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How many of you pull tube amps out of old consoles?

doctor fuse

doctor fuse

Super Member
I got into tubes after purchasing a 1962 Electrohome tube console for $50. Electrohome were a Canadian builder of audio and television equipment, and also had a furniture division for their cabinets.

Just wondering how many of you tube fans out there pull these old amps? Seems like the best bargain in audio. The SET amp I pulled sounds excellent.
 
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People here do it all the time. I have pillaged my share over the years. I am still using a Zenith single ended 6BQ5 stereo amp that I plundered some 35 years ago not to mention a few Magnavox push pulls and Curtis-Mathes receivers and amps.

I suppose it also depends on how good a shape it is in. If its rough beyond my time, gut it. If fair to good, I personally have room for a few more but that's it. :thumbsup:
 
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I pulled a Magnavox 9303 EL84 PP amp, out of a console. The rest of the console was a pretty low end unit and had been left out out side for weeks and the cabinet was in bad shape. I was given another Magnavox 175 and bought another, but I didn't pull those myself.
 
I've pulled 3. Busting up the console relieves A LOT of stress. If careful, you can salvage the grill material for a pair of bookshelf speakers.
 
I pulled the working tube receiver out of an old Motorola coffee-table shaped console. If the turntable and almost all of the Motorola "Golden Voice" speakers hadn't been pulled out of it by the previous owner, I might have felt some responsibility to restore the unit. Actually, I hope to use the receiver as the core of a new sort-of console in the next several months.
 
I'm listening to a highly modded Magnavox 8802 Kegger built for me. He did the electronics; I did the cosmetics.

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The number of Magnavox, Zenith and Motorola amp threads you see in this forum might be a good indicator; I believe they all started as console amps. Some Fisher and Pilot gear too.

Very few of these units go back into the consoles where they started.
 
I pulled one,,, a Maggy185, out of a separate speaker (two piece phono only console),,, but I kept and still use the speakers... the others I have were already pulled...
 

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I'm currently working on another one. It's about half-way finished (got the hard parts mounted and the power supply wired).

Based on a Magnavox AMP179 chassis. Heathkit AA100 output transformers, HK A700 power transformer, Triad choke, PP 6L6s, 12AU7/12AT7s, integrated amp with four inputs.

Regards,
Gordon.
 
I have three console pulls, two Zenith single ended 6BQ5 amps and one Magnavox 9303 PP amp.
After removing the tone controls from the Zenith tube amps they have become my main stereos,
one for my living room and one in my bedroom.

Also have a couple pairs of Roberts 770x single ended amps that were pulled from the RR tape
recorder units if that counts, I prefer the sound of the Zenith single ended amps over all the tube
amps I own.

Console pulls are awesome. :thumbsup:
 
knockbill said:
I've used some of Marks tweeks also... did you use separate chokes for each channel also?
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Not with this one. With the small chassis things were already getting pretty cramped. The 175 will be using two chokes. If I ever get enough time to really sit down and work on it. I just finished up a huge project getting my old home ready for sale. So hopefully soon.
 
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