Sony TAN-8550 VFET Power Amplifier Restoration and Overhaul
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- Опубліковано 5 жов 2024
- In this video, I walk through the entire restoration and repair process of this stunning Sony TAN-8550. This is the second video in a two part series which focuses on the Sony TAE-8450 preamplifier and this Sony TAN-8550 power amplifier.
This amplifier needed an extremely comprehensive restoration and overhaul to get it to function better than it was new, for decades to come. Almost every component inside of this amplifier was replaced to assure long term stability and efficiency. After it had been worked on by an idiot with zero respect or knowledge of how to restore a piece of gear properly, I had to undo damage done to many areas in this amplifier. Also done was a retrofit of a new IEC power inlet, as well as some very nice 5-way binding posts which were supplied by speaker-termin...
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Have no words to describe how much I appreciate someone who is thorough and proper 100% . I have the same units but the vfets on one channel fried is what my tech guy said , he’s had it for about 7 yrs and hasnt been able to do a deep dive into it because of being so busy doing repairs at his shop although he did recap my accuphase p300 in short order but it was pretty straight forward unlike these Sony units , if anyone has replacement vfets let me know I’ll buy em .
Also love your vid on the Kenwood L07 monoblock I have those units as well and they sound great but really would like my Sony 8550 to work to compare them .
WELL DONE PRIME !!!!
Thank you! Good luck with your VFET amplifier. More videos to come 🙂
Holy smokes! The previous work on that thing was a disgrace. Excellent restoration work.
I found a Yamaha B2 amp for $300 at Estate sale still working from the 70s. I sent it off for a full restoration to a tech who specializes in VFET amps, he even replated the chassis, made new boards for the volume controls and speaker switches, updated speaker terminals. Its a sweet sounding amp!! Love the videos of keeping these vintage diamonds alive!!
The B-2 is a great amp!
What was the cost to fix it?
Contact information for tech?
Was is www.youtube.com/@atelier_HiFi?
Hey can I get an contact to this specialist?
Best regards
I sold audio gear in the 70's and 80's. I owned a Vfet amp and have to say they were some of the sweetest most open sounding amps that ever came around. I worked for a dealer that sold Ohm speakers and in the mid to late 70's was their west region sales rep. Those Sony VFet amps sure were sweet. It was so satisfying to watch your restoration.
Xraytony is my favorite channel. I just found yours. I like the longer videos but lately he’s been breaking his up. I’m only a 50 year old hobbiest trying to learn. I do plumbing and heating by trade. I was also a Chevrolet tech for almost 9 years but left it. It like to see what tools you use because I’m all about quality. Nice work!
Welcome aboard! Glad to hear you enjoyed! More videos to come soon 👍🏼
@@PrimeHiFi awesome!
Great! Love the power cable and interconnects... Wiring looms - use thread to bind, looks wonderful, zip ties are very "industrial". I get a lot of grief for soldering and not crimping, but you've proved a point here. Testing - use a reactive load (speaker coil), this makes a difference compared to straight resistive, or at least a range of resistances - 2-16ohm. These older amps are wonderful and respect to the owner. Loved watching this, well done!
This was a fantastic restoration. I loved every minute of it. I watch a lot of audio restoration channels but this has to be my favorite video. Please keep them coming.
Patience is one of the greatest virtues of life.
Thank you Connor! Very cool project.
Glad you like it!
Beautiful amp ! Vfet so under rated and should not be Sony is a Powerhouse when they want to be !
ME Always ❤️ Sony !!
Once this resto is finish this amp well compete easily with new age HIGHER END AMPS !
Conor G edtion !!!
I have owned 100s of Amps and it'd hard to beat VINTAGE '
THANKS Conor G !
Wow! You really have done an excellent job with this amp. Great job, I really admire your work.
Thanks a lot! Glad you enjoyed it!
Superbly done. The only 2 hr repair video i ever watched till the end. Those unique speakers u have also match them perfectly!
More power to your channel!
More great quality work and shows what can be achieved with patience and quality parts
Great videos, really appreciated the longer format restorations, I also repair and restore vintage audio equipment next to my regular job although I rarely see hign end masterpieces like this one and it's preamp companion on my bench. Thanks for showing your methods and approach to problems, used tools and circuit modifications. Looking forward to the next one!
The trick on replacing the cone fly is pretty nifty! Great one since all those Sonys of the generation use those extensively.
Absolutely magnificent work! You are a genius and so modest! Your music selection is glorious! I have actually downloaded these songs! I hope you have kept the Technics SE A7 amplifier! It is absolutely beautiful!
Optimus Prime HIFI! I'm absolutely going to take your advice on tools for my near future bench and get my a$$ going on repairs to my older NAD 214 amps. I really need them back in service in my budget HT. THANKS for the inspiration!
I'm so glad that you had a sound demo at the end. I bet that Sony system sounds so nice. I wish I could have been there to hear it!
Thanks as always! I’m always happy to hear that these videos are inspiring others to work on equipment. More videos to come soon. And yes, this set sounds superb. Wish I could demonstrate them better.
WoW amazing work, it's almost like making a new one by hand 👍
If I find a PCB damaged like this with torn pads, I use a repair self-adhesive path and fix it in the hole with a hollow rivet and then thoroughly tin it, it has great mechanical strength.
Those projection VU and PWR meters are absolutely phenomenal.
Nice day 🙂 Tom
Great idea with the rivets! I will have to try that. I’ve been on the lookout for a clean and elegant solution for fixing lifted pads on circuit boards. Thanks for watching and for the kind comment! More to come 🙂
@@PrimeHiFi Hi, when I started using this technology I used to buy real hollow rivets, but one time I forgot to restock and needed to repair a PCB, I couldn't find hollow rivets, so I looked for a replacement solution and got an amazing idea. Instead of hollow rivets, I riveted a crimping sleeve for stranded conductors into the PCB - it has a thinner wall, so it fits even where there is little space, and most importantly, it is many times cheaper. If you are interested, I can look for some photos of the PCB repair and if I can't find it, I can take pictures of the next repair and send you the photos by e-mail.
Nice day 🙂 Tom
Great video! Love to see this type of restoration with this much attention to detail. Well done!
Personally I like the camera angle and the showing of the process, if feels like we're working with you.
Thank you! More to come
This is passion and dedication for another one amazing restoration
Congrats !
Thank you very much!
the first video of yours I've seen. I love all the detail. thanks for taking the time to make this. I learned a lot.
Outstanding work man! I've watched also what you did with the Sony TAE-8450 and I'm almost lost for words. I thought xraytonyb was a perfectionist but not even him goes that extra mile to disassemble those switches like you do. He just sprays some anti-oxide and jiggles it around a few times. So, kudos to you as so far you're the UA-camr that goes closer to perfection that I'm aware off and besides the one I mentioned I follow also "Mend It Mark" which has a different style but uses a whole paraphernalia of tools even for building missing knobs and switches.
Thank you! I try my best to achieve a high level of detail. I have learned an exponential amount of things from Tony. He is one of my inspirations for making UA-cam videos. I believe he is easily one of the best on this platform.
Hi, both Mark and Tony are first class technicians, but taking apart switches or potentiometers is a bit different. Tony does this very well, if the switch or potentiometer is pressed in and doesn't show signs of much wear it makes more sense for mechanical reasons to just clean it without disassembly. I also do it that way, I use products from the German company "Kontaktchemie" - Kontakt 60 - dissolves deposits and releases oxides / Kontakt WL - rinses / depending on the type of contact surface, I then use Kontakt 61 or Kontakt Gold (for gold-plated contacts) as a protective agent. If there is a sign of more wear, I first clean the switches and potentiometers in an ultrasound, then treat them with chemicals, and if that doesn't help, then I disassemble them. With this procedure, I try to avoid damage to the mechanical structure, the pieces of metal that hold the switches and potentiometers together are very prone to breaking even if the handling is very careful.
Nice day 🙂 Tom
Yes, in fact Tony has just answered a comment he had (not from me) about that, explaining exactly the same! So, justice to him as well!@@Edisson.
I remembered one person who is also very good at repairing audio equipment RAY Gianelli, he has a slightly different approach but excellent results.
you're so good in your craft, congrats!
Great job man, you give me something to aspire to
Again, beautiful work. I am very interested in how you go about disassembly and re-assembly of the unit itself.
Excellent work as always!
Wow with the previous guy's solder. I'm a million miles from a professional tech but wow. Would've measured and kept those Elna Silmic II.
Amazing and detailed thank you
Nice video and clean work Connor 👍
Thank you Peter!
Great video, nice to see the work
Glad you enjoyed it! More to come 👍🏼
Great, thorough work! It would be great if you could add links to some of those tools in the description.
Do not listen to anybody, do what you like or can..😊 They can go back to watch 15sec TikTok videos.. 😅 Amazing job! Just subbed! 🎉❤ Can I ask which camera model you use? Very nice autofocus and video quality.. 😮
Nice job as always! Keep em coming! Do you think the specs for distortion improvements mostly came from upgrading to metal film resistors and the connectors?
I think the improvements were a result of everything in conjunction. But the connectors were definitely an issue. Thanks for watching!
Amazing job...!!!
Thank you! Cheers!
Luxury restoration!
Lovely video!
Thank you! More to come soon 🙂
Looks like a beautiful amp. How much time did it take you, and what was the cost for all the spare parts replaced/upgraded? Is it worth sending in an old amp for restoration, other than for affectional value?
"I got to say ..Just beautiful piece 's of Sony equipment🤗..
The sound just😇 ..WOW!
A sense of presents🎶🎵.
And great work too!🙂
d🤕🇪🇺
Hi, As usual, great job. Keep it up !! 🙂
Thank you! Will do!
Awesome video, thanks for sharing! It would be pretty easy to design a new PCB (or rather replicate the original design). One could even go crazy and use a two layer board ;) I wonder why most people would consider it absolutely ok to replace parts, but wouldn't dare to replace old PCBs... Maybe it's the effort? Maybe it's the looks?
Thank you! When I have more time, I plan on learning PCB design to be able to create new boards. But for now it’s not viable for me. I feel this is one of the main reasons why many people don’t do it. With that being said, I do know many people who actually do it and the results are always nice 👍🏼
that's one big restoration
Why you didn't replace the drivers? Very good job anyway
unobtainium, and expensive as h.. Bevare of frauds..
Great question! I believe these drivers were in great shape, which is very lucky as they are TO-66 package transistors which are very hard if not impossible to source. Many counterfeit replicas are floating around which will do more harm than good. The originals perform flawlessly thankfully.
@@PrimeHiFi @jmqwert MJE15030G & MJE15031G TO-220 will do the job very well. Those old TO-66 drivers get very hot and not last forever. I have a 8250 and replaced with those modern drivers (adapting the center leg, etc) and plays flawlessly for years every day. 99% of the old transistors (except vfets and few others) are replaceable with modern ones
@@fmoyano those original devices are working well within their SOA. That is also the bias circuit not the drivers. Still important but not the same thing. One must not replace components arbitrarily.
Hi. I see you have carpet tiles on your bench. Doesn't carpet often carry a charge that could short a board on your bench? Thanks. Barry
Hey Conner, great work as you always do. I was curious as to what diodes you used to make up the main bridge rectifier. I downloaded the service manual and the originals look to be the standard 5A devices. Curious as to what you placed in there. Ultra fast, normal???
Happy to see you get rid of those horrible Sony 2SC1124s, I’ve run into multiple that were faulty.
Love your work!
Please keep the camera steady! Give it time to focus. Your traveling goes too fast, when you show some detail allow time for the viewer to discover all that is on the screen before scrolling away.
You might want to read in about the i/v characteristics of zeners, it is actually a crucial selection criteria. Certainly back in the day when zeners were less performant than current technology permits. Depending on the application replacing zeners with types having a 'sharper' curve might have adverse results.
Good continuation to you.
Wow great content 👍
Hi! Which series of Wima do You use? And which contact cleaner / lubricant do you use for regulators / pots?
I mainly use WIMA MKP / MKS capacitors. As for contact cleaner, there are many options I use which depends on the situation. DeoxIt is one I use most, along with Nutrol and others.
What do you do if you do not have a schematic and service manual?
Maestro
What kind of capacitors do you use
Are you using F5?
What is that vise you have the PCB on?
Just a generic PCB vice. If you search PCB holder on amazon, you’ll find a bunch of the same style.
Great video :) one question. I have tried 4 different leaded solder. And I am not happy! can someone please, link to a prima 0,5 dia. or smaller. Thanks :)
I wants the best, before I open up my Pioneer sx-1010
Great video! Out of curiosity, do you work on audio equipment with no schematics and if so how do you go about restoring equipment that doesn't have any references?
If you don't have to troubleshoot something wrong then you don't need schematics. This video is a kind of shotgunning diodes, transistors and resistors with new ones for keeping alive those precious vfets
Great question! When you aren’t able to find schematics when diagnosing and troubleshooting, you will have to use intuition and knowledge of similar circuits gathered from past experience. Thanks for watching!
How much will be charged for this restoration?
Cao. Extra video...koja je vrsta lemilice u pitanju? Write in english. Thanks
It’s a Hakko FX-951 and a Hakko FM-204. Cheers!
Previous guy who worked on it was probably a plumber 😭
what is the name of the plier in minute 34:07 (kink maker) and where can I get one? thank you..
Erem 554TX 👍🏼
what cleaner is safe to use in dirty push button switches shown at 2:00:00 without taking it apart.
I see a-lot of conflicting opinions online.
I recommend Deoxit for most applications but your mileage may vary. Everyone will have different opinions. You have to use what works best for each scenario
As a Vfet lover .. as we say in France ............Chapeau ( to take the hat off!..Just one question ..On the connectors problem ..Why not just reinforce them with some hard plastic or pvc.. This helps me a lots as i am planning to restore my TA8650 .It has the same output stage circuit .. So this amp should also be capable of 130Wats then ..It is rated only 80watts any ideas why..
TAN-8550 is rated at 100wrms , TA-8650 is rated at 80wrms. The power stage is not 100% same (different power supply, and power boards are 95% same). I know because I have both amps
Thanks for the info ..But the voltage rails are the same at 60volts this is what matters
@@ladronsiman1471 maybe it is limited also for the inside space getting hot (air flow, etc)
About connectors: best to clip the wire back a bit and solder directly to board. The biggest PITA to service later, the best way to secure a mechanical and electrical connection. About the differences between the 8550 and 8650: the difference is in the Class A amplifier section board. Otherwise, you are correct, the power stage is very much identical. This also means that the 8650 could easily be converted into a 110WPC amp. A topic for a different discussion, but it has been done ;)
I hate when people complain the video is to long! When you guys shorten them it takes away from us that really like to learn. They have a FF button, we don’t have an add button. So F$&:k them!
Noted!
Its better to change that potentio.. for long last use
Man why wouldn't you just get new pcb's also???
epic
Stunning detailed work I love your commitment to excellence
Thank you! Cheers!
Hay, We Interested in a collab with you? Let us know how to connect!
Electronic surgery….🤣🤣🤣🤣
I grew up in this generation of electronics. Great to see you restoring this amplifier right. Something I admire. Too much doing the minimum going on with poor craftsmanship. I agree 10K per channel is a bit low for this class of amplifier. But I am careful not to over do it. Otherwise, what a cool amplifier.
Thank you! Glad to hear you enjoyed it. And yes - one must be conservative when upgrading the values of capacitors. It can be hard on related parts of the circuit. In this case, upping the value from 10kuF to 15kuF was helpful but not impractical 👍🏼
re: "I agree 10K per channel is a bit low for this class of amplifier." why do you think that is? and re: "But I am careful not to over do it." - I think that is wise.
Unwatchable video with all the camera sway.
There's a great article on the 40th anniversary SONY VFET (art_sony_vfet_40yr.pdf) which if you scroll to the end you'll see a photo of a massive power amp!
Amazing job! I have the 8450 pre hooked to a McIntosh MC-2120 amp but am looking to pick up a 8250 and or 8550 amp. I sent you a message on Instagram a while back if you get a chance would love to converse.
Thank you! I have tons of emails and messages to sort though. Sorry about the delay.