'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)?
Are there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

I admit ignorance of most all "current" developments in the home
audio market: haven't had time to follow any of it.

Any/all help/info etc much appreciated.

Cheers,
Puddin'

Pease pudding hot,
Pease pudding cold,
Pease pudding in the pot
Nine days old ...

AS you surmise, new is not always better. don't discount ebay, find the
seller 'capeannaudio', he specializes in good quality stereo gear from
the 80's and 90's ][and older] and can usually find you a good deal on a
real stereo. My ~2000 receiver had no more power than my 1978 20 watt
and sounded worse. I bought a replacement from him and love it.



Puddin' Man wrote:
'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)?
Are there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

I admit ignorance of most all "current" developments in the home
audio market: haven't had time to follow any of it.

Any/all help/info etc much appreciated.

Cheers,
Puddin'

Pease pudding hot,
Pease pudding cold,
Pease pudding in the pot
Nine days old ...

"Puddin' Man" wrote in message
...

'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)?
Are there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

You can still find stereo receiver amplifier combos that should serve your
needs.

Do you still use a turntable occasionally? If so you need one with a phono
input. Most new ones have dropped this. Might check out Craigslist and
find someone who would let you try theirs before buying it.

Good luck


"yourname" wrote in message
news:ngyoh.2132$Br.477@trndny08...
AS you surmise, new is not always better. don't discount ebay, find the
seller 'capeannaudio', he specializes in good quality stereo gear from the
80's and 90's ][and older] and can usually find you a good deal on a real
stereo. My ~2000 receiver had no more power than my 1978 20 watt and
sounded worse. I bought a replacement from him and love it.



Puddin' Man wrote:
'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox, no
Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my little
home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years. Such
receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static and can't
balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)? Are
there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

I admit ignorance of most all "current" developments in the home
audio market: haven't had time to follow any of it.

Any/all help/info etc much appreciated.

Cheers,
Puddin'

Pease pudding hot,
Pease pudding cold,
Pease pudding in the pot
Nine days old ...

"Puddin' Man" wrote in message
...

'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)?
Are there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

I admit ignorance of most all "current" developments in the home
audio market: haven't had time to follow any of it.

Any/all help/info etc much appreciated.


Call around to some actual stereo stores, not the big box idiots. Tell them
what you want, and what you DON'T want. These things still exist. I believe
NAD and Onkyo still make simple 2 channel receivers, for instance.

Example:
http://www.us.onkyo.com/model.cfm?m=...s=Receiver&p=i


Does your old receiver have rotary controls? Does it seem like they might
just need cleaning? If so, head to Radio Shack for a spray can of tuner
cleaner, pop off the receiver's cover, and drench those controls with the
spray. You have to shoot it into the tiny hole on each control. Tuck a clean
rag under the controls so the stuff's not dripping onto your table.

JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
"Puddin' Man" wrote in message
...

'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)?
Are there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

I admit ignorance of most all "current" developments in the home
audio market: haven't had time to follow any of it.

Any/all help/info etc much appreciated.


Call around to some actual stereo stores, not the big box idiots. Tell them
what you want, and what you DON'T want. These things still exist. I believe
NAD and Onkyo still make simple 2 channel receivers, for instance.

Example:
http://www.us.onkyo.com/model.cfm?m=...s=Receiver&p=i


Does your old receiver have rotary controls? Does it seem like they might
just need cleaning? If so, head to Radio Shack for a spray can of tuner
cleaner, pop off the receiver's cover, and drench those controls with the
spray. You have to shoot it into the tiny hole on each control. Tuck a clean
rag under the controls so the stuff's not dripping onto your table.

I believe places like "Best Buy " still have the sort of thing you are
after.

"Puddin' Man" wrote in message
...

'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)?
Are there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

I admit ignorance of most all "current" developments in the home
audio market: haven't had time to follow any of it.

Any/all help/info etc much appreciated.

Old stereo receivers are often available at thrift shops and
garage sales, or are available free or cheap via freecycle
or craigslist for your area.

Bob

Puddin' Man wrote:
....
What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver [that] ...appears to be ...dying......
What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
....

Besides the other suggestions, look for local audio shop. Most any
larger locality will have one and likely will either do repair or can
direct you to person(s) who can. Depending on the model, they may or
may not want to mess with it, but it's worth looking into. Had my old
Kenwood that is nearly 30 now (next year, if memory serves) totally
refurbed two years ago -- new lights, new output power transistors (one
of them died was final causation), replaced a bunch of caps that were
weak or suspect, cleaned it all out, etc., etc., ... It should go on
for another significant lifetime.

best buy has a lame 2 channel receiver. Why not get with the times.

wrote:
JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
"Puddin' Man" wrote in message
...

'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)?
Are there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

I admit ignorance of most all "current" developments in the home
audio market: haven't had time to follow any of it.

Any/all help/info etc much appreciated.


Call around to some actual stereo stores, not the big box idiots. Tell them
what you want, and what you DON'T want. These things still exist. I believe
NAD and Onkyo still make simple 2 channel receivers, for instance.

Example:
http://www.us.onkyo.com/model.cfm?m=...s=Receiver&p=i


Does your old receiver have rotary controls? Does it seem like they might
just need cleaning? If so, head to Radio Shack for a spray can of tuner
cleaner, pop off the receiver's cover, and drench those controls with the
spray. You have to shoot it into the tiny hole on each control. Tuck a clean
rag under the controls so the stuff's not dripping onto your table.

I believe places like "Best Buy " still have the sort of thing you are
after.

wrote in message
oups.com...

JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
"Puddin' Man" wrote in message
...

'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)?
Are there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

I admit ignorance of most all "current" developments in the home
audio market: haven't had time to follow any of it.

Any/all help/info etc much appreciated.


Call around to some actual stereo stores, not the big box idiots. Tell
them
what you want, and what you DON'T want. These things still exist. I
believe
NAD and Onkyo still make simple 2 channel receivers, for instance.

Example:
http://www.us.onkyo.com/model.cfm?m=...s=Receiver&p=i


Does your old receiver have rotary controls? Does it seem like they might
just need cleaning? If so, head to Radio Shack for a spray can of tuner
cleaner, pop off the receiver's cover, and drench those controls with the
spray. You have to shoot it into the tiny hole on each control. Tuck a
clean
rag under the controls so the stuff's not dripping onto your table.

I believe places like "Best Buy " still have the sort of thing you are
after.


They might, but there's a 50% chance you'll run into someone who has no idea
what you mean, and will drool on your shoes. Same with Circuit City. A
friend of mine does sales training for companies like these. (A very
frustrating job). Sometimes, before he sets up training sessions, he does
brief phone surveys of the stores to see how they handle customers. At one
CC store, he asked if they carried a certain Harmon Kardon receiver. The
salesperson on the phone told him they didn't carry HK, and gave him the
name of another store that did.

Very funny. At that time, CC had carried the HK line for quite a while.
Luckily for the salesman, my friend got his name, and before the training
sessions began, he took him aside to suggest that he either come a few
minutes early to work and familiarize himself with what they sell, or keep
looking over his shoulder in case his manager was walking by.

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 20:51:33 GMT, Puddin' Man
wrote:


'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)?
Are there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

I admit ignorance of most all "current" developments in the home
audio market: haven't had time to follow any of it.

Any/all help/info etc much appreciated.

Cheers,

Don't replace it. The static and balance problem you are having is
most likely dirty potentiometers. Go to Radio Shack and purchase
an aerosol can of contact cleaner. Open the case of the stereo and
with the unit unplugged spray into the cracks and holes of the various
pots. Turn them back and forth while spraying.

On 8 Jan 2007 14:27:40 -0800, "dpb" wrote:

Puddin' Man wrote:
...
What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver [that] ...appears to be ...dying......
What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
...

Besides the other suggestions, look for local audio shop. Most any
larger locality will have one and likely will either do repair or can
direct you to person(s) who can. Depending on the model, they may or
may not want to mess with it, but it's worth looking into. Had my old
Kenwood that is nearly 30 now (next year, if memory serves) totally
refurbed two years ago -- new lights, new output power transistors (one
of them died was final causation), replaced a bunch of caps that were
weak or suspect, cleaned it all out, etc., etc., ... It should go on
for another significant lifetime.

Yeah, but how much did it cost? I am "financially challenged". :-)

I've actually got a backup unit in the basement, but it won't hold
a preset after power down for a few hours. Got it from Ebay mostly
for the remote: looks like it's had some rough use.

Thx,
P

"A truly good birddawg, even if you never, ever hunt her,
is a Precious, Precious Thing! Mayhap ruin ya for
homo sapiens ..."

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 17:58:12 -0500, wrote:

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 20:51:33 GMT, Puddin' Man
wrote:


'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)?
Are there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

I admit ignorance of most all "current" developments in the home
audio market: haven't had time to follow any of it.

Any/all help/info etc much appreciated.

Cheers,

Don't replace it. The static and balance problem you are having is
most likely dirty potentiometers. Go to Radio Shack and purchase
an aerosol can of contact cleaner. Open the case of the stereo and
with the unit unplugged spray into the cracks and holes of the various
pots. Turn them back and forth while spraying.

Potentiometers are "sliders"? My Technics SA-R210 stereo receiver
has buttons for all but the graphic eq. which has sliders.

Does it still sound like contact cleaner would help?

Thx,
P

"A truly good birddawg, even if you never, ever hunt her,
is a Precious, Precious Thing! Mayhap ruin ya for
homo sapiens ..."

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 21:09:48 GMT, "Jeff" wrote:

Do you still use a turntable occasionally?

How'd you know? :-)

If so you need one with a phono
input.

Which I entirely forgot about ...

Most new ones have dropped this.

Mighta figgered.

Might check out Craigslist and
find someone who would let you try theirs before buying it.

Makes it a bit trickier.

Thx,
P


"yourname" wrote in message
news:ngyoh.2132$Br.477@trndny08...
AS you surmise, new is not always better. don't discount ebay, find the
seller 'capeannaudio', he specializes in good quality stereo gear from the
80's and 90's ][and older] and can usually find you a good deal on a real
stereo. My ~2000 receiver had no more power than my 1978 20 watt and
sounded worse. I bought a replacement from him and love it.



Puddin' Man wrote:
'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox, no
Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my little
home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years. Such
receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static and can't
balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)? Are
there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

I admit ignorance of most all "current" developments in the home
audio market: haven't had time to follow any of it.

Any/all help/info etc much appreciated.

Cheers,
Puddin'

"A truly good birddawg, even if you never, ever hunt her,
is a Precious, Precious Thing! Mayhap ruin ya for
homo sapiens ..."

Puddin' Man wrote:
On 8 Jan 2007 14:27:40 -0800, "dpb" wrote:

Puddin' Man wrote:
...
What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver [that] ...appears to be ...dying......
What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
...

Besides the other suggestions, look for local audio shop. Most any
larger locality will have one and likely will either do repair or can
direct you to person(s) who can. Depending on the model, they may or
may not want to mess with it, but it's worth looking into. Had my old
Kenwood that is nearly 30 now (next year, if memory serves) totally
refurbed two years ago -- new lights, new output power transistors (one
of them died was final causation), replaced a bunch of caps that were
weak or suspect, cleaned it all out, etc., etc., ... It should go on
for another significant lifetime.

Yeah, but how much did it cost? I am "financially challenged". :-)
....

About $100 altogether (this was an individual who does it for a
sideline rather than through the audio shop he works at). The bare
minimum to make it work again would probably have been half that.

BTW, "sliders" is linear potentiometer and it's quite possible a
cleaner could help. Of course, there may also be dead spots, too, but
it's certainly worth a shot if it is static-y kind of noise when
controls are moved. Same as for volume which I would assume is a
kuh-nob? And tuner is, too, not digital???

"Puddin' Man" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 17:58:12 -0500, wrote:

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 20:51:33 GMT, Puddin' Man
wrote:


'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)?
Are there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

I admit ignorance of most all "current" developments in the home
audio market: haven't had time to follow any of it.

Any/all help/info etc much appreciated.

Cheers,

Don't replace it. The static and balance problem you are having is
most likely dirty potentiometers. Go to Radio Shack and purchase
an aerosol can of contact cleaner. Open the case of the stereo and
with the unit unplugged spray into the cracks and holes of the various
pots. Turn them back and forth while spraying.

Potentiometers are "sliders"? My Technics SA-R210 stereo receiver
has buttons for all but the graphic eq. which has sliders.

Does it still sound like contact cleaner would help?


Yes. Go buy it immediately and report back with your results. Keep in mind
that these controls often need to be FLOODED with the stuff to get all the
dust out. When you're done, you will walk away for 10 minutes to be sure the
cleaner has evaporated. Then, you'll try the stereo.

"JoeSpareBedroom" wrote in message
...
"Puddin' Man" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 17:58:12 -0500, wrote:

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 20:51:33 GMT, Puddin' Man
wrote:


'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)?
Are there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

I admit ignorance of most all "current" developments in the home
audio market: haven't had time to follow any of it.

Any/all help/info etc much appreciated.

Cheers,

Don't replace it. The static and balance problem you are having is
most likely dirty potentiometers. Go to Radio Shack and purchase
an aerosol can of contact cleaner. Open the case of the stereo and
with the unit unplugged spray into the cracks and holes of the various
pots. Turn them back and forth while spraying.

Potentiometers are "sliders"? My Technics SA-R210 stereo receiver
has buttons for all but the graphic eq. which has sliders.

Does it still sound like contact cleaner would help?


Yes. Go buy it immediately and report back with your results. Keep in mind
that these controls often need to be FLOODED with the stuff to get all the
dust out. When you're done, you will walk away for 10 minutes to be sure
the
cleaner has evaporated. Then, you'll try the stereo.


I don't know about "flooding" the controls, but it does help
to move the limit-to-limit several times after application.

Bob

Potentiometers are "sliders"? My Technics SA-R210 stereo receiver
has buttons for all but the graphic eq. which has sliders.

Does it still sound like contact cleaner would help?

Yes. Many older receivers have better specs than the present day
receivers. Try to repair it.

"Bob F" wrote in message
. ..

"JoeSpareBedroom" wrote in message
...
"Puddin' Man" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 17:58:12 -0500, wrote:

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 20:51:33 GMT, Puddin' Man
wrote:


'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)?
Are there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

I admit ignorance of most all "current" developments in the home
audio market: haven't had time to follow any of it.

Any/all help/info etc much appreciated.

Cheers,

Don't replace it. The static and balance problem you are having is
most likely dirty potentiometers. Go to Radio Shack and purchase
an aerosol can of contact cleaner. Open the case of the stereo and
with the unit unplugged spray into the cracks and holes of the various
pots. Turn them back and forth while spraying.

Potentiometers are "sliders"? My Technics SA-R210 stereo receiver
has buttons for all but the graphic eq. which has sliders.

Does it still sound like contact cleaner would help?


Yes. Go buy it immediately and report back with your results. Keep in
mind
that these controls often need to be FLOODED with the stuff to get all
the
dust out. When you're done, you will walk away for 10 minutes to be sure
the
cleaner has evaporated. Then, you'll try the stereo.


I don't know about "flooding" the controls, but it does help
to move the limit-to-limit several times after application.

Bob



Well, some controls, usually cheaper ones, will actually deteriorate inside,
and if that's the case, the cleaner spray will do nothing. For dust, using
not enough spray will sometimes just relocate the dust. Keep in mind that
most people NEVER open up stereos (or computers) to vacuum out the dust.

On 8 Jan 2007 16:12:06 -0800, "dpb" wrote:


Puddin' Man wrote:
On 8 Jan 2007 14:27:40 -0800, "dpb" wrote:

Puddin' Man wrote:
...
What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver [that] ...appears to be ...dying......
What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
...

Besides the other suggestions, look for local audio shop. Most any
larger locality will have one and likely will either do repair or can
direct you to person(s) who can. Depending on the model, they may or
may not want to mess with it, but it's worth looking into. Had my old
Kenwood that is nearly 30 now (next year, if memory serves) totally
refurbed two years ago -- new lights, new output power transistors (one
of them died was final causation), replaced a bunch of caps that were
weak or suspect, cleaned it all out, etc., etc., ... It should go on
for another significant lifetime.

Yeah, but how much did it cost? I am "financially challenged". :-)
...

About $100 altogether (this was an individual who does it for a
sideline rather than through the audio shop he works at). The bare
minimum to make it work again would probably have been half that.

Thanks.

BTW, "sliders" is linear potentiometer and it's quite possible a
cleaner could help. Of course, there may also be dead spots, too, but
it's certainly worth a shot if it is static-y kind of noise when
controls are moved.

I've not even noticed a problem when controls are moved.
The static is sometimes left, sometimes right channel,
and sometimes absent altogether. But I've not noticed it
at all when sound comes from tv monitor.

I can get the speakers to balance for tv sound, and
when I tune to radio, balance becomes skewed to the
right speaker, where sound is staticy-distorted.

They had to do a bunch of board-soldering to fix it
about 10 years ago. I ferget the symptoms.

Same as for volume which I would assume is a
kuh-nob? And tuner is, too, not digital???

No kuh-nob. Mea Culpa, I shoulda mentioned up front the
unit is digital.

Puddin'

"A truly good birddawg, even if you never, ever hunt her,
is a Precious, Precious Thing! Mayhap ruin ya for
homo sapiens ..."

"JoeSpareBedroom" wrote in message
...
"Bob F" wrote in message
. ..

"JoeSpareBedroom" wrote in message
...
"Puddin' Man" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 17:58:12 -0500, wrote:

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 20:51:33 GMT, Puddin' Man
wrote:


'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

(snip)



Well, some controls, usually cheaper ones, will actually deteriorate
inside, and if that's the case, the cleaner spray will do nothing. For
dust, using not enough spray will sometimes just relocate the dust. Keep
in mind that most people NEVER open up stereos (or computers) to vacuum
out the dust.
Chuckle. Dust or anything else. Most of my stereo/TV equipment came out of
the dumpsters at the apartments I used to live at, and the rest came from
garage sales or ebay. The dumpster stuff usually got peed in by a cat or a
drunk, and blasting the motherboard with contact cleaner brought it right
back. Sometimes I had to replace fuses that gave their lives protecting the
unit from dead shorts. I even made some money selling a few salvaged
receivers at my sister's garage sale a couple years ago. I doubt I have more
than 200 bucks in the 2 complete stereo setups I currently have, including
some nice speakers.

Don't forget, for most people, electronics is PFM, and it would never occur
to them to open the cases. I'm no engineer or electronics expert, but I am
willing to degunk and fix trivial/cheap stuff. I wouldn't pay a bench fee,
but for a nice piece, I'll spend an hour or two putzing around before I give
up.

aem sends...

"Puddin' Man" wrote in message
...


They had to do a bunch of board-soldering to fix it
about 10 years ago. I ferget the symptoms.



You had some sort of intermittent symptoms because of cracks in the circuit
board, or cold solder joints. Some Technics home audio stuff had serious
problems like that. It's called "Sanyo Syndrome". Panasonic woke up and
improved things a bit, eventually.

wrote in message
...

"JoeSpareBedroom" wrote in message
...
"Bob F" wrote in message
. ..

"JoeSpareBedroom" wrote in message
...
"Puddin' Man" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 17:58:12 -0500, wrote:

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 20:51:33 GMT, Puddin' Man
wrote:


'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world
of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

(snip)



Well, some controls, usually cheaper ones, will actually deteriorate
inside, and if that's the case, the cleaner spray will do nothing. For
dust, using not enough spray will sometimes just relocate the dust. Keep
in mind that most people NEVER open up stereos (or computers) to vacuum
out the dust.
Chuckle. Dust or anything else. Most of my stereo/TV equipment came out of
the dumpsters at the apartments I used to live at, and the rest came from
garage sales or ebay. The dumpster stuff usually got peed in by a cat or a
drunk, and blasting the motherboard with contact cleaner brought it right
back. Sometimes I had to replace fuses that gave their lives protecting
the unit from dead shorts. I even made some money selling a few salvaged
receivers at my sister's garage sale a couple years ago. I doubt I have
more than 200 bucks in the 2 complete stereo setups I currently have,
including some nice speakers.

Don't forget, for most people, electronics is PFM, and it would never
occur to them to open the cases. I'm no engineer or electronics expert,
but I am willing to degunk and fix trivial/cheap stuff. I wouldn't pay a
bench fee, but for a nice piece, I'll spend an hour or two putzing around
before I give up.

aem sends...



I just did that with a Panasonic cordless phone whose keypad stopped
working. It made absolutely NO sense. Most Panasonic stuff's pretty well
made, and this phone was never mistreated. I opened it up and found a layer
of something like bacon grease between the soft pushbutton pad and the
circuit board, which contained the pressure sensitive dots. WTF? The phone
lived nowhere near the kitchen. I cleaned the bejeezus out of it with
isopropyl alcohol and it's a new phone all over again.

On Mon, 08 Jan 2007 20:58:59 GMT, yourname wrote:

AS you surmise, new is not always better. don't discount ebay, find the
seller 'capeannaudio', he specializes in good quality stereo gear from
the 80's and 90's ][and older] and can usually find you a good deal on a
real stereo. My ~2000 receiver had no more power than my 1978 20 watt
and sounded worse. I bought a replacement from him and love it.

I bought a Technics receiver, dual cassette deck, and surround sound
from about 1988, for 10 dollars on Sunday. Probably sold for more
than 600 dollars originally. His parents had moved out of state and
the house was sold and he had until the 18th to get rid of everythign.

On another occaions I passed up a Marantz receiver and some other
device (cassette?) for 10 dollars, because I didn't need it, but I
regretted it so I bought these.

Puddin' Man wrote:
'allo,

I built this 'ere pc from components (my 3rd build), but the world of
"Consumer Electronics" has been grinding out stuff for which I have
no use for years and years. So I got no celly-phone, no Xbox,
no Blackberry, no GPS, etc.

And no quadraphonic sound (or whatever they call it nowadaze).

What I've got is a little 20-yr-old Technics stereo receiver in my
little home that has powered 5 sets of speakers for about 20 years.
Such receiver appears to be rolling over and dying (tons of static
and can't balance the 2 stereo channels).

What might I be able to do in terms of replacing the stereo receiver
(other than another 198x model from Ebay that might not last long)?
Are there any good, reasonably priced -stereo- receivers presently on
the market? Fancy-Dancy new receivers effectively supporting old-style
stereo??

I admit ignorance of most all "current" developments in the home
audio market: haven't had time to follow any of it.

Any/all help/info etc much appreciated.

Cheers,
Puddin'

Pease pudding hot,
Pease pudding cold,
Pease pudding in the pot
Nine days old ...

Puddin' Man wrote:
I've not even noticed a problem when controls are moved.
The static is sometimes left, sometimes right channel,
and sometimes absent altogether. But I've not noticed it
at all when sound comes from tv monitor.

I can get the speakers to balance for tv sound, and
when I tune to radio, balance becomes skewed to the
right speaker, where sound is staticy-distorted.


Why don't you get a can of contact cleaner, unplug the amp, remove the knobs and
then spray the bejeezus out of them while you work them back and forth from one
side to the other? I've fixed plenty of noisy pots with contact cleaner spray.
Cheap, too.




--
Mortimer Schnerd, RN
mschnerdatcarolina.rr.com

Here's how I see this, as I used to sell home stereos a few years back
when I was in college (at best buy, no less)...

Information gathered from observation and talking to every tom, dick
and harry who visited best buy to **** on our equipment...

Look at the THD number on a new reciever... the less the better, this
is the real bottom line spec as I understand it. THD = Total Harmonic
Distortion. This number increases exponentially as the volume is
raised...both numbers will be in the "specs sheet" for the new
reciever. You can ask at best buy for these documents because they
have one for each piece of equipment they sell...be polite but
assertive, you can get anything done.

Also, when you go to buy a reciever, feel how heavy it is. You WANT
heavy receivers. The advent of 'switching power supplies' (the things
they run computers off of, and almost everything else now) have kinda
taken over most consumer electronics, but you can find some receivers
that still use the big, heavy 'transformer' that it replaced... you can
tell if it has a transformer by how heavy the unit is near the power
cord. Onkyo, Yamaha, and Technics until they got bought out by
Matsu****a/Panasonic around the millinium all had the transformers.

Don't worry about a phono input if you have a record player...you'll
never find a set of pre-amped inputs anymore... just buy a $30 pre-amp
if you have a turntable, it will degrade the sound quality, but IT'S A
PIECE OF VINYL, with little pits in it that creates sound... it's got
horrible quality anyhow.

Now, a few notes... a decent 2-channel (handles 2 speakers at once,
call it stereo for you old timers) is gonna run you almost the same as
a decent Dolby 5.1 which has the ability to not only run your basic two
speakers with the same power, but hook up another 3 and a subwoofer for
a real home theater experience. You can switch between 2 channel and
5.1 on every reciever I've seen...but you'll actually have to read the
manual with a 5.1 reciever, they get kinda complex compared to the plug
and they work 2-channel deals.

Technics ain't technics any more...don't buy anything made after the
late 90's with the technics brand expecting the same quality at your
older models...same for Pioneer, I have a pioneer that is really nice,
but it's definitely cheaply made. Their car equipment is still good,
but home stereos are...cheap seeming. sound is good though.

good luck... let me know if you've got any more questions or need info
on how to hook something up, that stuff gets complicated quickly.

On 10 Jan 2007 06:11:14 -0800, " wrote:

Here's how I see this, as I used to sell home stereos a few years back
when I was in college (at best buy, no less)...

Information gathered from observation and talking to every tom, dick
and harry who visited best buy to **** on our equipment...

Look at the THD number on a new reciever... the less the better, this
is the real bottom line spec as I understand it. THD = Total Harmonic
Distortion. This number increases exponentially as the volume is
raised...both numbers will be in the "specs sheet" for the new
reciever. You can ask at best buy for these documents because they
have one for each piece of equipment they sell...be polite but
assertive, you can get anything done.

Also, when you go to buy a reciever, feel how heavy it is. You WANT
heavy receivers. The advent of 'switching power supplies' (the things
they run computers off of, and almost everything else now) have kinda
taken over most consumer electronics, but you can find some receivers
that still use the big, heavy 'transformer' that it replaced... you can
tell if it has a transformer by how heavy the unit is near the power
cord. Onkyo, Yamaha, and Technics until they got bought out by
Matsu****a/Panasonic around the millinium all had the transformers.

Don't worry about a phono input if you have a record player...you'll
never find a set of pre-amped inputs anymore... just buy a $30 pre-amp
if you have a turntable, it will degrade the sound quality, but IT'S A
PIECE OF VINYL, with little pits in it that creates sound... it's got
horrible quality anyhow.

Now, a few notes... a decent 2-channel (handles 2 speakers at once,
call it stereo for you old timers) is gonna run you almost the same as
a decent Dolby 5.1 which has the ability to not only run your basic two
speakers with the same power, but hook up another 3 and a subwoofer for
a real home theater experience. You can switch between 2 channel and
5.1 on every reciever I've seen...but you'll actually have to read the
manual with a 5.1 reciever, they get kinda complex compared to the plug
and they work 2-channel deals.

Technics ain't technics any more...don't buy anything made after the
late 90's with the technics brand expecting the same quality at your
older models...same for Pioneer, I have a pioneer that is really nice,
but it's definitely cheaply made. Their car equipment is still good,
but home stereos are...cheap seeming. sound is good though.

good luck... let me know if you've got any more questions or need info
on how to hook something up, that stuff gets complicated quickly.

-That- was a very interesting rundown of the market in the last,
what?, 20 years? Much thanks.

LIttle update: I fiddled this n' that, vacuumed some boards, and
the old Technics digital rec. sounds much better. For how much
longer I dunno.

I've had 5 pairs of speakers connected (via some little Radio Shack
box) for about 20 years now. A "decent Dolby 5.1" rec. would
similarly support such insanity in 2-channel mode?

Thanks,
Puddin'

"A truly good birddawg, even if you never, ever hunt her,
is a Precious, Precious Thing! Mayhap ruin ya for
homo sapiens ..."