Sansui AU-719 vs Pioneer SX-1250

[pjrengineer]

I just purchased a like new Sansui AU-719 with no dust under the hood including the manual, schematic and warranty card. This isn’t my first 719. I sold one about a year ago and had to buy another after the sellers remorse set in because of how reliable it is to put out good quick accurate heavy sound without fatiguing the ear. Tonight I’m head to head vs my other favorite Pioneer SX-1250.

I am playing Stings nothing like the sun on cd through a Peachtree DAC-itx and an Onkyo as a transport.

Both using loudness settings turned on and through my ads 1290/2.

The Sansui wins because of the clarity of the vocals, the definition of bass, the way that instruments seem to pass in front of your face and then hold there for a moment in the air before trailing off vs the pioneer that puts out a slightly colored midrange and heavy less defined bass. Still accurate and smooth. I actually prefer the pioneer more than the sansui with no loudness.

Due to this conundrum I have put my pioneer running on a tape loop powering a svs 12” ported sub to control the bass volume from the front and the sansui in the cockpit. Together the sound is very good.

 

[rickb119]

Just yesterday I put my AU-919 back in service. It had been in the shop for the past 2+ months due to me installing a cap backwards. Sounded like a small firecracker. Oops! (Didn't feel like fooling with it after that.) Turns out that the cap did no damage to the board and the problem was simply a wire that was disconnected. Cheap fix.

Anyhow, I'd been using my Pioneer SX-850 in the mean time. Granted, it's not in the same league but it still took me a while to get used to the Sansui again.

Your description is spot on about the Pioneer vs the Sansui. "Slightly colored midrange and heavy, less defined bass". All is well though as I'm really enjoying the clarity of the Sansui again.

The Pioneer is now doing garage duty driving a pair of Norman 8's. They play very nice together.

 

[kevzep]

I work on a lot of Sansui and Pioneer.
If there was a way to combine the sound of the two it would be great!!
Sansui is articulate, accurate, ad very very linear all the way up and most noticeably the top end, this makes the sound almost 3 dimensional. (this is the DC amps). But it leaves the low end a little "light" or a bit too "transparent" Whereas the Pioneers have this solid sounding low end with "attitude" which I am very attracted to, the mid range has character which for some music is very nice...the top end is even but a little "two dimensional".
I have a SX1010 I listen to in my Lab which I really like, sometimes I swap it out with the G9000 and almost immediately I turn the bass up on the Sansui....whereas on the Pioneer its always flat.

 

[Robisme]

I use my rebuilt AU-719 with ADS L1290/2 as well. Friday I was listening to it and thought I must have the loudness on because the bass was deep but tight. I went over to look and loudness was off.

I think the AU-719 and the L1290/2 pair up nicely.

Rob

 

[usedto]

I work on a lot of Sansui and Pioneer.
If there was a way to combine the sound of the two it would be great!!
Sansui is articulate, accurate, ad very very linear all the way up and most noticeably the top end, this makes the sound almost 3 dimensional. (this is the DC amps). But it leaves the low end a little "light" or a bit too "transparent" Whereas the Pioneers have this solid sounding low end with "attitude" which I am very attracted to, the mid range has character which for some music is very nice...the top end is even but a little "two dimensional".
I have a SX1010 I listen to in my Lab which I really like, sometimes I swap it out with the G9000 and almost immediately I turn the bass up on the Sansui....whereas on the Pioneer its always flat.

Interesting. I had a Pioneer SX737 for a bit and the lack of bass gave me the willies. My 5 different Sansuis were quite the opposite.

 

[kevzep]

Interesting. I had a Pioneer SX737 for a bit and the lack of bass gave me the willies. My 5 different Sansuis were quite the opposite.

We are talking about Direct Coupled Sansui amplifiers like the AU717/919/X1/G9000/22000 etc with the Diamond differential (Current Mirror) driver stage and direct coupling where there are no capacitors in the signal path.
The Pioneers we are talking about are for example SX939/1010/850/950/1050/1250. These are some of the Pioneers regularly across my bench.

This is my findings on a real world practical level listening to amps for hours after I have worked on them, I have hear a lot of amps, and through the same speakers....I love both brands, prefer to work on Sansui's though, better serviceability better laid out and easier to get to everything..

I have never heard a SX737, but I am surprised to hear that....Maybe needed some work?

 

[ManyMoonsAudio]

The SX-XX50/SX-X50 series Pioneers are really fantastic sounding pieces. I do not like the previous generation Pioneers as well. They are more forward and flat sounding. I do not think they sound bad at all. Just not for me.... I particularly like the 1250. Properly restored and tuned, it is very tough to beat. It actually sounds quite similar to the Accuphase P-300/C-200 combo when all is right. It can however, be very terrible sounding when it is tired.

Hard to pick a winner between my SX-1250 and my Sansui G-8000. Both have excellent tuners and excellent phono stages. The G-8000 gets the nod for image focus and overall clarity. The tuner also sounds bigger and more open in the G-8000. The 1250 has bass foundation as Kevin said, and weight that is absolutely unmatched by anything. Weight to me means I can hear the floor the performance took place in. Very hard to get this from most pieces. That and the proper tuning gives the sparkle the 1250 needs.

 

[pjrengineer]

The SX-XX50/SX-X50 series Pioneers are really fantastic sounding pieces. I do not like the previous generation Pioneers as well. They are more forward and flat sounding. I do not think they sound bad at all. Just not for me.... I particularly like the 1250. Properly restored and tuned, it is very tough to beat. It actually sounds quite similar to the Accuphase P-300/C-200 combo when all is right. It can however, be very terrible sounding when it is tired.

Hard to pick a winner between my SX-1250 and my Sansui G-8000. Both have excellent tuners and excellent phono stages. The G-8000 gets the nod for image focus and overall clarity. The tuner also sounds bigger and more open in the G-8000. The 1250 has bass foundation as Kevin said, and weight that is absolutely unmatched by anything. Weight to me means I can hear the floor the performance took place in. Very hard to get this from most pieces. That and the proper tuning gives the sparkle the 1250 needs.

I look forward to updating my sx-1250 and doing another comparison.

 

[kevzep]

Funny story, I have just had a SX1250 come in for appraisal and some work today........I'll be able to put this up against my G9000, and also the G22000 which is back for some work too....

 

[usedto]

We are talking about Direct Coupled Sansui amplifiers like the AU717/919/X1/G9000/22000 etc

I have never heard a SX737, but I am surprised to hear that....Maybe needed some work?

My Sansuis are AU417,717,719, and 8080DB. I tried the Pioneer with Klipsch KG4, Cornwalls, JBL L80T, and 4310s. Just didn't like the sound - a little too shrill for me.

Just before I gave the pioneer to my son when he bought a house, I hooked it up to a pair of HPM100s that I had in the warehouse. The two seemed to like each other, because I didn't mind it as much. My son loved it, and he's the happy owner.

Never did try the Pioneer with my Khorns, though. Might have been a different story.

 

[bsandovalb]

I have a fully restored 1250 and a fully restored g8000.... each has it’s own, but I prefer the pioneer over the sansui... it just has that “effortless authority”, that paired to jbl4333A makes amazing music.... not for critical listening ... but oh man... pure joy!

 

[Hipocrates]

I have a fully restored 1250 and a fully restored g8000.... each has it’s own, but I prefer the pioneer over the sansui... it just has that “effortless authority”, that paired to jbl4333A makes amazing music.... not for critical listening ... but oh man... pure joy!

PFTT... who knows what kind of muppet reconditioned those... SX1250... yikes!! Specially with JBLs

 

[rcs16]

I have a SX1010 I listen to in my Lab which I really like, sometimes I swap it out with the G9000 and almost immediately I turn the bass up on the Sansui....whereas on the Pioneer its always flat.

Do you ever measure the frequency responses?

 

[kevzep]

Do you ever measure the frequency responses?

And this is exactly what I was thinking I might do......I am expecting I wont see much though, but going to do it anyway....

 

[kevzep]

PFTT... who knows what kind of muppet reconditioned those... SX1250... yikes!! Specially with JBLs

SX1010 +JBL4412 all day almost every day, bliss!!

 

[rcs16]

I have a SX-1250 on the bench, it sounds just fine to me even with the leaky (to be replaced) big ecaps It has been in the shop before, but pretty much original.
Now that I have the tuner adjusted it is as sensitive as the Yamaha T-85 I use as a reference.
It had a faulty +/-49V supply, was running at +/-25V

I also have a Japanese AU-Aplha707 (AU-X901) to work on. yes 100V for a 115-120V line = eek. Sorry to say it is not built anything as well as the SX-1250. Those remote switches are broken, what a problem. This has been torn into a number of times = PITA.
Definitely different, a fully balanced design, right to the speakers, how strange, a transformer to drive the headphones.

 

[Hipocrates]

SX1010

That one is in my bucket list!

 

[kevzep]

That one is in my bucket list!

This one is on my bench!! Not the repair bench but the listening bench, very rare in New Zealand let alone this condition...

I have a SX-1250 on the bench, it sounds just fine to me even with the leaky (to be replaced) big ecaps It has been in the shop before, but pretty much original.
Now that I have the tuner adjusted it is as sensitive as the Yamaha T-85 I use as a reference.
It had a faulty +/-49V supply, was running at +/-25V

I also have a Japanese AU-Aplha707 (AU-X901) to work on. yes 100V for a 115-120V line = eek. Sorry to say it is not built anything as well as the SX-1250. Those remote switches are broken, what a problem. This has been torn into a number of times = PITA.
Definitely different, a fully balanced design, right to the speakers, how strange, a transformer to drive the headphones.

The SX1250 I have here is in for some faults,
I am looking forward to getting it running right so I can have a listen....see how it compares to my G9000 and SX1010...
I find the Pioneer tuners a bit easier to align than the Sansui's, oops did I just say that in the Sansui forum....

 

[restorer-john]

And this is exactly what I was thinking I might do......I am expecting I wont see much though, but going to do it anyway....

Measure the FR at 1W, 10W, half power and full power and compare- lay the plots on top of each other, but do it twice, once using the volume pot to set the levels (with a fixed input amplitude say 150mV), the other time, use the signal generator level control and leave the volume pot at the full volume position.

You'll be surprised.

Do the same with the Sansuis and compare.

 

[Hipocrates]

ot the repair bench but the listening bench,

That has to be one of the most good looking units ever (I know, I know I say that often)

I am looking forward to getting it running right so I can have a listen

Watch out for the 1250 virus!!!

Do the same with the Sansuis and compare.

I would love to see that, can you share what did you find?