After owning it for 40 years, I'm now considering disposing of my Yamaha CR-200 stereo receiver. All 15 W/ch of it! The last time I fired it up, it was clear (or muddy) that all of the switches and controls either needed a cleaning or replacement. In addition it looked and sounded very "weak" - so I suspect power supply and output transistor (amongst other things) issues as well. I might take it in to the shop and get an estimate to bring it back to like-new condition, but I suspect the answer will be $200+CDN - which is far in excess of what it's actually worth. Problem is that it's a great looking example of receivers of that era, and its wee little power output is more than capable of driving a pair of highly efficient speakers (like the Koss CM/1030 - of the same era) to room-filling levels. I was really close to taking it to the curb a week ago. I need to mull this over a bit more. Jeff
You are not alone. The current components just do not evoke the similar level of emotions. Modern components do not seem to have that character or uniqueness components from the 70's and 80's or even earlier provide. I would like to continue enjoying my tapes but no production preamps (have not used receivers for close to 40 years) even have tape loops. This fellow retiree just does not want to spend on new component that does not give me exactly what I want, which older components provide in spades ...
Analog VU meters and wood panels... Incidentally, how is it that so many photos exist of speakers from the '70s or thereabouts with their wood chassis undamaged? I find stuff at thrift stores and yard sales all the time that are less than a decade old which look like they've been through the wars! By the pattern, anything older than me should be nothing more than magnets and splinters at this point...
The speaker protection relays were known problems with the 22xx and 23xx Marantz. I've had to replace mine on my 2270. It is an electro-mechanical switch essentially, with a magnet that is energized to pull the little gate in to the contacts. If you can get it out (they are kind of a PITA to get out), you might try to use some fine emory cloth paper (600 grit or finer) and clean both of the contacts and blow it out with compressed air. There is a little spring that keeps the gate centered so that it makes contact with both contacts, and if that spring gets weak/bent, the gate won't close completely, which can lead to one channel to appear weak, or completely dead. Just something you can check on your own, as it certainly could be any number of other things causing a weak channel. If you remove the cover, and leave it plugged in, you can observe the speaker protection relay in action (mine had a clear plastic dust cover over the actual relay) and see if it is pulling in completely when you turn the unit on. Be careful, obviously, as there are high voltages inside.
Not sure. Here is a link that may be interesting to you ... Rudy Bozak - Wikipedia His original factory was located not far from my house.
Marantz 2130 receiver, while not exactly a monster receiver like the 2500 and 2500, is still pretty nice with the scope ...
Thanks. Yea he patented a unique cone that had variable thickness. Also had a thin layer of latex. That may be what’s peeling on the mids pictured.
I have an audiophile friend that has those Bozak. Bought then near his house for $300. They sound good, but he added a super tweeter with additional crossover.
How hard are these old relays to open? I sort of scoped the one on my old Sony, but decided to leave it for later since it wasn't obviously causing me problems. Beyond that, how hard is it to source replacements for the relays used in old receivers? Ever since I saw the Techmoan video where he covered a receiver that incorporated an oscilloscope, I found myself utterly sold on the concept. Shame they're rare and rarer still in good, working order. Oh, and just in case the video hasn't been seen 'round these parts:
I had one back in the 90s and it sounded great. I saw one FS recently. W/ matching Amp...I think it was over in Wa.
