B&O Turntable - To repair or cut bait?

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by lennonology, Jan 30, 2011.

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  1. Lord Hawthorne

    Lord Hawthorne Currently Untitled

    Location:
    Portland, Oregon
    :idea:
     
  2. David P. Hill

    David P. Hill Forum Resident

    Location:
    Irving, Tx
    I have a B&O Beogram 3404 turntable, B&O MMC20L brand new carteridge, never used. I still have the original cartridge that came with it and it has less than 80hrs use and the it still works fine. I'm thinking about selling it wanting to upgrade to a higher level turntable. Its been a good turntable!
     
  3. forthlin

    forthlin Member Chris & Vickie Cyber Support Team

    My Beogram just did the same thing as Chip's--the thing spontaneously starting spinning very fast, controls frozen, so I unplugged it. Now it's completely dead, the light that shows the TT is plugged in doesn't even illuminate. I have had this table for 30 years, so I guess maybe it's time to move on. If the repair is going to cost anywhere near what a new TT would cost, I can't see spending that kind of money on something that might fritz out again.
     
  4. raferx

    raferx Forum Resident

    Location:
    Vancouver, Canada
    Rega RP3.
     
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  5. John Buchanan

    John Buchanan I'm just a headphone kind of fellow. Stax Sigma

    It's so sad to see such a - I hesitate to say this and finally prove myself a real boffin - lust inducing piece of equipment go west. I saw a Beogram 4002 many years ago and really didn't care too much what it sounded like as long as I got one. Finally, reason prevailed and I got a Linn Sondek LP12. But that burning desire never really went away.....
     
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  6. forthlin

    forthlin Member Chris & Vickie Cyber Support Team

    Thanks for the empathy John. I was 28 years old when I bought the B&O, a pretty sophisticated piece of gear for its time.
    I was living in a small-medium Midwestern town with essentially one high-end audio shop. The Beogram was the most expensive thing they had, I later upgraded the cart and had only a few minor service issues over the years.

    Raferx I'll certainly be looking at the Rega line when the time comes, I've read too many good things about them not to give them serious consideration.
     
  7. Dougr33

    Dougr33 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Twin Cities, MN
    Just for the heck of it, I remember a site that covered these old Beos (I've had a few..lovely, if not best sounding). Might be worth it to see if you can repair it to sell it (or keep). Considering how expensive it is to replace styli on these (I think Soundsmith is the only one now), you can probably get far better sound with an affordable modern setup.
    Anyway, pulled this from a post about a broken unit...
    The simplest approach would be to join and post on the B&O forum.​
    Here's the sub-forum for turntables: http://forum.beoworld.org/forums/27.aspx

    Implore Dillen to give you his diagnosis, although many others may opine-and quite a few helpfully.​
     
  8. ggergm

    ggergm another spring another baseball season

    Location:
    Minnesota
    As a B&O turntable owner (Beogram 8002 with Soundsmith SMMC-2), getting these repaired is tough. B&O hasn't supported them with parts for about 20 years. New parts can be very tough to come by. When my turntable breaks the next time, it may well be its last.

    For service, I use Path Electronics in Arlington Heights, Illinois. They are one of five B&O authorized service centers in the US.
     
  9. JakeLA

    JakeLA Senior Member

    Location:
    Venice, CA
    Man, I feel for the OP. Those B&Os have a lot to recommend them.

    I can understand not wanting to replace it with a Rega or something similar. It's like taking a giant step backwards, technology-wise. If only turntable development hadn't ground to a halt around 1982. (And no, some esoteric $20,000 tonearm that only Michael Fremer has ever heard counts.)
     
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  10. forthlin

    forthlin Member Chris & Vickie Cyber Support Team

    Thanks Gregg & Doug for the tips. I'll look into that other forum for some additional input. The prospect of packing this thing up and shipping it off makes it even more stressful.
     
  11. coopmv

    coopmv Newton 1/30/2001 - 8/31/2011

    Location:
    CT, USA
    My Beogram 8002 is one cool looking TT. Unfortunately, it has this unexpected auto-shutoff problem and that is why it has been in the box the past 10 years. There is a repair kit available in Denmark but the installation will require some soldering skill that I do not yet have ... :sigh:
     
  12. Kubricker

    Kubricker Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow…

    Location:
    Atlanta
    Here's mine:
    http://www.beoworld.org/prod_details.asp?pid=859
    Main problem with it is the arm that has the light on it doesn't do its job, i.e. detect if and what size record is on the platter. But I don't play a lot of 45s so not a big problem.
     
  13. coopmv

    coopmv Newton 1/30/2001 - 8/31/2011

    Location:
    CT, USA
    It is probably a sensor problem, a common problem with those B&O linear-trackers ...
     
  14. eadwine moss

    eadwine moss New Member

    Good evening to all. First i want to tell you that everything in this site is very interesting and helpfull, thats why i cant think in other place that can help me with my doubts. I have a bang and olufsen 1202 that works pretty well but the stylus is broken, i was trying to find a replacement but cant afford the real ones so i was wondering if there's any way to adapt other catridge and stylus, i was thinking an ortofon catridge since ortofon have the more stilish catridges. What do you think about this? I know purist will hate me but is the only way that i can think to bring back to life that beautiful turntable. Any other ideas or sugestions? BTW i want to apoligize for my poor english but im from mexico and never had any english classes, i learned by listening my grandads LP collection and reading the lyrics :D
     
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  15. islandman

    islandman New Member

  16. The Pinhead

    The Pinhead KING OF BOOM AND SIZZLE IN HELL

    Ditch it. Seems to be a pain in the @rse.

    [​IMG]
     
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  17. coopmv

    coopmv Newton 1/30/2001 - 8/31/2011

    Location:
    CT, USA
    Very interesting and thanks for sharing.
     
  18. russk

    russk Forum Resident

    Location:
    Syracuse NY
    Those B&O tables were so cool. The rational part of me knows an RP3 with 2m Blue will clean its clock. But damn they're so cool. Maybe just hold on to it till a day comes that you've got nothing better to do with the money then restore it.

    If your looking for something that's a little step up and automatic check out some of the Technics table or google KAB Technics. He use to have some automatics on his website for a few hundred bucks. Or pick up a nice Technics SL1700 and fix it up. That's my plan in the near future
     
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  19. russk

    russk Forum Resident

    Location:
    Syracuse NY
    That pioneer picture appears more than Michael Jackson
     
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  20. Classicrock

    Classicrock Senior Member

    Location:
    South West, UK.
    A modern $1000 Tt will handily beat the B&O 1000. However it is a wonderful piece of technology of it's time or even today and well worth preserving. Perhaps keep for occasional use. Advice on self repair may be available on the forums. Check out B&O and Vinyl Engine forums for advice. May be just one cap gone on the control board. I imagine the problem OP has is common to this TT. Don't buy that Pioneer even though it probably sounds better than the B&O. :)
     
  21. ggergm

    ggergm another spring another baseball season

    Location:
    Minnesota
    Frankly, I can't imagine that Pioneer beating a B&O tangential arm turntable but I'm a B&O fan. Since the OP's post is 4 years old, it's academic anyway. He's long ago moved on.

    I'm in the middle of renovating a B&O TX turntable for a buddy. It looks like it only needs basic maintenance although we'll find out for sure as we go along. I was very pleasantly surprised to find two cartridges, a MMC-2 and a MMC-1, in the turntable box. They, too, look to be in good shape. The plan is to sell the TX with the MMC-2. I might keep the MMC-1 for my Beogram 8002.
     
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  22. coopmv

    coopmv Newton 1/30/2001 - 8/31/2011

    Location:
    CT, USA
    I have two B&O's - TX and Beogram 8002. The TX was a piece of garbage, at least my unit was. It was repaired twice at a place in NYC named Analogique for the linear-tracking arm problem but the fixes were no good. The last time I checked a number of years ago, even the platter was not spinning. It is now in its original box.

    My 8002 also suffers from some speed probblem. The arm would lift and return to the arm-rest in the middle of play in the false impression that the LP was at its end. My sense is the speed sensor is messed up. Someone gave me the email of a Danish supplier that supplies a kit that can fix the problem. The only problem is some soldering skill will be required and I have never done any soldering before. As such, I have been putting off this repair. I love the Beogram 8002. I have been using my DUAL CS-750 and Thorens TD 126 MKIII. I am in no mood to get a modern turntable like a VPI ...
     
    ggergm likes this.
  23. ggergm

    ggergm another spring another baseball season

    Location:
    Minnesota
    I've read in previous posts about your problems. All I can say is my experience has been different. In general, B&O 'tables were not problem children in my stereo store. It was the opposite; customers loved them. My 8002 is 29 years old and still going strong. It occasionally has needed repair but that should be expected with a mechanical piece this old. For the last half a dozen years, it's been working fine.

    I've had my 8002 serviced by Path Electronics in Chicago although I know the owner, Marc, doesn't like to do it. Again from your old posts, I know you know that B&O doesn't support their old product anymore. I was glad this TX looks to be a basic clean, lube and align job. Its only problem is that it's been sitting for over 20 years, packed away in a box. I ordered up the drive belts for the tonearm and platter today. After it's fixed, I'll run it in my system as my daily driver for a month or two before I sell it. From the prices I see on Ebay, I think my buddy will do OK, especially considering it will be mated with a MMC-2.

    If you did want to get your 'tables fixed, you should call B&O and find out who's their factory authorized service center for the East Coast. As you're in Connecticut and they're in New York, the other option would be Soundsmith. I don't know how much service they do anymore but they used to be a great shop for vintage service. Plus if anybody understands B&O, their cartridges and turntables, it's Peter Ledermann and his shop, Soundsmith. In fact, they'd be my first call. I like Peter a lot.
     
  24. coopmv

    coopmv Newton 1/30/2001 - 8/31/2011

    Location:
    CT, USA
    Doesn't Soundsmith still service Tandberg equipments and is a specialist for this brand? Soundsmith is located in Peekskill NY, which is not far from my house. I certainly have some Tandbergs that can use their service. I am also in need of some service for my Revox B760 tuner. My stereo systems are made up of both modern and vintage gears. While I use outboard DAC to link up with my computer and have internet tuner, I still have open-reel decks (Tandberg, Revox and Akai) and a few Nakamichi cassette decks ...
     
    Last edited: Mar 2, 2015
  25. Ntotrar

    Ntotrar Forum Resident

    Location:
    Tri-Cities TN
    I would stretch for a RP3.
     
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