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Pioneer PL-200 sudden speed drop and right channel...

multijd

multijd

Active Member
Hello,

I have a Pioneer PL-200 TT. It occasionally drops in speed. This is very intermittent and has been doing it on and off for years. Has anyone had similar problems and know of a solution? Also the right channel cuts out. It seems to be in the cable. Just touching the RCA plug will remedy for a bit but it always eventually does it again. Frustrating.

Thanks!
 
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Thanks Zodia. I don't know how to judge the drop but it is significant. The pitch of the music drops and the strobe appears to move to the slowest extreme. I think I will try spray. It almost always will return and stabilize after adjusting the pitch pot but it is intermittent and annoying.
 
Yup it certainly sounds like it is the pot.
My wife's Sony did the opposite, it would speed up, a couple of squirts of Deoxit on the pot , fixed it.
 
Yeah, that should solve your problem. I had one just like that and it became very, very temperamental when the pitch pot got dirty. It was one of the more fussy units when it came to that.

As far as the channel problem, does it clear up if you take the head shell off and put it on again? I had a Technics SL-1500 that had a channel issue for years and that would fix the problem until I replaced the head shell altogether, then it didn't do it at all. That Pioneer uses the same type of head shell (oddly enough the replacement one on my Technics ended up being a Pioneer) so it could easily be the same issue.
 
Thanks Tago Mago. I never tried taking the headshell off. I just usually touch the RCA plug on the receiver lightly and the channel comes back on.
 
Since you'll have to open the turntable up to access the actual speed control, look for the two speed control pots for 33 & 45 in addition to the one that the external adjustment is attached to. I've never had a PL-200 apart but they're probably on the same board that the external one is attached to. They should be cleaned too.

The intermittent channel is almost certainly bad cables. You'll want to replace them while the turntable is apart. Of course, since the problem responds to wiggling the RCAs, you could just cut the RCAs off along with about an inch of cable and then just replace the plugs. That might solve the problem - until the 30 year old cable breaks in another spot. Replacing the cable is the surest route. Plus, good new cables will improve the sonics.

John
 
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multijd said:
Thanks Tago Mago. I never tried taking the headshell off. I just usually touch the RCA plug on the receiver lightly and the channel comes back on.
Click to expand...

Yup! Bad connection in the cable. Cleaning the headshell contacts is good maintenance but it isn't likely to solve your problem.

John
 
boreas said:
Since you'll have to open the turntable up to access the actual speed control, look for the two speed control pots for 33 & 45 in addition to the one that the external adjustment is attached to. I've never had a PL-200 apart but they're probably on the same board that the external one is attached to. They should be cleaned too.

The intermittent channel is almost certainly bad cables. You'll want to replace them while the turntable is apart. Of course, since the problem responds to wiggling the RCAs, you could just cut the RCAs off along with about an inch of cable and then just replace the plugs. That might solve the problem - until the 30 year old cable breaks in another spot. Replacing the cable is the surest route. Plus, good new cables will improve the sonics.

John
Click to expand...

I'll go with John on this. Mine did basically the same thing. Ended up replacing the whole cable. Pioneers cables were OK when they were new, but 30+ years of movement and "environmental impact have taken their toll on them. Open up the bottom and solder the new ones right where the old ones connected at the terminal block. You'll need to string a new ground wire also. If you get thicker wires you'll have to carve out the access hole in the base.

As for the pots, the main (top of the deck)one is usually the culprit, although the two inside on the motor base contribute to the problem.

clean and exercise all three with DeOxit and Progold. Put all three in the middle of their rotation.

Turn on the unit and adjust the 33 speed to null out the strobe. then switch to 45. Note whether faster or slower. Adjust the 45 pot inside until it is very close to null or null. You want minimal adjustment or none between switching speeds.

The 200's a good table, but like anything else mechanical it does need maintenance. The inside pots shouldn't need De-Oxit or cleaning for another 20 years unless it gets dunked in water, or such. The top pot should get De-Oxit once a year as a maintenance item.

Larry
 
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