Don't play around, DO IT.

Only thing is, if you can't do the repair work on it, you have to find one that already works well. Which is not that hard to find, but it will run the cost up quite a bit. The Yamaha 620 I'm getting this weekend costs at least 4 to 5 times what I paid for it, for one in perfect condition.

Cultshock, if you're thinking of buying a vintage receiver and don't know where to start, just send me the listings of ones you're looking at and I'll give you my recs (keeping in mind you don't plan to or want to work on them).

Meanwhile I ordered another off the Bay. Another Yamaha, this time the R-500. The bigger brother of the C-300 I bought a month ago. Since I found that one easy to work on, I figured why not get another. And especially since it was just $15+shipping.

I got the CR-620 last week and it's a beaut. Gonna need some cosmetic work though, especially the faceplate. After that I'm gonna replace all the electrolytic capacitors and make it my main player. For right now though (and because I haven't been able to play any vinyl for three months now), I've got the CR-220 plugged in and playing regularly. Sounds great!

Paff, do you follow Mend It Mark on YouTube? Great channel for this sort of thing. His diagnostic skills are second to none.

FWIW, I've got a Yamaha CA-600 that initially needed some work too. Like you, I find it very rewarding!

I don't know if I've watched Mend It Mark specifically, but I've definitely watched YouTube videos for pointers on fixing these things. AH Fix-It comes to mind. There's a guy on the Tube who's done a restoration of a Harman Kardon 330C, my exact model that's been so difficult for me to solve. It's an hour long video, I gotta find time to watch it beginning to end, maybe get some hints. But with three, soon to be four, working vintage Yammy receivers in my possession, getting the HK back up and running is of lower priority.

The CA-600, huh? I had to look that up. It's an amp-only model? I haven't messed around with those yet. I buy the all-in-one receivers, even though I rarely listen to the radio on them. That's why I'm debating how much more time I even want to spend on the C300 I have; it's working perfectly now, except the FM tuning is off by .7 boogers (standard industry terminology). Do I bother fixing it further, or just box it back up knowing it's a dynamite receiver for listening to vinyl now?

ETA: I think a main reason I go for receivers with built-in but near useless AM/FM tuners rather than the stand-alone integrated amps is that the companies would put style and design into the look of the tuner; you get that lighted display that looks so cool and retro. A lot of audio enthusiasts have been changing out the lights in these (they usually need replacing regardless of whether or not the unit is in working order) for LEDs, specifically blue ones which gives a really cool look to them. For now I'm just going with the lights I can find on E-Bay and dropping them in as direct replacements. LEDs require additional components, usually a resistor, to make them match the impedance of the original incandescent bulbs they're replacing. Yamaha receivers also had a green "condom" like rubber cover to give it a green glow, and I've torn a few in the replacement process, but new ones are easily found.

Thank you sir, I will keep that in mind.

Also, Record Collectors Paradise here in Edmonton (where I get my vinyl records) has a pretty impressive collection of vintage amplifiers and receivers. I went in and spoke with Ty about a McIntosh MA6100 that they had last year before ultimately deciding to go with a newer Arcam amplifier instead. That McIntosh was pretty sweet, though. You can check out their facebook page here ... Record Collectors Paradise | Edmonton AB | Facebook

That Pioneer SX-950 they just posted is a beaut, one of the "Monster Hi-Fis" from the famed Hi-Fi "wars" of the 70s. Almost a little too much. But I wouldn't even dare ask how much they want for it. A quick search of the usual places for vintage gear has most of those models going for well over a grand. Cheapest one I could find was on E-Bay, $900, and it's not even working! I don't mind taking a flyer on a $15 or even a $50 piece of gear with the intent of restoring it to working condition (and not a huge loss if I'm unable to fix it), but $900 is a bit out of my price range.

I just got a turntable for the first time since I was ten. So far it sounds great on my Frankensteined system. I bought some Bob Dylan and Neil Young albums to christen it with. I basically sold off my CD collection to pay for all of it. Just kept the essentials on disc.

Yeah, it came down to price between the McIntosh and the Arcam. I'll give Ty and RCP credit though, they do a very nice job when it comes to restoring and refurbishing vintage gear. If I had the bucks I'd definitely pick up a few components from them. Their A/V room is like the Criterion closet for stereo heads.

Oh, I don't doubt that for a second. They're good people there.

That said, you can buy vintage gear without breaking the bank. Just look around on E-bay, Craigslist, or whatever the local equivalent of those is. Now, if you need something in perfect working order 'cuz you don't know how to fix old audio gear, it'll cost a little more. But you should still be able to buy a good fully operational 70s era receiver, say, for less than $400.

(And really, don't be daunted by the idea of working on them. I can't even tell you how many old pieces of electronics gear I've resurrected with a few sprays of De-Oxit. Hell, one of the Yamaha receivers I got was literally listed on E-bay as "Parts only! May need extensive repairs." I got it fully functional again with De-Oxit, then just needed replacement light bulbs for the AM/FM tuner backlight. And there's videos on YouTube on how to do it all.)

I finally got these two in the mail yesterday, they both sound fantastic, and thankfully they safely arrived with no seam splits or corner bumps (unlike Rhino in the US, Warner Canada ships these things in practically bulletproof packaging). I hope that Rhino continues with both bands' albums in this series, at least for the early albums. But I'm ok if for the next few of their releases in the series they put out albums I don't care about, these things ain't cheap and it will save me some money!

Not vinyl related, but still on the topic of vintage gear, here is Mend It Mark, servicing a Pioneer SX-550. This one really gets into repairs that are way above my ability, test equipment wise, as well as chemical willingness! Still, it's cool to watch. I really liked the FM tuner portion.

Oooh. I'll watch that when I get home tonight. I was reluctantly dragged into the world of adjusting the tuner on the C300 I bought, definitely making it way worse before I figured out what I was doing (and even that was still a lot of luck and guessing...I will leave that part of the unit alone from now one). I now have it so it's off by .1 booger (I.E., tune to 101.6 if you wanna hear station 101.5) and that's close enough for me.

I’ve been buying albums that are pressed in Europe. I wonder what tariffs will do to their prices.

SMLXL is having a 25% off sale using code SPRING25. I've never bought from them so that's all I know.

Who'da thunk that the great American uprising will be led by Depeche Mode fans pissed off that they can't import a rare B-side anymore?

Saving my cash for Saturday and RSD. There's not a lot of "have to haves", but there's certainly a few records I still want.

Yeah, I'll be heading out on Friday to browse their regular stock, make a note of which ones I'd like (prices are 10% off on RSD), and get there early on Saturday to add an exclusive or two.

Anyone else planning on spending Saturday at your local record shop?

"Informational materials" such as printed matter and any kind of recordings are supposed to be exempt, for now at least.

I have roller derby in the afternoon, and then a show by power pop band Softjaw (they were "The Beat" on the recent Paul Collins US tour). But I'm hoping to hit some stores in the late morning early afternoon. I might skip M-Theory this year; they have the largest selection of RSD Exclusive releases. They also have the longest line. I've never gotten in the store in less than an hour, even if I wait till 10AM to go.

Yeah, I have quite a few points of interest this time around.

Four of them are double live albums, though, and I hope they aren't in the fucking fifty dollar range.

My shopping list looks like:

Black Sabbath - Eternal Idol
Deicide - Once Upon the Cross (30th Anniversary)
Dokken - Beast from the East Live (2x LP)
Scott Ian - Black Knight Sword of Rage
Judas Priest - Live in Atlanta '82 (2x LP)
Rage Against the Machine - Live on Tour 1993 (2x LP)
Soul Asylum - After The Flood: Live From The Grand Forks Prom, June 28, 1997 (2x LP)
The Sword - Warp Riders 15th Anniversary
Eddie Vedder - Save it for Later/Room at the Top 12"

I can take or leave "Eternal Idol." And the RATM 2x Live album has a print run of 15000, so those are low priority. I signaled interest in the others to record store guy, so I'll have to get those if they come in. The other two I'll decide when I'm in the store.

Nice list, I love Eternal Idol and man, I remember buying Dokken's Beast from the East on CD when it first came out. It would be kind of cool having it on vinyl. Luckily not much else is really jumping out at me as something I need to buy, so I guess I can save some money.

The 'Screaming For Vengeance' tour. Saw them in November that year. Great concert ...

Just picked these MONO versions up:

I’ll be going early and hopefully only one store. There are a few titles I’m looking for, but I gotta have that Warren Zevon box. I’ve been waiting for someone to release Mutineer to complete the collection. If I have to resort to Discogs or eBay so be it.

A few others if I spot em :
Rockafire Explosion
Jeff Bridges
Black Sabbath
Dictators
Graham Parker & the Figgs
Ramones

Oooh, I hadn't seen that Dictators record, I'll have to add that to my list. I wasn't a huge fan of that band, but then I saw Handsome Dick Manitoba a couple years back (as the opening act for Punk Rock Karaoke, if you can believe it), and he rocked the roof off the joint. He kinda got down on us Californians so I get the feeling he's hardcore MAGA, a big strike for me, but good music is still good music. He did tell funny stories about how he bragged to his kid that "AC/DC opened up for your old man one time", and that his son "couldn't fucking care less". Manitoba then got to do a couple songs with the PRK band, one of which was Sonic Reducer (a version of which is on the RSD release) so I know he's got the pipes for it.

Oddly enough, I'm not all that excited about the Ramones' release, and normally I get anything they put out on RSD. It's Loco Live, and I already have a shit ton of live Ramones records, most from the "classic" first line up, a couple after Marky joined, and then one much later in the band's career after CJ replaced DeeDee. I'm probably ok without it, although we'll see how I feel if it's in the bin when I finally get to the store tomorrow.