Amplifier Tech needed

brianjrealto

brianjrealto

Well-Known Member
Good day all,

I have a Soundcraftsmen 2502 amplifier. It's in great working order for its age. But, due to the amp being about 40 years old, I'd like to find a Tech who is willing to replace all the old internal wiring and update any other recommended old age components for a refresh of the amp.

I'm willing to ship the amp by mail to any Tech that any of you would recommend for the work I'm looking for.

Any recommendations would be appreciated!

Thanks!
 
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Ouch. If you really want to replace the internal wiring, the cost is going to stun you. And that's assuming you could find someone willing to do it.

Why do you think the wiring needs to be replaced/updated? There is no movement of internal wiring (shouldn't be), so little chance of mechanical damage. If there are portions damaged from some sort of electrical problem, I would replace only those sections (after figuring out why they are damaged and addressing the underlying problem).
 
awillia6 said:
You've got yours crossed...
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Sort of. My initial response was in reference to Pyramid Audio. They quoted me a ridiculously high price on a repair that I won't even post. I figured the OP can make his own inquiry and make up his own mind, so I edited my post.
 
Probably a futile goal I have, but thought I would ask. Replacing the internal speaker wires on my pair made a good difference. My ESS Monitor Speakers were made in 74. From that, New wiring for the amplifier seemed logical for improvement. I'm also not a fan of tinned copper wiring

I appreciate the responses.. I'll just leave well enough alone. I called the Tech in Austin, but lack of a good schematic of any kind for these amps makes the job more added difficulty.
 
jbeckva said:
LOL guess we'll just have to see about that. I aint a'scairt of it.. :rockon: Must be the diff between AF and Nav, eh? lol kiddin kiddin. How ya been?
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Only thing good about the NAV is there chow halls.:thumbsup: I gained 15 lbs while stationed in Iceland. ie. Keflavik NAS. Its been a while Jerry.:biggrin:
 
brianjrealto said:
Probably a futile goal I have, but lack of a good schematic of any kind for these amps makes the job more added difficulty.
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Schematic is the easy part and is available right here on AK.

index.php


Here's a link outlining some improvements to this amp:

http://audiokarma.org/forums/index....ndcraftsmens-seemingly-rare-power-amp.738250/
 
UncleBingo said:
Sort of. My initial response was in reference to Pyramid Audio. They quoted me a ridiculously high price on a repair that I won't even post. I figured the OP can make his own inquiry and make up his own mind, so I edited my post.
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That is a major work. It would be reasonable to expect $100/hour of labor plus parts. I am not sure how many hours of that labor, usually 2 is a minimum. Devices of that quality and age are not worth to be reworked unless DIY.
 
UncleBingo said:
Sort of. My initial response was in reference to Pyramid Audio. They quoted me a ridiculously high price on a repair that I won't even post. I figured the OP can make his own inquiry and make up his own mind, so I edited my post.
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Yeah, I kind of figured the OP would have a similar experience to yours. Notwithstanding the unquestionable value of the hard-won advice of old pros, there's nothing like personal experience to hammer the point home to a novice.
 
brianjrealto said:
Probably a futile goal I have, but thought I would ask. Replacing the internal speaker wires on my pair made a good difference. My ESS Monitor Speakers were made in 74. From that, New wiring for the amplifier seemed logical for improvement. I'm also not a fan of tinned copper wiring

I appreciate the responses.. I'll just leave well enough alone. I called the Tech in Austin, but lack of a good schematic of any kind for these amps makes the job more added difficulty.
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Curious...as opposed to what other kind of wiring?
 
There would be a LOT of labor involved in doing so. But if you do it, perhaps you might do just one (it appears you have two of those amps) and compare it to the other (assuming both are in otherwise same condition). If you do that, please report back on your findings.

Leaving aside the most practical (cost effective) way to go about it - which would be to re-wire while also recapping and replacing any other components known to be at high-risk of age and time in service-related problems - the best way to compare them would be either:
  • Compare one with new wiring but no other changes to the other with no changes, or
  • Compare one with new wiring and component restoration to the other with component restoration but existing wiring
Otherwise, you would not know if audible differences are a result of new wiring or other changes.
 
I got lucky, someone responded to my thread via private message. I'll report back once the work is done and I have the restored amp back in my system. I do have 2 of these amps, both in excellent condition internally.

I'll report back all the components replaced and comparison to the other amp for impressions. For sure new wiring, caps and whatever other components necessary will be in order. I'm excited! This is the last piece of the puzzle in my vintage system in need of a rebuild/restore.
 
I'm sure folks have done it, but I've never seen anyone talk about having totally "upgraded" the internal wiring of an amp. Will you upgrade the input and output connectors as well?
 
I already swapped the RCA inputs for gold plated ones a while back as the cheap originals became a bit loose with age. Good idea to have a look at the speaker output terminals for replacement while the amp is under the knife.
 
The wiring is skimpy in these things. Soundcraftsmen really stayed to the letter of the rule of ohms law and losses in short lengths of wire. The math shows the thin wiring in these amps really has very little power drop at the length used, but why have a weak link? The wiring would not be hard to upgrade. The only places that need it would be where high current travels. So from the transformer to the power board, which is already heavier, and from the power board to the amp board and from the amp board output(heatsink) to the speaker terminals. There are not many caps in there either, except the 2 big power caps are not cheap. And neither are the MOSFET outputs.
 
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