYC; KDKA, Pittsburgh, PA or WJER, Wilmington, DE. Or, if you weren't quite so adventurous and were willing to wait until after April 1961, you could buy an FCC approved GE/Zenith system MPX adapter.



The nice thing about the 610-ST is that if you bought one of the nicer MPX adapters equipped with feed through connections, you could run a cable from the FM OUTPUT on the 610 to the Channel "B" Aux input on your MPX adapter and still leave your external AM or FM tuner hooked up to the "B" tuner input. That way you just had to set the selector switch to the "triangle" Radio position for either FM-AM stereocasts or multiplex stereo broadcasts and didn't have to redo all your console cabling. Pretty nifty back then but not terribly useful these days.