A rare Sony ESPRIT trio

[stchedro]

Nevertheless the TA-E900 is still a good investment at this price level. At least when the modules can be replaced some day by improved and serviceable ones,

The big problem with this is that the flat amp module want out in the mid 90's as even Sony coudln't get the semiconductors some of which were Hitatchi

After I'm using the TA-N901 only for low frequency (<100Hz), I can't say anything bad about it sound wise (bass reproduction is not very demanding indeed).

Actually I think the bass is the unique thing with the Esprit. One of the key raison daitre comments of the design team was that you could transcribe the bass line of a recording with ease. I had a TA-N901 and the pedeal line from Organ or low plucked double bass was stunning even through things like Quad ESL 63. Infact the Esprits are the only amps that can produce real bass out of the ESL63

And with impedance setting at 4 Ohms it even gets not very hot.

Err it should get hotter at 4 Ohms at it increases the rail voltage? Actually having just looked at the manual I realise, as I should have done that it drops the voltage fro 70 to 50V: my mistake!!

The really unlucky thing with the N901 is, that regarding it's internal structure, the basic circuitry topology and the overall build quality it could be easily a TA-N7B killer. The quality of the regulated power supply rails even matches the very best PSUs from Krell, TacT or the like, but unfortunately the SONY engineers insisted not to use feedback for the output stage, which leads into lots of audible and not necessary distortion.

I must admit that I never noticed much distortion on mine but I did notice a rather bright treble. If you are getting distortion I would check that the B+=B- you can easily do this with a multimeter

In the end with mine I built a box for it to sit on with a temp controlled PID fan to hold it at a stable temp as with the TA-N900

 

[stchedro]

I didn't try the N900's yet, the only thing I know is, that one works and the other one has a large defect in the PLPS ...

They are brilliant when they are working but do take a lot of care. I thought he said it had a duff output stage not the PLPS?

 

[Stoffie]

Cool info stchedro! Yet another ESPRIT owner You don't happen to be the guy that sold a bunch of ESPRIT stuff on ebay a while back ?

 

[stchedro]

Cool info stchedro! Yet another ESPRIT owner You don't happen to be the guy that sold a bunch of ESPRIT stuff on ebay a while back ?

Stoffie, I sold my TA-N901 a long time ago. Probably quite a good collectors piece now as it had box, packing, manuals, rack ears etc etc. I have done, a long time ago, a side by side with Quad 606, MCP1, TA-N901, TA-N900 and B&W Active1's through ESL63, B&W801/802. Driven by a CDPR1 through a TA-E900. Really the TA-N900 wins hands down followed by the MCP1. The ESL63 comes into its own driven by the Esprit.

Do be very careful of the fan operation in the TA-N900's as lack of cooling is what killed the majority of them. Don't rely on the protection circuit it is quite flaky. Even Sony realised this with the temp protected input fuse!

 

[steerpike2]

Does "ES" after a model number mean much? Not as good as ESPRIT I gather.

 

[guiller]

Very nice!!!

 

[Stoffie]

Stoffie, I sold my TA-N901 a long time ago. Probably quite a good collectors piece now as it had box, packing, manuals, rack ears etc etc. I have done, a long time ago, a side by side with Quad 606, MCP1, TA-N901, TA-N900 and B&W Active1's through ESL63, B&W801/802. Driven by a CDPR1 through a TA-E900. Really the TA-N900 wins hands down followed by the MCP1. The ESL63 comes into its own driven by the Esprit.

Do be very careful of the fan operation in the TA-N900's as lack of cooling is what killed the majority of them. Don't rely on the protection circuit it is quite flaky. Even Sony realised this with the temp protected input fuse!

Really nice to actually read some user input here I haven't tested mine much because they need a revision (I already redid the fan on one, didn't spin anymore) before I trust to use them full time. I did feel they were slightly cooler/analytical sounding than my VFET amps, but that's hardly a surprise, but still very enjoyable to listen to!

Does "ES" after a model number mean much? Not as good as ESPRIT I gather.

Here's a snippet from TVK:

ESPRIT
The only ESPRIT line was produced between 1981 and 1986: no component other than the TA-E & TA-N900, TA-E & TA-N901, TA-N902, TA-D900, SE-P900 and the first 3 APM speakers (APM-8/APM-6/APM-4E) should be named ESPRIT. ESPRIT is always in written in caps.

Pre-Esprit components (the 88, 86, HA-55 units etc) were retrospectively attached to the ESPRIT line because the latter clearly were the culmination of the former. Pre-Esprit units were in the US tagged by the marketing department as the "Audiolab" series (thank you MacGregor for this).
The later ES units were retrospectively attached to the original ESPRIT series - to their spirit and build quality ; current ES units are also only retrospectively attached to the original ESPRIT series - to their spirit, or some part of it.

Food for thought, just wandering: the disappearance of the name from the Sony lingua (as a registered trademark) could be due to copyright conflicts, as at about the same time the series were unveiled, a (then) very fashionable clothing brand was up and it was named ESPRIT, and in caps, too. Remember those flashy ads full of smiling/relaxed/cool and hyperactive 80s youngsters?



ES
The 1st mention of the ES name is dated 1965 - Japan only and only on the home market. The first appearance of the ES tag outside Japan is dated 1975, with what was called the "new ES-II" design of the 1975 lineup (TA-5650, TAN-5550 etc). This tag therefore predates all pre-Esprit, ESPRIT and ES tags by a good number of years. It should also be noted that Sony published a "Sony ES Review" magazine between c. 1972 and the late 1980s. In Japan only, unfortunately

The first appearance of the ES logo I have seen is on a 1980 japanase catalog, thus predating by three years the appearance of the 1st ES units (TA-F777ES, STS-555ES etc). The 1982-1994 ES units we all know could therefore be tagged as "ES-III", the post-1994 as "ES-IV".

Although the ESPRIT logo is present next to ES units on many a catalog, ES is not ESPRIT (see above).
A few early 90s US catalogs emphasize on the "Elevated Standard" moniker while a few early 90s ES units had the "Extremely High Standard" tag written on them (ST-S333ESG, TA-F444ESX etc).
Although I don't hear the name as particularily distingushed, the two ES letters do stand indeed for "Extremely High Standard".

Contrarily to what is commonly assumed, the mid 90s 3000 and 5000 units (CDP-X5000, ST-S3000 etc) are NOT of the ES line. Just as for the ESPRIT series, if it ain't written ES, it ain't ES. Excellent components nevertheless

 

[stchedro]

Really nice to actually read some user input here I haven't tested mine much because they need a revision (I already redid the fan on one, didn't spin anymore) before I trust to use them full time. I did feel they were slightly cooler/analytical sounding than my VFET amps, but that's hardly a surprise, but still very enjoyable to listen to!

The TA-N900's really need about an hour to warm up. The front of the casing should be warm to the touch but comfortable to hold onto. I was listening to mine last night and they do wander into focus over the hour. The image improves, the bass become more relaxed and the top end response picks up a little. The TA-E900 needs about 6 hours to come up. The downside of the big epoxy lumps inside is that there is a lot of thermal mass. My TA-E900 is constantly powered as it has been ever since it was removed from its box for the first time........ 20+ years ago! However, if you are going to do this invest in some good supression technology.

Do bear in mind that most of the UK (and for that matter European) Esprit gear actually sat in boxes for years and years before it was sold. In that there is a whole other story! The out-of-the box failure rate was unbelivable as the electrolytics didn't take kindly to this.

How did you redo your fan?

 

[Stoffie]

So you have owned these beauties ever since they came out ? Cool... must have taken a heavy toll on your bank account back then, or did you get them at discount price, since they had been sitting for years anyway ?

The problem with the fan in one of mine was the following: the little drive shaft coming from the motor, fits into a rubber grommet thingy in the center of the axial fan side. For some reason, the previous owner or a tech had thought that point needed lubrication, and had squirted it full, thus rendering the mechanism not operable, because the shaft would slip in the rubber grommet and not drive the fan at all.

Took me some time to take it apart and locate the problem, as I could see the motor spinning, but the fan hardly doing anything. So I thought the shaft must be broken, but only when taking it all the way apart, I noticed the actual connection to the fan, and the culprit.

 

[stchedro]

So you have owned these beauties ever since they came out ? Cool... must have taken a heavy toll on your bank account back then, or did you get them at discount price, since they had been sitting for years anyway ?

No, I havn't owned them from new but I have know the TA-E900 from almost new. Once Sheperton (The UK ESPRIT shownroom) was closed down Sony UK (which did a lot of the European stock holding at that time as the UK was Japan friendly and the rest of Europe was bashing Japanese gear such as cars) was left with a large pile of stuff. It got split four ways, and odds and ends to various dealers. The largest parcel by far and most of the UK ESPRIT (TA-E900's and TA-N900's only) that is in circulation came from one dealer. What happened to the UK allocation of 901's & 902's was always a bit of a mystery. The TA-N901 that I had was about the only one I ever saw with a serial number starting with a 6. The 901's were produced in an attempt to produce something cheaper to get some sales going. Actually what ESPRIT needed was some marketing: Most of the gear was sold at pretty well full price over the next couple of years.

 

[Stoffie]

Wish I could have been there when these came out. Would have loved to visit Sheperton...so lavish...

My TA-N900's are also UK sourced btw.

You should post some pics of your gear!

 

[stchedro]

Wish I could have been there when these came out. Would have loved to visit Sheperton...so lavish...

My TA-N900's are also UK sourced btw.

You should post some pics of your gear!

Sheperton sounded dreadful. I think they thought they were selling PA systems. Are there any stickers on the underside that give a clue as to their origin? I also have a pair of Canadian TA-N900's. I take it you have the service manual for the TA-N900's if not I have a PDF of it?

 

[Stoffie]

This looks pretty sweet to me though...

I have no clue as to their true origins. One is serial 600080 (with an original ESPRIT box, but without the black/white logo's, simply some stamped stuff, yet otherwise totally the same as the other box), and the other is 600104. They belonged to a dude in Scotland before I got them from him.

Here's a pic to explain

And yes I do have the SM, but thanks anyway

I have an eye on a pair of APM-4's, that have been dusting away in the back of a store, but are not for sale, hmm...

 

[stchedro]

Nice shot, I suggest that you clean the dust off before running the amps. Otherwise you will at the very least have a nasy smell! Camel hair brush and a gentle compressed air spray. 6 is the UK prefix and I have seen units up to about #220. Sadly many sets ESPRIT were written off due to lack of parts in the late 90's before they became really collectable thanks to Axel and TVK. They used to be a very very very well kept secret.

The difference in appearance was probably when Sony started to get an ESPRIT brand profile together around the time of the 901 debacle.

How did you track them down: revert to PM if you want to.

 

[Unda Maris]

Nice to meet another ESPRIT owner !

The ESPRIT amps are really good bass amps for active setups.
I used the N901 as a bass amp in my system and was very happy with it. Unfortunately it's PLPS died in a thunderstorm (mains power fluctuations).

One advantage of these amplifiers is, that Sony within it's TOTL amps (starting with the TA-3200F) always used separate power supply lines for the driver circuitry and the power transistors of the power amps.
This leads into a better reduction of PSU ripple modulation during clipping, which can sound pretty nasty.

I now use the N902, which sounds btw. a pretty different. It's more neutral and doesn't have this "brilliant" sound of the N901. In the bass application both amps sound essentially the same, the N902 has only more power .

Regarding the E901, I would not bring it too close to the word "debacle", since it seemed to have at least some hundred happy customers in Germany (along the N902, which sold also rather well). After removing the EMC countermeasures in the inputs (Germany specific) and after exchanging the OPamps in the EQ and Servo section against modern parts, the E901 is for me the slightly better sounding pre amplifier (it has simply one module less in the chain). On the background of these fixes, I would also describe the EQ a real plus on the E901. The E901 nevertheless can't match the E900 regarding internal build quality.

Btw. From the E901 there was a MKII version, which was sold together with the N902. I have two German E901 in my collection and they differ a little in the thickness and color of lettering and color/texture of some buttons, but internally I didn't find any difference between both so far.

 

[stchedro]

I agree that the TA-E901 was the better part of the package. Having owned a TA-N901 for a few years I do feel qualfied to slate it! I wasn't aware of the TA-E901 II, it isn't in my copy of the manual and it may well be that it never made the UK. ESPRIT was available in Germany for longer than in the UK so that may be it.

Thunderstorms and ESPRIT PLPS don't mix well good surge protection is a must. I don't leave the TA-N900's on much as it is just too big a risk given their age. I am listening to them now and they have just warmed up properly really enjoying them or is it the Beethoven that I am enjoying?

 

[Stoffie]

And so Mirko has spoken

I found mine by a stroke of luck, browsing google, and stumbling upon a local online ad in Scotland, so I figured I'd give it a shot and see what happened. They came at a very very low price too (considering what they usually sell for).

That picture is from the day I got them, quite a while ago. Since then they have been totally disassembled, cleaned and dusted. Still gotta recap and fix some solder points.

The 'oldest' N900 also has a different color heatsink inside, and seems to be slightly different overall, besides the fact that the anodized frontplate has a much lighter hue than the younger one.

They both have the 'Made in Japan' logo removed, next to the Sony ESPRIT lettering. Almost looks like they used a black marker of some sort.

 

[stchedro]

And so Mirko has spoken

I found mine by a stroke of luck, browsing google, and stumbling upon a local online ad in Scotland, so I figured I'd give it a shot and see what happened. They came at a very very low price too (considering what they usually sell for).

That picture is from the day I got them, quite a while ago. Since then they have been totally disassembled, cleaned and dusted. Still gotta recap and fix some solder points.

The 'oldest' N900 also has a different color heatsink inside, and seems to be slightly different overall, besides the fact that the anodized frontplate has a much lighter hue than the younger one.

They both have the 'Made in Japan' logo removed, next to the Sony ESPRIT lettering. Almost looks like they used a black marker of some sort.

The Canadian ones that I have are low serial numbers in the teens (consecutive) and are very early. Does you older one have an overwound glass resistor at the top of the AC input board? Does the older one have a black epoxy input module: the very early ones do? The other reason for the simpler box may be a return to factory for repair the items often came back in vanilla boxes? There were quite a few individual component improvements made during the quite long product life of the TA-N900.

 

[Stoffie]

Don't know about the glass resistor since I don't have them open right now, but they both have the light blue epoxy input modules.
Will bring them to my tech together with the pre soon, don't have time to mess with these myself, can't wait to fully test their capabilities

 

[stchedro]

Should have looked at the photo: you have the cermaic resisitor the same as I have in my Canadian ones.