Sansui G-6700 quesitons

[KeithD]

Might look at a Sansui G-6700 tomorrow. Any advice on these units? I have nothing from the G series. Opinions on how a 6700 would compare to my 9090 or Eight? Are these more repair prone than others or better than others?

Also, these have both dial and digital tuner indicators. Is the dial just for cosmetics and the digital readout is 100% accurate? The one I am considering has about 0.3 MHz difference between what the FM dial reads and the digital readout.

 

[kevzep]

Might look at a Sansui G-6700 tomorrow. Any advice on these units? I have nothing from the G series. Opinions on how a 6700 would compare to my 9090 or Eight? Are these more repair prone than others or better than others?

Also, these have both dial and digital tuner indicators. Is the dial just for cosmetics and the digital readout is 100% accurate? The one I am considering has about 0.3 MHz difference between what the FM dial reads and the digital readout.

Sound is subjective, my observation is you seem to like the older Sansui receivers, whereas, I don't like that sound, chalk and cheese if you like, there's no right or wrong, its about preference.

The Digital Readout is always 100% accurate, the dial pointer has a procedure to align it with the digital readout.
You can never get it 100% correct, its always a bit out at either one end or the other of the dial.
But the tuners are very good and sound excellent.

The amplifier section is temperamental and prone to catastrophic failures, when these happen they can be very tricky to repair.
You'll want to immediately replace the trimmers for a start.
They can have the glue problem on the F2980 board, some do some don't. The regulated supply unerneath which runs the digital circuits runs extremely hot and this often needs to be rebuilt to avoid random and weird behaviour.
Also, make sure all the segments on the digital display are working as the MSM5540 display driver chip, is becoming very difficult to obtain, there were a few for sale (NOS reputable seller) on the ebay, it would not hurt to see if you could get one if you go ahead with the purchase, at least you'll have a spare.

Overall, I like these receivers, not the pinnacle of the Sansui build quality, but I think they are a excellent sounding Sansui.

 

[KeithD]

Sound is subjective, my observation is you seem to like the older Sansui receivers, whereas, I don't like that sound, chalk and cheese if you like, there's no right or wrong, its about preference.

The Digital Readout is always 100% accurate, the dial pointer has a procedure to align it with the digital readout.
You can never get it 100% correct, its always a bit out at either one end or the other of the dial.
But the tuners are very good and sound excellent.

The amplifier section is temperamental and prone to catastrophic failures, when these happen they can be very tricky to repair.
You'll want to immediately replace the trimmers for a start.
They can have the glue problem on the F2980 board, some do some don't. The regulated supply unerneath which runs the digital circuits runs extremely hot and this often needs to be rebuilt to avoid random and weird behaviour.
Also, make sure all the segments on the digital display are working as the MSM5540 display driver chip, is becoming very difficult to obtain, there were a few for sale (NOS reputable seller) on the ebay, it would not hurt to see if you could get one if you go ahead with the purchase, at least you'll have a spare.

Overall, I like these receivers, not the pinnacle of the Sansui build quality, but I think they are a excellent sounding Sansui.

Thanks Kev, that's very helpful. I was hoping you'd reply. I know you have a lot of experience with the Gs.

You are right, I lean a bit more to the earlier sound (though not all the way back to the cap-coupled units). I've done a fair amount of A-B comparisons with the systems I own. I do seem to keep coming back to my Eight sounding the best (though I can create nearly identical sound on the AU-9900 using the tone controls). The Eight even edges my 9090 by a little bit. Hard to put my finger on it, but when I listen to the Eight, I am just drawn to it and want more.

 

[KeithD]

By the way, have you started working on that Eight you have yet?

 

[kevzep]

By the way, have you started working on that Eight you have yet?

I have done the power supply board, and thats it, I am too busy at work to be able put any time in on my bench at the moment.....
I will get to it in the next few weeks though...

 

[KeithD]

Thanks for the replies. I'm interested in a G series receiver mostly for comparison purposes to what I already have. I really don't need another receiver! I decided not to go look at the G-6700. It was on the way on a trip we took yesterday. Not close enough just to drive over to look at it. It's listed for $400. Seems like nice shape, but I doubt I would have kept it had I purchased, and I don't need the hassle of re-selling at the moment.

 

[KeithD]

By the way, there is also a Sansui 1000a listed on CL. An intriguing receiver as it is tube. But at $1k, not something you buy just to try...

 

[ghazzer]

I think that some people have an over valued opinion of the gear they are trying to peddle. How many of these flippers are offering any kind of warranty? Or even guaranteeing that it will work once?

Let the buyer beware - - -

 

[KeithD]

Sansui G-4700 showed up locally at half the price of the 6700. Do the lower end Gx700 series have the same sound as the higher models, or do they get noticeably better as you go up the series. Again, I'm mostly interested in a G series receiver to compare the sound with my earlier stuff, not sure which one would be the best to get for this purpose, or if it matters?

 

[ghazzer]

In general, I would agree with your suspicion that they get better "as you go up the series", but a lot depends on your definition of "better". You get more power to drive your speakers. The tuners of the upper series are usually better. They usually have more features. And so forth.

The lower models of a series usually have fewer things to go wrong, so may be more reliable.

Ultimately it usually boils down to what you want and how it sounds. Units that have recently been refurbished by a reliable technician should be "better", but there is no guarantee that something else will not go wrong.

Being able to do a listening check in your room with the rest of your gear should tell you if you like the sound. But again, there is no guarantee.

My best advice is to do enough research to know what an item is worth, and how difficult it may be to re-sell. If you buy it and like it - great! If you don't like it you should be able to re-sell it. Any loss can be attributed to research and a learning process.

Good Hunting - - -

 

[kevzep]

I have worked on this whole line, things don't really start coming alive until the G6700, I would not base my opinion on the sound of this line of amps with what the G4700 delivers, there are many many design economies in the lower end of the product line.

 

[KeithD]

Thanks for the input on these. Is the G-x000 line similar sounding to the G-x700 series, or do they have their own sound again? Just wondering what the best receiver would be at lowest cost to get that characteristic "G series" sound would be?

 

[kevzep]

Thanks for the input on these. Is the G-x000 line similar sounding to the G-x700 series, or do they have their own sound again? Just wondering what the best receiver would be at lowest cost to get that characteristic "G series" sound would be?

Having had both, and serviced nearly every model in the line and extensively heard them all on the same speakers, this is what I have found.

The GX000 series and the GX700 series do not sound similar, the G7700,8700,9700 all have a certain silky detailed smooth sound with a very nice bass. They are faster amps than the GX000 line. You lose this as you go further down the line....
The GX000 series is not quite as refined up to the G8000. I find they have a harder edge to their sound.
But the G8000/9000 have a closer sound to the GX700.
The G22000/33000 has a sound all of its own which to me is akin to the AU-X1, almost.

The sweet spot in the GX700 line is the G7700, mine is always going to stay with me.......that thing always impresses me...even now, with all the different amps and brands I have had...