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Querying some early Sansui prices...

bhairavi

bhairavi

AK Subscriber
Subscriber
I posted about this in the Sansui forum as well but I need to talk $$$ so here I am.

There's a person selling a few different Sansui amps/receivers and I'm trying to see if it might be worth it to get more than just the one amp that I'm looking for.

For starters, they have
AU-505/TU-505 listed for 300
AU-666/TU-666 580
and offering an AU-999 for 550

I think these prices seem pretty reasonable. I might buy an AU-888, but I haven't bugged them for other prices yet, and I'm wondering what would be reasonable, particularly for the bolded ones:

1010
2020
Six
Seven
Eight
Eight deluxe
771
AU-505 300
AU-666 580
AU-888
AU-999
AU-217 II
AU-717
 
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^ The nice thing about vintage Sansui was there was a lot of them made, sold and lot still changing hands to this day.

Your best bet is to check completed sales on sites such as Reverb, HiFi Shark and eBay, you should be able to find quite a bit of info

Let us know what you find and report back for yays or nays

As the first ones you mentioned, what is there current working status? that plays a lot into if they are worth it or not.

Having owned multiple Sansui's, I can say if the price is right get the AU-717, if working properly it's a great amp plus it has "Pre-out/Main in" so you could use it a straight power amp or just as a Pre-Amp
 
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Yeah assumption is all working. I'm leaning toward 888, and then, depending on price, either the 717, 217 or 505.


It looks like the 717 is not as warm as the xxx series, but then I'll still have a 4000 and the 888, so that'd be okay. Good price on a 717 would be maybe under 600?
 
bhairavi said:
.. Good price on a 717 would be maybe under 600?
Click to expand...

It would be a good price assuming it's in top working order, currently completed/solds on the auction site are routinely showing them selling for higher amounts yet they are also listed as "Serviced"
 
Yeah, although what does 'serviced' really mean most of the time, aside from deoxit in pots? Now if they say full recap, yeah, great!
 
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The seller said he would hold off on advertising the rest of the amps until I could take a look. Wishes to sell the tuners with the amps but prices seem reasonable.

Updated prices:
AU-505/TU-505 $300
AU-666/TU-666 $580
AU-888/TU-888 $700 - both have been restored by QRX! But currently one side running hot. Seller said he'd take it to his tech to get it checked out
AU-999/TU-999 $700
AU-217 II/TU-217 $325
AU-717/TU-717 - seller to check condition

I will check them out this week. Currently leaning toward the 888 combo along with the 505 or 217. Unless the 717 is offered at a decent price, in which case it would be worth it. Eventually I would sell off the tuners, so that's a hassle, not sure if prices make it worth it. The seller has sent me pictures, very clear and high-res, and the amps all certainly look to be in excellent shape.

Opinions?


Pics of AU888:

20240916_104425.jpg
20240916_104448.jpg
20240917_072659.jpg
 
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bhairavi said:
Yeah, although what does 'serviced' really mean most of the time, aside from deoxit in pots? Now if they say full recap, yeah, great!
Click to expand...
That was what I was getting at, "Serviced" can mean anything as it's a crap-shoot really.

bhairavi said:
Updated prices:

AU-888/TU-888 $700 - both have been restored by QRX! But currently one side running hot. Seller said he'd take it to his tech to get it checked out

I will check them out this week. Currently leaning toward the 888 combo

Opinions?
Click to expand...

It sounds like your dealing with someone who knows what they're doing, talking and you get to physically inspect and I'm assuming demo too so that's a good thing.

As for the price there is comfort in knowing that these have been seen to by a respected service establishment and if you move the tuner along at some point you'll recoup some of the overall cost.

Personally I think the 888 looks great similar to the 555 I had years ago however I'm biased and I would hold out hope that the AU-717 can be had for a fair price.

Just a suggestion, notice it's just you and I going back and forth in this thread the reason I bring this up is I'm pretty sure you would get a lot more feedback from the Sansui brain trust (I don't include myself in that) if you were to create, a thread sans "value/worth" questions, in the "Exclusively Sansui" section with regards to overall opinions.
 
Seller said 717 has a scratchy pot, both it and the 888 will go to a tech first. Fine by me. He said he'd hold them for me.

AU/TU-717 combo asking $800. Perhaps he will come down a little if I buy together with the 888. So recapped 888 and unknown but in good outward condition 717, which I'll be able to check out on the seller's system - he has ADS 810s and L100s.

Maybe not a fantastic deal, but a good deal I think. I'll be able to recoup some money by selling the TUs as you said.
 
People seem to be getting all excited about the eight lately, I have never heard one but it may be worth looking at.
 
I would only consider the AU-717 if it had been recapped, and the corrosive glue removed.

Which Sansui gear has the "glue problem"

The problem of corrosive glue used in vintage Sansui components shows up in many of the threads. As a died in the wool Sansui fan, and one who is likely to purchase more Sansui components, I'd sure like to hear from AKers who can tell which models have the problem. Thanks for any information...
audiokarma.org
 
rickb119 said:
I would only consider the AU-717 if it had been recapped, and the corrosive glue removed.

Which Sansui gear has the "glue problem"

The problem of corrosive glue used in vintage Sansui components shows up in many of the threads. As a died in the wool Sansui fan, and one who is likely to purchase more Sansui components, I'd sure like to hear from AKers who can tell which models have the problem. Thanks for any information...
audiokarma.org
Click to expand...
I asked the seller and he said it doesn't seem to be affected by the glue disease but of course I will check.

I know the glue corrosion is under the major caps, is it difficult to deal with if you've done a recap or two? So far I've done a Yamaha CA1000 and a Sansui 4000, so I'm willing to put in a bit of work.

I'm also considering picking up the 999 in addition to the 888 and 717 seeing as they're all slightly different eras. If nothing else then they might fund purchase of a 9500 in the future.
 
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I have a AU-919 that I purchased about the time I joined AK (2010). I did recap it, but did not remove the glue since I didn't see any evidence of corrosion. Although I've experience a couple of minor issues, none have been due to the glue.

I would at least examine it for any signs of corrosion. As LBPete stated, "Most boards I've seen with the glue don't show any signs of corrosion. That said, I've also seen boards that have component leads eaten through with corrosion."

The AU-717 will give you a very different sound than your 4000. (I also have a 5000a.) The 717 will be much more detailed.

There's a lot to be said about system synergy. My 919 does a fantastic job with my ribbon tweeter bookshelf speakers. However, I find it a bit too bright (less smooth) with my KEF 104/2's.
 
Nice. So far it looks like two of my three sets of speakers will end up being KLH (6, 23) and the third is Boston A200s. The Bostons sound great on the 4000 (but could use more power), the KLHs also sound excellent but I suspect I would prefer them on a Sansui with slightly more clarity than the 4000 and more warmth than the 'neutral' Yamaha CA1000. So I think the AU888/999/717 could be the Goldilocks of this grouping.
 
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Will be going to pick these up soon, so I'm going to post in here again, see if I get any more thoughts.


I have a 4000, and I'm pretty set on getting the AU888 and AU717.
I'll be able to audition a AU9500 that is not for sale, at least it'll give me an idea whether I want one.

That leaves on the table:
all those other receivers that I'm not really interested in except maybe an Eight
AU505
AU666
AU999
AU217ii

I feel like picking up one of the smaller amps, but not sure which. Seems like there are many proponents of the 505 and 217. I already have a cap coupled 4000 and I wonder how a 505 compares.
 
In my opinion the 4000 sounds better than the 5000a and 5000X. I have had many from that line.

Most of the prices seem reasonable, considering what this stuff goes for these days.

Rob
 
I think you bought what you wanted already, but the deal in the lot if in good condition would be the 505 AU/TU pair. The 888 pair would be tempting because people seem to like them and they are somewhat scarce. I have the AUTU-999 pair, and they are both excellent. The 666 pair seems overpriced.
 
bhairavi said:
I feel like picking up one of the smaller amps, but not sure which. Seems like there are many proponents of the 505 and 217. I already have a cap coupled 4000 and I wonder how a 505 compares.
Click to expand...

I am a Sansui fanboy, currently running a recapped/restored AU-555a and a Six. I used to own an AU-505 from QRX Restore and an all-original AU-217. IMO the 505 was vastly superior to the 217, but in fairness the latter was not recapped.

I'd strongly advice the 505 over the 217 EXCEPT for the fact that the 505 might sound very much like the 4000 you already own.
 
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