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Pioneer sa-9100 vs sa-900

Audiohead84

Audiohead84

Active Member
Hello all ak'ers Im new to this site and to the wonderful world of vintage audio. Was bitten by the bug a few months back when I bought my first 1973 HK 75+ quad twin. I love everything about it and just sent it out for a full recap and service. Can't wait to see how it turns out...

In the mean time I have a chance at acquiring either a pioneer sa-9100 or the sa-900. Both are in working condition the 9100 with a partial recap the 900 is Untouched minus a led upgrade to the power light.
I like the look of both but can't seem to decide witch one would be a better piece to own. Both are selling for the same price. Any help or additional information would be greatly appreciated.
 
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Had an 8100, that 9100 is a pretty nice chunk of gear. I'd go with that one for sure. Next model year vs the 900 and partially refurbed...gotta be the better choice.
 
Blue Shadow said:
Had an 8100, that 9100 is a pretty nice chunk of gear. I'd go with that one for sure. Next model year vs the 900 and partially refurbed...gotta be the better choice.
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Right I have alot of options to weigh, I demo'ed The sa900 today and I gotta say it's pretty sweet I'd say a 9/10 in condition, did have a bit of left line issues but couldn't tell if it was the TT, the monitor or the amp that was causing it. I go back tomorrow to demo the 9100 so we will see what that has to offer I'm really liking the sound and setup of the 900, but the looks of the 9100 are superior.
 
ivandezande said:
It's been partially recapped, and it's newer/better built than the 900. 10 more watts.
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From what I have read on here the 9100 seems to have a design flaw and most threads about it all say they get stuck in protection mode? They have some faulty caps/ transistors? The 900 I looked at yesterday looks like a piece of art inside, clean well thought out. Guess we will see today what the 9100 looks like inside. Site says (amp has been recapped 2-1/2 yrs ago in the power supply the main filter caps and the phono boards) and I don't think that's where the fault lies? From what iv skimmed threw on here the 91 is more powerful and more sought after but has some fatal issues or design flaws that will need to be addressed at some point before it goes. The 900 seems to be a solid build with no major design flaws, maybe just a recap down the road but seems to have alot of life left in her.
 
There are probably more SA9100 around so you will see more SA9100 repair topics. Ignoring a "partial recap", the SA9100 is more desirable I think. Indeed, more complexity means more vulnerable, but build quality should be about the same (I have no SA9100)

If from same seller then make sure try all features and switches, if suspecting some channel swap cabling and see if problem is the amp or not, and take the time needed.

(My Pioneer amps are SA8100, SA700 and SA900, I like them all).

In case you have a moving coil cartridge equipped turntable, be aware the SA900 (and even the SA700) has a MC input possibility on board, the SA9100 does not.
 
Well on the plus side the 9100 preformed well, a bit if nob static when it was first turned on but it went right away after a few mins of testing nobs and switches.
It was hard to gage the sound between the two as the speakers we used yesterday for the 900 (some German brand bookshelves) had some connection issues and kept cutting out. ( Bonus though that it was the speakers and not the amps or my newly added Sansui TT.) We used small little mission bookshelves today that didn't have much presence, they did have a crisp clear level sound for testing. As far as the 9100 goes I would say a solid 8/10 for condition and performance, only a few dents and nicks on the wood case and I think with a better pair of speakers it will sound very good.

It was a hard decision to make today, so much so that I couldn't decide between the two. Guess I'll be living on a tight budget for the next few months (oh well) because iv committed to buying them both. I wouldn't say I got a great deal, but I definitely won't say i overpaid either. I think we are both happy. The seller was very helpful and accommodating, definitely knows his stuff and I look forward to doing more business with him in the future.

My thoughts on the two are as they are both good quality amps I do t see them depreciating any time soon and only hope they go up in value. I have read all the posts here about the 9100 being problematic and that's something I'll prob want to address down the road, the 900 to me seems to be more reliable a daily driver if you will and that's how I intend to use it. the 9100 more as a show piece untill I know it will function reliably. All in all if say iv started a pretty good collection. IMG_20220503_152953906_HDR.jpg IMG_20220503_153016418_HDR.jpg
 
Audiohead84 said:
From what I have read on here the 9100 seems to have a design flaw and most threads about it all say they get stuck in protection mode? They have some faulty caps/ transistors? The 900 I looked at yesterday looks like a piece of art inside, clean well thought out. Guess we will see today what the 9100 looks like inside. Site says (amp has been recapped 2-1/2 yrs ago in the power supply the main filter caps and the phono boards) and I don't think that's where the fault lies? From what iv skimmed threw on here the 91 is more powerful and more sought after but has some fatal issues or design flaws that will need to be addressed at some point before it goes. The 900 seems to be a solid build with no major design flaws, maybe just a recap down the road but seems to have alot of life left in her.
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Both, as all Pioneers, have many components that go bad. Not design flaws.
 
Congrats, Nice having both!

There is nothing inside those amps which can not be fixed for the years to come, for me this adds to the desirability.

Warning: wanting more amps or have total refurbs, it will be an expensive hobby :D
 
I own three of Pio's TOTLs, the SA900, SA1000 and a SA9800. And I had a SA9100 quite a while for testing because I restored it for a friend.
My absolute favorite is the SA900 and honestly, the SA9100 never gave me comparable goose-bumps soundwise.
And the SA900 has a really, really sweet phono MC stage.
I'd always prefer the 900.
 
I own the Pioneer SA-900, SA-1000, and SA-7500ii. All sound great, but I find the SA-1000 integrated amplifier is best--the SA-900 is a very close second. Aloha!
Deerbridge said:
I own three of Pio's TOTLs, the SA900, SA1000 and a SA9800. And I had a SA9100 quite a while for testing because I restored it for a friend.
My absolute favorite is the SA900 and honestly, the SA9100 never gave me comparable goose-bumps soundwise.
And the SA900 has a really, really sweet phono MC stage.
I'd always prefer the 900.
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