Preamplifier prototype?

[Bruce Pritchard]

Came into one of these, any info?

 

[e30m3mon]

Very cool…never saw anything like this. It pre-dates the numbering scheme, although the design and push buttons look more of the “phase II” generation equipment, sans the handles. How about some nude pics?
I bet Ed would know about this kind of stuff.

 

[Bruce Pritchard]

Here’s under hood

 

[e30m3mon]

The cursed ribbon wire! I have a P3600 that had 2 lengths if that stuff. The longer length delaminated, wire corroded and ultimately failed. Replaced it with common insulated ribbon cable.
Gotta wonder if this was a prototype in the works right before PL was bought.
That inside is pristine. Thanks for sharing

 

[Gepetto]

Looks like an off the shelf Mouser transformer

 

[grapplesaw]

Hi Bruce. Welcome to the site.

you have it nailed it as a non production unit. it’s definitely a prototype . Series ll for sure. This was made toward the end of Phase Linear but prior to Pioneer‘s acquisition . It has NE5534 chips which is a good choice and also no common to Phase Linear. The phono ground lug was added after it was built for sure

 

[WOPL Sniffer]

Have you ran it yet?

 

[Bruce Pritchard]

Yes, cleaned the controls, switches, and potentiometers. Sounds nice and clean, interesting to note also that the selector switch is five position so there are two more clicks past Aux going counterclockwise that do nothing.

 

[WOPL Sniffer]

SCORE!!!!

 

[J!m]

A neat piece of history there!

 

[Gepetto]

Funny to me that they put that much effort into the faceplate artwork for a prototype. It tells you a lot about the company mentality from that.

 

[WOPL Sniffer]

Kinda reminds me of the 1000

 

[grapplesaw]

This could have been built much shallower and reduce all those signal trace lengths and still have room to spare.

 

[grapplesaw]

a great project would be to build new guts for this. With relays you could reduce the traces to almost nothing. I bet there’s something out there that would fit right in and keep the front end stock

 

[NeverSatisfied]

a great project would be to build new guts for this. With relays you could reduce the traces to almost nothing. I bet there’s something out there that would fit right in and keep the front end stock

Your killing me Glen, he finds a possible one-off prototype that nobody has seen before and the first thing your engineers mind want's to do is modify it, LOL
If it's not broke, don't fix it. If it is truly very rare then keep it and use it or sell it off. (to me preferably).
Nice score.

 

[Bruce Pritchard]

A little more info from the person who gifted it to me. It was given to him from his pal Steve Brakken who was formerly with Phase Linear and president of Rane at the time.

 

[grapplesaw]

Your killing me Glen, he finds a possible one-off prototype that nobody has seen before and the first thing your engineers mind want's to do is modify it, LOL
If it's not broke, don't fix it. If it is truly very rare then keep it and use it or sell it off. (to me preferably).
Nice score.

Ugh! I hate it when your right. I’ll just clone the front and build myself an other but better right after I finish the 50 other projects I got going How’s that sounding Spencer

 

[grapplesaw]

A little more info from the person who gifted it to me. It was given to him from his pal Steve Brakken who was formerly with Phase Linear and president of Rane at the time.

Very interesting Bruce. A great bit of phase linear history. I own a couple of bits of that history I knows what it like to have it.

 

[NeverSatisfied]

Ugh! I hate it when your right. I’ll just clone the front and build myself an other but better right after I finish the 50 other projects I got going How’s that sounding Spencer

Lol, no worries brother, you geniuses can’t help the way your minds work and thank goodness for the rest of us. That type of thinking is what created the Lightening, White Oak, Phase Linear and all the other electronic wonders that we all love so much.
Maybe a clone chassis with one of the new phono boards ?
I am just making sure your list of things to do stays longer than mine, lol.

 

[Bruce Pritchard]

Rather a nice size, dwarfed by it’s coworkers however