The Frankenstein I'd Like To Build

Bob Boyer

Bob Boyer

Veteran and General Yakker
Joined
Apr 24, 2013
Messages
3,482
Location
Chattanooga, TN
Tagline
---
Just for fun, take the internal circuitry of my Exposure 2010S integrated amp and transplant it into any of these unassuming receivers, keeping the existing tuner circuitry operational. I think I like the Sherwood 7100 or 7200 best as they're still "sleepers" in the collectors world and both have a great tuner section. But given a near-perfect exterior, I'd love to have any of these as a modern receiver for my system:

Pioneer.jpg Sherwood.jpg Sony.jpg Technics.jpg Yamaha.jpg
 
Wouldn't really be quite a Frankenceiver, as using the vintage receiver to hold the innards of your Exposure 2010S, would look quite nice - provided you don't add two knurled bolts to each side of the cabinet.

Sherwood - there's a brand name you don't see bandied around much for vintage gear. I have a Sherwood 7100A, but haven't used it in a long time.

Nando.
 
I don't see the point of stuffing one receiver into another. Might as well make a new box out of cardboard.
 
For me, the point is that while I love the look of those receivers and prefer that look to today's visual designs, I'm not a fan of their sound. Too muffled for my tastes. And my guess is it would be cheaper to do a transplant than to rework their circuitry and upgrade components to perform to modern standards. Particularly the Sherwood - I've owned one and compared it to my current stuff. To my ears, it's a lovely receiver until you turn it on.

I'm sure others will differ with me. :iconbiggrin:
 
Last edited:
How about a pre-out amp-in connection mod? By pass the internal amp. Most upper level receivers already do that but if you have a schematic and a ball pien hammer you can do it.
 
A ball peen hammer I have, Jim. But I suspect preamp out/amp in connections may already be options on a couple of those. Not on the Sherwood, but possibly a couple of the others as they were mid-level in their manufacturers lineups. The Sherwood is decidedly entry-level. The issue is their preamp circuitry isn't really the equal of the Exposure's passive circuitry. The tuner section - along with the visual design - is where the money is for me.
 
Bob, not all vintage receivers are muffled. many were, especially in the '60s because anything above 15kHz was considered noise. Try a HK 630 or 730 receiver some time and you'll learn that bandwidth limiting was not universal. I've had a number of ancient Yamahas here and the will also surprise you with smooth digital without the roll-off. Also, speakers like Definitive and Klipsch benefit mightily from a rolled top end. Pairing these with a Sansui 5000x is magic. And last but not least, a Sansui 7070/8080/9090 is as good as it gets with no losses.
 
nakdoc said:
Bob, not all vintage receivers are muffled. many were, especially in the '60s because anything above 15kHz was considered noise. Try a HK 630 or 730 receiver some time and you'll learn that bandwidth limiting was not universal. I've had a number of ancient Yamahas here and the will also surprise you with smooth digital without the roll-off. Also, speakers like Definitive and Klipsch benefit mightily from a rolled top end. Pairing these with a Sansui 5000x is magic. And last but not least, a Sansui 7070/8080/9090 is as good as it gets with no losses.
Click to expand...

Agreed. Have never heard an HK or Sansui receiver so I'm ready to be corrected on that. I remember the Yamahas from our mutual days at Anderson Audio - they were much cleaner than most of the speakers of that era as I recall. I may try an 800 or 820 if i can find a deal and see how it stacks up as I try to simplify things around here. I would be curious about your thoughts regarding the 70s-era Yamahas' ability to present an accurate soundstage and replicate the air around instruments, something this Exposure does in spades.

Not a real fan of either Definitive or Klipsch for the reasons to which you allude (we inherited a set of Heresy monitors that Pyramid's Eye used as playback monitors for musicians in the studio. I tried using them in that little studio I built at work - they were very harsh. I wasn't impressed with the Definitive Techs I heard in the showroom, either. They were okay so I kind of wrote it off to the listening environment. Could have been the amp driving their tweeters...
 
I'll second the choice of the HK 730, still the favorite sound of my receivers especially paired with the Fisher xp-4a piepans. Seems very important to find the right speakers to go with a receiver or amp or you'll never be happy. A lot of the newer speakers don't sound good with the older equipment.
You might try finding a Concept brand receiver, my little 2.0 amazes every time I turn it on and the tuner section pulls in stuff that it shouldn't be able to. They are really shiny too!
 
There are some vintage Class AB integrated amplifiers that run Class A in about the 3-10 watt range, then transition to Class B for higher output levels. My Pioneer M-25 is a Class AB power amp. Of all the power amps I have run in my system, this has been my favourite.

I have a Yamaha CA-800 and a Marantz PM-74D - both of which are Class AB integrated amplifiers. Certainly, not muffled-sounding. Perhaps, that would be another avenue.

Nando.
 
Wheel-right said:
...Seems very important to find the right speakers to go with a receiver or amp or you'll never be happy. A lot of the newer speakers don't sound good with the older equipment....
Click to expand...

This is critical as I prefer modern speakers and their ability to resolve music. My LSA 1 Monitors will tell you in a heartbeat if there are issues with the sound of the amplifier. And if I ever swap them out, it will be to purchase ATC or Spendor monitors, both of which have a habit of pointing out issues with the amplification chain.

WOPL Sniffer said:
I still don't get it.
Click to expand...

My friend, this is just thinking out loud about how to combine and condense, add a really good tuner (though God knows why with the state of radio these days), and have something that has old school good looks with contemporary quality amplification. It'll probably never happen, however, as I have other fish to fry and too little time to fry them...
 
What about the old Kenwood KT-8300? It’s like the second best tuner they ever made and unlike the L07-T it gets AM AND FM stations.

Or maybe go all rack mount gear and put it on wheels?
 
Bob Boyer said:
Good FM. Hmm.... an oxymoron these days.
Click to expand...
Nah, not always. The College and University stations are still in there with a lot of good music, they are the only ones I listen to any more. Too much talky on every other station!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top