Greetings new Sansui friends. Like many others I've learned a ton in short order reading your posts and excellent discussions here on AK. Thank you for that. I look forward being a part of this community and contributing myself. By way of introduction, I'm your garden-variety American elder gen-xer raised on classic rock, 80s metal, Tom Petty, and really anything with crunchy guitars. Tom Petty's Wildflowers and Dire Straits' first album are my reference records. Post-divorce a decade and a half or so ago I treated myself to an Integra DTM 5.9 AVR (I had an Onkyo TX-2500 as a teenager) and a pair of B&W 685s. My phone was the primary source. A couple of years back a good buddy gifted me a U-Turn Orbit he wasn't using and I started collecting vinyl again which escalated quickly. This, naturally, led to a desire to upgrade my audio system. For reasons which need not be explained to this group, Sansui's AU line caught my eye. I acquired my first piece, a very rough AU-8500, not long ago and now the toothpaste is out of the tube. I did not intend to become a collector. This too has escalated quickly. Alarmingly so. Suffice it to say that the learning curve here on AK and over at the auction site has been steep! It's unlikely that I'll ever wield a soldering iron myself (not out of the question, though), but I have learned to remove a cover, poke around and spritz some DeoxIt here and there. It seems that each time I do, I get a little braver and am willing to remove a few more screws. I find the build and restoration threads fascinating and am enjoying trying to parse the schematic discussions. On to the goods.
AU-8500. I returned it for a full refund. Too rough. A thorough cleaning probably would've resolved 85% of the issues, but I didn't know what DeoxIt was yet. It sounded great at first, but the horrible noises, terrifying static, driver-pounding popping, looping feedback, and channel dropping didn't take long to present itself and make it sound like all my records were severely damaged. The bass pot was frozen solid, completely seized. The seller admitted that the unit had been wrapped, packed, and sitting on a warehouse shelf for more than 18 months and that he didn't check it before shipping. This was my first clue as to how many of these units are handled and to become a better vetter of sellers. No harm, no foul. Lesson learned. I still want something from this series. I think they're cool.
XP-99. I found this table on a musician's market site at a guitar store in North Carolina. Other than a rough looking dust cover, the deck otherwise appeared to be in nice shape and was represented to be in good working order. It arrived around the time of the 8500 and is indeed a fully functioning 40-year-old full auto turntable. It has since been serviced and fitted with an original spec NOS AT3100S (MC) cartridge that I found online in Japan. I think it was the last one. My first MC cart. It's beautiful, sounds fantastic, and I love it.
AU-11000. I found a cosmetically very clean well-maintained example. I could see that all screws were present in the pictures and it came with the original owner's manual and schematic. A one owner unit? The seller appeared to be an actual electronics shop at least. He'd found it "tucked away in a closet" at an estate sale. I was smitten. This was the one. USPS lost it. For ten days. The tracking stopped tracking. With dogged determination the seller and I hounded the USPS from both ends. Eventually, it turned up haphazardly re-boxed by USPS because the seller's packaging had apparently failed, the label was damaged, etc. When I opened it at the post office it was upside down in the box. It seemed okay, though. None the worse for wear from its mysterious journey from West Texas to Boise. As you know, she's beautiful. I was immediately underwhelmed with a perceived lack of power. There just wasn't much there, there. I expected more. Reading here tells me I'm not alone in this reaction. I've read the discussions regarding the volume knob. It does take some getting used to. Nonetheless, the 11000 sounds amazing to my novice ears, so clean. My buddies and I agreed after that first Saturday night that we'd each had our first true audio experience. The right channel kept dropping out. There was a lot of static in the tone/filter switch and some in the speaker and input selector switches. The channel would come back after cycling the power, manipulating those switches, or giving the tone/filter knob a hearty static pop with my knuckle! Enter my intro to DeoxIt. I'd identified a semi-local (former Sansui warranty repair) tech through AK member, @Drugolf, both of whom were very generous with their time on the phone in response to my cold calls. I got in there with the DeoxIt and things were much improved, but that right channel is still dropping intermittently. Things looked pretty good on the inside too. I've since dropped the 11000 with @Drugolf for delivery to the tech. We haven't discussed the details because he hasn't been through it yet, but I intend to order the full meal deal. You all know the drill, which I've learned here.
AU-D9. Knowing that the 11000 would be in the shop for a while I picked this one up as a backup of sorts. I was intrigued by the early 80s styling and the commentary I was reading. It arrived protected by what appeared to be a relatively clean pair of the seller's bed pillows. I threw them out despite their tidiness. I really like the D9. It's likely next in line for a full restoration after I get the 11000 back. I couldn't get any sound out of the left side of Speaker B and the AC outlets are broken into a couple of pieces, but still working. The cover had been "sanded" and "repainted" with a fine rattle can in flat black. Say what you will about the auction site, but I found a seller with a parts unit and was able to source a beautiful original replacement cover in the dark wood grain and the complete unbroken AC outlet! He has several other bits too if needed. It looks 1000% better with the mint og cover. Otherwise, it seemed to be working and playing well. It was shortly replaced by something downstream, but I'm anxious to listen to it again. I feel like it's my sleeper unit. I believe I've read that the D9 is one of the more complicated/pita units to work on. Is that true? Maybe it's one I tinker with myself? Just a thought.
BA-2000. I'd been watching this unit at $1,200. Very clean looking cosmetically, "well-kept." Suddenly, the price dropped 75% to $299 with the seller's disclaimer that it'd been working perfectly two years ago, but it hadn't been tested since. I bought it. All in for $384 with tax and shipping. It arrived looking quite clean in good cosmetic condition except for what appeared to be a splatter of spilled coffee perhaps. It powered up, protection circuit cycles, and meter bulbs light up. No music. No sound. Three different preamps. Nada. Okay. Poked around inside where there was evidence of the aforementioned splatter and I vacuumed out some cobwebs and dead spiders. Seller messaged me asking for feedback and I told them what was going on. They gave me half my money back and parted it out. Seemed a good bet to me. I'm into this unit for under $200 and I suspect it will be fine. It's with the 11000 in the tech's hands. TBD (and I'm gonna need a preamp!).
AU-777. The '69 Sui. My baby. I don't know that I need any of the others. It's that simple really. I'd been struck by what I'd been reading about this series, and the 777 in particular. Gorgeous cosmetic condition thoughtfully and appropriately restored by the seller with a full description of everything he'd done. "Euphonic." The seller was very communicative in answering my questions and said he stood by his work. He must be among us here somewhere. I've yet to identify him. I had a good feeling about him and this 777. He made me a nice offer and I pulled the trigger. Zero regrets. Zero. I love this machine. I love the sound. It is superbly satisfying to listen to. I cannot get enough of my original pressing of Tom Petty Wildflowers or that first Dire Straits record. I've played them both tens upon tens of times in the last several weeks. I can't see taking this machine offline. It may be the permanent first system while the others rotate. Volume knob is a tad crackly at start up. I haven't cracked the hood yet, but I should probably get in there with the magic spritz. I do make use of the low filter and occasional use of the presence switch. Otherwise, I leave it all alone. At this stage in the proceedings I needed something solid, stable, plug and play, no more projects. The '69 Sui has risen to the challenge in every way.
AU-4400. I am surrounded by women. I have two daughters. They have girlfriends. My girlfriend has two daughters. My ex-wife has a wife. They have a daughter. I'm left to fend for myself amongst them. If you care to characterize any of this as impulsive, then perhaps this one is worthy of that description. Left to myself one night recently while they all did whatever lady things they were doing, I was unable to scroll by this clean little silver-faced 20-watter. After everything that had come before it the silver patina just grabbed me. What a cool looking little machine. It was inexpensive in the grand scheme of things and here again I liked the seller's vibe after exchanging a couple of messages. I've only listened to it a little bit to confirm functionality. It sounds great. Ironically, the 4400 is the leading candidate to be the foundation of the system I'll build for my girlfriend's house. She has an unused bonus room and I've been given carte blanche to create a listening space. She has an awful sounding sound bar in the living room and we all know I need something to do while the ladies are gathered 'round.
SR-717. Having connected with @Drugolf, he rather quickly observed my Sansui problem and, moving in for the kill, told me about a mint barely used SR-717 available locally from another client of his. What's that you say, a vintage Sansui turntable available locally?! You mean I can just drive over to your house and pick it up?! ***quickly googles SR-717*** Yes, please. I'll take it. It's mint and it's massive. After some research and more reading, I fitted it with a Sumiko Olympia cartridge from their Oyster line. This was my first official turntable set up and it went very well. I even revised the funky little anti-skate mechanism with some of my own flyfishing tippet for smoother operation. The table sounds great, it's playing and tracking well and I'm very happy with my choice of the Sumiko Olympia.
SR-838. I know this is getting tiresome, but I'm not done yet. First thing the very next morning, after I've committed to purchase the SR-717, a gleaming near mint SR-838 shows up in my feed. Well now I need the set. Anyone have a 929 they're looking to part with? Yes, I bought it. It's gorgeous. It came fitted with an AT11E cart and a basic aftermarket budget stylus. I've ordered the ATS12S stylus to upgrade it. Second turntable set up complete and it sounds great. So that makes a three-table rotation and I'm hard-pressed to choose among them.
AU-X11. I blame all of you, collectively, for this one. After reading the various excellent X1/X11 build threads here, with all their attendant mystery and intrigue, I decided to really jump in the deep end here. Restored and rebuilt by one of our colleagues here on AK, I'm awaiting delivery. He's sorting an issue that he discovered during his pre-shipping inspection which I appreciate very much. I'm especially intrigued by the lack of tone controls. This is something that really appeals to me. I find that I don't mess with tone controls all that much. I do like a good filter, but the rest of it can just sit still. This is the only one that I don't have in my possession so there's not much more I can say about it right now other than I'm excited and a wee bit nervous to own this Japanese legend. More to come I'm sure.
Lastly, there's a nice looking AU-Alpha 607MR for local pickup only over in nearby Portland. Again, I'll blame the group for this one, too. Seller has been nonresponsive to my inquiries thus far. Maybe that's for the best right now and I need to take a breath. I've no idea how I'm going to rotate these units, but I'm definitely planning on some sort of display rack with easy access for rotating in and out of the lineup. I should note that I've been primarily hooked up to and listening on a pair of very nice Dahlquist M905s that I found locally. I think they sound fantastic with the 777 and I'm very interested in hearing their upper end models. I'm sort of over the B&W 685s. They're great, but I've had them a long time and they don't seem like the right match for these vintage set ups. I prefer floor-standing speakers, aesthetically, and I really don't care for messing with or hearing subwoofers. I like my bass tight and clean (kind of makes the 90s hard to listen to). Open to recommendations. I'll supplement with pictures in the comments when I get a chance.
If you've read this far, I thank you very much and hope you've enjoyed it. I look forward to interacting with you and sharing this passion for good music well played.
Peace and love.
Pete.
AU-8500. I returned it for a full refund. Too rough. A thorough cleaning probably would've resolved 85% of the issues, but I didn't know what DeoxIt was yet. It sounded great at first, but the horrible noises, terrifying static, driver-pounding popping, looping feedback, and channel dropping didn't take long to present itself and make it sound like all my records were severely damaged. The bass pot was frozen solid, completely seized. The seller admitted that the unit had been wrapped, packed, and sitting on a warehouse shelf for more than 18 months and that he didn't check it before shipping. This was my first clue as to how many of these units are handled and to become a better vetter of sellers. No harm, no foul. Lesson learned. I still want something from this series. I think they're cool.
XP-99. I found this table on a musician's market site at a guitar store in North Carolina. Other than a rough looking dust cover, the deck otherwise appeared to be in nice shape and was represented to be in good working order. It arrived around the time of the 8500 and is indeed a fully functioning 40-year-old full auto turntable. It has since been serviced and fitted with an original spec NOS AT3100S (MC) cartridge that I found online in Japan. I think it was the last one. My first MC cart. It's beautiful, sounds fantastic, and I love it.
AU-11000. I found a cosmetically very clean well-maintained example. I could see that all screws were present in the pictures and it came with the original owner's manual and schematic. A one owner unit? The seller appeared to be an actual electronics shop at least. He'd found it "tucked away in a closet" at an estate sale. I was smitten. This was the one. USPS lost it. For ten days. The tracking stopped tracking. With dogged determination the seller and I hounded the USPS from both ends. Eventually, it turned up haphazardly re-boxed by USPS because the seller's packaging had apparently failed, the label was damaged, etc. When I opened it at the post office it was upside down in the box. It seemed okay, though. None the worse for wear from its mysterious journey from West Texas to Boise. As you know, she's beautiful. I was immediately underwhelmed with a perceived lack of power. There just wasn't much there, there. I expected more. Reading here tells me I'm not alone in this reaction. I've read the discussions regarding the volume knob. It does take some getting used to. Nonetheless, the 11000 sounds amazing to my novice ears, so clean. My buddies and I agreed after that first Saturday night that we'd each had our first true audio experience. The right channel kept dropping out. There was a lot of static in the tone/filter switch and some in the speaker and input selector switches. The channel would come back after cycling the power, manipulating those switches, or giving the tone/filter knob a hearty static pop with my knuckle! Enter my intro to DeoxIt. I'd identified a semi-local (former Sansui warranty repair) tech through AK member, @Drugolf, both of whom were very generous with their time on the phone in response to my cold calls. I got in there with the DeoxIt and things were much improved, but that right channel is still dropping intermittently. Things looked pretty good on the inside too. I've since dropped the 11000 with @Drugolf for delivery to the tech. We haven't discussed the details because he hasn't been through it yet, but I intend to order the full meal deal. You all know the drill, which I've learned here.
AU-D9. Knowing that the 11000 would be in the shop for a while I picked this one up as a backup of sorts. I was intrigued by the early 80s styling and the commentary I was reading. It arrived protected by what appeared to be a relatively clean pair of the seller's bed pillows. I threw them out despite their tidiness. I really like the D9. It's likely next in line for a full restoration after I get the 11000 back. I couldn't get any sound out of the left side of Speaker B and the AC outlets are broken into a couple of pieces, but still working. The cover had been "sanded" and "repainted" with a fine rattle can in flat black. Say what you will about the auction site, but I found a seller with a parts unit and was able to source a beautiful original replacement cover in the dark wood grain and the complete unbroken AC outlet! He has several other bits too if needed. It looks 1000% better with the mint og cover. Otherwise, it seemed to be working and playing well. It was shortly replaced by something downstream, but I'm anxious to listen to it again. I feel like it's my sleeper unit. I believe I've read that the D9 is one of the more complicated/pita units to work on. Is that true? Maybe it's one I tinker with myself? Just a thought.
BA-2000. I'd been watching this unit at $1,200. Very clean looking cosmetically, "well-kept." Suddenly, the price dropped 75% to $299 with the seller's disclaimer that it'd been working perfectly two years ago, but it hadn't been tested since. I bought it. All in for $384 with tax and shipping. It arrived looking quite clean in good cosmetic condition except for what appeared to be a splatter of spilled coffee perhaps. It powered up, protection circuit cycles, and meter bulbs light up. No music. No sound. Three different preamps. Nada. Okay. Poked around inside where there was evidence of the aforementioned splatter and I vacuumed out some cobwebs and dead spiders. Seller messaged me asking for feedback and I told them what was going on. They gave me half my money back and parted it out. Seemed a good bet to me. I'm into this unit for under $200 and I suspect it will be fine. It's with the 11000 in the tech's hands. TBD (and I'm gonna need a preamp!).
AU-777. The '69 Sui. My baby. I don't know that I need any of the others. It's that simple really. I'd been struck by what I'd been reading about this series, and the 777 in particular. Gorgeous cosmetic condition thoughtfully and appropriately restored by the seller with a full description of everything he'd done. "Euphonic." The seller was very communicative in answering my questions and said he stood by his work. He must be among us here somewhere. I've yet to identify him. I had a good feeling about him and this 777. He made me a nice offer and I pulled the trigger. Zero regrets. Zero. I love this machine. I love the sound. It is superbly satisfying to listen to. I cannot get enough of my original pressing of Tom Petty Wildflowers or that first Dire Straits record. I've played them both tens upon tens of times in the last several weeks. I can't see taking this machine offline. It may be the permanent first system while the others rotate. Volume knob is a tad crackly at start up. I haven't cracked the hood yet, but I should probably get in there with the magic spritz. I do make use of the low filter and occasional use of the presence switch. Otherwise, I leave it all alone. At this stage in the proceedings I needed something solid, stable, plug and play, no more projects. The '69 Sui has risen to the challenge in every way.
AU-4400. I am surrounded by women. I have two daughters. They have girlfriends. My girlfriend has two daughters. My ex-wife has a wife. They have a daughter. I'm left to fend for myself amongst them. If you care to characterize any of this as impulsive, then perhaps this one is worthy of that description. Left to myself one night recently while they all did whatever lady things they were doing, I was unable to scroll by this clean little silver-faced 20-watter. After everything that had come before it the silver patina just grabbed me. What a cool looking little machine. It was inexpensive in the grand scheme of things and here again I liked the seller's vibe after exchanging a couple of messages. I've only listened to it a little bit to confirm functionality. It sounds great. Ironically, the 4400 is the leading candidate to be the foundation of the system I'll build for my girlfriend's house. She has an unused bonus room and I've been given carte blanche to create a listening space. She has an awful sounding sound bar in the living room and we all know I need something to do while the ladies are gathered 'round.
SR-717. Having connected with @Drugolf, he rather quickly observed my Sansui problem and, moving in for the kill, told me about a mint barely used SR-717 available locally from another client of his. What's that you say, a vintage Sansui turntable available locally?! You mean I can just drive over to your house and pick it up?! ***quickly googles SR-717*** Yes, please. I'll take it. It's mint and it's massive. After some research and more reading, I fitted it with a Sumiko Olympia cartridge from their Oyster line. This was my first official turntable set up and it went very well. I even revised the funky little anti-skate mechanism with some of my own flyfishing tippet for smoother operation. The table sounds great, it's playing and tracking well and I'm very happy with my choice of the Sumiko Olympia.
SR-838. I know this is getting tiresome, but I'm not done yet. First thing the very next morning, after I've committed to purchase the SR-717, a gleaming near mint SR-838 shows up in my feed. Well now I need the set. Anyone have a 929 they're looking to part with? Yes, I bought it. It's gorgeous. It came fitted with an AT11E cart and a basic aftermarket budget stylus. I've ordered the ATS12S stylus to upgrade it. Second turntable set up complete and it sounds great. So that makes a three-table rotation and I'm hard-pressed to choose among them.
AU-X11. I blame all of you, collectively, for this one. After reading the various excellent X1/X11 build threads here, with all their attendant mystery and intrigue, I decided to really jump in the deep end here. Restored and rebuilt by one of our colleagues here on AK, I'm awaiting delivery. He's sorting an issue that he discovered during his pre-shipping inspection which I appreciate very much. I'm especially intrigued by the lack of tone controls. This is something that really appeals to me. I find that I don't mess with tone controls all that much. I do like a good filter, but the rest of it can just sit still. This is the only one that I don't have in my possession so there's not much more I can say about it right now other than I'm excited and a wee bit nervous to own this Japanese legend. More to come I'm sure.
Lastly, there's a nice looking AU-Alpha 607MR for local pickup only over in nearby Portland. Again, I'll blame the group for this one, too. Seller has been nonresponsive to my inquiries thus far. Maybe that's for the best right now and I need to take a breath. I've no idea how I'm going to rotate these units, but I'm definitely planning on some sort of display rack with easy access for rotating in and out of the lineup. I should note that I've been primarily hooked up to and listening on a pair of very nice Dahlquist M905s that I found locally. I think they sound fantastic with the 777 and I'm very interested in hearing their upper end models. I'm sort of over the B&W 685s. They're great, but I've had them a long time and they don't seem like the right match for these vintage set ups. I prefer floor-standing speakers, aesthetically, and I really don't care for messing with or hearing subwoofers. I like my bass tight and clean (kind of makes the 90s hard to listen to). Open to recommendations. I'll supplement with pictures in the comments when I get a chance.
If you've read this far, I thank you very much and hope you've enjoyed it. I look forward to interacting with you and sharing this passion for good music well played.
Peace and love.
Pete.
