Fisher 400 Stereo receiver

jaykoly

AK Subscriber
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Just got home from picking up a Fisher 400 stereo receiver. The owner called me today and said he had some stuff to get rid of or it was going to the dump. This receiver was one of the things he wanted to get rid of. He had it hooked up until this last week and told me it works good, no problems. I have not unboxed it yet to look at it closely but I know there is no case. These usually had a wood case correct?. He also gave me a spare set of tubes for it still in the box. Is this a good receiver? I am not very knowledgable in tube gear but would sure like to learn. I will get some pics up later.
 
Moved to the Fisher Forum.

"Is this a good receiver?". Yes!! Congrats on acquiring a wonderful piece of equipment! The walnut cabinet was an extra cost option, so not all receivers had one. If you want to get one they're for sale on eBay all the time.

Welcome to the group!
 
Just got home from picking up a Fisher 400 stereo receiver. .... Is this a good receiver? ...

Congrats! As noted this is a good unit and I prefer the sound to the also excellent 500C (that's just me),

Make sure you look up the threads describing the work that should be done to such a vintage unit to make it safe to use.

If this has some of the problematic original parts like the can capacitors, it is not a good idea to use it until they have been replaced; otherwise you could experience a failure that would ruin the unit.
 
Here are a couple of pics. This is how I got it and I have not cleaned or done anything to it. I also got the original Operators manual, Service Manual and Technical Specs Manual for this series of receivers.

I know this unit needs to have some things done to be safe to use, but this is where I really need help. I know there are threads with information on parts needed which I can easily find and purchase. The problem for me is I have no experience in actually doing this kind of rebuild. I really would like to learn how to do this type of thing.
 

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Well, if you want to learn how to work on your 400, you came to the right place. Here's a little light reading to get you started:

http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=78700

http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=255434

The first thing we'd like you to do is to post some pics of the inside so we can see what, if anything, has already been done.

Here's another thread...unfortunately, you'll see right away why we strongly urge all members to NEVER use an offsite photo hosting service like Photobucket or Flickr. The original poster deleted all the pics on the hosting site, and now this thread is full of dead links:

http://audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=140313&highlight=fisher+400

Most important: As you do your reading, you'll realize pretty quickly that there are significant differences of opinion on different topics. Do your best to start to form your own. It'll take a while, and it will take some study and learning, but you'll start to get it.
 
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Before I open this up to take pictures, do I need to make sure the caps have been completely discharged. If so how do I do that? I am reluctant to just dive in to this without repecting the danger here and I don't want to cause damage to the receiver somehow.
 
Before I open this up to take pictures, do I need to make sure the caps have been completely discharged. If so how do I do that? I am reluctant to just dive in to this without repecting the danger here and I don't want to cause damage to the receiver somehow.

If it's been several hours since the last time it was turned on, then you don't need to discharge the caps. It's good that you're being careful, though!:thmbsp:
 
Inside pics 400

Here are some new pics of the inside. Sorry if pics are not great, I only have cell phone for camera.
 

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Nice 400! The original documentation is a nice bonus too, the owner's manual for the 400 seems pretty rare.

The unit looks original under the hood, the Ero-Fol coupling caps are still there. That big gold can cap on top is not original, it's too tall. My 400 has a metal can there. Someone added a power switch to the left of the volume knob too. The switch in the volume knob must have failed at some point in the past. If you want to go back to original, you'll need a new faceplate and working volume/power switch.
 
Just got home from picking up a Fisher 400 stereo.... ....hooked up until this last week and told me it works good, no problems....
He also gave me a spare set of tubes for it still in the box. ....
I am not very knowledgable in tube gear but would sure like to learn.

Well as you see you came to the right place...:D
The Fisher 400 is an excellent sounding unit. If he's been using it,you could probably bring it up slowly on a variac ( with a speaker load in place ) and give it a listen. ( Just to make sure you become addicted to the sound ).:D
How about a picture of the spare tubes ? ?
 
I've got a couple of questions.
1. What's the serial # stamped on the chassis?
2. Are the 12AX7s Telefunkens (say made in Western Germany) or Sylvanias (yellow lettering)?

I ask because I've got a couple of 400 manuals and they have mustard colored covers where yours are blue. So, I'm wondering if it's a late production run unit. I guess residual stock was sold for years after the last manufacturing date.

This is a nice one. Don't worry about things like the on/off switch unless you get "purist's disease" like many of us have. That one looks clean enough and doesn't detract from the unit in my estimation.

Enjoy!
 
If you want to go with the original Volume / power switch, metalbone has them.

Don:

The manuals are early and late versions. I've got manuals for most of my Fisher gear (consoles) from '65 and newer and they are all White over Blue with Black Lettering.

The White /Gold are I would say pre '65.

Larry
 
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