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JVC R-X80 What A Sleeper!

redk9258 said:
I'm pretty sure those bulbs are 12V 100mA. IIRC, 4.7mm. At least some are working, so you can check voltage, current flow. I don't see it listed in the R-X80 manual, but I think it is specified on the R-X40 manual. Let me know if you want me to check.
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If you did have any info on the backlit eq bulb ratings that would much appreciated. :)
 
Very nice, melofelo.

Mine is banging around in my honda trunk. Hoping to drop off to a techie friend soon. Can't be too hard to replace two filter caps and reflow some solder, but I'll leave it to him.
 
OK guys. Here's the scoop on the EQ bulbs. The info is not really given in the R-X80 service manual, but it IS given in the R-X60 service manual that has the same lighted EQ and Super-A logo.

The Super-A logo is 12v 100mA
The EQ bulbs are 12V 60mA.

The Super-A bulb measures .185" (3/16") diameter x .520" long without the leads. I used a 4.7mm 12V 100mA bulb as a replacement and it works perfectly.

I do not know the size of the SEA bulbs, so if you do, please post it.


JVC bulbs.PNG .
 
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Excellent! thanks for posting the bulb info..
I think I may have used 12v after all , as i ordered some 6v and 12 v. a few years ago when I was tinkering with it...and just looking at the leftovers.. only one of the 6v has been used (iirc it was too bright and didn't last long as only one bulb was out at the time) .
I then replaced three that were intermittent with the 12v I had which you can probably see is slightly brighter..I think the ones i bought were quoted as 12v 80ma at the time of purchase..but can't be certain...and I think they are about 3mm length.
 
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I know that I'm 3 years getting late to the party on this thread, but, I just bought a R-X80 on ebay. Some of the lamps are out, so this thread was really useful for that. Thank you redk9258 for posting that info. I'm really curious about the wired remote melofelo mentioned. Does anyone have a photo of it? I know mine won't have it when it arrives, so I'd like to try locating one. https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?members/redk9258.119458/
 
I never got mine fixed, which sucks, cause it did have an air of quality to it. Lord knows where it ended up (left with tech friend who I never paid the 20 bucks to for new parts, not that I didn't try)
 
That's a shame onwardjames. You should track that guy down and try to find your receiver.

These are really underrated by vintage enthusiasts, and they have much better specs (and waaaay better sound) than the more coveted 70s era equipment. I have a JVC A-X30 Super-A integrated amp (only 30wpc) that I bought to use at work in an office environment. That little amp really sold me on the Super-A series of products. It sounds nearly as good as my Yamaha A-1060 amp that I have in my main home system, and with 0.007% thd, compared to the Yammy's 0.005% thd, the sonic floor is every bit as quiet as the Yamaha's, at a fraction of the cost.
With the price of 70s era pieces skyrocketing, I see these early 80s JVC Super-As getting ready to ride the next wave of vintage collector frenzy.
 
There was a new remote on eBay about a year or two ago. It was listed for a pretty long time. So I think there are still some out there.
I'd be curious about using a raspberry pi to use a IR remote and control that R-X80.
 
redk9258 said:
There was a new remote on eBay about a year or two ago. It was listed for a pretty long time. So I think there are still some out there.
I'd be curious about using a raspberry pi to use a IR remote and control that R-X80.
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Thanks for that info about the remotes making rare appearances on ebay, redk9258. I'll keep my eyes open for one, because, from an originality standpoint I think it would be a blast to have one, even if I never used it. Actually, I won't be using the receiver at all once I get everything functioning as new, because I'll be giving it to my son, as a Christmas present, to take back to college.
I don't know very much about working with electronics, and even less about the Raspberry Pi wave that seems to be sweeping the DIY segment in recent years. I can't quite wrap my head around how you'd get an IR remote to function in the place of a wired remote, unless you programmed a IR remote to perform all the functions of the original wired remote, and then wired/plugged an external IR sensor into the connections intended for the original remote. It sounds like something my son might want to do though. As a 4th year Astrospace Engineering major, he should have no problem with a project like that.
 
69sixpackbee said:
Somebody done a half assed job of trying to fix it because two of the bulbs are just hanging out with tape wrapped around them. Their little grain of rice lightbulbs


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Very nice find on your part. I am guessing it can be fixed up very nicely. If it has a real wood cabinet, it can easily be refinished. You already have a perfect front face.
 
The R-X80 arrived yesterday. It has a few more scratches than I had hoped, and I already knew it had a couple burned out lamps (cool white LEDs are on the way), but, overall, she's in pretty good shape. One of the first things I did was strip her down, and shoot nudes of her. She's a dirty, dirty girl, but, I'll get her cleaned up and presentable.
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redk9258 said:
If you think about it, could you measure the size of the SEA lamps? I will update the post above so people know the correct size to get when they need them.
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Will Do. I should be getting back in there next week, after my new cans of Deoxit and Faderlube arrive.
 
Just snagged one at the thrift shop for $15.

A few concerns:
1. Half the front panel switches-- volume, tape monitor, etc. are dead. Assumed loose cable.
2. Bottom panel is very rusty. Hoping that didn't impact anything else
3. Damaged surfaces around the SEA sliders. Not sure if they can be fixed and not look awful.
4. It did a protection click while I was fidling with the controls, trying to get the volume up. Could have been a loose connection; the outlets on thrift shop test stations are super loose.
 
I have grown quite found of vintage JVC gear , excellent built quality and perhaps the best bang for your buck. I still have a few units from that era that I've held onto and won't be going anywhere. I would put a R-X500 up aginst 80% of the 70's "silver faced" recievers everyone goes crazy over.
 
J-intheCape said:
I have grown quite found of vintage JVC gear , excellent built quality and perhaps the best bang for your buck. I still have a few units from that era that I've held onto and won't be going anywhere. I would put a R-X500 up aginst 80% of the 70's "silver faced" recievers everyone goes crazy over.
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Shhhhhhhhhhh.....if the word gets out, the prices will go through the roof, and it'll be a lot harder to find all these little 'SUPER-A' gems.
BTW, I absolutely agree with you. For sound quality, I'd put my little 40wpc A-X30 up against any 1970s integrated amp from the popular Japanese makers. I'm sure I'll feel the same way about this R-X80 receiver when I get her cleaned up.
Is the face plate on that R-X500 anodized aluminum, or had they switched to black plastic for that model?
 
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Hak Foo said:
Just snagged one at the thrift shop for $15.

A few concerns:
1. Half the front panel switches-- volume, tape monitor, etc. are dead. Assumed loose cable.
2. Bottom panel is very rusty. Hoping that didn't impact anything else
3. Damaged surfaces around the SEA sliders. Not sure if they can be fixed and not look awful.
4. It did a protection click while I was fidling with the controls, trying to get the volume up. Could have been a loose connection; the outlets on thrift shop test stations are super loose.
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I think the EQs are the same as the ones found on the less powerful, and seemingly more plentiful R-X40 and R-X44. The chassis may also be the same, giving you the option of getting one of the lesser models to use for potentially many compatible parts.
 
After the usual Deoxit/Faderlube attack and manually cranking the volume control to free the motor, it's sounding a lot better on headphones. Have not done DC offset and balance, or touch up solder joints, but I did see it still drop into protection once. Meter behaves in an interesting way, in that it's a combination L+R -- it drops precipitiously when you slide the balance either way. There's a lot of value in seperate L and R meters for identifiying dropped signals.

The equalizer, though, seems disengaged. There's no distinct SEA-enable switch like in the slightly later R-X300, or the slightly earlier A-X4 I've fiddled with, but the SEA REC switch feels a bit off compared to the other similar switches.
 
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