AU-9900 restore help

A

audio_ca

New Member
This forum looks like the perfect place for Sansui discussion, am very glad to have found it. I absolutely love the the old Sansui gear and can't wait to get started on getting this integrated amp back in service with a set of Cornwalls that are collecting dust.

I have been sitting on an AU-9900 trying to get some background info before cracking it open. I am technically trained, but in the spirit of being careful, figure I don't know what I don't know about the nitry-gritty and keep trying to find the right place to start with this AU-9900. It surely needs new caps and all of the switches and faders are intermittent and scratchy but it /does/ pass audio through both channels and the light turns green. There are some lengthy youtube videos of a seemingly highly competent guy going through his AU-9900 and I have seen mention of some restoration guides on here but I haven't actually found any yet.

Given all that, can I ask, if you wanted to get started on an AU-9900 restore, where would you start?

Thanks if anybody has any pointers to a newb here.
 
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ivandezande said:
If this is your first project, don't. Start smaller.

I did one years ago when I had only done 20-30 units and I'm still not happy about the job I did on it.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply. I am an EE of 25 yrs and have been building circuits and soldering for over 35 yrs. The closest I get to vintage restoration is a couple old school HP power supplies where I had to take the switches apart and clean them and replace a couple fried components. I have the technical skills, but am a complete newb to vintage audio. I used to build audio circuits when I was young, which is probably what got me into EE although I design mostly digital circuits these days.

I love this amplifier even if I can't use it for now and definitely don't want to compromise it. I actually view it as a plus that it has never been taken apart thus far.

All that said, if technically I am pretty experienced, I can appreciate there is probably a lot of nuance with component selection etc. that I could mess up. Is there a guide for vintage audio newbs that would help me, or does it really sound like a mistake to take the screws out for the first time?

Are there any trusted restorers on this board, how much does that cost to get somebody you all respect to re-cap and do all the switches after giving it a once-over to gauge if it is indeed worth the time?

Thanks for the input, wanting to dig into vintage audio guts is a new domain for me.
 
audio_ca said:
Is there a guide for vintage audio newbs that would help me, or does it really sound like a mistake to take the screws out for the first time?
Click to expand...

Welcome to AK
http://www.conradhoffman.com/troubleshoottut.htm
https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/sansui-frequently-asked-and-more.144580/
https://audiokarma.org/forums/index...ilure-prone-whatever-and-replacements.731653/

Use the search function and you will find info about this unit, is always interesting to see what people do.

audio_ca said:
Are there any trusted restorers on this board, how much does that cost to get somebody you all respect to re-cap and do all the switches after giving it a once-over to gauge if it is indeed worth the time?
Click to expand...
https://www.qrxrestore.com/

With your background just study the service manual and if doubt just ask. I bet that you will do great.
 
Hipocrates said:
Welcome to AK
http://www.conradhoffman.com/troubleshoottut.htm
https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/sansui-frequently-asked-and-more.144580/
https://audiokarma.org/forums/index...ilure-prone-whatever-and-replacements.731653/

Use the search function and you will find info about this unit, is always interesting to see what people do.


https://www.qrxrestore.com/

With your background just study the service manual and if doubt just ask. I bet that you will do great.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the links, especially to
qrxrestore. I had seen some restorers on ebay for ~$250 but that just didn't feel right if you know what I mean. The qrxrestore guys do seem legit so the idea of hitting them up is growing on me and the price of ~$725 sounds about right for a careful job.

I am a complete newb to vintage and this forum, so my version of a deep dive getting this far is no doubt very superficial vs. those of you who do this daily. If qrxrestore sounds like a bad idea please let me know here, else that's probably the route I'll chase first. I suppose I'm agreeing with ivandezande above more than I expected.

Thanks again for suffering through my text lol.
 
Thanks. About location, I am on the Left coast of USA, a bit north on 101 from Ventura, CA. It looks like qrxrestore is just north of me in Oregon, so I sent them an email.

I'll try measuring offset per your link and see what happens. I had thought about playing a 20 to 20k Hz chirp through each channel and measuring out/in, which might be similar. The fader and switches are all intermittent so it definitely needs some benchtime in the near future.

I am building up a system similar to what I lost a couple years ago (CA firestorm) so I will be around this place as I figure it out. I had a BA-2000, TU-9900, and the componentwise preamp that has the same layout as the AU-9900. Also a Teac 4300 with a dbx compressor and a primo technics turntable and a sound-shaper twenty. That drove walnut Cornwalls that my mom had kept looking new since my dad bought them from a Hi-Fi shop in the 70's until I took over hosting it all. The whole setup was museum quality and aside from the amp dropping the left channel a couple times a year, it all worked nearly perfectly up to 2017 without ever having to open it up.

I was about to get another Denon Heos receiver for short term function, but just decided to throw that cash at a professional restore if it doesn't take too long of a wait.

I also love the old Klipsch speakers, and recently picked up 1.5 pairs of cornwalls (one is missing a woofer), a set of Forte II's which are fantastic for movie front channels (replaced some RF-82ii from a Fry's sale), and a set of Klipsch Belles. In stock form the Belles don't work well with heavier music, so I am sort of trying to figure out what to do with those. Maybe cut out a bass reflex port but am not quite sure how impactful the ensuing karma drop might be for grinding away on stock Klipsch speaker cabinets from the 70's lol.
 
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Well, this is timely for me.

I too am about to embark on an AU-9900 restoration.

This weekend in fact. (Unless something pops up.)

It will be stereo stereos restos.
 
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