Revox Rebuild (B77 & H5) Graphic Equalizers

[Jovis]

Gentlemen, Ladies, My Revox H5 pumps out f'all in the way of power and while at 62 I know I am not deaf (there is that and the fact that while my wife always tells me to turn it down while the bloke upstairs can't hear it) and after all that I read about Revox reel to reels and capacitors I figured that I should probably open up the H5 and make some changes. Does that sound stupid or unnecessary? If not, where should I start in replacing components and more importantly, where should I look for components? I see many selling for the B77 on eBay (I am France based but don't speak the language well enough to order here) but searches for the H5 don't appear to exist.
GRAPHIC EQUALIZERS I cannot find anything (ratings or reviews) on the Pioneer SG 540 or Kenwood GE 9X equalizers (I am not wealthy). Any thoughts on this, these or others?
Best wishes to all. Shaun.

 

[steerpike2]

The H5 (the whole H, or 'Human' line) was a rather slow selling and rare line for Revox, almost an experiment. The idea was to simplify the extremely complicated B200 series of components, and go almost to the opposite extreme with as few controls as possible.
Technical info on the H line is almost non-existent.

You may have a problem with your H5 being programmed incorrecly - correct programming of arcane features like input sensitivity and top volume limiting requires the H210 remote control with its display.

The B250 and B260 components need new capacitors at their age, so it would not be surprising if the H series did too. Don't expect to find manuals or diagrams for them though.

 

[Jovis]

The H5 (the whole H, or 'Human' line) was a rather slow selling and rare line for Revox, almost an experiment. The idea was to simplify the extremely complicated B200 series of components, and go almost to the opposite extreme with as few controls as possible.
Technical info on the H line is almost non-existent.

You may have a problem with your H5 being programmed incorrecly - correct programming of arcane features like input sensitivity and top volume limiting requires the H210 remote control with its display.

The B250 and B260 components need new capacitors at their age, so it would not be surprising if the H series did too. Don't expect to find manuals or diagrams for them though.

Steerpike2, Thank you for this. I have only just seen it!

You are quite sure that an H210 is what I need to set it up? I do not have a remote for it and it is only recently that I realised that I needed one to operate it properly while I couldn't get over the fact that while I cannot find much information on the thing the output volume is minimal so I guess you are correct in your appraisal of my unit.

Does the H210 take the place of the remote (which I cannot find anywhere) and would I understand how to use it?

Best, SPJ

 

[steerpike2]

Hi,
The H-series had two remotes:
The H210 was a complete wireless control panel, with display & learning capabilities. That is the device you need to take full control of the H components, since otherwise there is no display of their status and you cannot see what the components are doing or what mode they are in.
The H210 is a remote, plus a lot more.

There was a smaller remote handset (H208) that had fewer functions and no display. This won't give you total control or ability to do custom setup.

While the H210 and H208 LOOK the same as the B210 and B208, the "B" remotes do not talk to the H series components - they use a different infra-red language.

I THINK the H5 has a reset function that can be accessed by putting an un-folded paper clip into the small hole in the front panel.
I don't know if this restores all custom settings though. You must disconnect the speakers before activating the reset procedure, as the speaker protection does not operate during that phase.

 

[twiiii]

My 35 year old B-77 HS 2 trk with 1/4 trk playback head still meets specs as new. . I guess I'm lucky. The 40 year old A-77 has all sorts of problems and is packed away for sale and restoration one day by some else. That said the Revox never matched my old Ampexs. except in frequency response. There was no way my 300-4, AG 500, and AG 350 could reach above 15,000 hz like the Revox. Bu t that said the Ampexs had more signal to noise and dynamic range, and that's the name of the game. Even the old 300 could wipe the Revox using the same High out put tapes from TDK and Maxell/ By the way the 300 was used with 2 354 electronics instead of 4 351 electronics. Late in its life it was used with two 157 DBX noise reduction systems. It could easily match a Digital recorder of the 80's.

 

[steerpike2]

There was a BIG price difference and target market difference between those Ampexes and an A77/B77.
If you want a 'Revox' that competes with the Ampexes, you should be looking at machines like the Studer A62 and B62, or maybe a C37
The A77 and B77 were intended as home Hi-fi separates, that just happened to be so good that they were adopted as budget professional machines.

I posted a link to the H210 manual on your other query.

Re-reading the other posts above, the H5 is older than "1991-1993". It was around in 1988/9 already.