Inexpensive & Simple Vintage Receivers for Practice

Luca Signore

New Member
Hey all -

I'd love to hear some of your suggestions for some vintage receivers that I could purchase for practice with regards to things like cleaning pots/switches, testing and replacing caps, and general maintenance. I recently got an SX-950 that I'd love to eventually do some work on, but I want something cheaper and simpler to practice on since I'm completely new to this. Bonus points if it sounds decent so I can keep it for my classroom or garage!

Thanks!
 
LOL ... that is a Slam Dunk as far as I am concerned a JVC SR 100/200 or 201! And they ... still look, uh "different??" But they sound great and are seriously undervalued and under appreciated! I got my first JVC 200 ... despite it's looks! But it was cheap 35 bucks??? And I saw them new back in the day and back then ... they looked uh weird?? But now .. they look kinda cool! I luv it and I want to get more! :)
 
LOL ... that is a Slam Dunk as far as I am concerned a JVC SR 100/200 or 201! And they ... still look, uh "different??" But they sound great and are seriously undervalued and under appreciated! I got my first JVC 200 ... despite it's looks! But it was cheap 35 bucks??? And I saw them new back in the day and back then ... they looked uh weird?? But now .. they look kinda cool! I luv it and I want to get more! :)

I recently recapped my JR-S301, and I'm not sure that series is a good first choice. The slider controls take up a lot of real estate, and in some cases block access to desolder capacitors on the tone control board. I can't speak for the other models of the range, but I will say on the 301, you can't easily get to the bottom of the main amplifier board-- you have to swing it out in an awkward way to get to the capacitors. The x00 series are quite different internally-- the power amplifier section is on a socketed card-- and may be easier to disassemble.

I had a much easier experience with a Yamaha R-500. You can unbolt the entire bottom panel basically, and gain access to everything from above and below. Unfortunately, it's only a mediocre unit at its best (40 watts per channel, and it's based on STK modules which are scarce to replace)

You might look towards '80s gear because they moved towards sockets and plugs, rather than wire-wrap and individual wires, which may make it easier to knock down into individual boards for work. Harman/Kardon made some nice little units like the 330i and 385i which look fairly simple to disassemble.

An amplifier, rather than a receiver, is likely a simpler place to start. Eschewing a tuner saves you a small bag of capacitors, and avoids issues where the tuner loses alignment after the replacement. (YOu can sometimes hack it up by using strong local broadcasters to roughly get things aligned, but if you want to do it the right way, you need access to tools that most of us don't have. Some people compromise by just not recapping the tuner.
 
Ever see Swordfish?

Nothing like pressure to make you do a good job

The SX-950 is one of the easiest receivers to work on. Just do it.

There are only a few others I can think of that may be as easy. The Pioneer SX-x80 series are fairly easy. Some of the older baby Marantz. The older Sansui. But all those have enough popularity and value that finding one cheap could be difficult.

If you subscribe to AK, I could offer you some working units that need some TLC along the lines you’re talking about.

The real place to get inexpensive learning units is in the repair area. But that’s another level up, or three.
 
I recently recapped my JR-S301, and I'm not sure that series is a good first choice. The slider controls take up a lot of real estate, and in some cases block access to desolder capacitors on the tone control board. I can't speak for the other models of the range, but I will say on the 301, you can't easily get to the bottom of the main amplifier board-- you have to swing it out in an awkward way to get to the capacitors. The x00 series are quite different internally-- the power amplifier section is on a socketed card-- and may be easier to disassemble.
Oh??? Well thanks for the heads up! All I've done with my 201 is pull the cover and clean switches. But the x00,s are inexpensive and plentiful.

That is a generous offer you made however and I'd say the OP should take you up on it. :)
 
Let a local opportunity purchase be your guide.

This is exactly what I would recommend. I still occasionally see lower line Realistic, Pioneer, etc at the thrifts which would make great candidates as practice.
It will also let you see if you really want to build up the proper tools for the hobby as the cost can be not insignificant if you're only planning on going through one or two units.
 
Thank you everyone for the great recommendations! I shot a lowball offer at a guy selling an SX-450 locally just as a Hail Mary and the guy accepted - so I guess that's my practice project! Ok, so I'm super excited to get started and to learn. What are some of the recommended tools? As OMGCat! mentioned, tool cost is definitely a factor, so what are the essentials that I need to get started? I'm guessing a soldering iron (any recommendations?) and a multimeter / ESR meter?
 
I liked working on the SX-950. It was straightforward. Everything is modularized onto discrete boards.
After removing the front face (easy and low risk) even the board with the tone controls mounted to it, etc. could be pulled from the chassis for easy access.
There is just barely enough slack in wire leads to access bottom sides of all boards.

You can pick nearly anything to work on just to practice some soldering/desoldering skills.
I took apart and reassembled portions of a PC power supply and an old radio to get a feel for it.
It's not difficult work, but failure to work methodically, failure to pay attention to detail (like replacement transistor pinout), and failure to test your work regularly as your proceed are all punished.

You don't need pro-quality tools to start.
You need a temperature-adjustable soldering iron. I would get a cheap soldering station off Amazon. Someone here can recommend a brand.
You need a modest digital multimeter. I think that I paid $35 for a decent meter. It's no Fluke, but it works OK.
You need some desoldering braid, some flux, and some rosin-core solder, all surprisingly expensive.
Some hand tools for cutting and stripping wire are required. Small pliers are needed for grasping things and bending/straightening wire leads.
A set of screwdrivers is essential.
I have yet to use an ESR meter.
You will need to make up a dim bulb tester (maybe $10 in parts).

I love buying used tools, more reason to troll thrift stores.

If you don't need a lot of power, you may end up liking that SX-450 quite a bit.
I like my 950 a lot. But with a few tweaks of the tone controls, I can get my 636 to sound nearly indistinguishable to my ears.

The service manual appears to be available on HiFi Engine. You have to create an account to get it.
A cap/transistor parts list is here on AK: http://akdatabase.com/AKview/displayimage.php?album=88&pos=11
 
^^^what he said


Also, if budget is a concern, you don't absolutely have to have a great DMM, and there are lots of inexpensive options. You do need decent probes though. In addition, a pair of mini-grabbers (Pomona is the most popular brand) is very high on the priority list.
 
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