I found an SA-6500ii in a thrift store a few weeks back.
http://audiokarma.org/forums/index....oodwill-sa-finds.6803/page-1245#post-11547831
The cover is a bit rusty, there is still some mildew in the corners, and it has a few bumps and bruises, but I really liked the sound of it, and thought I would keep it for a while, so I ordered caps and transistors for it, relying on MarktheFixer's recommendations. I left the filter caps as-is. I may re-stuff the cans later, but power supply voltages are solid. I now have about $30 in it.
I went through the thing last night and this morning, doing the power supply, and then working my way through phono, pre-amp, tone controls, and power amp sections. It took perhaps 10 hrs. of time total, but I really took my time to minimize mistakes (only 4 due to typos in a table tracking the work). I probably did 2 hrs. worth of prep work as well, measuring and matching transistors, printing the schematic and foil side drawings, reading, etc. I did a lot of DBT testing to make sure things were staying on track.
This was the easiest thing that I have worked on so far. Not one component was difficult to get to.
I still need to replace the little power lamp bulb, and I should paint the cover, but it is functionally done. I have been using it for about 8 hours so far.
This thing is really sweet-sounding now. The low frequencies were essentially unchanged (still strong), but it picked up some more definition in the high frequencies. I have a new favorite.
It is presently in my living room system, driving a set of Realistic Optimus 5Bs.
They are a nice complement to this little amp.
http://audiokarma.org/forums/index....oodwill-sa-finds.6803/page-1245#post-11547831
The cover is a bit rusty, there is still some mildew in the corners, and it has a few bumps and bruises, but I really liked the sound of it, and thought I would keep it for a while, so I ordered caps and transistors for it, relying on MarktheFixer's recommendations. I left the filter caps as-is. I may re-stuff the cans later, but power supply voltages are solid. I now have about $30 in it.
I went through the thing last night and this morning, doing the power supply, and then working my way through phono, pre-amp, tone controls, and power amp sections. It took perhaps 10 hrs. of time total, but I really took my time to minimize mistakes (only 4 due to typos in a table tracking the work). I probably did 2 hrs. worth of prep work as well, measuring and matching transistors, printing the schematic and foil side drawings, reading, etc. I did a lot of DBT testing to make sure things were staying on track.
This was the easiest thing that I have worked on so far. Not one component was difficult to get to.
I still need to replace the little power lamp bulb, and I should paint the cover, but it is functionally done. I have been using it for about 8 hours so far.
This thing is really sweet-sounding now. The low frequencies were essentially unchanged (still strong), but it picked up some more definition in the high frequencies. I have a new favorite.
It is presently in my living room system, driving a set of Realistic Optimus 5Bs.
They are a nice complement to this little amp.
