Akai AP-004 renovation

[I968]

Hello everyone.
I bought an Akai AP-004 recently, for 30 euros (38 dollars). It came from some guy who obviously never saw a turntable in his life. He said it belonged to his uncle but now it only takes up space, so he wanted to sell it quick (the original price was insane - 50 euros). It was packed terribly, the chassis wasn't screwed down, stylus cover was cracked and put on backwards, tonearm was loose and the whole thing was standing on the plexi cover when I opened the box. Those of you who think $38 is awful lot for a piece of junk like that - vintage audio is hard to come by at all here in Slovakia and I was lucky I found something looking this cool and vintage for the price (people think they can get rich by selling their junk for surreal prices).

There are several problems with the turntable.

I've installed a new belt and stylus, connected it to the receiver (ground also) but there is this hum. As soon as the tonearm touches the vinyl and the circuitry inside opens the output signal, the hum comes on. As soon as the side is finished, the circuitry closes and the TT is silent again. Any ideas on what t may be? Bad capacitors, ground, some contact...

The springs on which the chassis rests on are not level, some of them are worn more than the others, which results in a quite uncommon angle of the chassis in respect to the wooden casing. Is there any way to replace them? Should I use something to put underneath them to make the chassis level again? Any suggestions are very welcome.

Next thing is the plexi cover - it's BADLY scratched. I've that Novus plastic polish helps, but if you have any other tips on how to remove really nasty scratches, I'll be thankful for that.

And lastly, if anyone has an operation manual for this turntable or anything that will aid me in setting the anti-skating right, I would be very grateful.

Any help concerning above stated problems is greatly appreciated. I'm leaving for a 5-day vacation tomorrow, but I'll be back and I'll post more pictures. Thank you all for taking your time and reading this.

 

[catman]

G'day mate, I have one of those turntables and the general build quality is excellent! It's built like a tank! There is data on this model in the library of the Vinyl Engine website.

Re the anti skating adjustment, this gets problematical as there is nothing the manual sadly and likewise for the 'lateral balance' weight (on the right of the tonearm base).

The anti skating weight is on the left. Interestingly enough on later model Akai's the positions of the anti skating weight and the lateral balance weight are reversed based on photo's that I've seen! :scratch2: It's a nice, very solid turntable though. Regards, Felix aka catman.

EDIT: Capacitors on the main board can go bad on this model (from personal experience) and likewise the 'muting' contacts can give trouble when the contacts get oxidised and dirty and make poor contact.

 

[BrocLuno]

The hum may be a partial contact, cap, or bad ground? There is a thread about bringing plexy back. Usually using wet/ sand paper in ever finer grits down to 2000 and then buffing with rouge and a cotton wheel (slowly so as not burn the plastic). It's a moderately long job, but not expensive.

Try hardware store springs or small motor valve springs? Any spring in the system had to be off the shelf industrial supply. You need to match size and tension with good ones? You can put low density foam cores in the springs to dampen them if they oscillate.

 

[hakaplan]

Regarding the hum, more than likely it's bad RCA cables. They are notorious for this kind of symptom. Caps are a speed issue.

 

[catman]

G'day all, interesting on the capacitors Howard. Well on my AP-004, a bad capacitor on the motor board didn't cause any speed issues but caused loud 'crackles' in the output when it was switched 'off'.

A strange one, but a new capacitor fixed it anyway! Regards, Felix aka catman.

 

[DrMux]

Looks a bit like my Rotel. Worth the effort. :thmbsp:

 

[hakaplan]

G'day all, interesting on the capacitors Howard. Well on my AP-004, a bad capacitor on the motor board didn't cause any speed issues but caused loud 'crackles' in the output when it was switched 'off'.

A strange one, but a new capacitor fixed it anyway! Regards, Felix aka catman.

Touche. But I'd still replace old RCAs before diving in to cap replacement.

 

[I968]

Sorry for the delay. My plans have changed considerably and I did't have time to reply. But I've solved the hum - hakaplan, you were right, it was the cable that caused trouble. I also adjusted the anti-skating, although I think I might check it once again. Springs - maybe It's only me or I don't know what, I've checked the platter with the leveling gauge and it seemed quite level in every direction. For the time being, I'll leave it at that, maybe I'll come back to it and make it perfectly level (it's a kind of an obsession, I'm a perfectionist). But I definitely want to check the capacitors inside, as I think there is a really gentle fluctuation of playback speed. Maybe it's only me, but it's a kind of an obsession (I'm also a musician and can't stand anything that's even slightly out of tune). The plexi - it's a process. I'll read some more threads, browse the net and then decide on how exactly am I going to deal with it. Other than that, it plays very nicely and I've finally heard that Miles Davis (In A Silent Way) record I bought last summer (I didn't even know back then I'm going to have my vintage hi-fi completed so early). And here are the pictures I promised (the black stripe at the bottom of enclosure is tape - for protection :scratch2

If you want to see better pictures, or a video demonstration (without sound, sadly), send me a message or something.
.

 

[BrocLuno]

Very nice. Looks like is a capable design. I suspect that the slight wavering is motor/bearing related. Further looking required.

 

[jleon92f]

Beautiful tt! I like the arm.:thmbsp:

Thanks,
John.

 

[ETI_5000]

If you want the turntable springs to be more level, then it may simply be a matter of taking them out from under the metal plate, if you can do that, and matching them for height by squashing or stretching some slightly, if that's possible. You are unlikely to be able to get any more springs, unless you find another similar turntable. It does look from your pictures that it’s slightly uneven, but it’s not too bad. All that you need is to have the platter level – once you’ve got that, it should be OK.

To fix the plastic cover, it needs a polish up to get it like new. As mentioned, you can try various grades of sandpaper - wet and dry sandpaper, as used for car paint re-finishing, is best, used wet, and progressing to finer grades, and finally plastic polish. The polish is often available at motorcycle dealers, for polishing helmet plastic visors!

The late Joel from the Turntable Factory’s instructions on polishing up covers are still available on the internet archive at Wayback Machine – see http://web.archive.org/web/20040614141528/www.theturntablefactory.com/cover.html . He was an expert on turntables, so his instructions were the best around - he was also very helpful, and replied to some questions I emailed him about dustcover polishing.

Finally, most belt drive turntables often require some light oil on the platter spindle every now and then, and also some on the motor shaft, depending on the brand. An old JVC JL-A1 belt drive turntable manual I have recommends 5 or 6 drops of oil on the platter spindle every 6 months (remove the platter to get to it), and one drop of oil on the motor shaft every 6 months. That may sort your speed problems out. Good luck. (The JVC manual, and a service manual for yours, is available on www.vinylengine.com – you need to register to download manuals, but it's free.)

I can see that it has a bar and weight anti-skating arrangement - they are usually adjusted by moving the weight around on the bar. They normally have marks showing the anti-skating settings for various tracking weights, and you slide the weight along the bar to the required weight - about 2g for your cartridge by the look of things. You may be able to find a similar tonearm somewhere in Vinyl Engine's huge range of manuals, for another brand - many Japanese turntables were made by OEM manufacturers such as CEC, so several companies would have similar models. My old Audio Reflex turntable was identical to a JVC model, right down to the manufacturer's tonearm fault which both brands had, and I saw years later in an AK thread on the JVC model!

-Don

 

[shimofpj]

Akai AP 004 Turntable

With regards to the suggestion that the owner's manual may be downloaded from the Vinlyengine site, I find that the only manual available for the AP 004 is the Service manual. Perhaps I didn't get the right location or maybe it is not available anymore. So I would really appreciate it if somenone out there may help me out on this as I need the Owner's Manual badly or at least the Technial Data / Specifications of this turntable. Many thanks in advance.

 

[mlon]

I think i have a problem with one of the micro switches, platter wont stop spinning. Are these still available somewhere?

 

[I968]

Hi all, it's been some time.

shimofpj - you're right, there is only the service manual on Vinylengine. If you can't find it on the web, it's probably not there. At least it wasn't when I was looking for it a couple of years ago. If you have questions regarding the turntable, maybe I can answer them. I had no manual and I use the turtable just fine. Although manual would come handy, as I would finally know how does the anti-skating weight work.

mlon - try looking for someone who repairs electronics or hi-fi, some kind of service. I have no further advice regarding this....it's quite a problem as these things are now some 30+ years old and it's hard to come across a manual or someone who knows what's he doing.

 

[shimofpj]

Akai ap 004 turntable

Hello 1968.

Thanks for your reply. I wonder if you have experienced this problem I'm facing with my AP004 right now. When I play LPs for about 2 hours at a stretch, the motor of my AP004 tt will sieze up and stop spinning. What I have to do when this happens is to take out the belt and forcefully spin the "frozen" motor spindle until it spins freely again after which l would be able to continue playing. I have had the tt serviced by a technician but the problem still persists. I know the tt is old and is due for replacement but I have not found another automatic that sounds nicer than this equipment. I did buy 2 brand new automatic tts but have to sell them off as they are no where near to this vintage.

 

[shimofpj]

Akai ap 004

Hi all, it's been some time.

shimofpj - you're right, there is only the service manual on Vinylengine. If you can't find it on the web, it's probably not there. At least it wasn't when I was looking for it a couple of years ago. If you have questions regarding the turntable, maybe I can answer them. I had no manual and I use the turtable just fine. Although manual would come handy, as I would finally know how does the anti-skating weight work.

mlon - try looking for someone who repairs electronics or hi-fi, some kind of service. I have no further advice regarding this....it's quite a problem as these things are now some 30+ years old and it's hard to come across a manual or someone who knows what's he doing.

Hi 1968. Forgot to tell you that the technician had adjusted the anti-skating mechanism on my tt pefectly. However, it's not the same as being able to do it yourself for which the manual is a must have.

 

[shimofpj]

Akai ap 004 tonearm off perpendicular

I think i have a problem with one of the micro switches, platter wont stop spinning. Are these still available somewhere?

Hi all, it's been some time.

shimofpj - you're right, there is only the service manual on Vinylengine. If you can't find it on the web, it's probably not there. At least it wasn't when I was looking for it a couple of years ago. If you have questions regarding the turntable, maybe I can answer them. I had no manual and I use the turtable just fine. Although manual would come handy, as I would finally know how does the anti-skating weight work.

mlon - try looking for someone who repairs electronics or hi-fi, some kind of service. I have no further advice regarding this....it's quite a problem as these things are now some 30+ years old and it's hard to come across a manual or someone who knows what's he doing.

Hello 1968,
Yes l do have a problem with tonearm alignment now. That's what l think is the reason for my headshell and cartridge not being perpendicular to the turntable platter. From what I observe l will need to twist the tonearm clockwise slightly in order to correct the alignment but am not sure which screws l need to loosen. Your help is much appreciated.

 

[I968]

Hi shimofpj,

There is no need to replace things if they work and do their job. The locking-up of the TT - I would suggest seeing another technician, there must be something with the bearing mechanism - was it cleaned and lubricated properly? I still have to lube my TT, I have a slight wavering problem. Both the motor and the platter bearing, I suppose. Then there are some electronics that are worth checking. Again, my turntable works, but I still have to see someone who can take it apart, clean it, oil it and check the circuits properly. On the alignment - to align the needle in regard to the spindle - there are two screws on tonearm's head. The needle must be perfectly perpendicular to the spindle at all times, I suggest getting a diagram for the alignment - I think you can download it somewhere, looks like this: http://www.mh-audio.nl/gif/setuptips/Cartridge_Alignment_Tool.jpg

Levi

 

[shimofpj]

Akai AP 004

Hello Levi,
I've sent my Akai AP 004 tt to my regular technician who had since serviced the motor and adjusted the azimuth (that is the correct term to use isn't it). My tt now sounds just great to my ears. The good man mentioned that he did a ceaning and lube job on the motor. The azimuth adjustment was done in my presence. The 2 screws you mentioned are at the rear end of the tonearm in front of the counter-balance weight isn't it? The 2 black plastic screws visible are actually caps to the real screws that lie beneath. After loosening and removing these 2 black cap screws, you will be able to access the inner and outer screws for adjusting the azimuth and vertical movement of the tonearm. By the way Levi, I am also eyeing another turntable, a Dual 505-2 which is currently under restoration. Any idea whether the Dual would be better than the Akai?

 

[I968]

Hi shimofpj,

We had a misunderstanding regarding the alignment - I thought you were referring to the pickup alignment. But yes, there the screws for azimuth adjustment in the rear of the tonearm. Nevertheless, it's all right now I suppose, it's always best to find a professional who's been dealing with TT's for quite some time, someone who knows his craft. As to the Dual you're mentioning - I have no personal experience with Duals, but they are very highly regarded. A friend of mine has a Dual and he says it's a amazing turntable. I am by no means a hi-fi freak, I think the Akai is a great turntable. I saw some Pioneers from the same era as my Akai and they appeared to be little different. But I didn't hear them perform so I'm not in a position to judge them. Sometimes there is no info on things, even on the internet and you have to give it a try. It's either hit or miss....I had some misses with electronics I bought in the past, but, on the other hand, you learn something from your mistakes.

But I think, as Dual is very highly regarded, you can't go wrong with that.
Enjoy your vinyl.