I just made my first move into vintage audio when I purchased a Fisher Stereophonic 610 console yesterday. It includes a Garrard RC 121 turntable and an am/fm tuner. It's got a few problems and would love some advice on how to proceed. But first I'll give a little history on the console
I purchased it yesterday at a moving sale. The owner didn't know much about it or the history, he bought it at an estate sale a few years back. When I came through the door, it was playing music through the fm tuner and sounded ok. He said the turntable was working earlier but when he switched it to phono, there was very little sound unless he turned the volume way up. And when we tried adjusting the volume, there was a lot of static. After we agreed on a price ($70), I waited a bit for the tubes to cool down before I moved it into the car.
And so now it sits in my living room. I haven't turned it on because I read on some other post that there are some things to do before I turn it back on. And so now, the questions start:
1. What are the first things that need to be done before plugging it back in? I would love to be able to at least listen to the radio?
2. What are the first things to check on the record player? Or is it a problem with the volume knob?
3. What books do you recommend for a newbie like me? I'm specifically looking for something that will get me trying (pretty much the operative word) to figure this out. I found a few books on amazon, I was hoping some of you can comment on these books:
A. How to Repair Old Time Radios by Clayton Hallmark
B. Antique Radio Restoration Guide by David Johnson
C. Valve Radio and Audio Repair Handbook by Chas Miller
D. Electronic Classics: Collecting, Restoring and Repair by Andrew Emmerson
D. Beginner's Guide to Reading Schematics by Robert Traister
Btw, I don't have any particular electronics training. I remember bits and pieces of Ohm's law and such from high school physics.
I know that's a lot. Thank you so much for reading this post and any comments are much appreciated. Hopefully I'll be able to chime in and help somebody else in the future. Thanks.
I purchased it yesterday at a moving sale. The owner didn't know much about it or the history, he bought it at an estate sale a few years back. When I came through the door, it was playing music through the fm tuner and sounded ok. He said the turntable was working earlier but when he switched it to phono, there was very little sound unless he turned the volume way up. And when we tried adjusting the volume, there was a lot of static. After we agreed on a price ($70), I waited a bit for the tubes to cool down before I moved it into the car.
And so now it sits in my living room. I haven't turned it on because I read on some other post that there are some things to do before I turn it back on. And so now, the questions start:
1. What are the first things that need to be done before plugging it back in? I would love to be able to at least listen to the radio?
2. What are the first things to check on the record player? Or is it a problem with the volume knob?
3. What books do you recommend for a newbie like me? I'm specifically looking for something that will get me trying (pretty much the operative word) to figure this out. I found a few books on amazon, I was hoping some of you can comment on these books:
A. How to Repair Old Time Radios by Clayton Hallmark
B. Antique Radio Restoration Guide by David Johnson
C. Valve Radio and Audio Repair Handbook by Chas Miller
D. Electronic Classics: Collecting, Restoring and Repair by Andrew Emmerson
D. Beginner's Guide to Reading Schematics by Robert Traister
Btw, I don't have any particular electronics training. I remember bits and pieces of Ohm's law and such from high school physics.
I know that's a lot. Thank you so much for reading this post and any comments are much appreciated. Hopefully I'll be able to chime in and help somebody else in the future. Thanks.