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Sony 6060f….underwhelmed

I picked up a STR-6060FW cheap on Craigslist with the intention of restoring it and selling it. It sounded so good when I was done I kept it. There are 60 year old caps in that receiver that should be replaced. If that is done it would sound wonderful. Additionally, the coils in the MPX board tend to go open. If you get good stereo reception you are lucky. I ended up replacing the board with a modern replacement that performs very well.
 
Well I was messing with the Sony on my bench. I found a bad cap in the phono preamp and decided to do filter caps and coupling caps. But I thought the tone knobs seemed awful stiff to turn. The guy I bought it from said he cleaned all the controls and such. I decided to check into the tone controls more and found to properly clean them you need to remove the face plate and the tone control board to get access to the pots. I cleaned and cleaned until they turned freely then brought it upstairs to try out. Now I understand why people love these so much. I couldn’t believe the difference. Holy ****. IMG_2398.jpeg
 
PE9ZZ said:
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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Yes, blindly tackling a complex unit can be very frustrating.

:(
 
Nate94 said:
Well I was messing with the Sony on my bench. I found a bad cap in the phono preamp and decided to do filter caps and coupling caps. But I thought the tone knobs seemed awful stiff to turn. The guy I bought it from said he cleaned all the controls and such. I decided to check into the tone controls more and found to properly clean them you need to remove the face plate and the tone control board to get access to the pots. I cleaned and cleaned until they turned freely then brought it upstairs to try out. Now I understand why people love these so much. I couldn’t believe the difference. Holy ****.
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Sometimes when you use contact cleaner and it mixes with the damping grease in the pot shafts they will interact and become sticky. Either that or they will wash out/dissolve the damping grease and knobs turn very freely with no resistance and feels like metal to metal scraping.
 
Nate94 said:
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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Your Boston Acoustics Lynnfield speakers aren't a good match for the Sony STR-6060F. The Boston speakers like receivers/amplifiers with higher damping factors for best bass. The Sony will sound better with speakers like the AR2Ax, the Dynaco A-25, the KLH-6, and similar.

Was the Sony properly serviced? The Pioneer's a better match for your current speakers. A note: McIntosh and Marantz, aren't loud, brash, and bright like a Pioneer. They take time to appreciate their great qualities. Likewise vintage Sony of the 1965-1971 era. I think if your Sony classic was paired with more appropriate speakers, you'd like it better.
 
KentTeffeteller said:
Likewise vintage Sony of the 1965-1971 era. I think if your Sony classic was paired with more appropriate speakers, you'd like it better.
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Did you see his update? Basically he fixed it and now likes it.
Nate94 said:
Well I was messing with the Sony on my bench. I found a bad cap in the phono preamp and decided to do filter caps and coupling caps. But I thought the tone knobs seemed awful stiff to turn. The guy I bought it from said he cleaned all the controls and such. I decided to check into the tone controls more and found to properly clean them you need to remove the face plate and the tone control board to get access to the pots. I cleaned and cleaned until they turned freely then brought it upstairs to try out. Now I understand why people love these so much. I couldn’t believe the difference. Holy ****.
Click to expand...
 
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