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Happy ending for Sansui SP-2000 speakers and Sansui 5000 receiver, + SP-2002 info

smurfer77

smurfer77

Super Member
For sometime now I've been yearning to try again the SP-2020 speakers I grew up with. My old man brought them back from Japan along with a Sansui AU-666, Sansui TU-666 and a pioneer turntable, all of which he bought new when living in Tokyo in the early 70s. I still have that gear (minus the TU-666 which goes tossed out by family!) back in Australia, but I can't get that sound out of my head. I love my present speakers (mostly Allison brand) but really wanted to have that sound I remember from my childhood. Here is a pic. please forgive my sisters Yammy sitting next to it ;)
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After years of looking for a pair of SP-2002 and I've never found a complete set in the USA. They are a lot like the SP-1500 with possibly the same driver complement. However, the SP-1500 has single speaker inputs, if I'm not mistaken, but check out the back of the SP-2002....they were setup for triamping.
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Giving up on finding a nice set of SP-2002 in the USA I keep seeing SP-2000 for sale all of the time. Even though the model number is similar the SP-1500 is much closer to the SP-2002. I haven't double checked the rest of the drivers but the SP-2000 has an extra driver ('horn super tweeter') and a much larger diameter port. Well I saw a pair for sale 1 hr drive away, and the price was right, considering it came with a Sansui 5000 receiver, all for about the price I think the speakers are worth. I've never had a Sansui 5000 so sounded like a good deal.

So you know how it goes... drive to a nearby town, address turns out to be in some shady alley and the gear is stored in the back of the guys van. Honestly, seemed like a legit guy, but just was a bit of a funny experience. Anyway, after a burrito at an old favourite place of mine out that way (near sacramento) the gear was soon back at my pad. And check it out, the 5000 looks nice and clean!
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Well, sure enough though, the guy only showed me one speaker carefully..... and the other speaker had a tear in one driver and some spray paint on the back.
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Honestly, I was a bit annoyed that the listing didn't show this stuff in the pics but still, I the price was still right so whatever... get to work!!! The tear wasn't too bad but you know me....

An original replacement driver was sourced:
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And the driver was sorted:
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[boy these word limits and 20 image limits are making me split my posts!]


I listened to them for a couple of months in this form. And you know what... it's a bit different to the SP-2002, but I really really like it. They just disappear in the image.... not the ultimate for bass detail, but very very pleasant. I can listen all day. So after a while I thought I should give them a crossover recap. But for now, she sounds amazing, even with the old caps and UFOs!
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Crossover is pretty simple. The rough plan is basically replace all of those electrolytics with polyester and polypro film caps and clean the switches while I'm in there.
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A bit of a squeeze but I managed.
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Okay. While I'm at it I thought I would give the exterior some elbow grease too. I managed to get rid of most of the spray paint on the rear! elbow grease and alcohol.
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It's a bit hard to see but there was a lot of marks and water damage at the base and some on the sides. here is a before shot:
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After some Howard's Restore-a-finish and some 0000 steel wool they look a lot better.
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And after a few days of mineral oil (no dye or colour added) treatments:
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ok one collage for the heck of it:
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How do they sound? Well honestly, a lot better after recap. Recapping old speaker crossovers is really a lot different to my experience of recapping amps. The results on speakers are rarely subtle. I've now found I like both the midrange ane tweeter switches set to 'soft' - the essentially boosts the bass and the voicing is now very similar to the warm tasty sound I loved from the old man's Sansui SP-2002 (driven by the AU-666)... with maybe at touch more bass! Still not bass detail freaks, but the image is great. The sound does not sound like it is coming from boxes at all! And the over all tone is just so pleasant. That is what got me into audio and I'm glad to be full circle! I could listen to these as my only pair of speakers.... I doubt I would miss the nightclub bass of my other speakers often and I could listen to this tone all day everyday to the end of my days. Yup, I could live with these as my only speakers. ok, I will probably always have multiple sets of speakers for different flavours... but these are very very pleasant :) :) :). I am driving with an AU-888 or AU-999 FYI. They sound amazing with the 777A or old receivers too...but the 'mellow' might be too much for some in that case.




So what happened to the Sansui 5000 receiver? She had some minor issues; well I pulled it apart and gave it a clean. it was filthy inside. And issues were resolved.
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Aligned no problem. As usual, she was running at about half of spec bias current; that seems to be what they did at the factory.
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it does have some of the UFOs of course:
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After a clean up inside i gave a quick once over of the external cover:
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And she looks nice now. Still news one new bulb but looking very sharp!
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I hooked this one up into the rack with the amp selector box setup and compared to the AU-70, AU-777A and Yamaha CA-1000. Well the 5000 has got some balls. While I preferred the other units (all my favourites) for tiny details, the 5000 did get the sansui sound right, mellow highs, smooth mids and gutsy bass. The bass is not as detailed as the 777A for example, but the quantity is there, and it can be pushed to higher volumes than the 777A of course.

I wish I had checked the output power while it was on the bench... the spec sheet says 75W into 4Ohm but they don't give an 8 Ohm rating. That is probably because they sold it side by side with units like the 3000 (and maybe 4000) rating at a hefty 45 W. I expect the 5000 is about 45 W into 8Ohm but I would I would like to confirm... the preamp obviously has lots of swing and you hardly have to turn the volume knob and it 'feels' like a very powerful unit. Why not just throw it back on the bench and check? Well, it's on loan at a friends house keeping an AU-6500 company (also on loan) in the same house. Actually, it was the primary amp used at a wedding reception held at the house!!! And it brought the roof down when pumping into some relatively efficient, yet power handling, Allison Ones with dual 10" woofers per side. Here she is at her current place of residence. I love the 5000. I love it a lot more than the 8 or 8D at this stage. I will eventually recap the 5000 and see what happens. But that will be another thread.
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oh I forgot to mention, the 5000, without alignment, pulls in FM like nobodies business! one thing I may do when I recap later, is wire it so the FM dial lights are on all of the time.

Maybe i have gushed praise a bit too much but i was really impressed by these models. Maybe it is partly because these models are not particularly highly sought after. Sure the 5000x seems reasonably popular but the 5000a and particularly 5000 go for very little. And SP-2000 speakers and sansui speakers in general get little love. I like these a lot more than the much more sought after Sansui AS-200 (although i know it is the bigger AS-300 people want, but can't get).
 
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Oh man your write ups beam with enthusiasm and great storytelling !

I have had 2 x 4000's in my rig - they are heavy, crude and usually filthy too, but they got Sonic balls. Big balls. If Marantz were the well groomed choirboys of the era, then the X000's series were the roaring blacksmiths with ale in their bellies - heck some of their boards even caught fire....just to make a point.

I can just imagine matching one of these dark age transistor relics to same era speakers, back when large woofers ruled the planet. That has got to be a special sound. Glad you came full circle, and thanks for sharing :thumbsup:
 
Nicely done. Does the 5000 have the updated driver boards? The SP-2002s are fairly rare. We don't have any on file in the database.

- Pete
 
stereofun said:
Oh man your write ups beam with enthusiasm and great storytelling !

I have had 2 x 4000's in my rig - they are heavy, crude and usually filthy too, but they got Sonic balls. Big balls. If Marantz were the well groomed choirboys of the era, then the X000's series were the roaring blacksmiths with ale in their bellies - heck some of their boards even caught fire....just to make a point.

I can just imagine matching one of these dark age transistor relics to same era speakers, back when large woofers ruled the planet. That has got to be a special sound. Glad you came full circle, and thanks for sharing :thumbsup:
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I think you are a much better story teller than I am; just look at your last couple of sentences! Gold! Wasn't it you that go converted from Marantz to Sansui by a Sansui 3000?

LBPete said:
Nicely done. Does the 5000 have the updated driver boards? The SP-2002s are fairly rare. We don't have any on file in the database. - Pete
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Pete, will check when I have it back in my hands... and report to the database (I'm noting serial numbers and variations as I go through my gear slowly, and will make a batch post on your thread one day). Yup the SP-2002 are very rare... I guess tri-amping is a bit niche. Back in Australia I still have the original documentation for the speakers including the recommended triamp setup... I must scan when back next! I even have the original cleaning clothes and speaker wires.
 
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smurfer77 said:
DO IT! I need someone else around here touting the Sansui speakers over the other brands of the era!
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I will....maybe they would be a good match with my Baby Lux integrated. I do remember they were very handsome and in very good shape cosmetically. Does the grille pull off, or what?
 
I cannot believe that I missed this, but things were kinda hectic around Christmas time.

I'm uber glad that you like this combo - I've had mine since 1969. The 5000 and SP-2000s have recently been side railed by the G-7700 and HPM-100s, but I still enjoy both. My hearing is down the tubes from many flight lines of screaming F4s, but there the best I've got. Both combos are still pleasing to me.

Here's hoping that your thread and observations will inspire others to try out these old stand-bys.

Thanks - - -
 
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I've got SP-200's (rated 98db) and SP-2500's (rated 96db) and just picked up a pair of 2000's. And they crank on a 2000A or 2000X with the same basic authority as the 200 or 2500's. I'm presuming the db rating is similar, so they will crank out the tunes on lower power gear with minimal prodding. I pair them with my 1000A and put the volume on 2 and have to go into the next room to be able to hear myself think. They all sound similar, except the 200's don't have the midrange of the 2000's or 2500's.
 
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