Buy Our Restored & Upgraded 'Use Daily' Hifi.
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Great Vintage Hi-Fi - Use Daily Rebuilt, Upgraded & Serviced - Hi-Fi to Rediscover Your Music With. We Sort Out The Limited Sound & Bring a Far Better Sound than the Original Design as Our Upgrades are Heading Towards 'Optimising' Hifi. Still a Lot Of Interest here by Us in Vintage Hi-Fi as it keeps giving Surprises.
Hi-Fi We Sell is Serviced, Recapped, Restored & Upgraded. Many Hours Work & New Parts. Fully Cleaned & Tested. Run In for Hours & Often much Used on our Tannoys.
Do Not Confuse Our Hi-Fi with Other Sellers who think their Aged Original Untouched Hi-Fi with problems is Worth the same £££ as Ours without any of Our Specialist Work & Testing Done.
Ours is USE DAILY Quality with Lots of Inside Photos to show what we do.
We are Mail Order Only. Bank Transfers & Tracked Couriers. Not a Shop. Not for Home Demos. Read our site to Tell What We Are About. If Our Amps were offered from Us via a Shop-Type Setting you'd be paying 3-4x the Price & still be Delighted!
We Sell 'Vintage Hi-Fi Amplfiers & Receivers. To see from Other Sellers there is a Need to Explain What That Means is how Life Today is on Older Equipment. They are Easy To Use, we'd not bother with DIN Connectors on Inputs or Speaker outputs, if they are still Buyable. Our Gear uses RCA Phono Sockets which can take Any Inputs using a Suitable Cable with a Line Level Inout or a Record Player Turntable into the Phono input. Speakers Connectors vary from 4mm Sockets that were Added by Us to Gear, a 4mm Socket was only really Standard by the 1990s. Ones with Screws or Non Standard Plugs will require Different Connecting Cables, ask us for more Info. Most are Multivoltage for UK 240v & USA 117v to require a setting to be altered. To Use an Amplifier you Need an Input & Speakers or Headphones to Hear the Music.
Our Sales Amps are ones we've Serviced, Restored & Upgraded and written up on this site. We'd not get amps that were not worth us spending time on, so the Amps We Sell are Our Choice. Ours have been given our full treatment of Servicing & Recapping which always includes Upgrades & even Redesign sometimes. Our prices do not compare to "Raw Unserviced" ones, as we've put hours of work & new parts in ours, so you get a nice ready to use amp instead of gambling on a tired amp. You can read for yourself to decide if we are just hyping items to sell them, or genuinely have a love for Vintage Hifi and want buyers to experience great amps. The Pre-1980 Hifi scene has many great amps with a Real Musical sound, not the lifeless thin sound of 'Hifi' today. Prices we state are NOT NEGOTIABLE although we may reduce the price ourselves at any time. We offer a generous Trade-In on Hifi We Sold that we'd like back again: ones we sold in the past on this site & ebay, but as our Reviews page shows, we didn't like them all equally. For Hifi we've not sold, Trade Ins are possible, but we are picky on the sort of amps we go for, though no harm in asking, but only the better quality or early amps similar to what we upgrade for our interest as our Reviews page shows. We have no interest in bulk cheap items, we want Quality & Interesting items, as in what this site sells in Hifi & Vinyl Records.
To Understand Vintage Hifi Is Required. Read Our Info Sections Below!
Amps of 40-60 years old are Not Made like Modern Amps. Surely the Pleasure of Using Old Gear & having far better sound is the thing. Some amps can appear Crude for Switch On & Off noises. It's how they are made & as time goes on to get questions we answered years ago on the Help Section below that went unread. We sell Hifi that is ready to use & to even go through a quick test just to show things work before posting helps. But to be questioned like we've sent you faulty gear with switch noises etc is a bit tedious when it's how it's made. A problem overtame modern audio won't have is picking up RF noises through Earthing issues. To be told it's a fault on vintage when it's from how you use it & you've not read things can be difficult, but it's life today. You're buying Expertly Rebuilt & Upgraded Vintage Hifi. If it had noise issues we'd not sell it & we much test our Hifi. If you can't understand what we write, then go buy some Modern Gear like most people do. Vintage Hifi is Specialist Hifi for Free Thinkers!
You Need A Good Read: Lots Of Info Below To Answer Issues You May Find.
We've been Doing Hifi quite a few years now. We are at a Higher Level with Redesigning & 'Optimising' Amplifier upgrades, some we do Sell here as not to keep them all. All this Site written by Us, we know Hifi of Our Era better than Anyone Else as we still keep trying to Better Hifi for our own desires. So Why Do Some Think We Are Wromg When They've Not Even Read This Page? This page with 'Help & Advice For Buyers' below the Sales Items was actually mostly written nearly Ten Years Ago & has certainly helped ease the Questions when we've already answered it. Amps are fairly described & pictured. Amps are only offered for sale if to our 'UIse Daily Quality' & this means they are Reliable. Ones that we see as 'Not Good Enough' get kept longer or broken for Spares. To be told 'It Hums' still just proves they Don't Read A Thing & in that usual way think We Are Wrong. This is just how People Are, they Know Nothing & Assume We Know Less!. so Read Our Site Just A Little, it's the Best Hifi Read on the Internet.
>> Go Straight to the Sale Items >>
New Readers should read the sections above the Sales items to understand what you are Buying from us as it's Serviced and Upgraded Hifi.
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WHAT YOU GET BUYING AN UPGRADED AMPLIFIER FROM US
All Amplifiers & Receivers we sell are Serviced, Cleaned & Upgraded to a very high standard as our photos show so they are "Use Daily" quality. We've had them on & running for hours, tested them on Speakers & Headphones. We try them on Headphones & our Tannoys to make sure they are right & to try them on big Speakers now is important to see how they match for our Research. We'd not trust our main speakers on an amp we were not confident about. Forget their overall age, these Vintage Transistor Amps are well made & with new capacitors & being serviced, they are good & reliable for years use & ones we upgrade are better than new for the higher spec. The amp will be delivered to you working as Described & will note any quirks. If an amp can't be made reliable then we don't sell it, to show how we deal sadly 3 amps reviewed in 2014 on the Amps Reviews pages ended up not being sold & used for spares. So be sure any Hifi you buy passes our Tests before offering for sale. Not all capacitors need upgrading: if the main power caps are still good & the values are decent, to replace them isn't required. We've cut open enough big capacitors to see how they age & know which ones will still be good.
Once you've read this page & see our way of dealing, you'll see we don't waste time with cosy fluffy adspeak talk, we say it straight. All our Hifi info pages are like this, probably the first time ever this sort of Hifi Info has been collected in one place & given the BS-free opinions by one who knows their subject & doesn't care much for accepted opinion: if we disagree we say it & tell you why we say it. If you like that attitude in selling Hifi, then these are the amps we research, upgrade & write about. We used to like Vinyl Records like this, see our Record Info pages, some older ones revived recently & include Hifi related info like Vinyl Quality has Stylus Size info & samples. There's even a page on Pre War Comic Annuals written similarly & we have a few Rare & Obscure ones for sale.
We, as select45rpm are independent, as our hype-free site will show. We are not affiliated with any other trader or technician & having seen another repair tech get linked to by what looks like a bogus trader, we add this here. We do not endorse or recommend any other hifi seller or technician. We are not sponsored by any corporate company & would refuse any advertising on our pages which get a lot of hits & could easily rake us in advertising revenue. If you think to trust any other hifi tech, or any online trader, be sure to see if they have an established web presence with unique pages of information plus an ebay or amazon selling link. We know there are scammers out there & don't like hearing of people being conned. If you see anyone linking to us implying we endorse them, then be sure it is fake. We put all our info on this site to further the scene in Hifi & Records and to show potential customers what we know. It's a unique site we know...
WE SELL SERVICED, RECAPPED & UPGRADED AMPS
Most amps are designed to a certain spec to fit a price structure, less so with pre 1970 but tight to the penny post 1973. The spec of today is far higher than of old, but to know what to upgrade requires design knowledge to do correctly & fine tune our ideals by each amp so it's stable & reliable. Nearly all amps are very light on deep bass, this was to stop fools complaining who used cheap gear with good amps, so by about 1970 designs changed to keep things safe. This to us is not good, limited bass today isn't needed & amps sound far better upgraded. Some have very low spec throughout, post 1973 Pioneer may look the part but Pioneer were priced cheaper than the other big brands & did this by cost cutting. We upgrade to remove all their limits & dumbing down to make far superior amps. We do suspect Pioneer designed great amps but then the costing hatchet man chopped every last penny off hiding the beauty of the original sound. We put "the great sound" back. Upgrades with Design. We test our amps on Headphones & then often use them on speakers for a few days or more, just to see what they sound like & get used to them. This brings about more upgrade ideas the more we hear. We only get amps to upgrade that interest us or to get again if it was a good one. We're not interested in mass market post 1978 amps as they usually aren't worth upgrading. We sell Our Choice of ones we think are worth our efforts once we've upgraded them to see how good they are.
NEW PARTS WE USE.
All Amplifiers & Receivers we recap & upgrade with Quality Parts as the Photos show. We have been buying parts for many years & we only use good quality capacitors like Farnell & RS sell. We have no interest in using cheap unbranded Made in China junk, if we see those on amps we get, out they go & in the bin they stay. We see no point at all in using "Exotic" high priced capacitors when the ones we use do the job fine. We don't replace sockets or cables inside as there is no need to. Subtle Upgrades is our way & buyers clearly like what they see. We only use the sort of quality parts we use on amps we keep as Reference Amps or ones to keep for a while to use, we'd not trust our Tannoys on anything else. Solder we only use Traditional 60/40 Tin-Lead solder, never the Lead free solder as it looks like a dry joint once cooled & is hard to solder. we sell Vintage amps that are made with Lead Solder so why use anything else. To rewire mains we use 5A 3-core black cable that fits through the holes left by the 'unsafe' single-insulated 2-core wire that was actually outlawed by 1976. We don't usually leave the plug on when sending amps as UK plugs are bulky & for the damage they may cause by being a hard lump amid a rectangular item, to leave them off makes sense.
RESEARCHING BEFORE YOU BUY?
This usually means you'll be searching through Forums looking for opinions. Be aware most Forum opinions are uneducated & nearly every amp will have someone like it as well as not understand it or have a faulty or unserviced one & give a totally wrong opinion. Whatever you decide by searching, our Serviced & often Upgraded Amp we are selling will be a better product ready to use than buying a raw attic find. By Upgrading & Recapping, our amp will be done to our standards, as you can read on our Upgrades page. Hearing buyers say they didn't fancy the 'xxx' amp but wanted the (lesser) 'zzz' amp reveals they only find half ideas of opinions. We are selling amps we rate, but don't hype them & wouldn't bother getting amps we didn't think much of & spend so much time on them. We are not just getting general hifi here, we only get ones that interest us or have proved worthy so we get another one. If you are interested in the Hifi We Have For Sale but aren't quite sure, send us an email stating what your needs are & we'll give a reply suggesting which one will suit you best, but don't give lists of Hifi you have as we have no idea what it's like if we've not covered it on the site. You can also read our opinions of the amp we sell on the Top Amps page. With nearly 300 amps reviewed on Top Amps or Other Amps, as well as all the dozens of other pages, you can see our site is a bit different to any others. • Have a read of our Buying Advice page, as we can't advise you what to buy, this page explains why & lots more. ↑
SPEAKER MATCHING?
Do we know if all of our Sales Amplifiers & Receivers will match your Speakers? No. From the 200+ amplifiers & receivers we've sold, buyers find our Amps from Serviced ones to Upgraded ones match fine. We've Upgraded quite a few amps for Customers too & they are all happy with them. But we Can Not Guarantee the Amplifier will Match Your Speakers. Be aware you are Buying To Keep, not try on a Home Demo. If you want the option to Buy To Try, go buy new stuff from Amazon. The usual idea we have heard is the buyer with a high quality amp goes & buys better Loudspeakers, whatever they do buy does appear to match well with no issues.
See our Loudspeakers page for more info including matching many Amps to Tannoy Gold Monitor speakers from 1968-74. We usually hear from the Buyer as we have asked how they match to their Speakers & usually the Buyer is happy with the sound. Tone controls are usually needed to get the sound to the room, bass & treble gain or cut to a degree is usually needed with speakers. You can play your amp flat & be happy with that sound, or want full Tone plus Loudness, this is why these features are there. Read our Speakers page & you'll find many amps suit both pre 1975 & post 1975-modern speakers. Some don't match so well to early speakers and sound dull & some are too bassy-trebly for modern speakers. Read that page for more. All differ in impedance curves & frequency responses, all have differing crossovers. From hearing how buyers with multi driver speakers, ie bass, treble & midrange drivers, sometimes 5 drivers in one box, these are found to be too soft sounding as overdesigned on the crossovers. No quality speaker needs more than a bass woofer driver & a treble tweeter driver. Speakers that say suits 10w-50w or 50w-200w are based on Sensitivity, from 82dB to 105db. A less sensitive speaker will require more watts for a louder volume. You'd be surprised how much volume some of our late 1960s finds that are 10w-18w can put out on a 95db 15" speaker. Also how quiet some later 90w amps like the Sony 550ES play. It's all down to designs. Often you'll mix & match to find your ideal before you're happy with that for years. On headphones, all amps match equally as there is a resistor in the headphone socket circuit making an easier load on the amplifier. If the amp sounds dull or too lively, try it on headphones to hear it in a neutral way.
PRE 1971 AMPS ARE BEST SUITED TO 8 OHM SPEAKERS.
The earlier Amps have Early Designs as you'd expect, the first Proper Transistor amp was the 1965 Sony TA-1120 & by 1967 the First Generation of Amplifiers was here. By 1969 the Second Generation was here with some designs being much tamer than the earlier ones, perhaps more accurate to say 1969 was 'Transitional'. We've given "Generations" to amplifiers but more research gets more known. Really only the Differential-Era amps that arrived 1969-73 are the Third Generation & will be fully compatible with 4 ohm & 8 ohm speakers. We upgrade & test on 8 ohm speakers, our upgrades bring out the best in the Amps & we can be sure that 8 ohm speakers will work well. Some like the 1966 Akai AA7000 say "8 ohm speaker only" which is clear. Some say nothing. Some suggest 4-16 ohm speakers will suit but in 1969 they won't know what came later.
IMPORTANT: CHECK THE SPEAKER IMPEDANCE. Some say Impedance 4-8 ohm which we've found is misleading as it's really only 4 ohm. We've found twice now that Celestion Dittons are a known difficult load for early amps. Ditton 44 (100w) & Ditton 33 (25w). HFE wrongly says "8 ohm" but look at the User Manuals to see 4-8 ohm. It can't be both resistances, it's 4 ohm. If you use these 4 ohm speakers on early amps, they will likely overheat as the load is half so the current is doubled. It may or may not damage the amp, but it's "User Error" which it does take these issues to realise. The Ditton 44 user we told to add 4 ohm resistors to the speaker cables & now the amp works fine. The Ditton 33 is told the same, but to use 25w speakers on a 50w+ amp is risky in itself. But we do know Celestion Ditton 66 work fine on the 1968 Sony STR-6120. See a Celestion Ditton review HERE highlighting the "Hard To Drive" and "Needing A 4 Ohm Capable Amp" It appears to depend on the amp & speaker match. Avoid 4 ohm speakers on pre Differential era seems to be the best advice. Many actually say "8 Ohm only" on the back. To be sure we're selling correctly to you, we'll add a note such as 8 ohm only or 4-8 ohm on the Sales page having checked the manuals or read the amp backs. We've sold well over 200 amps now & never a complaint on Serviced or more Upgraded amps until these. It just depends on the Buyer's speakers. Not all Celestion will be hard to drive as the brand will have improved them, but clearly they sold well so they will be out there.
IF AN AMP IS RATED AT 8 OHM OR 15-16 OHM ONLY...
A quick idea on this... The 1965 Sony TA-1120 is rated for 8 ohm & 16 ohm only. It works fine on Tannoy Golds rated 8 ohm with 5.6 ohm nominal. But it may be unsuitable for 4 ohm speakers. It certainly will be unsuitable for the 3-driver speakers which pretend they are better sounding, but the crossovers are too complex & can result in dangerous 2 ohm impedance dips as the Treble & Midrange are both used at say 5kHz. ELECTROSTATIC SPEAKERS are notorious difficult loads as the HFN/RR tests with 8 ohm & 2.2µf load often gets amps they test blowing fuses. If a pre 1972 amp is rated for 4 ohm then be aware it wasn't aware of the 3-driver speakers with difficult to drive characteristics. The 1968 Sony STR-6120 is rated at 60w per channel into 8 ohms & the same 60w for 4 ohms, this suggests the STR6120 isn't ideal for 4 ohm speakers as usually it'd be at least 90w into 4 ohms. The 1971 Sony TA-3200F power amp has a protection circuit that does not affect the amplifier use until the load reaches 2 ohms. In using 2 pairs of speakers, it is always suggested to use 8 ohm speakers only. we know from how severely overheated another Sony got using 2 pairs of 4 ohm speakers, yet it still worked after being tidied. Care is needed in not overloading amplifiers with Loudspeakers that the amp 'couldn't know later existed' or is not designed for. Put 4 ohm speakers on a 8 ohm-only amp & you'll cause it to overload, get too hot & possibly damage it. To be sure of the Speaker Impedance, Google your Speaker & look for the Impedance curves. If a supposed 8 ohm speaker dips below 4 ohms then this could cause problems.
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MAINS CABLE UPGRADE.
(4mm Speaker Sockets info is next)
With all amps we sell, we usually upgrade the earlier amps with a new 72 inch inch 3 core 5A cable. For UK & European buyers the 3-core mains cable is a better way to ensure the amp is grounded. Some amps are still fine with the 2 core or original mains though & we'll show them with the original cable, not our new black round 5A mains cable. In earlier times a Turntable would usually be the item grounding an amplifier but now a CD player or Cable-Satellite TV system won't be properly grounded. These have no grounding or are isolated to stop ground hum loops. A PC computer soundcard will usually be grounded, but a laptop or other portable item won't . We've fitted a few of these to amps we've been using & feel better knowing a true ground exists. We use a black 6mm cable that fits the Strain Grommet holes to keep it neat too. 72 inch length is a typical length used on vintage amplifiers. The main fuse always goes to the Live wire as we make certain, with 2 core wire with both conductors looking the same the fuse can be on either live or Neutral, which isn't so good for UK & EU users. Unlike some amateurs who think putting a 3-core type 'kettle' type socket on 2 core cable is as good, we go back to the mains terminals & do it properly. The idea of our 3-core cable is to properly ground some earlier amps that have a floating mains ground until a grounded turntable is connected. without this if you touch the case & a grounded item you'll feel a very low current electric shock which can be scary & must have got many amps put away in fear.
TRICKY SPEAKER CONNECTORS: FIT 4mm SOCKETS?
The type of Speaker Connector vintage amps have varies a lot. For those used to 1980s-Modern amps the 4mm banana plugs or a side hole to tighten cable into with no risk of shorting is what many will know. But the typical connector for Speakers until the early 1970s were just as basic metal screw or thumb screw type connector. See the Hifi Gallery pages for many amps as examples. These were for using Fork-Spade type connectors which you crimp onto bare cables. This was fine at the time & many just used cable like 5A mains wire is. By the early 1970s the spring connector first seen on Marantz & other Japanese amps was popular. These don't age so well with plastic bits falling off & getting untidy. Other sorts of 3mm sockets with side holes for bare cable were used on Sony from 1965-70, these are an early type of connector called a 'wander' 3mm connector or split pin type, not much seen today. Pioneer used from 1967-72 their plug in block that you screwed bare cable or fork connectors onto, but be sure many amps lack these as cables unplugged unaware the plugs are needed. They don't grip too tight & for heavier cable than 5A type the plugs will fall out. See Solutions below. Then you get the DIN plugs which are useful, if only on 40w or less amps, but care to use new cables only not 40 year old ones that may have issues. By the mid 1970s many used 'better' spring connectors, only really for thinner wire, not the thick types popular since the Hifi mags started hyping them. Don't enlarge the small holes either. To see spring connectors on 150w+ amps looks a bit amateurish now, but they aren't easy to replace neatly & you'll see many 'idiot' jobs on ebay which ruin the integrity of the amp. Don't mess with them unless it can be done neatly, read on...
Pioneer Custom 4mm Sockets. The Best Version. Designed By Us.
Been thinking on this for years, since getting the 1967 Pioneer SX700TF that's on our Photo Gallery. The Plugs are Rare as thrown away on old wires unaware they were needed. Every version relies on the Weak Springs in the Plug Sockets. They stay put for thin Bell Wire, but anything thicker pulls the Plug out far too Easily, they can just fall out. Other crude options using a USA Mains Plug with a Pin Twisted but use Bare Metal Sockets are a bit Risky for obvious Shorting Reasons. Our Wonderful Solution is as THIS photo. We've been thinking on this for ages since we got the 1969 Pioneer SX-2500 & it's about time 'someone creative' done this properly. The Photos show how it can be done. The Black section with the slots is fragile Bakelite if the sockets have four square holes to contain the weak spring. We offer this To The World to show it can be done, if it's up to you to work the rest out. You Want This Now? As we've worked it out, we can do this for your amp. To Build & Fit we'll only Do on Amps supplied for Upgrades. It's Too Advanced for most to fit & it Requires a Useable Vintage Part. Further Thoughts. There are fitting Variants, the 1967 ones screw on to the chassis, the later ones go behind the back plate. Both are the same with the fixing plates. To do this For Customers, to have the Amp in for Work, rather than just one job. Previous Buyers or Upgraders we'd do just the Connectors for. Your Amp must have unbroken sockets. The 4 Sockets on the part is too wide to fit through the hole so we must do things a certain way. Originality matters, useless socket updated is Way Cool. UPDATE. We fitted the same sockets to our Pioneer SX-2500. This is the RESULT. To fit is quite a job, if it looks 'easy' by the completed job as the Best work often does, as The Repair Shop tells. It's Far From Easy, if Looks Perfect as one said, as it's The Perfect Solution.
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FURTHER SOLUTIONS? The Hifi mag hype saying you need very thick cables is just a way to sell expensive cable. Look inside the amp & see they use thin wires if they are short. If your speakers are near the amp you can get away with using wire no thicker than 13A mains wire, if the run is under 1 meter. For slightly longer 'QED Balanced Concept' cable with 3mm stranded core is adequate but if you go over 5 meters thicker cable to reduce losses is best. Always add Ferrites onto cables, see our "Cables" page as there is a lot of BS out there about cables.
We use Connectors 1 for most amps we test on speakers, another adaptor with a DIN plug covers other options. The Gold Blocks take 4mm plugs & side holes for bare cable. They fit early USA Amps like Marantz, Fisher & McIntosh and can suit other screw type fittings if not all have a tab to hold them in place, be aware the screw could come loose & short the outputs! These home-made 30A screw block connector, sockets & short wires with soldered ends suits Spring Connectors & those with holes for bare wires, also the 1965-70 Sony. If you screw the blocks onto 4mm plugs it squashes the springs losing grip so we added sockets.
Connectors 2 a buyer wanted fitted to the Sony STR-6050. We used these plastic cased 'Voso' ones on the 1966 Akai AA7000 also. But to do it properly is the idea & these smaller ones without the gaudy Gold actually look in keeping & we didn't feel awful fitting these, they look good & are practical, the screws were not user-friendly without using fork or ring connectors.
To suit other screw connectors that are too difficult such as Fisher which are too narrow for the Gold blocks or have nothing to lock onto, adding Connectors 3 small ring crimp connector is how we'll try these sort of amps. If the Gold blocks only rely on tightening, not a lug part to latch onto, be sure they will come loose & short the amp. Also the plugs with metal sides aren't much good using the Gold Blocks as the Marantz-McIntosh-Fisher early connectors are so close the metal case will short out the amp, best use plastic cased ones or fit heatshrink covers, black tape can move & go sloppy.
Connectors 4 we made for a Customer to fit a Fisher 1960s amp as the screw connector grooves are too narrow & too close for the gold speaker blocks. For DIN sockets we just use similar screw blocks onto the DIN cables. You can make them out of 30A mains wire or whatever if stranded cable it better for spring connectors. BUT... it's your Amp & we can fit 4mm sockets if you want. There are many on the market, mostly ghastly Gold-wiped or hugely oversized things that don't suit Vintage. Subtle is the idea.
If it's possible to reuse the original Connectors board the Charge is £30 to fit 4 connectors, £50 for 8 connectors or £70 for 12 connectors, as on one pair to three pairs of speakers. To only do one pair looks amateurish. These are 4mm plugs only, no side screw holes oddly, but too close together to use bare wires so better. We won't use the Gold All-Metal versions of these, they would sit just 3mm apart & are too risky as if + & - touched together at anytime when on, you've shorted the outputs & damaged the amp. The worst connectors are rubbishy plastic screw connectors that don't even tighten well on bare wires that Luxman & Technics used in 1978-79, to replace them is a good idea. Some look like 4mm sockets but actually aren't, such as 1984 Sansui, but if bare wires can be used, best to keep them. But to rip out the 1965-68 Sony ones we'd not like as they are still useable, also ones on rare amps are best left original for collector appeal. Only replace if broken, missing, weak, rubbish or not possible to use the Gold Blocks or ring connectors as described above safely on.
As on the April 2018 Blog... We fitted some 4mm Connectors to the Sony TA-3200F as the spring push ones only for 2mm cables were just not suitable & even using the 'Connectors 1' we found after swapping around a few amps, the soldered wire ends don't last long. The ones we fitted to this amp needing only slight alteration are these Connectors 5 which are Clear Plastic over Gold Plater Copper with nuts & bolts so we could reuse the original fittings inside & not have to solder or cut wires. These are the Smaller ones, not the Oversized ones that look awful on most Vintage Gear, these are 14mm diameter with 4mm sockets plus 4mm side bare wire holes. Looing on ebay, the only seller with these wants to sell in lots of 50 which isn't very useful if you only want 8, this suggests these are End Of Line goods & not made anymore.
Ask what we suggest if you don't like the speaker connectors, but these are our current opinions. You do not need to replace good Connectors for Inputs or Speakers with gaudy oversized bare metal Gold ones. The Gold is very thin if it's even Gold & soon wears off even with handling & starts to look ugly. The chromed Phono sockets as used since the 1960s are the best, we will never replace Phono sockets & even cracked boards can be fixed. ↑
GUARANTEES? Read on...
WE MAKE VINTAGE HIFI LOOK EASY...?
Our photos of clean tidy recapped upgraded amps makes this game look easy. No it isn't! Some amps need a huge amount done, undoing bad repairs, redesign is actually fairly common to keep items to our standard. The Hifi we sell is 30 to 50 years old & some are a total nightmare & keep throwing up problem after problem. Amps we get are often nice looking externally but sometimes a disgrace inside & we make sure all is to our fussy standards before we offer it for sale. If you watch "Wheeler Dealers" about car restoration, you'll see the huge problems they get but find machine shops to help as car restoring is decades old. Hifi restoring to our standard from what we've seen is only done by us in terms of dealers restoring gear, there is no help. We see others outbid us on amps we know are really difficult, but often see them back for sale as the buyer realises they are out of their depth. 1960s transistor amps are very advanced jobs sometimes needing an insane amount done, the higher power the amp for the era the harder it can be. We can deal with these things as problem solving is us, but some amps can really mindbend us. But it's satisfying to get an old wreck into use-daily grade again which is why we do it.
CARE WITH USING UPGRADED HIFI WE SELL
We've put high spec upgrades into many of our amps. This means especially with the capacitor coupled era ones pre 1971, the amp needs to settle for a minute or two before use. Sony gets this issue resulting in rustly volume controls but settles to be fine after this. Rather than limit the design, we leave the amps as they are & have warned of this for quite a while on the Upgrades page, but put it here now. Similarly if you don't let the amp capacitors settle, using Tone Controls or some Switches can cause instability. The old designs worked instantly as the spec was low. Similarly amps with relays we often adjust the time delay to cover this if we hear noises. Relays only really appeared by 1971 with the semi-complimentary era if some makers only started using them later & some models don't have a relay at all. Care can be needed as the amplifier isn't limited on Bass & Treble as it was before, a hard drop of a stylus onto a record with the volume up high could give a huge bass boop noise that some speakers might not like.
ALL HIFI WE SELL HAS BEEN EXTENSIVELY CHECKED...
This means we've tried it, cleaned it, serviced it, tested it, adjusted it, likely recapped & upgraded it. Then we've listened to it for some time on both Loudspeakers & Headphones so will sort out any issues we hear. It won't hum, hiss or crackle because we've thoroughly tested it. So you can imagine we know the amp well after that. It's what buyers want: a good reliable amp to plug in. If you get any odd issues, be sure it's Not The Amplifier, but an issue with Your Hifi Items. The Most Common One is Hum or No Sound. We've written a useful "After Sales Help & Advice" section lower down the page as this covers all issues we hear with Hifi buyers as well as ones we note could be issues from trying these amps. Take your Time to Understand The Amplifier. Do not tell us "We're Wrong" as this is proof you've never bothered to try things or read our Help Section so just do the Blame Game. This flags a buyer as an 'Oh Dear...' & to copy bits of the Help Section they didn't read solves the issue. The fact they never reply says they solved their issue & feel embarrassed to not have read things, but this is how it is today. Be a nice complainer, read our Help Section & then ask nicely if you don't understand. We'll help you gladly, but the tiresome sort who lazily accuse for their shortcomings are not going to read this anyway. You did because you can think.
OUR VERSION OF A "GUARANTEE" ON HIFI WE SELL.
All Hifi we sell has been extensvely checked by taking apart to clean & service as well as much time spent recapping, upgrading & listening to it to check all is good. This should be "Guarantee" enough that any amp we sell is properly checked & all is good. Read all our Hifi pages to understand us better. After all, shop guarantees you may get for Six Months are usually a lazy catch-all for not bothering to spend hours checking the item like we do & be sure any aged hifi will develop problems sooner or later, which is why we Recap & Upgrade amplifiers we sell to make them "as good as new" on the important stages. Based on the many we've sold & those we use as references, the failure rate is going to be negligible beyond user error. The trouble with Hifi & Guarantees is the buyer considers they are insured against accidental damage on Vintage Items. On new goods a year guarantee is standard, to cover weaknesses in production so they don't have to check each item individually. Our Policy on "Guarantees" is this: We've fully tested & checked the item so it works correctly. We've used it on Headphones & Loudspeakers as our Review of the amp reveals. So you'll never get a dead amp or one that will fail in a day, because we've tested & used it ourselves. We know of buyers who've shorted the amp out on first try & those who try naughty things, so we have to cover ourselves, we know our upgrade secrets are much wanted as all the guessing on forums reveals. We will not refuse a genuine need by a customer on one of our hifi items, as long as they are reasonable in dealing. We have seen enough amplifiers to tell exactly what happened if there is damage. But if you ever get a problem, be it Six Months ot Two Years later, this is where we are unique: we can help you with that Amplifier or Receiver. We have all our Sales pages photos & we keep note of upgrades we do so can easily refer them to your item. Naturally there are No Freebies, if you've shorted the Outputs, which is sadly quite common, we can repair it for you & get it working again. The cost we charge will naturally depend on what it needs & we are good at finding equivalent electronics parts if needed. The charges will be kept as low as possible, but as with any repair it still is an unknown job. If the cost is in excess of what we'd expect the damage repair to be: there is no obligation beyond the costs to return. Also, if there is no real repair needing to be done beyond something that costs nothing to repair, it'll just cost you the time to check it over & the return courier. Repairs are payable once the quote has been accepted & will be returned usually within 14 days subject to parts availability, If we have the parts in stock, you may get it back a lot faster. This is offered as a Courtesy Repair Service to previous customers, it does not imply any full unlimited Guarantee or Warranty as noted below.
GET PROBLEMS WITH THE AMP A YEAR OR MORE LATER?
We're here to Help You if you get an issue with an Amp we've sold or upgraded for you. We have Our Sales Photos as on the Solds Gallery plus our worksheets. Tell us what has gone wrong & we will try to help you out. But... Please be Honest if you Misused it or Damaged it. It is possible to do silly things that leave it damaged, we break cups & rip jackets because it's life & Things Happen. Be sure we can work out exactly what you did do to Damage the item because we'll be the ones repairing it & will need to fault find. We're not going to believe 'Fisher 440-T' stories when the buyer pretends they just opened it 26 months after buying & it's 'suddenly' got a fault as that is not true. We got that 440-T amp back indirectly & the traces of dust inside on an amp that sold within a month of being up for sale weren't ours. Other clues as we Blogged in Aug 2018 revealed they wired speakers up wrongly so unbalanced & overloaded the amp on one channel to damage it & what it needs to repair is blogged also. Any amp is a job & as these rebuilt ones are Our Work, we like to see them working again if you've had a problem. Human Nature is that you don't want to admit you messed up, but it's not important if you want the amp going again. We can repair amps if damaged, but we don't sell Other People's Hifi on commission, if you don't want it anymore, sell it yourself. We get certain prices as we are selling our own work, even if you say we rebuilt the amp, it's been yours & away from us for some time so will find it's own price level. We may offer to buy the amp back in working or not working cobdition, but we need to test & check like any amp to sell it as our goods again, so to us it has a certain value. Please don't play us with tricks or try it on because we can work out what happened. All amps are well tested before sale, we need to trust an amp before it goes on our Tannoys. We'd happily get the amp going again for you, just tell the truth as we will walk away if we don't like any deal as the 440-T buyer got & then they lose out. You may consider who else can fix amps like these anymore, it's a dying art. See Hifi forums for how some bumble through repairs really not having a clue to never post about it being completed. We've done lots of amps with Photo Gallery proof of most of them. Look how nicely we do them.
Decide To Sell Your Amp Some Time Later?
You may choose to Sell On an Amp we Upgraded for you. But as you've had it some time, it is now Your Amp with our Past Work done. We've had those who think we'll give a Detailed Deport on what we've done to impress their buyer or even try to make that a Condition of Sale or Work done. We do Upgrades that are Our Unique Knowledge, it's called Trade Secrets. It's not the same as Old time Repairs where they replaced a few faulty parts, we've Rebuilt the Lot beyond Tuner. You can read Our Review of the Amp & Look Inside to see it's got new parts. Demands for Extra Info on what we do isn't going to happen. Custom Work & Fine Tuning are results of Years of our Research & they are not for telling. You may work it out yourselves if to understand Upgrades are not Universal & Extreme Fault Finding we have to do on the amps we upgrade today. So Please Don't Demand our input to help you Sell your Now-Used Item at a Premium. You can say we Rebuilt it, but we don't put Customer's Amps on our "Sold Gallery" as they weren't our items, if we will review the amp. Yours may be the Only One of a model, or some amps we've hd a few of so aren't as specific.
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TERMS OF SALE
Payment by Bank Transfer in £ GBP only. No Paypal or Cards.
We post to many Countries Worldwide, Non UK ones priced by Order.
We deliver to Street Addresses only, No PO Boxes or Storage facilities.
To Order, just use the Order Form as linked above & we'll send an Invoice.
Mail Order Only, we are not a Shop & we do not do doorstep Cash Deals. Paypal Gift is possible if we have a Business or Street Address linked, ask first. 'Gift' only accepted without The Fees & if we are satisfied, else it's Transfer only. Transfer must be Received before we deliver, we won't trust a Receipt. Bank Transfers are Safe, you must set up a New Recipient & Confirm by a Phone Text code often these days. Copy & Paste the numbers we give & it works fine.
All Sales are Final. You are buying to Keep, not for a Home Demo or to later decide you Don't Like It & waste our time trying to play for a Refund. Items are For Sale, not to Rent as TV-Film Props. Once an Amp is paid for, it 's a Sold deal, we do not Cancel or Alter Sales if you have accepted the Invoice & Paid. We have sold enough Amplifiers now, 200+ so know how buyers are so can write our Terms to make it clear how we deal. Bank Transfer Only, unless we know you & Paypal Gift without Fees may be possible.
We'll happily give After-Sales help to any buyer if they are not sure of something having problems even a year later, as we keep all our sales photos as reference. This is not a Guarantee or Warranty, it's an offer to help & if you damage the amp at any time, we can help.
To Insure Or Not. What To Do If Courier Damages.
This
is your choice to Insure. On a Rebuilt & Upgraded amp you plan to use for years, to Insure is worthwhile for Peace Of Mind on the return, or on buying. 90% of the time there are No Issues so you may choose Not To Insure. If There Are Courier Issues to the point of Visible Damage or Not Working, Insurance will cover to the level you Insured to. With No Insurance, you will need to Pay Us for a Repair. Terms Of Returning Courier Damaged Items. We offer you Our Help so expect you to Return the Item to us within 14 days in the same packing. We claim on Insurance we paid, to Insure on the return to try play the system means it's your claim. A Claim will be made to cover our Costs if Insured, or to give you a Repair price if it's what is needed. If You Refuse To Return The Item, you have Rejected our Help, so it's no longer our concern. We do not recommend taking Upgraded Amps to TV Repair types to try to do it cheaply as they will have No Idea & can wreck it or say it's not done right as they are not Vintage Hifi Specialists. We offer our help only, there is absolutely no part paying for you to get a 3rd Party involved or other nonsense that isn't us directly solving an issue. Take Our Help or Sort it Yourself. Any Paid Repairs on seeing the item back will be kept at a minimum, if depending on what's needed. Damage is Rare, Problems are Rare.
All Hifi has been fully Cleaned, Serviced, Adjusted & Tested on Speakers & Headphones for many hours by a Qualified Technician. We take them apart to check all is good. We clean, test, adjust, run-in test, music-play test, test another day & test again before packing. This reveals any issues which would be corrected & then tested again. We then fully test each amp again before packing it up.
This level of care in checking & testing is your Guarantee of Buying good Vintage Hifi From Us.
You'll not find many/any sellers who are confident to show the Insides of amps they've worked on. To see work well done using quality parts is what buyers like to see, showing good work & not the poor upgrades & hacking around some amps get sold as "modified" We keep them as near original & tidy as possible. By having a Skilled Qualified Technician work on the Amplifier you are considering, you'll get the idea they know what they doing & show how well done their work is by lots of photos of the inside & up close. Skilled Tech means way more than a PAT test & "Return To Base" guarantee. This sort of deal only covers if it goes wrong quickly & means they don't need to test it or check it. Paying a Tech to Service & Check Over Hifi is a Skilled Job that these 'Guarantees' by Bulk Sellers will work out cheaper in the long run. We do not offer any Warranty or Guarantee on our Sales items.
We can not Guarantee your Loudspeakers will be a perfect match to the Amp.
Once you've read our Loudspeakers page, you'll see the majority of amps & Speakers worth together well. If you decide the amp is not for you, we may offer a Trade-In towards another amplifier in stock. Bear in mind you are Buying Vintage Amplifiers, they are still Old in Design & as the below says there may be a tiny few Amplifier & Speaker combinations that don't work out well. These can range from sounding too Dull to sounding Too Bassy & Bright. A few bad speakers like Celestion Ditton 22 and 44 are notorious for having poor designs to cause any amp Old or New problems. For the amount of Vintage Hifi we've sold & always ask the buyers what they think, many do reply saying "it sounds great". By us asking for an opinion, you'd hear if it wasn't quite as expected also. There will always be chancers who try it on however you sell, we know how to deal with them. We'll help you above & beyond any other seller with issues if you are reasonable. Don't buy a Quality Amp from us & use rubbish speakers on it. Cheaply made speakers can cause damage to some amps as the Ditton 22 & 44 can do. But in reality from our Loudspeakers page testing amps on our speakers, the vast majority do match good or better. Use Tone Controls to adjust the sound to your taste.
There are No Return & Refunds
We Sell Serviced, Recapped, Upgraded & Fully Tested Amps. We recheck the amp fully before packing it up just to be sure it's all good still. If your own speakers, cables & input sources are not compatible or cause damage through misuse, be you aware of what you did or not, this is beyond the scope of simply selling & delivering a fully correct Electrical item. Our Fault Finding skills mean we can tell what went wrong if an amp is damaged. We don't sell Hifi on ebay because of unscrupulous buyers. To sell direct on this site since 2013 brings buyers who have read the many pages we have, they do understand what they are buying & who it's from. Educate yourself for Free by reading our site. No-one offers so much Vintage Hifi Advice. Do not just buy a Vintage amp without having a clue what it's about. If you want the Buy To Try way of selling, go buy New Gear from Amazon, not Specialist Restored Vintage Hifi that you won't understand. Just to explain what a Cancelled Order will cost you. We'll have spent about 4 hours testing it again before packing & posting. This would be charged at standard £50 per hour rate, if it's part of the Sale otherwise. Restocking is a 25% charge on top of this. You've been Invoiced & Paid, so as the above says.
We may offer a Trade-In on one of our Amplifiers
If you decide you don't want the Amp after some time, do as you do with other items, sell it yourself. Trade-In is not the price you paid, it is an offer so we can make a profit on reselling after having to recheck the item to sell it as ours again. Even if you've trashed it, we may be interested in having it back if the amp was an important one to us. We've seen the Yamaha CA-1000 & Sony TA-1130 for sale by buyers who are using mismatched speakers not to understand how great the recapped & upgraded amps are, but that's their choice. We may offer a Trade-In on the item, but if we've done Custom work like fit different speakers or alter the item in any way from the original advert, we may not want it back again. Trade-In is not the full price you paid, it is a courtesy & as we are here to make a profit, a Trade-In price will reflect that. Any Cash Price will be half the trade-In price. Trade-Ins based on undamaged items & we will check the item before agreeing to any Trade-In offer based on it being undamaged. Be sure we can fault-find to perfection & are highly skilled in knowing exactly what happened to trash the amp on seeing it.
Some Amps May Arrive A Bit Shaken Up By The Courier.
We can help you deal with minor issues that may seem like major issues as we are very familiar with the amp. One arrived with buttons not locking fully in place. The preamp board was held on by 2 screws. with the temperature changes overnight the screws came slighly loose so the preamp board slightly moved. We sent a photo from the sales page with arrows & insructions on how to remedy this. Buyer reples saying it's great now. We go further to help as we know the amps we sell.
We Can Help You If You Damage The Amp.
"Help" meaning we can offer a Repair Service, as in accepting any amp in for Repair for Upgrade. It will be charged as any Repair job. As time goes on we hear of 'our amps' getting into problems as does happen with any electrical goods through careless use. From what we've seen with one amp, Do Not trust sophisticated upgraded amps to TV Grade Repair Guys as they'll do a bad job & maybe trash it even more as happened with one amp.
Delivery Addresses
You can Deliver to a Home or Work Address as suits, to avoid a Courier trying to deliver to an address that's not always available. A Work Address is NOT one of those Multi-Drop Addresses where Companies are Registered, this is not a Valid Address & we do check out Addresses that sound not quite what they seem. To deliver to a Office Block or Trading Estate that is occupied is fine, those multiple Company address are only for infrequent Letters & having just dealt with one trying this type of address it seemed dodgy & there was no sale.
Courier Damage: Insured or Not.
We give the Offer of Insurance as an extra cost on the Courier Return. Up to you to choose it or not. Low Rate of Damage Claims if not Unknown. Over 90% arrive safely with No Issues. Insurance Paid: Any Courier Damage that makes the Hifi Not Work once you've used it on both Speakers and Headphones is part of Courier Damage. Fuses blowing, things burning, no Start Up on Relays or just Dead as well as unexpected noises. This MUST be Returned to us in the same packaging as used within 14 days. Insurance if paid will cover up to the level you paid, likely it'll cover all including the Courier costs. No Insurance Paid: You can still accept our Return if any Repair will be a Paid job, as we had offered Insurance. We can cost it as low as we can, if the Job must be paid for. You've bought Custom Upgraded Hifi & the 'everyday' Electronics repairs people won't understand it and may make a mess or try to say it's not correct when it's Upgraded. We can see what caused a failure from years of repairs & fault finding. Damage & Repairs needed once we've sent by the Courier are not our responsibility. There are no 'Pay Half' compromises if you Do Not Return The Item to us. This is why we Recommend Insurance. You're paying a Large Sum for Upgraded Hifi, a bit more on Insurance is wise
Fair Play To You... If You Play Fair With Us.
Beyond the above & help below, this is how we sell. We run things tight & will always play fair & will go far to keep a customer happy as used to be the way long ago, but we do need to cover ourselves as there are players out there even if we go out of our way to help them out, do custom jobs & still they try it on. We reserve the right to refuse high risk sales. All Sales are Final, you are not buying for a Free Home Demo. If you are not sure enough you want it, do not buy. We do not Guarantee the Amplifier or Receiver will match your Loudspeakers. There will always be those who think they can play us with ebay-style sale or return rules, but this isn't the case here as our Terms of Sale are clear. For those who pretend things are wrong or deliberately damage items to return with the too-understanding way they do, we have heard it all before, don't forget, so this is how we treat timewasters. Any damage if repairable is charged at £50 per hour plus parts & charged to the customer & they must bear the return costs to have the item returned. Be sure we can tell exactly what happened to an amp because we are very skilled detectives, which gets extreme faults repaired & upgrades no-one else dares to try done. We have no need to boost costs or pretend things are wrong, read our Hifi pages as proof.
You can see we are long established as Record Dealers & have been selling Hifi on & off on ebay with early 2002 sales of a Quad II system in top grade for £1600, a price others have been trying to reach since our sale. We've sold Tannoy 15" Golds, three high grade Garrard 301s we serviced, the Musical Fidelity big pre-power we didn't like as well as over 100 amplifiers & receivers on ebay, a list of many is on the Amps Now Sold-Gallery page. A lot of our previous ebay buyers mentioned our Hifi pages even before we even made a link to our sales from our pages. But as others will sadly know, ebay is now too unsafe to sell high value items on, especially custom items like our Upgraded amps so we will never sell Hifi on ebay again. Buyers can see our Hifi content on this site & decide for themselves if buying direct from us is what they want.
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COURIER DELIVERY & INSURANCE.
All Hifi we sell is sent by 24 Hour Next Day Delivery by Parcelforce or UPS. For Non UK, the Delivery is usually 2-4 days.
We Use Couriers Only, We Do Not Offer A Collection Service.
Couriers are reliable for 24hr Service, collected & delivered next day to an address where someone is in to take delivery. Insurance is possible if required, if be aware it doesn't cover glass & if there is other damage the Courier Broker who self-insures does their best to deny a payout. Only as we can quote & invoice a repair can we get a payout. So now we 'Risk Assess' any amp for delivery to deal with glass to ensure it arrives intact. If you require insurance, please request it, but be aware it only covers Loss or for the Courier to receive the item to Dispose of, the fight to get payouts to repair is an involved one, we are here to sell Hifi, & hopefully not battle claims if we do get results. 24 hr service is rushed through. We avoid Weekends & Holidays to ensure it leaves us one day & to you the next. Our Hifi is packed well in recycled packaging & it arrives intact. All Hifi is tested fully before packing up to check it's right as it may have been for sale a while. This means we know exactly what we are sending you, so refer to the below Help section if you have issues.
Make It Easy For Yourself on Getting Deliveries.
Getting Parcels delivered means someone must be at home. We can book Next Day delivery to suit a day you'll be home, if 48hrs notice is needed to get the deadlines. We don't book collection Friday to deliver Monday as it sits around for 2 days. We've had people deliver to Work addresses, Friends addresses & even the local Post Office & Shops, this works well so use these ideas. We do not deliver to Company registered addresses, those multi-company drop addresses are not for Parcels, see a few paragraphs above. We do Courier to Collect From us & deliver to any Street Address you choose. The 'idea' of delivering to an empty house makes no sense, but we know others do this & annoy their neighbours as the minimum wage couriers try to trick neighbours into taking parcels in, signing for & holding like they are the Caretaker, or just throwing over a fence & leaving out in the weather. Make your arrangements stress-free & make a parcel delivery easy. Give us extra instructions to print & put on the parcel, as in "leave with caretaker, phone number is...". All items must be signed for.
Fast Delivery Fully Tracked To You.
Next Day Delivery via Parcelforce or UPS with Collect one day & Deliver the next avoiding Weekends & Holidays is already the deal. A customer can have the item delivered to any Street Address, different to the Invoiced address, but only if there is someone there to accept it, to sign & keep it safe. To try to deliver to an address no-one is at home appears illogical, but it's what people do. You can buy & have us Book Delivery on a certain Date within 14 days, allow 48 hours in advance to tell us to ensure we get the Courier deadlines to get Collection one day & delivered the next. Deliveries to friends, work or even Shops you trust the staff in works as we've done this before. In some areas Parcelforce attempt delivery once, instead of twice as they are supposed to & then leave at the local Post Office. Just bypass all the stress & risks by giving an address where someone will be, from 9am to 6pm. The Tracking Link using Interparcel shows the full journey of the Parcel.
Overseas Sales... 2021 Update.
In Delivering Overseas some non EU Countries in the area of Asia can offer apparently cheaper services involving "Kangaroo" Courier, UPS only delivering to their UK Depot in Slough. But having had awful delays & unprofessionalism from them, to Avoid is recommended. We can give pricing options, if you choose the cheaper option, we can not chase up them messing around, it's your choice to save £50 but a poor economy for long delays & worry they'll lose it for being questioned on 'stupid tracking' like saying address is wrong & falsely declaring a phone number is required to confirm delivery, no courier ever phones.
The Rules Of Using Couriers Booked By Us.
We charge Courier's rate plus a small amount for Packaging & Time to pack, all packing is recycled. On Buying or Sending Us an Amplifier for an Upgrade or Repair, it is Your Choice what to do about Insurance. Risks may be Minimal, but Damage & Loss are not Unknown. We only use Parcelforce or UPS for deliveries as these are the most reliable. We pack well to ensure safe delivery. But if there is a problem of Delay or Damage then we'll help you to a certain degree, if not beyond Insurance level paid.
Important: Insurance Choices Are Entirely Your Option.
"Uninsured" usually gets a standard £25 Basic Insurance by Interparcel. The Booking Receipt we can supply if requested will confirm what level it is covered to. By Selecting "Uninsured" you have accepted the minimal Risk of Damage Or Loss Yourself, to save paying the High Insurance rates as detailed below. You put your trust in the Courier who is extremely reliable, but not perfect and there will always be a tiny risk of Damage or Loss, be it 1% or 0.01% it's not perfect. If a £500 Item gets Damaged or Lost & you chose "Uninsured" then the maximum you will get back is £25. For Loss when the Courier admits it's Lost, it may be different, to not let them give up searching does get results. Be aware with Parcelforce & UPS if packed right Next Day delivery or 2-3 day delivery Worldwide is reliable, but there is still a small chance of Damage or Loss. Tracking Numbers are sent to customers & Receipts are available to show Insurance was correctly paid if it was selected.
INSURANCE PRICING is as just below, up to £2000 is possible on Most Addresses. If you pay us Insurance, we'll send our Receipt once booked to Prove Insurance was paid on your order. Third Party Parcel Insurance is as Interparcel offers. We Check the Current Pricing before Invoicing.
Refunds on Loss, Damage or Repairs to Repairable Damage are Limited to the Insurance amount You Chose when Paying for the item. By Paying for an Order & the level of Insurance quoted, you hereby agree that we as 'select45rpm' are Not Liable for any amounts beyond the Insurance level you chose if a payout for Damage or Loss is required.
To buy 'Peace Of Mind' paying an extra £21.60 (Apr 2018 rates) on a £500 item etc you are covered for Loss And Damage beyond Glass. As with any Parcel Insurance, 95% of the time you have paid for nothing, but that 5% you need it, you'll be glad of it. The above makes it clear it is your choice.
| UK Next Day Mainland typically £19.00 |
This is for UNINSURED Next Day Delivery by either UPS or Parcelforce 24.
Loss using a 24hr Next Day Delivery is highly unlikely if all Couriers aren't perfect. Damage is possible however well you pack an item, if with 24 hr delivery the risk is very low. If you want insurance, see the prices below which is what Interparcel currently charge. You must decide yourself if you want to pay extra for Insurance.
Insured or Not: We Can Help With Any Courier Damage.
Damage is Rare, if it can happen as any percentages will suggest, eg 5% chance. Insurance will cover Repair to the amount Insured to. No Insurance means 'No Cover' so think if spending Extra on Insurance on your Nice Newly Rebuilt Upgraded Amp, to save £40 isn't always a good idea. Claims Require You to photo the packing as it arrived, to show the damage & whether it works. Repair depends on parts available, on ebay as case related spares etc. You Must Send Us the Amp if you want it Repaired Electrically. No 3rd Party TV tech will understand our Custom Upgrades & we've had one nearly trash a STR-6120 for being clueless. We Do Not Pay Out on 3rd party repairs as it's 'our amp' worked on by another making it 'not ours' anymore, simple as that. If you won't return it, to wonder why it's not being returned. Insured = Damage probably covered if not glass = Insurance Claim & payout = We Repair & Return. Uninsured, we can possibly Repair but It's a Repair Job to be charged to you.
Insurance Is Available, Expensive but Peace Of Mind.
These are the current costs for extra insurance to any UK or Overseas Addresses according how "Interparcel" price & offer. We usually check the current price to invoice as it changes a lot & increased quite a lot more by Nov 2023 compared to only a few months before.
Typical Insurance Levels on Interparcel inc VAT to UK-EU as of Nov 2023... to £250 is £13.80, £300 is £16.80, £400 is £22.80, £500 is £28.80, £550 is £31.80, £600 is £34.80, £700 is £40.80, £800 is £46.80, £900 is £52.80, £1000 is £58.80. £2000 is £99 + VAT = £118.80
We've had Customers for Sales & Upgrades book the Courier themselves to collect from us. This is fine by us, but only to use a known Courier that turns up in a Branded Van, ie Parcelforce or UPS. We don't just hand parcels to some random unknown who comes knocking. If you want Insurance, it is available. For the need to explain how Insurance Works with eg. Interparcel, the only Courier Brokers who offer higher insurance now, the ones who have accounts & big discounts with the actual Courier companies, this is what "Insurance" means. If items are badly packed you failed in packing properly. Our sales pages put the weight of the amplifier before packing & with packing can easily weigh 3kg extra. Because it's well packed by us.
Insurance Will Not Cover Any Glass Breakage. So we'll Risk Assess & have to likely take glass out to pack away from the amplifier chassis. However well you pack, you'll never know if it gets dropped 6ft onto concrete which bounces the insides & breaks the glass. So pack the glass in a 'paranoid' way to ensure it's protected. The fact dozens of amplifier glass have arrived safe before doesn't mean they will next time, so to cover all eventualities.
Insurance Will Cover Loss. But for using 24 Hour Next Day Delivery, the tracking shows this 24 Hour service is rushed through, so no opportunity to sit around. Loss is extremely unlikely, if not unknown. Loss only pays to the Insured Amount or the Invoiced Sale amount, whichever is less.
Insurance Will Cover Damage. If the item is trashed or too expensive to repair, as found using useless Yodel before, Interparcel have it returned to them & they'll pay out the amount Invoiced or the Insured amount, whichever is less. Damage is very rare, but it does happen. This was the last payout for a parcel to Highlands that Yodel messed up with. This was before Interparcel offered Parceforce 'HI' service. Damage only pays to the Insured Amount or the Invoiced Sale amount, whichever is less.
Insurance Will Pay For Repairs. This is the difficult part they hope you'll give up on as it's near to impossible. You have to get an Invoice with a Quote for Repairing the item. Where are you going to get that usually? There are no repair shops that can deal with Vintage gear. But we are the Technicians here, we can give a Repair quote like we'd quote a Customer. We'd price this to be repaired or to show the item is a write-off & Interparcel can have the item sent to them to payout, as did happen with Yodel once. Be aware we only Quote on Insurance Repairs for our own Sold or returning Repair-Upgrade-Service Items for Insurance claims, on Courier bookings we have made ourselves. We'd not accept a badly damaged unrepairable amplifier in to be worked on, our questions would reveal that, if we did get one, we'd just ask you to have it back as it's too far gone. If the item arrives damaged from your bad packing or damage caused on the way to us, then that is your claim to pursue. We do not give free or 'paid-for' Repair estimates so you can get an Insurance payout on your own good is the point of that, to deter scammers. Repairs only pays to the Insured Amount or the Invoiced Sale amount, whichever is less.
Claims We Can Help You With. We can chase up any delays, supposedly missing Parcels as happened with UPS delivering to Amazon in the same town, it took 6 weeks to Recover by The Customer & Us. We need Photo Proof of any damages. We can help to a certain point, but can't go above & beyond an expected claim for Visible Damage.
How To Ensure Safe Delivery.
To only use 24 Hours Next Day Delivery, avoiding Weekends & Holidays. We've been doing this for years. Next Day delivery means the item doesn't sit around, it gets moved through the system efficiently so there is only the tiniest chance of Loss or Damage as it's tracked at every stage. But if you want Insurance, read above.
Risk Assessing When Packing.
All amps will now need deeper Risk Assessing to see what could possibly break. One amp that arrived to us from Europe was badly packed, it has a tuner glass that arrived intact if the amp did get shaken up, overall it was undamaged. We've had the big Yamaha receivers arrive packed just in a box, the base lids needed reflattening by the plastic feet but the rest of the amp was undamaged. To step our packing up even further, without resorting to buying expensive packing, would you pay £10 extra for a new custom box & new custom packing? What will be the most likely thing to break... Glass. To either remove it & pack better protected amid the parcel or to pack it in a way to avoid any chance of hitting metal parts. We've had enough amps arrive badly packed to see how bad packing can put an amp at risk, if it manages to arrive intact. An amplifier being a solid item is capable of heavy handling & still to be fine, after being checked. Certain things like Receiver Antennas and pre-power connectors that stick out are known problems. The fact that the damaged amp arrived safely from abroad & so did another one & it got delivered safely cannot be assumed to be more than 'lucky that time'. Damage on Hifi does occur if packed badly. We've had ones arrive with the amp right onto the side of the box making a hole even after we tell to pack properly with at least 5cm of packing on all sides. The first Vintage Hifi sales by us was the Quad II system them McIntosh Preamps & Power Amp. These all went overseas & the McIntosh buyer suggested the huge glass fascias were removed & packed in boards to ensure no smashing from drop bouncing. These all arrived intact & the buyer has to reassemble the item. If that needs to be done with any amplifier, we will give instructions on how to reassemble which will range from easy to a bit more work, such as in fitting controls with grub screws to hold. |
UK Highlands, Northern Ireland & Remote Areas
likely £30.00-£40.00 delivered by Parcelforce HI |
| Main EU Countries Vary A Lot Now |
| Delivered by UPS or Parcelforce, Uninsured . Price will be found at the time of ordering as prices vary a lot. See above about 'Insurance'. We Quote Uninsured or Fully Insured. |
| Rest Of The World |
| We post to Most Countries. Price will be found at the time of ordering as prices vary a lot. A rough idea for a typical amp sized parcel & weight is £70-£150 GBP. See above about 'Insurance'. |
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ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT AMP?
Please ASK away with the EMAIL FORM above.
Nearly all Buyers or those wanting Repairs or Upgrades do Email us first. To ask questions if we think the amp for sale here is suitable or any sort of question. It's True you're sort of Buying Blind as you don't know what the Amp sounds like. Plenty on this site to guide you, so please ask questions. The truth of any Shop or Home Demo is a quick hear tells you nothing. To live with an unknown amplifier for a few days at least is needed, with a few tries. We put amps new to us on our Speakers once Upgraded & Serviced so we can understand how the Amp sounds & have other known ones to compare back to. Generally as our Loudspeakers page shows, Most Amps match Most Speakers, if some don't. Buy an Amplifier or a Receiver? In the era we cover, more are Receivers with a Tuner stage than just Amplifiers. The ones we choose are the better models, with some brands throughout the late 1960s-1979 having higher spec & power ratings in Receivers compared to the amplifier version. Receivers look great with Retro Looks, some Amplifiers can look a bit ordinary. Have a look at our Gallery of Sold Amps to see a wide range. Be sure we only get amps to upgrade that we see as Interesting or are the Best Ones, we're not interested in the Budget type gear as it doesn't upgrade well & risks ICs.
If you are Interested in having us Upgrade Your Amp, or to Buy One Of Ours, Please Ask Your Questions. We're here to help & selling usually involves some back & forth with emails for the buyer to understand further as well as understand what we would be upgrading. No question that leads to a Sale is a 'Silly Question' as we know Buyers aren't born knowing Hifi & we only know what we know by having the Hifi here to fully understand. If you're not sure and might not buy for not asking, then please Do Ask! But we don't know your Hifi, your tastes, your expectations or room acoustics, so please don't ask if it matches with XYZ... we don't know & no-one else will either, unless they just want to smooth talk you into buying something regardless of it being what you require. We can help you choose which one suits your Speakers only by Googling them to have a rough idea of what they are. As said just above. Most Speakers match Most Amps, but not all, especially 4 ohm or "Hard To Drive" ones, see the Blog page about Celestion Dittons being a problem. If you want our opinion of which Amplifier we have most suits your general idea of sound then we can recommend an amp, but leave it to you to read more on it. ↑
HOW TO ORDER & BUY FROM US.
To buy an Amplifier, just order it. The item will be reserved for 7 days, but may sell on the 8th day to a second buyer if there is no contact, as a reservation isn't a guaranteed sale. On higher priced items, a £100 deposit will secure for 14 days. If you change your mind the full deposit will be refundable within the standard 7 days. Any cancellations after 7 days or non payments after 14 days we'll deduct £20 for having reserved the item but got no sale. After the reservation period has expired, the item will be for sale again to whoever wants to buy it, previous reservations having expired. So therefore only reserve or order items if you have the funds ready. Bank Transfer ONLY on Hi-Fi Sales. Paypal "Gift" option available to Known Buyers if we offer it.
Please fill out the ORDER FORM.
We reply with a full invoice with all the expected details on plus transfer details. Our Sales Terms are Not Negotiable. All Sales & Upgrades Are Final, you are not buying to have a Free Home Demo or change your mind, if you want that go to a Street Shop & pay their higher prices. If you don't like these terms, they are clearly stated on this page, then We Are Not For You. But as you can see from the amount of Hifi info on this site as well as many Sold Hifi pictures, as well as the large Vinyl 45s stock that we are Responsible Sellers & are here to help. Read this page fully to see. We must also cover ourselves against abuse & scammers too, so no ebay or Paypal as these rules are for our benefit too & it works well. All transactions have a full 'paper trail' so buying from an Established Seller like us is no different to paying by cheque like was how trade beyond Cash was done in the early days of Hifi Mail Order. Similarly if you want us to Upgrade Your Hifi, the dealings are the same. ↑
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WE WILL CONSIDER VINTAGE UK VINYL FOR TRADES FOR HIFI OR UPGRADES-REPAIRS.
You can see the sort of Vinyl we deal in. The Rarer, More Wanted & Obscure End of UK 45s & EPs. We aren't interested in scratchy Beatles 45s, LPs or average stuff that's common on eBay for small change. We are interested in good 1950s Rock & Roll, R&B, Blues, Doowop. Early 1960s Popcorn Teen. 1960s Northern Soul, Ska, Mod & all types of 1960s Beat & Psych 45s. The Obscure, Rare & Interesting, similar to what we sell. If you have Nice Stuff to Trade, we can do a deal. |
• HIFI CURRENTLY FOR SALE •
Click the Links for More Info and lots of Photos
Please use the Order Form for Ordering Hifi Amplifiers
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- HIFI WE SELL is Recapped & Upgraded as too aged to be USE DAILY, Our Aim.
- See the HIFI NOW SOLD page for loads more Amp photos.
- See the VINTAGE HIFI REVIEWS page for how we Rate many amps.
- All Hi-Fi we list for Sale is Owned By Us, none are sold on Commission.
- Prices Do Get Updated, see the Item Page.
Notations here: "For Sale" means it is currently For Sale. "Reserved" means a person has ordered it and the invoice is sent, if payment not received. Once the item has been paid, the Item Page is marked 'Sold' and the item is removed from this page, if the Item Page as linked on the invoice still exists still for the buyer to see.
The Amps We Sell Below are All Serviced, Recapped with Upgrades.
This is way ahead of what Anyone else is currently doing in Hifi, so we'll be Modest & call it OUR STANDARD UPGRADED AMPS. These amps if you came to us to Rebuild one for you could cost more than Our amp, for the reality of offering amps to Sell & the current market we're selling into, ie one that's very Interested in Rebuilt Amps, if still who else offers this? Then come CUSTOM UPGRADED AMPS. Actually the Standard Upgrades are still Custom, but here we mean Amps We've Upgraded Further, as in for Our Own Interest. Sale Prices Do Not Reflect The Work Put In, if what we learn on Getting The Best from these Amps is what we put into Standard Upgrades to a degree. Amps we've had a while, years perhaps, to see How Good They Can Be. These Amps are ones much tried & used by us. These do get Sold as we don't collect amps if do keep ones to use as well as Favourites to Swap Around & then try to better them. The ones we offer as Custom Upgrades we've done as much as we want to with, without making them too Custom. To Basically Describe What's been Done, Why It's Better is what the below will show.
AMPS Pictured BELOW are FOR SALE. Once Ordered we put Reserved & then Remove once Sold. The Sales Page itself stays for a while.
All DESCRIPTIONS are Written By A Real Person, The Typist & Tech for this Website. No 'AI' Content here on Sales or Info Pages. Beware 'AI' Waffle is on ebay now...
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COMING SOON section...
This details Amplifiers & Receivers we will put for Sale once ready. These are works In Progress with Prices often not decided right until the Photos are done to sell the item. Our Reviews page "Recent Additions" covers new amps we get for ourselves plus amps owned by Customers to upgrade. Only once they get put Up For Sale can you know it'll be up for sale.
IF YOU WANT A REBUILT VERSION OF AN AMP WE'VE GOT ON THE 'SOLDS GALLERY' YOU NEED TO BUY ANOTHER AMP & GET US TO UPGRADE IT. WE DON'T HAVE A HUGE STASH OF REBUILT RARE AMPS. |
*COMING SOON...?
See the Review Pages for more Info. These are in line to be put for sale. We're doing Customer's Amps which keeps getting our Sales ones ready slower.
THESE ARE **NOT FOR SALE YET**
Only once on the Sales page with Photos, Price & Description are they ready to go... No Reserving as You don't Know what it'll be or Priced at.
1966 Trio-Kenwood TK-60BU receiver 20w. (Kenwood TK-60BU) This is the Early Version of the 1967-68 TK-66 that uses the same Phono-Tone-Power Amp Boards, beyond Tuner differences. Bigger Silver Front earlier design looks nice. Missing the Tuner Dial Knob if we had one from a TK-66 long ago, so a near match. Currently being Rebuilt.
...plus others not started or decided on yet. See the 'Reviews' page for ones we've got if some are-were Customer's amps. Keep Watching...
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HELP & ADVICE FOR BUYERS.
Do you Know How To Use An Amplifier?
It may seem obvious, but we do get questions that show buyers don't understand how to use Hifi. No-one is born knowing, but if you go to websites you can get Free User Manuals that show you how to use the item. See below for a lot of advice based on Questions we've had on selling Hifi before as it'll sort out all issues, beyond user error. If you find anything you are not sure about... ASK US rather than stumble ahead & damage the amp.
On First Getting Your Amp...
It will be well packed to avoid damage, so just check the box is undamaged when you sign for it. If the weather is cold, it can get cold overnight where the amp has been, you need to Allow It To Warm To Room Temperature before using. If the metal is as cold as milk in your fridge, which is about 2°-5°C, let it sit for an hour in a warm room before plugging in. Room Temperature is about 22°-24°C. Learn the controls of the amp, some are rotary or press buttons if some use levers for various modes & options. If using a Turntable, you must connect the Ground Lead or it makes a high pitched un-earthed sound on Phono. For Tuners, you will often need an aerial to get FM Stereo, anything from a cheap T-shaped antenna to a rooftop one. Do not expect noise-free FM Stereo without one. AM/MW is easier as usually an amp has a built in or externally fitted antenna. Do not turn on the amp before you connect input sources or speakers. Do not risk bare stranded wires tightened onto a screw connector as stray strands usually forms which can damage the amp by shorting it. Sometimes the amp gets a bit shaken up in transport, if it seems a bit less than it should, unplug it from the mains, operate all rotary, push button or levers ten times fully, as in a full turn of a rotary control. This will generally solve any minor issues with these mechanical controls. Any other things you aren't sure of, please ask.
Be careful using Upgraded Amps on first turning them on.
Amps in original condition then & now are usually turn on & use right away. This is because the spec is low so things settle quick. Most looking to buy Vintage will know of the wait until the Relay clicks. The amp does this to check voltages have settled & there are no major issues. It's not a catch-all & problems can still occur, if usually the Relay goes off & it needs repair. On older amps pre 1971, there are rarely relays, if the 1965 Sony TA-1120 has one, never found a relay pre 1971 otherwise. Again for low spec these turn on & you can use them with no particular problems. With some amps as original the Volume & Tone crackle in use if after 1-2 minutes they are quiet again. With Upgraded Amps you have much higher spec. The amp will need more time to settle before you can use it. With Relay amps we sometimes have to adjust the delay before it clicks on. With earlier amps that have a 60v-105v main + voltage, not the + and - of later amps, it can take 1-2 minutes for voltages to settle. So if you have bought a pre 1971 era amp, you must let voltages settle before altering volume or tone as it can make noises. These usually will be of no problem to the amp, if it may worry you as it made an odd noise. We've written this as non-tech as possible, if the basic idea is, let it settle for 1-2 minutes before you use the earlier amps that don't have relays. It's like letting the Car warm up on an icy day waiting for a Tea Bag or Leaves to Brew, or letting the Valve Radio warm up before it plays sound. If you want Instant Use then go buy low spec modern gear. After 2 mins the amp will be fine in use as it will be ready.
Our Guarantee is written in all these pages.
We know our stuff in Hifi Amplifiers. We fully Service & check every amp fully. All the amps we sell are Upgraded to a certain degree and are fully tested. We've sold nearly 200 amplifiers now & as with anything, people don't understand, which is why the long Help section is below. Most buyers tell us of how they like the amp & are delighted of the quality of goods & the sounds made, as our pictures show. If there is any Genuine Problem, we will sort it out, but having checked & fully tested the hifi, this isn't going to be an issue. We are Responsible sellers, but we know all the tricks too & won't tolerate it. We tell those who are insincere that "We Are Not For You" as we don't want to sell to someone with difficult ideas & most sales of Hifi are made after some email chat, which tells if the buyer is genuine & understands. All Sales Are Final, you are not buying for a Free Home Demo. Our sales & review pages are honest verdicts on amplifiers as you can see with over 200 amplifier reviews on the two reviews pages. If you like our 'No BS' take on Hifi, you've not read pages like this before answering the unanswered questions, then odds are you'll love the Hifi we sell. After all we only pick Hifi we like to try & we'd not bother upgrading an uninteresting amp. If you don't understand, go to Amazon & spend your money on some new thing as... We Are Not For You. But we may be later as you want more out of Hifi, we've had buyers who came back a time later having learned more about Hifi.
All Sales Are Final, you are not buying for a Home Demo
All Sales are Final is the only way to trade with Vintage Hifi. There are sadly scammers out there, ebay especially, who want to steal our upgrade ideas & other sellers tell us of those who steal spare parts & return the rest as well as those who damage items who then expect to be covered for their error. Also those who think a sale is a free home demo, this is a little rude, you can see our terms of sale & to make up your own rules without saying anything isn't acceptable. If you asked for a free demo-sale or return or any other dreamer ideas, we'd refuse, it's clearly stated. Your only option is we can relist it & you deal with the sale, or you list it on ebay linking to our sales page. These rules are not negotiable & by placing an order you agree to these terms. We are here to sell very fairly, but not be taken advantage of. If you want Free Home Demos, make a deal with a shop & pay their higher prices, not that you'll get our upgraded quality anywhere, or go buy from Amazon who do let you do this on new goods. If you aren't sure you want any item, Do Not Buy It until you've emailed us about things or are happy with our sales terms.
Our Hifi may be 30 to 50 years old...
But for the work we do on these amps to make them good enough for daily use, don't let the age put you off. Many pieces of furniture 100-200+ years old are in daily use as being Well Made is the deal with earlier goods. In Hifi the quality started to dip past 1970-71, dipped further by 1978-79 & most modern gear is the quailty of early 1980s-1990s gear & some high priced gear of today is not what the price suggests either. In getting our Hifi, some need a lot of work to be good enough to sell, but as anyone buying Hifi on ebay even from Dealers, the item you get can be in high grade or a laughable mess that never worked & be sure we've had those. But our skills in electronics, electricals & general repair of any item, talents of older generations, will get pleasing results that surprise us even as we'll fix anything until it's too far gone. Some we get "Oh my God what a mess!" but clean it, tidy it & done right an attractive item is often not so far away. Some appear risky to use, but with the work done & much testing, reputations of items can elevate & the 'as arrived' issues fade away seeing & hearing the revived gem. You see this on History channel TV shows like "American Restoration" & "Counting Cars" & we do a similar version of their ideas with Hifi & have been long before these TV shows.
All items are Vintage items sold with No Warranty & No Guarantee.
But be sure we only offer Quality Goods fully checked, used & tested by us first, so we are confident with the item to be offering for Sale. They are Vintage Items of 30-50 years old & as with any Vintage item a fault may occur at any time if it's still running on original parts that are known to be weak points. Our checking & servicing is intense to find problems & resolve them, we'll only offer an amp for sale we are happy to trust on our speakers & leave on running in for hours. See our detailed pictures, we confidently show our work so you can see We Do Quality & many other Amps oin the 'Solds Gallery' show similar. We know weak points in Hifi & will replace anything we see as failing or know the odds of failing. To test each amp for the Power Ratings page as well as write it up on our Top Amps page proves how well we test our Hifi. Some amps we'll have used ourselves on speakers for weeks or months, as we swap our amps around on speakers to hear the differences in design between them. The typical "Oh It'll Do" ethos isn't ours & to do it properly is the way, especially seeing bad old TV-Repair Guy repairs that are not to our standard. We'll rebuild the power transistor stages if the wiring looks messy as it's not good enough for what we'd happily use ourselves. All Hifi we get is done to a standard that perhaps we'd keep it as a Reference for a while as upgrading can reveal hidden gems in Hifi. If after reading much of our site, you'd still rather buy unserviced aged hifi to get a 6 month guarantee, then we are worlds apart & we aren't for you & will tell you this.
The 'No Guarantee' doesn't mean you buy & that's it if you get a problem within a week, we are here to Help because we want happy customers, if we are aware some are never happy however much we try as they don't understand things. We do not cover user error therefore but if you are honest about it, we'll repair it for you at cost. If you don't like our Terms of Sale, please don't buy & then think you can tell us what to do when you've damaged it. We don't offer any Guarantees simply because we've spent a lot of time making sure the amp is right as Quality Work done as Standard with our Hifi is worth far more than a 'hope for the best' short guarantee. Read our pages to see what we know & be sure we've checked your potential buy similarly.
We know the world of Electrical Goods, a 30 day warranty one offers covers their costs for not bothering to service or check it out even, will it last 60 days? Did one you had before go bang & start smoking? Nobody experienced checked it is why. Many offer a warranty on work done, so if their low-skilled work fails it's covered, but shows they never used it for hours to be more confident. If a buyer believes any guarantee covers the whole item that is 30-50 years old, it's like with your Car: your new clutch guarantee doesn't cover the gearbox or a dead bulb & you'd not expect it to, right?
We pack Hifi solidly to arrive safely. If there are any Courier issues as they can throw things about, we can sort things for you, but how & what will be dependent on what has happened. See the Delivery & Insurance section for more. On Repairs, Servicing & Upgrades this differs slightly. We only use UPS & Parcelforce who are usually very good with Hifi. Any minor issues we may sort out for no extra cost, this is dependent on what the issue is, but any delivery & sending costs are those of the Customer, after all we've packed your item to arrive safely & tested it fully, giving you the details of the item we see before packing up to return. Be sure we'll not hastily return any amps we've worked on until we are satisfied they are reliable & would be expected to be trouble-free. As the Courier is the one delivering the item, we are not liable for Courier damage beyond what you paid Insurance for. We will reuse your packaging & reinforce it if we see it needs it.
A Guarantee or Warranty isn't a free ride if you do get one anywhere: you pay for it like Insurance is. Buy a TV & pay £xxx for a 5 year Warranty & if it goes wrong 5 years & a week later, tough. If you want to pay us extra to get a Warranty, then we're not into the Insurance game. We are not responsible for User Error on goods we know as working correctly & fully tested as advertised & will not offer to repair user error items, please source your own repair service. Please read our pages & you'll see what you'll be getting with Hifi we sell. Then realise you don't need a warranty. If you really want a Warranty, go but Modern Audio Gear that is made to be disposable, sounds awful & your 2 year Warranty will be a sad memory once it's unrepairable after 5 years. Our Rebuilt, Recapped, Serviced & Upgraded amps you should get many years of quality use from.
Buy A Warranty or Guarantee?
Not from Us. You'll have seen the dodgy 'Square Deal' warranties that used to be on ebay but now have vanished with 'Collect At Argos' their latest corporate deal. Square Deal years before used to offer a 'scam' to remove feedback, would you trust their Guarantee? Now we could offer a 2 year warranty for £300, similar to SD's scam, but the list of exclusions would be very long, as you'd expect. To take money on a Warranty, that 75% of those who believed it was Protecting them but either never used it or weren't eligible, is so anti-our-ideas that we'd rather say get it on your Household insurance & claim that way. We know people are careless & trash the amp in the first hour of having it, we know no-one reads anything or takes the time. We know people think they are Protected and Cared For so they don't have to think anymore or take responsibility, but don't you believe it. This is how your Mobile Phone works: there is no book anymore as no-one uses it, you may just stumble through things & maybe look online if you get stuck. This way means you never find out what the Phone does unless you reel through every menu & spend time understanding it. If you had no Warranty & dropped your Phone on the pavement you'd not expect to be covered, unless you bought Damage Insurance. There is no free ride unless you pay for it. We make sure our Hifi is right & would we gamble our Tannoys trying out unreliable Hifi knowing it could damage them? No we wouldn't.
We deal by Email & Mail Order Only.
No Home Visits, No Home Demos, No Trade-Ins, No Cash deals on the Doorstep. Pay by Bank Transfer & we'll deliver by UPS or Parcelforce 24 is how we deal. On higher priced items a Paypal Deposit will hold for 14 days & will be refunded in full once the Bank Transfer is paid. Any Deposit is returnable in full within 14 days of a reservation, even if the Order does not complete. If we have to cancel a sale after 14 days for non-completion, a 20% deduction may apply based on us having possibly missed a sale once marked 'reserved'. If we had a Street Shop buyers could Demo the items & we'd charge a lot more, but having tried new item Demos ourselves, you rarely have much idea if it's good or bad which is why we had & got rid of those Musical Fidelity fast. We properly photo & describe items fully test & use all our Hifi to negate that, as we do with our Record sales by checking each item before posting, as it might have been in stock for some time. Our Record Sales we use ebay as a tiny sample of our stock, the days of listing a larger amount items is gone as ebay doesn't generate much sales as you'll see now by many other sellers forever relisting. For us, ebay is fine for under £100 sales if you send it Trackable. We've not Auctioned anything on ebay for ages, beyond some Classical LPs we were comissioned to sell. We always use Buy-It-Now as we can set our prices well. But we only sell our Hifi here.
If you Damage it because You Are Careless...
it is totally your responsibilility, as with anything in life you've not paid Insurance on. It saddens us that people buy premium Hifi we've spent hours on & have fully tested to be good before selling yet it is instantly trashed by a careless person. This is alarmingly often too, people rush in desperate to hear it without taking care in connecting things properly & there's the damage. The usual way is they short the outputs & within a second the amp is damaged. Also if you plug a freezing cold amp in without allowing 2 hours to warm up it can get condensation inside & damage too as water conducts like cable does. If the fuses don't blow & the relay clicks in still, the sound will be distorted on speakers, but sound ok on headphones as the headphone circuit doesn't draw much current unlike the speaker which is connected directly. See, we even tell you here what you've done as this issue is so common. Because of Human Nature being to blame others for your failings & not take responsibility, our policy is simple: you prepay us to repair the output transistors & we'll fix it for you & send it back. We'll give you a damage report & if it makes you feel stupid, then that is good as you will have learnt the hard way to take more care. An alternative is we'll tell you the transistors to get & tell you basically how to do it, any work you do naturally is your own responsibility & we'll not give step-by-step instructions to those who don't know what they are doing. If you choose to force the issue & return it we'll repair it as a fresh job deducting our costs from the price you paid once we resell the item, priced as parts plus labour to repair, check & retest at £35 per hour. If the item is unrepairable or you've stolen parts, you'll just get it back. We know all the tricks people try. As stated above we offer No Warranty & No Guarantee beyond the fact it has been professionally serviced, upgraded & thoroughly tested by the same person who writes all these pages about hifi. If you still think because you damaged it that we've not tested it fully on speakers as well as rating it on our Power Ratings page and Top Amps page, then you shouldn't be buying vintage gear. The right thing to do is Ask Us if you are unsure about anything. A Stupid Question to you is a Good Question to us if it stops you getting into problems.
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After Sales Help & Advice we do offer...
We've sold quite a few Amplifiers & receivers now. Since having put our pages online buyers understand Old Amplifiers better which makes selling easier, but we have written this as advice to help things along & it appears to have worked very well. It's how most people are, if someone doesn't understand, they'll blame first, so we tread gently as Egos can easily be bruised. You may feel insulted your item "isn't working right" and we may feel insulted "that you doubt our Qualified workmanship", so it works both ways. Educate yourself or stick to buying new items instead.
Buyers not familiar with these "traditional" Hifi items do need to take the time to learn what their item does & to check the inputs they use are plugged in correctly and are working. We request you let us know your issues & as we know our subject well, we can usually sort it for you, if this page hasn't helped. If you need our help, be nice in your messages for best results.
See the Delivery & Insurance section above for our current details on Couriers.
If you have something you don't understand, describe in detail what you are hearing or noticing. Even in everyday terms, we can understand what the "fault" is & we'll point you in the right way, be aware as we service, repair & upgrade Hifi we know every fault there is & can usually tell very quickly exactly what caused the issue in amps we get. Other "faults" you'll encounter as we do, simply as you're not born knowing an amplifier, you need to learn it. You can get free user manuals if you search online.
As you may imagine dealing in vintage electrical goods, even to the very high standards we reach, there are those who will think despite all we write & claim, think we are wrong and them, unqualified & trying the old bluff, are right. Us being good with the words can talk down a jumper on a clifftop so it's not hard for us to convince the non-believer into agreeing we're right with being able to prove the cause of their issue which on being given a direct response can deal with it, some just quietly fade away unable to admit they were wrong, human nature. It's all a part of Customer Service so we should expect this and we do so even if we get someone directly saying "I consider the work you did to 'xxx' has done 'xxx' and it wasn't like that before..." then we need to explain to them what service or goods they have bought, how we tested it & ran it in & give them the hints lower down the page, as they never read them before blaming. We'll think they are rude but to ignore the bait & calmy reply is the way to deal with an awkward customer. For this sort of reason, we will not offer Guarantees or Warranties as the easy-claim-blame eBay culture has made selling very hard. Hifi is a sealed box to most people & as with cars if one part unrelated to the failed part was repaired, they think the whole item is guaranteed. We don't deal in BS & we won't take it either, you don't have to deal with us, but you'll be glad you did.
These Help items will solve all your issues & we are here to help, but once a customer gets hostile, demanding or threatening, do not expect us to put up with that, so be nice, leave out the accusations as you will always get further by editing your replies to sound mellow rather than aggressive.
Shaken Up By The Courier?
The way parcels go through the system means we pack the amp to protect & cushion it, but it could still get shaken up a bit, if not damaging it. Vintage Amps are strong items & having had ones well bashed up by the cheaper couriers, most survive even if the outside is marked. If it might have just got shook up a bit by the courier, leave it switched off & go through all the controls switching several times & doing full rotations of tone volume input etc. Lever switches especially seem to get this issue as they rely on a soft touching of contacts, rather than the more substantial older rotary selectors.
Been Out In The Cold?
We'd assume buyers would know to let a freezing cold electrical item sit for an hour or two to warm up to room temperature before using. This is because it's been left in an unheated warehouse or vehicle in the colder weather. Condensation (water) forms & water + electricity aren't good. We get amps arriving half frozen & they cloud up with inside humidity, but 2 hours later they are fine again. Turning an amp on too early when it's clearly very cold outside is not recommended.
Upgraded Amps Need To Settle Voltages Before Use.
This is explained in the above "Help" section. It takes 1-2 minutes to get the Voltages to settle. So using Controls may bring up Noises or Crackle if you try to use it too quickly that aren't there just shortly after.
Only One Channel Works Now!
It worked, sounded distorted then no more! Assuming you've got everything plugged in correctly, you may have commited the Cardinal Sin in amplifiers: shorted the outputs together. This sadly is the most common user-based fault. Some amps with protection circuits will warn you by cutting the sound, but generally the output stages will be damaged & need repair. Just ONE STRAND of errant wire can do this. Zero resistance & current increases to destroy the output transistors. Check for blown fuses on Speaker fuses or the entire amp. Take care & you'll be fine.
It Works On Headphones But Not Speakers...
If it plays on Headphones then the Power Amp is fine. You'll not have blown any Fuses & the Inputs will be correct. Your Fault is your Speaker Cables may not be properly connected, a spring connector isn't correctly wired up, a plug on the speakers came loose. This is one you can investigate & remedy easily.
The Amp Gets Very Hot & Makes Funny Noises
We mention this above, about Older Amps only being Suitable for 8 Ohm speakers. See above with PRE 1970 AMPS ARE BEST SUITED TO 8 OHM SPEAKERS. If you use 4 Ohm speakers that can be marked as 4-8 Ohm, it can't be 2 values, it's 4 Ohm. The Amp "complains" by getting hot etc as you are Overdriving It & are sort of on the edge of trashing it by pushing it too far. Either use different Speakers or add a 4 ohm resistor to the + side of the speaker cable, you don't need to add two, as one makes it 8 ohm, two makes it 12 ohm. We now mark all amps as Suitable for 8 ohm speakers only to cover this. It means not all amps & speakers match well.
The Amp Has No Bass and Sounds All Phasey!
This is because you connected the speaker cables wrongly. Most amps are with connectors + - - + but some are different & you need to look closely if not obviously 'Red' or 'Black' marked. If this is correct, check your cables. All proper Hifi cable will have one of the pair marked so to be sure + goes to + and - goes to -. If these are wrong then you get No Bass & a Grand Canyon Phasey effect that sounds weird. Easy to remedy, look closer. Be sure to turn the amplifier off & let the capacitors discharge for at least a minute before swapping cables, to remove the risk of shorting the amp, as it still holds voltage even after switching off.
Check Your Cables, Swap Your Cables!
We had one person say the amp only worked on one channel. We may assume you have a clue how to use Hifi. Everyone knows how to use Hifi but blames the seller because the buyer can't think as is the way today... The problem here was the amp has Phono sockets closely spaced as is found on many UK amps & some earlier Pioneer too. This means if you use £4.99 "Hifi" cables bought on ebay, these can be too chunky to fit neatly into the Phono socket. We'd think it'd be obvious as one would be sticking out a bit... Human nature will be to force it but odds are it'll not go or break something. But unless you properly plug something in, it'll not work as it is a wired connection. Also these cheap blue gold rinsed cables are pretty rubbish quality & we used some for a short while only to find the copper wire inside is so thin with the big outer plastic that after some use the strands break & "the amp appears faulty". The customer does no simple cable swapping or even swapping L to R to "see if the amp is broken on the other channel". Yes, it's hard to type this without being too salty as it's elementary stuff, but be sure new gear shops hear this all...the...time. We write these help pages but this person never read as they know better. Still, it cost them ££ in courier costs instead of thinking a little or getting some new cables. Be aware the cable will break sometime & you pulling out of one to go into the new one can be that time. The cable we use has soldered connections yet often needs repairing with the amount of cable swapping we do. We just chop off the bad bit & resolder it anew, but it'll not last forever even with the best plugs with strain relief springs or sheath. Things bend & break with use or being Uri Geller'd. Metal can only take so many bends unless it is spring steel.
Plugging In Or Removing Input Connecting Cables
If you do this with the Volume turned up past zero, there is a chance you could damage the amp. Amps differ in how they connect the Ground of the Input & leaving the centre Phono pin just in before the ground conects could put a loud noise through the amp which can overload it. A thing you only know by error or someone tripping over untidy cables can do similar. To be safe, always turn the Amp off before plugging in or removing cables. If you trust the volume is turneed down to zero, be sure you might have turned Bass down by mistake & still damage it, so always Turn It Off first.
Two Or Three Speaker Sets Connected?
Later amps added a notice about only using 8 ohm speakers if you are connecting 2 or more pairs, but earlier amps didn't. The reason is the Speaker Load can be 8 ohms with one speaker, but 4 ohms or even 2 ohms with more speakers. This can put a serious overload onto an amplifier & it'll react dangerously to this overloading with excess heat & irrepairable damage. If you use two pairs of 4 ohm speakers at the same time you are risking serious damage & making a fire risk by overloading the amplifier. An amplifier can take 4 ohms, but halving it to 2 ohms doubles the current it draws & problems occur.
If You Have Damaged The Amplifier Yourself
This does occur if you are careless or use our item with damaged items that other Hifi may not reveal so readily. We do not offer a repair service & your damage is of your own concern, even if you damage it 1 minute after plugging it in after it arrives, so be careful, do not rush your first use. If the Hifi is very cold, let it sit at least an hour in a warm room before turning on as condensation (water) can form. We service & run in our amps to be sure they are good to sell, but to offer Warranties & Guarantees at our isn't going to happen as noted above. You see the high prices Hifi shops with Guarantees charge & understand why. Fixing amps for over 20 years we can often tell you the life the amp has had & pinpoint what put it out of service. You may call us Experts. We don't offer any repair service as it'd involve 2 extra Courier journeys & the risks that involves as Couriers sadly do damage items, especially Yodel & City Link! But we will be aware of the amp & still keep the photos & we can help you along with your repairs but you'll have to source your own repair company.
It Sounds Perfect On Headphones But Distorted On Speakers
This one is becoming a common issue we hear of with amps, ones we get or hear of later. the Speaker Cables have shorted even momentarily, two seconds is long enough to damage output stages. If you use Headphones, it sounds great still. This is because a Headphone works through a resistor giving no direct connection to the power amp. On average amps this is 500 ohms resistance, your Speaker has usually 8 ohms so will draw full current & then as the output stages are partly damaged, it clips out. Amplifier outputs can partly damage & not blow fuses, but the only remedy is to replace the full set of Transistors affected. It can affect other stages of the amp too, so to just replace output transistors often won't solve the issue. One for the repair tech. If you have Speakers connected, but a switch puts the Speakers off, then the Speakers are not connected to the live amplifier. But if you put the Speakers AND Headphones on together, the Headphones will sound distorted too. If you find this issue with an Amplifier, turn it off Quickly. It can put an unsafe DC voltage on the speakers & trash them. High powered speakers may not be affected, but lower power ones less rugged will fry.
No Sound Even With Inputs Plugged In Correctly!
Recheck the input really is plugged into the right input. If using a soundcard check the volume isn't muted & the right source output is selected. Check Tape or similar isn't on. Check the speaker switch is selected & that the Headphones are plugged in correctly, not into a Mic socket or another item.
No Sound On FM Even With An Aerial Connected!
Check "Mute" isn't set on as it will only play sound on the strongest stations unless you unswitch Mute. If you only use a basic 'T' type aerial, don't expect good results, noise free FM stereo or Muting to work right, some Tuners will not play FM Stereo if the noise level is too high from a weak aerial, which is a user issue.
Only Plays One Channel On Headphones!
Check the plug is fully plugged in else it won't connect properly.
The Sound Is Very Loud & Horribly Distorted!
You've plugged a Line Level source item into the Phono stage which is only for input directly from a Turntable. Many budget price mini or system type Record Players inc USB ones have a built-in phono stage that will output a full line-level signal, so use Aux instead.
It Makes Noises On Turning On or Turning Off.
Vintage Hifi is sometimes made like this. The higher models usually don't have this if the lower models can. A Click or Rustle on turning on or off is standard with some amps. Ones that make a small noise may be unusual to those only knowing Modern gear. Learn it's how it's made & priced to a sales point. Most amps still play music after turning off until it fades away, some designs Mute it. Amps without Relays which is the Majority pre 1973 are like this. Some of the Earliest Transistor amps make a bigger bassy noise on turn on. If the noises can be repeated by further use, it's How It's Made.
Nothing Works Though It's All Plugged In!
Check it actually is plugged in, not another cable that looks like it, be it mains or input connectors. Check it's Switched On. Check the Socket with another item.
It Doesn't Sound Very Good On Speakers!
Beyond user errors, some amps don't match very well with all speakers yet some can do. We've tested your amp on small modern speakers at least as well as our Tannoys, but there are no guarantees any speaker will match any amp.
The Tuner FM Sounds Noisy & Very Poor!
You need a proper aerial with an Analog Tuner to receive a Stereo transmission clearly. A bit of wire will pick up stations, but it picks up noise & will not bring the best sound. Using the Mono switch or similar will make FM sound better until you use a better aerial.
My Input Worked Properly On Another Amplifier!
Check another input if you hear something that is not expected, your Sound Card on your Computer or any other input could be faulty. Volume could be turned down or Muted, or you've plugged in or selected the wrong Input! Some modern items you may use may have a different impedance to a 30-50 year old amplifier, these issues are beyond our control. Some items you use can have faults that a lesser quality amp won't pick up but to use a better recapped upgraded serviced one will reveal problems that lesser amps will hide through being off spec. We test using a MM cartridge from a Record Player & Line Level from our Computer Soundcard.
My I-Phone, Or Similar Portable Device, Sounds Awful Played Through The Amplifier
Really. Are you expecting Hifi sound from a Portable Device? You can plug these into Amplifiers & Computer Soundcards, but they Sound Awful, oddly like a Telehone Call Quality as that'sd the Fidelity the Phone is used for.
The Amplifier Hums!
User Error: This is because your other items are creating an Earth Loop, or the cables, other items are defective. Also Vintage Amps may only have a SN ratio of 65-80dB which means background hiss & hum can be audible, but not affect music. Unplug Everything from the Amp except Speakers, turn it on, turn it up quite loud? No Hum now beyond typical light background noise? Then the items You Are Using Have The Issue, the Amplifier is fine. Swap the L+R inputs, does the Hum now move to the other channel? Your other items have the issue. Please do not tell us we are wrong because we fully test items & every single time, as this page of Help Advice shows, it's a User-Based issue. Ask us nicely & we'll help you, if probably just tell you to read this page deeper. Have a little faith & do some reading, it's all here for you & the Search Box finds all these pages too. These can be bought on ebay cheaply. Search for "Ground Loop Isolator" & look for ones with Phono plugs & Sockets on. Plug your Aux cable into that & into the amp and no more Ground Him or Crackle.
The Amplifier Hums Loudly With Bass Up Full & Volume Very High with No Source Playing!
Really. As we've heard this one now, we'll explain: the amp has a noise floor of about 80dB on earlier amps without the overdesign on later amps that makes them almost silent with 120dB. Why you need to turn it up very loud with no music playing makes no sense, you'll forget it's loud & play music & blow your speakers. Depending on the design, the bass control being after the volume control means the full 'noise' of the tone stage, as treble will bring up the hiss, will be audible.
We Later Moved The Amp To A Different Place & Now It Hums!
Oh really? Can't you think just a little here? If it worked fine before you moved it & assuming you didn't trip over down a flight of stairs with it leaving you a little dozy, the answer is... you have external issues. The amp might be the other side of a non-brick partition wall that has a thermostat, a noisy fridge motor. the house mains box or issues like incorrect or failed ground connections somewhere.
Why It Hummed When You Moved The Amp To A Different Place...
Some amplifiers do not have a full metal shielded case. This is quite common by the early-mid 1970s & those with just a Wood or Vinyl Wrap Case can pick up Hum from items nearby or put on top as it picks up the radiation from the other Mains Transformer when it's switched on. Searching online will tell you more, Eddy Currents & the like. The solution is to move the item that gives the hum away or add some of that aluminium tape, like that which gets put behind radiators, inside the lid, being very careful of loose or stray bits of it.
There Are Crackly Clickly Noises When No Music Plays!
Got the amp grounded via another unit if it has 2 core mains only? No? You're picking up interference! Soundcards & Computers can be a source of interference if the amp has a ground connection also as you ground the amp via the computer to & bring up the computer noise like mouse movements & processor noise, this is a symptom of an Earth Loop. We use an Isolator on our Aux output from the Computer to lose these noises. These can be bought on ebay cheaply. Search for "Ground Loop Isolator" & look for ones with Phono plugs & Sockets on. Plug your Aux cable into that & into the amp and no more Ground Him or Crackle.
The Sound Is Strange & Phasey Grand Canyon Effect!
On some amps bass & treble controls are ganged L+R on one control, get one set different to the other & there's an imbalance strangely... You could also have wired the speakers up wrongly with the + and - swapped, be sure to turn off the amp & let it settle before disconnecting & reconnecting speakers.
Volume Control Turned Very Low Just Before Zero Still Plays Music On One Channel!
Until modern times most potentiometer type volume controls often had channel imbalance as this was the technology of the time. It's just how it is. To replace Volume controls is never recommended. The amp will generally play very loud at 2 on the volume, showing the input signal is too loud or the speakers are of too high dB efficiency for your use. You see some amps with 4 gang volume controls to use 2 pots to ensure volume balance is more even, the Yamaha CR-2020 has this if the CR-1020 doesn't
One Channel Is Louder Than The Other!
Most older amplifiers have a Balance control to match the Left Channel to the Right Channel Volume, some get louder at the extremes rather than quieter, as designed. Hardly anyone uses them, but make sure it's adjusted midway to make the Sound equal. Or your input could be faulty so swap cables.
I Don't Know How To Connect It! What Does This Do? Where Does That Go?
This is a tricky one, but we've heard it now! We'd expect you to have an idea how to connect things. If you don't know how to connect mains & hifi related items, or how to connect an item you are paying money for online, then simply we suggest you shouldn't be buying items like this. How do you know you even need it?
Bass Clips Out Or Distorts With The Volume Set Quite Low!
Some amps have a huge amount of bass gain on the tone controls, up to 18dB. Modern amps usually have 6 to 10dB gain, so roll back the bass control a few notches. Similar if treble is too bright.
If I Play It Really Loud It Sounds Distorted!
Why are you surprised it does? An amp has a finite amount of power & if you play it really loud into small speakers that are always of low sensitivity, you are playing it into the clipping region that could damage the tweeters. Some amps play louder than others for their power rating, some are more modest. The key to high volume from an amp is more a case of having high efficiency speakers than high wattage as there could be 20dB difference in volume between small & large PA type speakers. If you want the volume the Marshall Guitar Stacks have, look at their specs compared to small speakers.
Phono Stages - Tape Head Inputs
These are for Low Level Moving Magnet (MM) Cartridges only. Do not plug a CD player, TV, i-Pod or any Turntable that has a built in Equaliser Amplifier into this socket as you may Overload & Damage it as you will be putting 2v maximum into an Input that uses 20mV usually, ie 100 times smaller. On pre 1970 amps you see a 'Tape Head' input, this is for direct connection to the Tape Head of an Open Rell-Reel to Reel tape player to not use the player's internal ones or if they never had one. It's use today is obsolete beyond using old tape recorders.
It Fades Like We've Turned It Off But We Haven't
Assuming it's not a Power Cut or House Fuse failure, this means you are doing something seriously wrong with a speaker connection or playing it much too loudly into inefficient speakers & the Protection Circuit is triggering. It may or may not work right again on the next time you try after turning off or not, depending on what has happened.
Don't Plug In Sources With The Amp Switched On
Sometimes why you've damaged the Amp is plugging in a Source with the amp switched on. Some amplifiers only get True Ground from items being connected, if there is no Ground wire in the cable, this is the sort & we do rewire these ones now. What can happen is the Source you plug in might not be properly connected & it'll put whatever voltage potential there is, ie 4v AC, straight into the amp & blow the output stages! So always turn off an Amplifier before connecting, or at least set the volume to Zero to save upsets.
Hum Gets Louder When The Volume Goes Up?
A variation on the note above. Your input source or cables have a grounding problem, ie they're damaged. Having 2 separate items plugged into the amp that are Grounded at 2 points creates an earth loop & you need to buy a Ground Insulator. To confirm this, unplug everything from the amplifier except Speakers or Headphones. Go to the Input that had Hum & see it doesn't now. Search Google for "Mains Hum Problems" and you'll read how complex the issue of Mains Grounding is, but once understood & connected right it'll be fine.
The Bulb Stopped Working!
As you'll know with any incandescent lightbulb, it can work fine then fail the next time you turn it on. With Hifi the little bulbs can often be got working again with cleaning contacts or simply removing & replacing, unless the filament has obviously failed. No seller can guarantee vintage bulbs will last for any time & may fail in transit. Any we note that have failed we replace & the amp is used several times & for some hours to see all is good. We'll help you identify the values, but Bulbs are strictly 'sold as seen'.
We Know Nothing But We Think You're Wrong!!
Difficult. Some buyers who take no time to learn the Amplifier we've spend many hours getting right, will rudely & thoughlessly tell us We Are Wrong because of their inability to learn things or read this page. For the fact they'll never read this, be sure every person involved in selling or services gets this all the time. People today want spoonfeeding & not to take any sort responsibility so will blindly accuse because of their ignorance. No, we are Not Wrong, you haven't understood something. If you are one of those tiresome Accuse Before Think sorts, you'll get a nicer response by not accusing as we'll happily help. So instead of ignorantly saying You Cheated Us, calmy say your issue in a Polite Way & you'll get pointed in the right direction. If you do accuse, be sure of a Stern Reply explaining things. We know people aren't born knowing things, or are as investigative as we are, so we'll help you if you ask nicely, but to do a little sensible searching for an answer first instead of having a 'Barraco Barner' moment.
**Beware Of The Complex World Of Grounding Issues!
Ground hum loops are a problem. If you plug one unit into one plug socket & another into a different one which could be in the same room & there is a slight ground potential difference that results in hum or noise of some sort. All your hifi TV in one room should be connected via 1 adaptor trailer plug to keep grounding equal, but note max wattage. If your connecting wires are too long, there can be hum too. The worst hum is when a cable-TV cable isn't isolated, the earth loop hum is huge. You may need to buy a RCA phono plug isolator to stop any audio earth issue.
**High Frequency Noises
On upgrading amps, we always test to be sure the amp doesn't pick up RF noises. You can get similar high pitched noises with Ground Loops, some amplifiers with ground cables create a random white noise if another Grounded item is plugged in, such as we hear with the Computer Soundcard sometimes. If this is an issue, you need to search online about Ground Loops & this will remedy it for you. A Modern Problem is Broadband by BT & possibly others putting a RF signal as Broadband on the Mains, this needs filtering out else you hear computery crackly noises, plug it in on a different Ring Main or Circuit or get a Mains Filter.
**Mains Wiring & Earth Connections
Some amplifiers do not have an Earth cable, and require Earth connection via another unit. A 3 core cable including Earth is not always how the item was designed. If in Doubt, Consult A Qualified Electrician. For amps we know from testing that have an AC voltage on the case to ground, as noted above, we'll rewire it with 3 core mains to avoid issues as not everyone uses a turntable these days.
ANY OTHER PROBLEMS? = ASK US!
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