Sony separates Hi-Fi repair and restoration
I landed this set of Sony separates, described as a 'project' on Facebook Marketplace for the princely sum of £50 ($70). This story is more about 'flipping' items for fun and to get stuff we want, than making money. To get the experience restoring HiFi items was rewarding enough at this stage, and I've added more info about getting into this hobby as this is the first post about it. Basically, for entertainment and a hobby, I've been putting together HiFi equipment during lock-downs here in the UK. HiFi components that once cost hundreds new, gathering dust (and often in need of little more than some elbow grease) can be found for next to nothing locally and online ... That is, provided you're quick enough to grab them! This is a competitive space in that respect. I ended up flipping and restoring several pieces, which I’ll also post more about soon.
COMING SOON: CAN YOU MAKE A LIVING OR GOOD SIDELINE IN VINTAGE/USED HIFI?
Follows is what I found out about these old Sony components, and what I did with them all I.e. kept vs sold, with a running tally of the profit and loss, and a video of the speakers being restored.
What are HiFi 'separates'
The word 'HiFi' (short for High Fidelity) generally describes any system of equipment which can reproduce musical recordings (in a semi-realistic fashion) in your home. 'Separates' in HiFi speak, refers to exactly that - components can be mixed and matched between brands, with each component serving a different role in a complete system. Basic rule, (for separates system) you always need a separate amplifier, speakers, and a source of music/audio. Finally cables to connect it all, and industry standards (RCA, SPDIF, COAX, XLR, HDMI, and even USB ...) means compatibility generally, isn't much of a concern.
Your options for sources are endless and it's great to have the freedom of pairing brands, and swapping components as-and-when to continually upgrade your system - much like you would a gaming PC, for example. The other advantage, is for music especially. Separating components also separates electrical noise and interference, meaning instantly bigger and superior sound over most other options (and used market, can be serious bang-for-your-buck!).
The below just happen to all be from SONY. None of which I considered really worth keeping, apart from the radio (top).
In the end I kept only the tuner seen up top
Amp (SONY TA-F100)
(bottom item of above image). By the specs this had looked promising at first. However, it just wasn't to be. There were obvious faults in the overall sound quality, probably dried capacitors. That's when it even worked - it would only deliver 2 channels of sound with the 'CD Direct' feature enabled, plus leaked sound on all inputs. It was sure loud, but that was it. Totally out of control and then I found working ones could be had on eBay for £35! Not worth fixing. The cleanup seen below - missing 'before' image teeming with cat fluff - wasn't enough. Broken plastic inside made repairs all the more complex looking, with evidence it'd been stood on at some point.
Fortunately, hopeless pieces can often be moved on to DIY enthusiasts as spares and repairs, priced low enough. So that's where this went ... to a willing volunteer.
Amp following detail cleaning. Prior to testing. All looked well, however looks can be very deceiving!
Result: Sold for parts with the CD player below at £15
CD Player
Inside the CD player. The 3 gain pots are visible, as well as a date - 1991 making this unit quite old.
Same story. One super exhausted and dirty laser, not even cleaning the laser and adjusting the gain helped. Seems like old CD players are hard to gauge by looking at, and when they go, are more complex to fix than most other things (just getting another is a cheap/easier option). It's a bit of a pot luck. You may pick up one vintage CDP and it works a treat for many years. Or you might not. It all just depends how much mileage it's had and how clean the inside has been and if the lens hasn't fogged up ...
Result: A dud, spares or repairs - sweetened the deal by selling with the amp. Now only -£35 down. My other CD player is a 2nd hand 5-disc £30 Yamaha ... and works amazingly well :)
Turntable (SONY PS-LX100)
Good news!
SONY PS-LX100 turntable
Worked like it had never been used and the stylus was still looking like new. Sounded great, (almost) as good as a Panasonic I already have. As I already have a turntable, I didn’t need this one. By offering doorstep delivery on Facebook in a lockdown - I soon had people clamoring for a working vinyl record player. An easy £50 with fuel as the buyer lived 25 miles away. Basically I put £25 straight in at the gas pump (plus a coffee for the drive back!). Actual fuel cost £7, Coffee £3, means I was now up with cash in pocket and gas.
Result: Now £5 over break-even :) £15 (amp+cd spares) + £50 (turntable w/delivery) , minus £10 actual delivery cost = £55. Plus a positive review as a seller, so good!
Tuner/Radio
The keeper. Not a DAB digital however the earlier “digital” (programmable) type of radio. Radio clearly wasn’t the past owner's priority, (unlike the used-to-death CDP) as it’s like new. Best reception and most awesome sound yet I’ve had from a tuner from my house, where I already get a weak signal. Some peak show of tuner technology from Sony at the time, with a big clear reception capability and stuffed with features.
United Kingdom fun facts: Analogue Radio still exists in the UK even though it was going to be phased out, although the masts aren't maintained too good. You must KYC and purchase a TV license for watching BBC iPlayer or BBC programming, whilst listening to all BBC Radio stations is still free in both definitions. BBC radio and it's history in broadcasting, is what defines the meaning of "BBC sound" in HiFi and Audiophile speak.
Many of the legendary Hi-Fi systems were developed around reproducing the sources of the day - radio being huge - into your lounge, and the DNA is still stamped into the picture today. Today a tuner still makes for an essential reference sound, versatile source for info and entertainment, plus the atmosphere of a good radio production can be a surprisingly immersive experience. What's not to love? Until DAB+ is everywhere that is ... (especially non-UK).
Speakers
Now we come to the main event! What first attracted me was the fact these were branded Sony (Japan), however appeared to have been made in Germany. Global speakers!
Well, these took the most work and did yield a nice result. Sound was great for passing on to someone putting together a budget Hi-Fi build, with their really cool looking square woofers.
Squar-cles?
They look pretty plain and tatty with the covers on however!
At this point, I must say it was a good few hours mission to get these speakers into a salable condition!
Although looking fine outside, initially they didn't work very well at all. Opening them up to investigate, I found a lot of rodent poop. Mice and made a mansion in them it seemed! This also explained a dense layer of cat fluff in the amp. The cat must have sat there for stalking the mice ... Easily explained - it was all stored in an outdoor summerhouse when I collected it. Cats and mice had also got in.
Be sure to check the quick time-lapse I've compiled as I filmed various parts of the repair and restoration. I learned plenty and will be happy to fix more speakers in the future. Turns out, they're also the most simple and fun component to work on.
A full strip down and poop cleanup followed, and new wadding. Mice had snapped thin wire connections on the actual drivers. The crossovers were fine. Video includes time-lapse sections of me cleaning, soldering and rebuilding them.
I didn't just sell the speakers right away, I tested them fully for a few days. Nothing lacking - they sounded just great. Great for anyone who'd just spent some money on first amp and source, and were short on speakers. They weren't going to disappoint since I let them go for pocket change. They'd end up going for £35, and for that money it'd be a real find to do much better.
Result: Another £35, so basically a small reward to find the next bargain to fix up!
In the end ...
Good experience fixing up and playing around with this kit. Really, I wrote this so I get the first post going on Hi-Fi, as it’s a big interest for me and something I want to put more about on this website. Time to start documenting all my little projects no matter what. I'd go further than that, vintage HiFi is in great danger of becoming one of my all time favorite pass-times!
Thanks for reading this far, thanks for ups likes subscribes and follows :) For every follow I receive, I'll spare a kitten. Just kidding!! Really, just hit me up so I'll make more. Cheers!
Posted from my blog with Exxp : https://newtonclassics.co.uk/hifi/former-mouse-mansion-turned-back-into-90s-sony-hi-fi/