Help with Sansui 7070 Receiver

[jpreza]

Good afternoon everyone!

I just reached out to a seller that has a working Sansui 7070 receiver. He said he is the original owner. The receiver had some work, specifically one of the main filter caps was replaced many years ago when one of the channels went out. Besides that, he said it's all original. He also mentioned the indicator lights as well as the radio dial lights will need to be replaced. Besides that, the unit works as it should.

He's asking $500 obo. I think it's a little steep. He's willing to demo it and hopefully I can bring him down on the price.

Thoughts? Is it a good deal? How easy is it to restore one of these?

TIA....JP

 

[Warren-Oates]

I would figure it needs a full rebuild. If it looks nice my max offer would be $350, scratches and dents etc would bring that down. I paid 500 for an 8080 a few months back, all original from original owner in working condition. I almost did not do it, but they don't come up locally very often.

I bought a 7070 last winter, $750. Unit was completely restored by a tech, included upgraded BA312s. Sounds very nice btw.

 

[jpreza]

I would figure it needs a full rebuild. If it looks nice my max offer would be $350, scratches and dents etc would bring that down. I paid 500 for an 8080 a few months back, all original from original owner in working condition. I almost did not do it, but they don't come up locally very often.

I bought a 7070 last winter, $750. Unit was completely restored by a tech, included upgraded BA312s. Sounds very nice btw.

Thanks! Best he would do is $425. The veneer looks ok - very minor peeling on one side near the bottom barely noticeable. No dents. All buttons are present; faceplate looks nice and bottom plate and feet are also okay. Cosmetically I'd give it a 8.5/10.

Biggest thing is that the function lights are not working and from what I know, they're very difficult to replace unless it's a cold solder issue. Other thing I noticed is that when it was serviced because one of the channels was out, the tech that worked on it replaced only one of 10,000uF filter caps and used the wrong size. That wouldn't be a big deal, but he removed the retaining clip/bracket and didn't put it back so it's missing altogether. What he did instead was to hot glue the filter cap directly onto the board, yikes!

I tested the AM/FM tuner, the Phono 1/2 as well as the AUX inputs, they all work without a problem. From reading the AK forums, it appears that this receiver usually doesn't need a full recap if it's working.

Thoughts?

 

[Warren-Oates]

It does need a full rebuild, there is no way around that. And while somebody does it the BA312s should be replaced with the new low noise subs. My opinion is the seller wants too much. I would value the unit at about $300 from what you describe.

 

[jpreza]

It does need a full rebuild, there is no way around that. And while somebody does it the BA312s should be replaced with the new low noise subs. My opinion is the seller wants too much. I would value the unit at about $300 from what you describe.

Thanks! I think I'll pass on it unless he decides to come down. I have a Sansui 4000 that I picked up recently for $150 in really nice shape. Sadly the seller got rid of the wooden cabinet. It definitely needs a full recap as it's a little scratchy. I'll be working on it after I finish a Pioneer SX-750 that's been on my bench for about 2 months - life gets in the way sometimes.

JP

 

[EastPoint]

Sounds like it's been hacked on. The lights issue could be a damaged selector switch--I had a 9090 like that and it was a nightmare to deal with. If you get it, make sure the volume control is 100% perfect, otherwise you're in for $250+ for a replacement. I would pass at any reasonable price.

 

[jpreza]

Sounds like it's been hacked on. The lights issue could be a damaged selector switch--I had a 9090 like that and it was a nightmare to deal with. If you get it, make sure the volume control is 100% perfect, otherwise you're in for $250+ for a replacement. I would pass at any reasonable price.

Thanks! What is strange is that when he was demoing it and switched to the various functions using the selector switch, the receiver switched to the respective function, i.e. AM, FM, AUX, PHONO, etc. correctly. But the function lights never lit up, so my assumption was that the lights went out.

JP

 

[Swilton]

Other than the power meters, the lights are pretty easy as long as you can solder and do some minor electrical work. I bought a $27 lamp kit from eBay and did a 7070 a couple of weeks ago. Tuner dial lamps and signal strength lamps just snap in. Function selector lamps take a little more effort, but the whole project can be done in a couple of hours. It’s got a fantastic vintage sound! Can’t say enough good things about the old Sansui line.