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Sony 6060f….underwhelmed

N

Nate94

New Member
Bear with me, I’m a newbie learning a lot every day. I missed the way we listened to and experienced music in the late 70’s and 80’s so I started down this audio path. I found a set of Boston acoustic lynnfield vr30’s and borrowed a pioneer sx780 from a family friend I grew up listening to in the 80’s. I didn’t want to continue borrowing things so I found a Sony str 6060f for a good price and bought it. Upon getting it home and putting some tunes through it I was so disappointed in the sound compared to the pioneer. I did my research, they said the Sony is built like a tank, designed to compete with McIntosh and Marantz, etc but I don’t like it at all. Excuse my rookie terms, but the pioneer sounded much more open, detailed, punchier. I was hearing things on tracks I’ve never heard before. Chills and smiles. The Sony almost sounds muddy, vocals get lost, not good bass or midrange. I was running a Bluetooth receiver through the aux channel so I thought I’d switch to the tape input. It was unlistenable. Terrible static and distortion so I switched back. I’ve noticed the loudness switch isn’t very effective and if on aux channel when I move the tape switch I get a noticeable decrease in volume. What should I do? I’ve built a couple tube guitar amps before so I have soldering skills and basic tools but no scope or anything. Does the thing need recapped? It’s nearly 60 years old. Do I just not like the receiver? I thought it would at least be on par with the sx780. I’ve read capacitor coupled amps don’t do bass as well but this thing is pathetic. Looking for any suggestions. Thanks in advance.

Nate
 
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Nate94 said:
Terrible static and distortion so I switched back. I’ve noticed the loudness switch isn’t very effective and if on aux channel when I move the tape switch I get a noticeable decrease in volume. What should I do?
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The STR6060F is one of the better Sony receivers, and the quote highlighted above tells me this Sony is in need of servicing, maybe even restoration. If you have the skills, you could attempt a recap and work all the controls and switches with DeoxIT.
 
Maybe the Deoxit crowd already had a go at it and it's full of residue. I've had equipment on my workbench that was literally dripping.

A complex receiver like this STR-6060F is not something a n00b is going to successfully fix. You can attempt to "learn as you go" but it's better to have it serviced by an expert. Especially if you lack basic electronics knowledge. Took me 54 years to get where I am now.
 
PE9ZZ said:
Maybe the Deoxit crowd already had a go at it and it's full of residue. A complex receiver like this STR-6060F is not something a n00b is going to successfully fix. You can attempt to "learn as you go" but it's better to have it serviced by an expert. Especially if you lack basic electronics knowledge. Took me 54 years to get where I am now.
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^^This^^
The problems your having with that receiver could be any combo of things like dirty controls, noisy or failing transistors, failed or out of spec caps, etc.
A receiver isn't really the best piece of equipment to learn how to do repairs on. They tend to be more complex than say a power amp or preamp.
That being said, Sony produced some very nice equipment in the 70's.
Your receiver is a good example and once sorted out should sound very good.
I'm sure someone here on AK can suggest a good restore service or tech to go through your receiver. Defenetly stay away from those recap kits you find for various brands and models. Sony like most others made various changes to any given model through out its production. I had a Sony Power amp that I've seen at leased 4 different PCB's in with circuit changes done on each. The schematics are rarely if ever updated as well. Its always best to replace any faulty parts with what you find on the PCB's, not the schematic.
 
Thank you everyone for the input. I opened up the receiver on the bench and had a look. I started off measuring DC offset. 500mv. Just stopped right there. There is a good tech about 10 miles from here I may take it to.
 
I own the STR-6060—and have had many other receivers—and I can tell you that the Sony is the best. Clearly, your STR-6060 needs a cleaning and the replacement of some capacitors; once you do that, you’ll be amazed at the improvement you hear.
 
That era of Sony gear sounds awesome when it's up to spec. Definitely not a receiver for a beginner to repair though, they're pretty complex when you take the top off. Too complex for my limited skills anyway. I'll bet you love it after having it serviced. Well worth the money in my opinion.
 
dbuz said:
That era of Sony gear sounds awesome when it's up to spec. Definitely not a receiver for a beginner to repair though, they're pretty complex when you take the top off. Too complex for my limited skills anyway. I'll bet you love it after having it serviced. Well worth the money in my opinion.
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Agreed
I just finished fixing my TA-2000F to go with my rebuilt TA-3200F and I love them.

PXL_20260831_001747156~2.jpg
 
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I've had both and the Sony STR-6060 should sound much better than that Pioneer. It has an open, extended sound that makes the SX-780 sound muddy in comparison.
 
Got it back from the tech, one day turn around. He checked the bias and had to adjust the balance (?) and did some cleaning. Sounds much better now. I’m sure it would benefit more from a restoration but at least I can listen to it. He said it’s putting out 50W per channel at 0.2% THD. I will say, the more you crank it up, the better it sounds. Thanks to all for the advice. I’ll be around.
 

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Nate94 said:
Got it back from the tech, one day turn around. He checked the bias and had to adjust the balance (?) and did some cleaning. Sounds much better now. I’m sure it would benefit more from a restoration but at least I can listen to it. He said it’s putting out 50W per channel at 0.2% THD. I will say, the more you crank it up, the better it sounds. Thanks to all for the advice. I’ll be around.
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Glad that worked out for you. It really is a beautiful piece.
 
DeOxit for me personally has been a life-saver, I'm not sure it leaves behind too much residue, at least not in my experience, if used correctly. There might be better versions, I've used CRC and whatever Radio Shack used to stock.

It sounds like that's basically what your tech did. Personally I go after the function switch first, it can make everything sound like crap or channel drop-out. When audio sits for years, the switches corrode but most of the time can be cleaned with contact cleaners. Even if they don't sit, if the owner never had a turntable, that part of the switch might be corroded and when the new owner hooks up his TT, it sounds like crap.

Cool unit, I don't have much 70's Sony but they made solid equipment. Now you have to find that matching Sony CD Player from the 70's
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My Sony CDP-555 ... one of a kind !

Hi everyone. This is my Sony CDP-555 CD player. It was supposed to be CDP-5555, but the printers forgot the last "5", oh well. I started this...
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