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suitable alternative for the 2SA485/2SC485 and STV-2h in Sansui 5000

skippy124

Super Member
Post from Skippy124, Jan 2011, in FAQ sticky of Exclusively Sansui forum.

http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4347793&postcount=55


Hi,

I recently acquired a 5000, and was intent on performing the modifications as shown at the start of this thread, but ran into some problems.

The reason for this post is twofold, the alternative bias diodes NTE-605a and STV-2h are not available locally, and from what I can gather are almost impossible to get hold of anywhere, so I needed an alternative for these. The second reason for the post is that the fault on the 5000 I have was left channel distortion, which turned out to be a corroded base lead on the 2SA485 bias transistor, and I am having difficulty finding a suitable alternative for the 2SA485/2SC485 pair in a metal can case.

Inspired by the excellent work EchoWars has done in identifying alternative bias diodes I decided to use 2 1N4148 diodes in place of the old LV-2 diodes.

In searching for alternative transistors, I settled on the commonly available BD139/BD140 complementary pairs, the specs are a reasonable match to the originals.

Last was to work out a way of making a transistor/bias diode assembly that would provide the thermal equivalent of the old assembly, and the following details what I did.

This is a modification instruction that will replace the old 2SA485/2SC485 bias assemblies with new assemblies made from readily available components

What you will need

BD139 x2
BD140 x2
1N4148 x8
1.5mm (or 1/16") dia heatshrink, approx 35mm length (1 1/2")
6mm dia (or 1/4") heatshrink, approx 50mm length (2")
Suitable hookup wire, 2 colours, approx 100mm (4")

Also, before starting any work on the unit, take out the protection fuses on the rear panel and discharge the power supply and output caps as per the instruction in the first post in this thread.

A new assembly is made up from one transistor and a diode pair in series. I chose to connect one end of each diode pair directly to the base of each transistor, as this is the way they end up being connected when assembled to the PCB, You could do it with two leads for the diode pair if you wish.

This is what we want to end up with for pair of assemblies

E_Audio StuffReceiverErnie1-Transistor_diodeconnection.jpg



Start by first pre-bending the transistor leads to match the hole layout in the PCB. The holes in the PCB are tight, and correct alignment will make fitting easier….

E_Audio StuffReceiverErnie2-sansui5000BD139_140legsbent-1.jpg


…and then make up a transistor/diode pairs like this (this shows the BD140 PNP transistor, the BD139 NPN is the same except the diode pair are reversed). NOTE: as these components are being soldered very close to the body of the component, use care with the soldering, only apply heat for as short a time as possible to make a joint. Also take care with the termination of the diode to the base lead of the transistor - make sure that it is not shorted to the adjacent collector lead.


E_Audio StuffReceiverErnie3-sansui5000BD140withdiodes.jpg


The assembly is then covered with the larger heatshrink (approx 1/2" length). The 6mm dia heatshrink is a tad undersized for this, I stretched it just a little using long nose pliers prior to fitting. I used two different colour flying leads to easily distinguish between the BD139 and BD140 as the component coding is covered by the outer heatshrink.


E_Audio StuffReceiverErnie4-sansui5000BD139_140finished-1.jpg


Assuming that the old assemblies have been removed for the PCBs, the new assemblies can now be fitted. Make sure that the holes in the PCB are clear, as the new transistor leads are a tight fit. The diode leads are fitted as follows:


E_Audio StuffReceiverErnie5-sansui5000NEWDIODEPCBCONNECTION.jpg


And


E_Audio StuffReceiverErnie6A-Transistor_diodeconnection_1.jpg


E_Audio StuffReceiverErnie6B-sansui5000_F-1040_Schematic-1.jpg


And this shows the new assemblies fitted


E_Audio StuffReceiverErnie7-sansui5000BD139_140assembled-1.jpg


The bias pots should be wound fully CCW prior to turn on, and then bias set as per the service manual (23ma measured at the protection fuse for each channel).


Notes:


- Remember to replace the protection fuses on the rear panel.


- I did this without removing the boards as I didn't have a high wattage soldering to desolder the braid earth connections. I did remove the RHS capacitors to get access to the component side of the RHS PCA. It would be easier if the boards were removed, and care should be taken when removing the old bias assemblies, the pads on the board are a little fragile.


- the diodes could be assembled using two flying leads as per the original arrangement if so desired.


- These instructions are for the F1040 PCA, and I assume that they will also be applicable to the later F1040-1 PCA.


And a final word of advice to owners of 5000's and 5000A's with F1040 and F1040-1 PCA's. As stated earlier in this post, the failure in my 5000 occurred due to the base lead on one of the 2SA485's corroding off the body of the transistor. All of the 2SA485/2SC485's I removed had evidence of corrosion on the leads (and the interior of my 5000 had no other signs of corrosion. lead oxidation etc)


E_Audio StuffReceiverErnie8-sansui5000OLDBIASTRANS.jpg


They would have all failed sometime in the future.... a time bomb waiting to go off. I would suggest that you have a look next time you have the covers off, it is relatively easy to see if there is corrosion present.

My original thread on this is here

http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=347022

I hope this is of some use to other 5000 owners in the future. If anything is not clear or if anyone has and questions either PM me or post up here.

Cheers

John

(Mod edit: Thanks to ghazzer for the restoration. )
 
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I just resurrected a Sansui 5000 that I found in someone's trash about 30 years ago but never did anything with. It had severe distortion in the right channel. I eventually figured out that the 2SC485 transistor Tr 803 on the F-1040 board was completely open on all leads. No corrosion like the above post, but I found that the diode unit was very loose on the top of the transistor and wasn't making any thermal contact with the transistor. I don't know if that is what caused the transistor to fail. Coincidently, I was taking apart an old Zenith TV console from the early 1970s and pulled all of the transistors from it (old Zeniths had socketed transistors and ICs). I noticed that the video output transistors in this TV had the same TO-39 case and would be a perfect replacement physically, and it had to be a relatively high voltage transistor since it interfaced with the picture tube grids. There was plastic guard and support on the heat sinks that said "caution 200 volts", so I knew that this transistor should be robust enough at least to try and see if it would make things better. I put this transistor in and attached the original diode clip after making it a tighter fit and putting some heat sink paste in there as well. I turned the unit on with the ammeter in place of the protection fuse and there was no strange current draw and I was easily able to adjust the bias current to the 23 ma. (with the old transistor that pot didn't do anything). The amp runs fine now, and nothing is running warm at all. The transistor I used had three numbers on it: 743, 16, and 328. I couldn't determine anything from that, but I think that transistor is similar to a ECG154. So, this was an easy option, assuming the PNP companion transistor is still good. I have been using the receiver for several days now without issues. Using my Kill-A-Watt energy monitor, the entire receiver only draws about 17 watts with the volume turned down and about 21 watts at normal listening volume, (a few watts more when set to the tuners, which lights up the radio dial bulbs) so it is running very cool and I cannot tell any difference in the sound between the two channels, with the left channel still having the original 2SC485 in it. I checked the other diode clips and they were all tight. And yes, this amp does sound very clear and has awesome sound. There is no audible noise, even though it is still all original other than this. When using an external audio source, when the unit is turned off it continues to run for an additional 5 seconds or so from the energy stored in the filter caps, so they must still be good enough.
 
Post from Skippy124, Jan 2011, in FAQ sticky of Exclusively Sansui forum.

http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showpost.php?p=4347793&postcount=55


Hi,

I recently acquired a 5000, and was intent on performing the modifications as shown at the start of this thread, but ran into some problems.

The reason for this post is twofold, the alternative bias diodes NTE-605a and STV-2h are not available locally, and from what I can gather are almost impossible to get hold of anywhere, so I needed an alternative for these. The second reason for the post is that the fault on the 5000 I have was left channel distortion, which turned out to be a corroded base lead on the 2SA485 bias transistor, and I am having difficulty finding a suitable alternative for the 2SA485/2SC485 pair in a metal can case.

Inspired by the excellent work EchoWars has done in identifying alternative bias diodes I decided to use 2 1N4148 diodes in place of the old LV-2 diodes.

In searching for alternative transistors, I settled on the commonly available BD139/BD140 complementary pairs, the specs are a reasonable match to the originals.

Last was to work out a way of making a transistor/bias diode assembly that would provide the thermal equivalent of the old assembly, and the following details what I did.

This is a modification instruction that will replace the old 2SA485/2SC485 bias assemblies with new assemblies made from readily available components

What you will need

BD139 x2
BD140 x2
1N4148 x8
1.5mm (or 1/16") dia heatshrink, approx 35mm length (1 1/2")
6mm dia (or 1/4") heatshrink, approx 50mm length (2")
Suitable hookup wire, 2 colours, approx 100mm (4")

Also, before starting any work on the unit, take out the protection fuses on the rear panel and discharge the power supply and output caps as per the instruction in the first post in this thread.

A new assembly is made up from one transistor and a diode pair in series. I chose to connect one end of each diode pair directly to the base of each transistor, as this is the way they end up being connected when assembled to the PCB, You could do it with two leads for the diode pair if you wish.

This is what we want to end up with for pair of assemblies

View attachment 1714896



Start by first pre-bending the transistor leads to match the hole layout in the PCB. The holes in the PCB are tight, and correct alignment will make fitting easier….

View attachment 1714897


…and then make up a transistor/diode pairs like this (this shows the BD140 PNP transistor, the BD139 NPN is the same except the diode pair are reversed). NOTE: as these components are being soldered very close to the body of the component, use care with the soldering, only apply heat for as short a time as possible to make a joint. Also take care with the termination of the diode to the base lead of the transistor - make sure that it is not shorted to the adjacent collector lead.


View attachment 1714898


The assembly is then covered with the larger heatshrink (approx 1/2" length). The 6mm dia heatshrink is a tad undersized for this, I stretched it just a little using long nose pliers prior to fitting. I used two different colour flying leads to easily distinguish between the BD139 and BD140 as the component coding is covered by the outer heatshrink.


View attachment 1714899


Assuming that the old assemblies have been removed for the PCBs, the new assemblies can now be fitted. Make sure that the holes in the PCB are clear, as the new transistor leads are a tight fit. The diode leads are fitted as follows:


View attachment 1714901


And


View attachment 1714902


View attachment 1714904


And this shows the new assemblies fitted


View attachment 1714905


The bias pots should be wound fully CCW prior to turn on, and then bias set as per the service manual (23ma measured at the protection fuse for each channel).


Notes:


- Remember to replace the protection fuses on the rear panel.


- I did this without removing the boards as I didn't have a high wattage soldering to desolder the braid earth connections. I did remove the RHS capacitors to get access to the component side of the RHS PCA. It would be easier if the boards were removed, and care should be taken when removing the old bias assemblies, the pads on the board are a little fragile.


- the diodes could be assembled using two flying leads as per the original arrangement if so desired.


- These instructions are for the F1040 PCA, and I assume that they will also be applicable to the later F1040-1 PCA.


And a final word of advice to owners of 5000's and 5000A's with F1040 and F1040-1 PCA's. As stated earlier in this post, the failure in my 5000 occurred due to the base lead on one of the 2SA485's corroding off the body of the transistor. All of the 2SA485/2SC485's I removed had evidence of corrosion on the leads (and the interior of my 5000 had no other signs of corrosion. lead oxidation etc)


View attachment 1714908


They would have all failed sometime in the future.... a time bomb waiting to go off. I would suggest that you have a look next time you have the covers off, it is relatively easy to see if there is corrosion present.

My original thread on this is here

http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=347022

I hope this is of some use to other 5000 owners in the future. If anything is not clear or if anyone has and questions either PM me or post up here.

Cheers

John

(Mod edit: Thanks to ghazzer for the restoration. )
I believe this is a must before putting the amp back into service. I had mine with distortion on the right channel, at first it was the diode faulty, I replaced it with 1N4148 in series. It worked for a bit, after an hour distortion was back. I checked the transistor came open. Not really sure what made it not work. There was no corrosion as well on the 2SA/C485 but somehow it just failed by opening up.

Replaced with newer transistors not every works as it should. I plan on doing the same on the right channel.
 
Hi to all the smart people here. This is my first time posting to AK. I’m definitely a rookie but I’m learning. I’m preparing to do the skippy mod on a 5000 I recently acquired. I have a question regarding the process. My F1040 boards have a 100pf cap installed on the backside of the board between the base and cathode of Tr803. When I replace Tr803 with BD139 do I put that 100pf cap back or is it no longer needed?
 

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