Preparing for G99X restoration [advice needed]

[stopkidding]

Warning - all of the following is merely a guess.

I think if the changes were made due to cost savings, then it probably wasn't just component or assembly cost. Perhaps it was harder to tune, test and align the original circuit combination. If customers and marketing didn't ask for it, there is no need for engineering and manufacturing to sell it. The entire industry was in a downturn and it was natural for companies to trim features and cost to preserve falling margins. I believe that was period where the Yen fell sharply against the dollar which obliterated Japanese HiFi industry profits.

 

[JoseHH]

Probably removing four transistors would not have been the most important cost reduction strategy. Wouldn't the lower cost of the materials (knobs cabinets etc) used in the general construction represent a bigger chunck of the savings? After all, the finishing and the sturdiness of the products had very clearly a cheaper look in this period of Sansui production. Note that the AU-D11II was manfactured mostly in 1983 and 1984. Later models like the AU-D707X and the AU-D907X which were made primarily from 1984 untill 1986 -only to be sold in Japan - carried the cascode driver arrangement but had a construction quality similar to that for the AU-D11II. Production runs of these japan only models were not small either. The AU-G99X was made mostly in the 1984-1986 period too, but it was for export, and do to the apreciation of the Yen, itprobably made sense to make additional cost reductions in it.
For the user that is rebuilding his AU-G99X, I would say that it seems to be a relatively rare model, and a fine amplifier to renovate and enjoy. So all the best luck with your project.

 

[pete_mac]

My thoughts are that if this element of the circuit was so essential to good sound quality, Sansui would have reinstated it at some later stage with their top-end Alphas. Remember that these later models were not influenced by cost-cutting measures whatsoever - they utilised boutique parts throughout and all kinds of tweaks to elicit the best possible sound.

 

[Hyperion]

The AU-α907XR and '907Limited - for example, don't exhibit that circuit design feature.