Fisher 600T-Any info?

[JohnMac]

I picked up this receiver and can't find much info on it. I did find that it was made in '63 and was a hybrid in that it is solid state except that the tuner section has a tube loaded front end. It has a very good tuner and a wonderful phono section. Anyone familiar with it?

Thanks,

John

 

[mhardy6647]

1965 Allied catalog. On the same page, a 500B could be had for almost 200 dollars less. Transistors were the Next Big Thing, you see...

Sorry for the crummy/quick and dirty scan.

 

[JohnMac]

Wow. That was a chunk of change in those days.

 

[nitrous]

Fisher 600T

It is (was) a nice sounding receiver. It has a tube tuner (4 nuvistor tubes) which produce a warm FM sound. If you flip up one end of the Fisher name plate on the right side of the unit, you will find additional controls underneath.

 

[mhardy6647]

...If you flip up one end of the Fisher name plate on the right side of the unit, you will find additional controls underneath.

ahh! That explains the "20 controls, pushbuttons, and switches" hype in the Allied catalog... I was comin' up short countin' the visible ones...

 

[Brian]

The front end is from the 500-C. It and the tuner and integrated amp offspring IMHO was the pinnacle of quality of design and construction in the US. Yep, that includes McIntosh. The cast faceplace and backplane are unequaled and opening it up shows construction quality to die for. Parts layout is a work or art and parts quality 1st rate. It is a tough bird to work on from what I've been told by techs and that is the sadness as there are a lot of caps in it that need replacement to get back into fighting trim.

Check the power transformer. If other than very slightly warm take it offline until you have it gone through as the caps are going and you don''t want a catastrophic failure.

The sound is interesting, especially when using the tuner. Not quite either tube nor typical SS of that period. The company did not more to a SS frontend as early as other companies since it had a killer tube front end and SS front ends while being more sensitive also suffered from overload. It took Fisher another generation to come up with a SS solution.

Oh, I have one plus the tuner and amp sitting on a shelf in the basement and would love to get them gone through at some point. Getting closer to the top of the pile. Possibly next years projects.

John, yes it was a big chunk of change but the Marantz 18 replaced it a couple of years later as the most expensive receiver at $695. At the time the 600T was considered the finest SS/Hybrid receiver out there sonically though there was the McIntosh 1500 that came out shortly after the 600T.

 

[Brian]

The nameplate does not flip up, down or any other way. There is a Fisher amp that has a flip down panel, think it is a X101 or something like that. While it lists 20 controls and switches they may be counting chassis mounted controls such as MPX threshold, etc.

 

[Tinkerbelle]

The nameplate does not flip up, down or any other way. There is a Fisher amp that has a flip down panel, think it is a X101 or something like that. While it lists 20 controls and switches they may be counting chassis mounted controls such as MPX threshold, etc.

It certainly does on mine. It opens hinged on the left. Just press on the Fisher bird logo at the leftmost part of the nameplate and it flips open.

 

[Chatta]

I think you can order the manual for it on this site, to be more familiarized with it:

http://www.user-manuals.com/service-manual-FISHER-600T.html

 

[Brian]

I just went down and poked, prodded and tried everything and it don't do anything. It looks like a cemented label sitting on part of the cast faceplate. Even if it did open, it is too small a space under the label to house 7 controls. I've never hear of this. Not doubting you but, could you shoot a shot of it open and post it, please. What controls are hidden on yours? I've only seen the layout on mine that is the same as the in the advert.

I also tried it on the TFM300 and TX 300 and no movement on any of them.

 

[JohnMac]

Thanks for all the info and for the link to a manual. I checked out the nameplate and sure enough it does open, like a secret hatch. designed to look like it's permanantly fastened. Don't know what the controls are for though.

Brian, as mentioned push on the bird logo on the left and the right side should swing out.

I did a little work on it and in my limited experience it seems well built and laid out. A little difficult to get to some parts. I had to unsolder some resistors to remove a board to replace some caps.

 

[stereorob]

so you guys are telling me that i had one of these 600ts for 2 years and i never found this secret panel...... shame on me.

 

[sipuser]

Bumping this back up for prosperity.

There were at least to my knowledge 5 different versions of the 600T and 5 different service manuals that I have found so far over the last 10 years. I have 4 600T in storage.

The 600T models/versions serial numbers ranged as follows;
10001 to 19999
21000 to 27000
37000 to 38999
39000 to 41000
and then Chassis serial numbers beginning 41001.

Only the early models had the flip door with controls behind it, I have two with this feature and two without.

Hope this helps the cause...

 

[ddmj6]

Fisher 600T with HGarrard turntable unit--Who sold?

I just picked up a small cabinet (black with lift top) that has a fisher 600-T ( ser# 40811H) and a Garrard LAB 80 in it. All works great. I haven't printed any of the available manuals yet, but who/ what manufacturer/seller would have put this set together? There seem to be things you can turn/adjust under the "Secret Panel", but not knowing anything about this equipment, I will leave as-is!Thanks for any info you can provide! PS: this is my 1st post ever, I just joined!

 

[ddmj6]

Thanks for your suggestions, ieIC's and a new post! I had a heck of a time navigating this forum the first time! I had better back up a little and see if there is a "beginners training section". Right now I am in the process of trying to carefully clean up the unit, so it is pretty much in parts. After it is cleaned up, I will post some PICs prior to putting the unit back together and then some of the completed unit.The top of the cabinet needs some touch up, but I will let the new owner do that, then it will done to their satisfaction! I would like to learn about the rig 1st and then enjoy it for a while before I try to sell it to someone who would really appreciate it! I do have a friend who is quite knowledgeable with old audio stuff

 

[Kingfisher]

Thanks for your suggestions, ieIC's and a new post! I had a heck of a time navigating this forum the first time! I had better back up a little and see if there is a "beginners training section". Right now I am in the process of trying to carefully clean up the unit, so it is pretty much in parts. After it is cleaned up, I will post some PICs prior to putting the unit back together and then some of the completed unit.The top of the cabinet needs some touch up, but I will let the new owner do that, then it will done to their satisfaction! I would like to learn about the rig 1st and then enjoy it for a while before I try to sell it to someone who would really appreciate it! I do have a friend who is quite knowledgeable with old audio stuff

I PMed you this same message:

If all you are going to do is flip the Fisher 600T, better to do it with minimal usage unless you plan on sinking the money into restoration first. No "enjoying it for awhile before selling it off" :nono: unless you're desperate to fry something. These units are nearly 50 yrs. old, (1964-67) and many internal parts are time-bombs waiting to happen. The germanium transistors alone are expensive and hard to find. They are also complicated to fix and not for beginners. You can get service manuals and the owners manual (my original scan) from Fisherconsoles.com for free without having to join anything. I strongly suggest hiring an experienced tech person to restore it before using it regularly.

 

[Brian]

Yeah, be.very careful. They need not even be fired up. I pulled my TX300 and TFM300 amp and tuner the makeup the 600T. They have been shelved for about 5 years but were working. The tuner does not power up, the power fuse is open and 1 channel of the amp is out. I did not pull the 2 speaker protection fuses; just unhooked it all and reshelved them. I doubt given my circumstance I'll ever get them going.

Just go through them and check the caps and transistors before firing them up. They are great when working but sadly, they are 1st gen ss designs and even new were unstable and prone to blowing.

Nice German designs but the German sourced parts were a mistake. They were inexpensive and sadly not up to the historic German quality as the electronics industry was still recovering from the destruction of the war.

 

[ddmj6]

Thanks guys! I better take your advise and not fool with it! Best to let some one who knows what they are doing do the restoration! Any idea who put the unit together to sell back 50 years ago?the case appears to have been professionally made by some 3rd party vendor, but is pretty crude !

 

[larryderouin]

Many cabinets back then were custom jobs contracted by the owner. Fisher never "consoled" the 600-T and never used the LAB-80. So yours is a Custom one of a kind so to speak.

Don't mess with the controls under the "secret panel". They have to do with the tuner and multiplex unit.

Modify your profile and add a city/state so we have a better idea on who to refer you to for rehab of the 600-T.

Take some pictures and post them.

Larry

 

[ddmj6]

Fisher 600T with Garrard LAB 80

Again, THX for the suggests! 1. NO fooling with secret panel controls..I reaed on one of the old posts that after a while the setting were pre-set by Fisher, but it was probably cheaper for them to just keep making the same panel vs redesigning to remove the access door. 2. I'll edit my profile..I live in Bloomfield Hills, MI ( about 30 miles NW of Detroit)3. Will add some photos after I get the cabinet cleaned up a bit!