What make & model tube receivers aren't worth fixing or buying?

AnalogOnly

AnalogOnly

Active Member
My hope is to either find a fixer upper or a cheap tube am/fm receiver.
Some models are so obscure and rare you cant find any info on them let alone parts. Sure dont want to waste my time seeking out a crummy brand name or bad model that has a history of trouble or has zero parts available for it.

It seems like a shorter list finding out what to avoid.
Thanks!
 
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Funny

Looking into finding a circa '50's / 60's tube receiver.
On the cheap... (for now)
There seems to be a lot of garbage being sold just because its old
 
It really depends what your goals are. If its real high end reproduction with plenty of power, you're looking for Fishers and Sherwoods and Pilots and such like that. THose don't tend to be cheap. If something thats mid-fi with maybe a dozen or less watts is suitable, then lots of things will fit that billing.
 
I don't think I'd hesitate to pick up anything if the price were right. All things being equal, I'd bias towards American made stuff; European made as a second choice, and Japanese made bringing up the rear.

Before axes are sharpened :-) the issue isn't snobbery, nor jingoism. The 1960s Japanese vacuum tube (point to point wired) receivers are cramped and somewhat messy below decks. That makes them kind of hard to work on (at least for a fat-fingered schlub like me).

I find some of the European equipment a tad arcane (this applies more to the radios more than hifi equipment).

The Marantz (amps), McIntosh (amps, preamps) Fisher (amps and receivers) and - to a slightly lesser extent - Scott (amps and receivers) are pretty restorer-friendly in layout. The Sherwoods are great, but a little complicated, too. Some harman-kardon amps and receivers are uncommon, inexpensive, and fairly decent candidates for restoration (some employ some less-than-plentiful tube types; some can be 'worked around'). The 'odd tube' caution applies to Stromberg-Carlson equipment, too, in some cases - but S-C is another "almost below the radar" brand with good quality at a reasonable price.

The vintage Radio Shack (mostly Japanese made) can be found inexpensively; some of it's not bad at all to work on/restore. Most of the Lafayette-branded hifi gear of the 1960s was made in Japan by Kenwood. Allied's "333" receiver is a rebranded Pioneer SX-34.
 
I would suggest running a separate tuner if this is your first rebuild. Receivers are a bear to work on while integrateds can have tons of room. That said, some of the early Jap stuff is pretty good. A couple that fly under the radar that I would consider very good HiFi are Knight, Trio, and Roland. I personally like 6BM8 output tubes which were used a lot in Japanese gear, but they also used 6BQ5s which everyone seems to like. Then you could get yourself a nice Sherwood tuner to rebuild after you did the integrated. Just my 2 cents.
 
Magnavox console systems, popular in the early 60's, have good amplifiers, and not so much tuner sections, but if your favorite station is a strong signal, that won't be a serious issue. COnsoles, being physically big, tend to sell cheaper than component boxes.

Some people would say that a bad tube amp is still better than a good day at work... :)
 
jaymanaa said:
I would suggest running a separate tuner if this is your first rebuild. Receivers are a bear to work on while integrateds can have tons of room. That said, some of the early Jap stuff is pretty good. A couple that fly under the radar that I would consider very good HiFi are Knight, Trio, and Roland. I personally like 6BM8 output tubes which were used a lot in Japanese gear, but they also used 6BQ5s which everyone seems to like. Then you could get yourself a nice Sherwood tuner to rebuild after you did the integrated. Just my 2 cents.
Click to expand...
All good advice. The Sherwood tuners are superb sounding, decent performing RF-wise, and inexpensive. The only thing I'll add about the 6BM8 and its kin - they are nice sounding tubes (quite revered in Japan, even to this day)... but a pair in push-pull is "only" good for 8 watts. Plenty for Jay or for me, with 100 dB-plus sensitive loudspeakers, but maybe not quite so for the OP.
wa2ise said:
...
Some people would say that a bad tube amp is still better than a good day at work... :)
Click to expand...

I would definitely say that...
 
mhardy6647 said:
All good advice. The Sherwood tuners are superb sounding, decent performing RF-wise, and inexpensive. The only thing I'll add about the 6BM8 and its kin - they are nice sounding tubes (quite revered in Japan, even to this day)... but a pair in push-pull is "only" good for 8 watts. Plenty for Jay or for me, with 100 dB-plus sensitive loudspeakers, but maybe not quite so for the OP.


I would definitely say that...
Click to expand...

Ever heard a 6GW8 amp Mark? I have one (EV I think) that needs a recap. I think the 6GW8 is real close to the 6BM8.
 
ahem... umm, yeah... there's an AA-32 in the basement :-p

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This was 50 smackers at the NEARC semi-annual swap meet/fleamarket a few years back (sort of back on topic for this thread). www.nearc.net



One of these, too. This was 20 bucks in good working condition, as you see it, at NEARC a couple of years ago. PP6BM8.

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If you want to put any significant effort to restore old unit, it makes more sense to get one that was top of the line in its days. If you just want something inexpensive that works, get one of modern Chinese tube amps. Prices start at $350-400, and they just work in stock form.
 
Thanks for all the excellent advice and things to consider.
I am leaning towards anything made in the US.
Here are some of the items I have been looking @ and wondering if they are worth it
They all claim these work:

Which tuner and/or receiver is the real gem in this list?

Tuners
PILOT MODEL 580 AM/FM TUNER $150
LUXMAN T-400 am/fm Stereo Tuner $100
HARMAN KARDON MODEL A-130 TUNER $100
Harman Kardon T-224 Duet AM FM Tube Tuner $130
Fisher FM-100B Stereo FM Tube Tuner $100
MARANTZ MODEL 26 STEREO TUNER $75
Scott 330D AM/FM Tube Tuner $400


Receivers
FISHER 500-B FM STEREO TUBE AMP RECEIVER $230
FISHER 400 TUBE STEREO RECEIVER TUNER AMPLIFIER AMP $310
Fisher 500-C Tube Amplifier Receiver -$150
Pioneer SB60 StereoMaster Solid State Tube Receiver $75

1959 Fisher X-101 Tube Stereo $150 (DONT WORK -Sure does look nice tho)

I have always had solid state systems - Kind of a noob @ owning a tube system - largely due to prices.
 
mhardy6647 said:
I don't think I'd hesitate to pick up anything if the price were right. All things being equal, I'd bias towards American made stuff; European made as a second choice, and Japanese made bringing up the rear.

Before axes are sharpened :-) the issue isn't snobbery, nor jingoism. The 1960s Japanese vacuum tube (point to point wired) receivers are cramped and somewhat messy below decks. That makes them kind of hard to work on (at least for a fat-fingered schlub like me).

I find some of the European equipment a tad arcane (this applies more to the radios more than hifi equipment).

The Marantz (amps), McIntosh (amps, preamps) Fisher (amps and receivers) and - to a slightly lesser extent - Scott (amps and receivers) are pretty restorer-friendly in layout. The Sherwoods are great, but a little complicated, too. Some harman-kardon amps and receivers are uncommon, inexpensive, and fairly decent candidates for restoration (some employ some less-than-plentiful tube types; some can be 'worked around'). The 'odd tube' caution applies to Stromberg-Carlson equipment, too, in some cases - but S-C is another "almost below the radar" brand with good quality at a reasonable price.

The vintage Radio Shack (mostly Japanese made) can be found inexpensively; some of it's not bad at all to work on/restore. Most of the Lafayette-branded hifi gear of the 1960s was made in Japan by Kenwood. Allied's "333" receiver is a rebranded Pioneer SX-34.
Click to expand...

Generally I'd tend to flip the Euro and Japanese stuff. The Euro stuff is very cramped and hard to work on, the Japanese is more like US gear. Quality was pretty high across the board in those days, most of the "cheap," lower-quality stuff seemed to be stuffed into cheap consoles and semi-portables.
 
I suggest this one because it has good sounding, easily available EL84 output tubes: 1959 Fisher X-101 Tube Stereo $150. But, tbh, I would jump at any of the other Fishers too. It may be harder to get the 7591 output tubes for them though.
 
Marantz is transistor. In tuners the HH Scott is tubed and the best of this lineup, the Fisher tuner is next best. In the receivers, the Fisher 500 C is best, though the 500B and 400 are good. The Pioneer is not all tube. Do remember, most any of these will need efficient speakers and an undemanding load. All will most likely need recapping and selenium rectifiers replaced before powering.
 
Well, I have to agree with Jay on Receivers.

I'm not the fondest of Tube Integrated Amps either as I prefer more performance.

But if you'd like something that's really upgradeable and has a very cool Enhanced Biasing for better bass, power and lower distortion.

Personally I would rather work with this, buy one used and upgrade in sections when you can. http://www.audioregenesis.com/products/SCA-35/index.html

sca_restored.jpg


Read the full technical description on EFB it makes a lot of sense, So much so I'll be using the EFB on a couple of amplifiers myself. The amplifier is likely a little giant killer IMO.

On the other hand this thing replacing its 12AU7 tubes with 12BH7's will rock your house down, its real authoritative like SS and very smooth, its one of the best EL34 amplifiers I have ever heard. It should be able to be had in the $500 range. Its easy to repair as well. Early models from what I understand did not have remote as the one that I had here. Its 30 watts Class A so if you need power this is an animal. Review here http://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazine/equipment/1204/aslaq1003dt.htm And thats with 12AU7's, nowhere near what it does with the 12BH7's.

aslaq1003dt.jpg
aslaq1003dtrear.jpg




Just my 2 cents worth.

SET12
 
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