• The move to the new server is done. There are some software and database maintenance updates in process. This has us passing the hat around to help out. We appreciate any donations. Seriously, even a dollar helps. The payment page may be found here - https://www.audiokarma.org/support.html

fisher console find......

mike68

mike68

Member
I was on my lunch break today and stopped by the goodwill and came across a fisher console. I looked in the back at the goodies, to my pleasant suprise there was a quad of 7591's in the amp and a handfull of fisher labeled german tubes! around 6 12ax7's and a couple of 12au7's. I asked the lady working there the price and she said 10 dollars and was so happy to get rid of it that they loaded it my van for me! The 7591's sadly were toasted but all of the other tubes appear to be in great shape.I had been bypassing the goodwill stores for a couple of years now since they started selling new stuff, but every time I have stopped in the last month I have found something good.There was also a garrard turntable and the original owners manual. :D
 
Register to hide this ad
nice find :thmbsp:
There was also a garrard turntable and the original owners manual.
Click to expand...

please tell me it's not a 301 or better yet please tell me it is . :D even if its not the fisher amp is a great find in itself.
 
This is how I got bit by the bug a few years back. Stopped by a junk shop to kill some time and saw a beautiful Fisher Ambassador. The cabinet caught my eye as I was into woodworking. The lady showed me that it didn't work (we didn,t leave it on long enough for the tubes to warm up) and said she would take 20 bucks. I got the heavy thing home and before scrapping it for the wood remembered the tv's from when I was a kid had to warm up. I turned it on and watched in amazement as the tuning eye started to glow a wonderful blue-green. Then the music, the wonderful, beautiful music. I had become so conditioned to junk, I nearly cried! Well, I dug out the old album collection and put on Johny Cash at Folsom. The old shure stylus was worn and the Dual took a while to get a grip on the idler but it played great. About a year later I noticed some red foam undrneath and traced it to the surrounds. Now I was bitten by the (I can make it sound even better bug). I took the speaker sections completely appart and cut new boards to accomodate some vintage Altec 12's and some large seeburg horns (ahh the horn bugs bite is sweet). Tossed in some niffty EV adjustable crossovers, freshened up the dual with a V15 III, and installed fresh new mullards. I think of all the REAL gear I have bought and worked on in the past couple years, this old Fisher console is nearest and dearest. I listen to it almost everyday. It stands proudly at the end of the Kitchen behind the head of the tables chair. Thanks for letting me re-live this story by typing it here. Jay
 
I just picked up a beautiful Fisher Ambassador IV from a local seller. It's a 1963 model, and its amplifier actually uses transistors in the output stage (Fisher must've really been innovators in their day)! I paid good money for it ($200), but it's dead mint, has all the original lit, and the guy is delivering it to me as part of the deal. I understand that the electronics don't power up, but I'm not too worried, and look forward to fixing her up. Best part is that my wife loves the cabinet, so it may actually be allowed into the living room! :yes:
 
Nice set!

Fisher was indeed an innovator in solid-state technology. They introduced their first transistor product in 1956, long before the rest of the industry. It was a battery operated phono preamp.
 
My 1961 Ambassador has 6HU8 drivers along with 8 transistors. Funny thing is it looks like the tubes are original but maybe 3 of the transistors have been replaced. The preamp, tuner, and multiplex are all tube though. My wife liked the cabinet enough to let it be the center peice of the kitchen :banana: You may want to check the surrounds on the 63, mine were gone long before I could tell it by listening. Great to here other people like these old Fishers too. BTW amp model in the 61 is a 690 and looks just like skibs pics. They seem to collect dust under the perforated transistor covers which may explain why some of mine got replaced (heat). Anybody know what the P1 etc adjustment pots are for?
 
Last edited:
The early power transistors were germanium and some tended to overheat and blow up. They were actually less reliable than the tubes they replaced!

Silicon output transistors appeared around 1964 on the high-end separates and about a year or two later became mainstream.
 
Very interesting. I noticed when I was cleaning my chassis that a couple of the transistors were marked RCA. A couple questions 1) would it be a good idea to replace all the transistors as I plan on keeping this one forever and 2) If so what would you recommend as far as a replacement.
 
jaymanaa said:
Very interesting. I noticed when I was cleaning my chassis that a couple of the transistors were marked RCA. A couple questions 1) would it be a good idea to replace all the transistors as I plan on keeping this one forever and 2) If so what would you recommend as far as a replacement.
Click to expand...

My advice is don't fix it if it's not broken. You may want to write down the transistor part numbers and crossreference them in the NTE online database. That way you'll know if replacements are available.

To increase longevity, make sure you have enough ventilation inside the cabinet. Heat is what kills these transistors, in my experience.
 
Sounds like good advice to me. I removed the perforated covers from mine some time ago. Not sure what purpose they were to serve except for looks which could make sense if you've ever seen any of the old His and Hers ads by Fisher. They showed the front of the console for the her picture and the rear with the chassis and wires as the his. Kinda cool, you can see them on epay all the time when searching Fisher. Thanks and I think I will check those numbers just in case they would have to be NOS. Hey more cool stuff to search out and hoard! :yes:
 
skibjr said:
....I understand that the electronics don't power up, but I'm not too worried, and look forward to fixing her up. Best part is that my wife loves the cabinet, so it may actually be allowed into the living room! :yes:
Click to expand...
Turned out to be the power switch. No big deal, usually, except this one was mounted on the end of a dual gang volume control. Had to desolder it and disassemble the whole damn thing to get at the contacts in the back. :grumpy: Finally put her back together tonight, fired her up, and holy crap! This thing sounds amazing, and I can't believe how sensitive the tuner is! :yes: Very impressive for 43-yr-old equipment. In fact, most of the tubes are still "The Fisher" brand!
 
That must be a common problem, my power switch went out too. I rigged mine to use the auto off switch under the main switch. Nice work fixing yours right. Were you able to repair the contacts or how did you get working? Congrats on a great find, Jayman
 
jaymanaa said:
That must be a common problem, my power switch went out too. I rigged mine to use the auto off switch under the main switch. Nice work fixing yours right. Were you able to repair the contacts or how did you get working? Congrats on a great find, Jayman
Click to expand...
Sorry, must've missed your reply Jayman. Once I got to the contacts on the power switch, I discovered that they were actually very well-built, and merely bending the spring-loaded contacts to retension them properly was all that was required. I'd say it was worth the 60-90 minutes I spent to do the job right. This thing looks and works like the day it was first delivered (back when I was three years old)!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom