Hello!
Like the title says, this is my First Post. I have been hopping from Forum to Forum trying to get info on an Amplifier I have that is out of a "Viking Record Cabinet" Now im pretty handy with electronics... of my Generation... this thing is just crazy cool to me and im trying to get it in good operating condition so i can actually use the Turntable and the Amp. I have almost finished "Updating" the Cabinet itself, it was in really rough shape, and the wife wanted blue, so its blue!
But! heres some of my concerns!
A: What is the best way to try to clean the ( i believe they are) Potentiometers in control of the Volume, Treble and Bass Control? As they are not Smooth in their adjustment, they are "Scratchy" and not very Linear...
B: I got it up and running yesterday, and... it sounds rough... it has quite alot of distortion, less in the higher frequency, but still enough i think something is up, and just a TON in the lower end of things, no matter how i adjust it. Could this be Tubes? or maybe some Leaky Caps?
C: Can I use a "Modern" speaker with this thing? i have heard the new Drivers are not going to be efficient enough? that i wont get proper volume levels? is this True?
D: And anything else you guys think I should know about this!
Here is all the Pics!
Thanks For any help!
Like the title says, this is my First Post. I have been hopping from Forum to Forum trying to get info on an Amplifier I have that is out of a "Viking Record Cabinet" Now im pretty handy with electronics... of my Generation... this thing is just crazy cool to me and im trying to get it in good operating condition so i can actually use the Turntable and the Amp. I have almost finished "Updating" the Cabinet itself, it was in really rough shape, and the wife wanted blue, so its blue!
But! heres some of my concerns!
A: What is the best way to try to clean the ( i believe they are) Potentiometers in control of the Volume, Treble and Bass Control? As they are not Smooth in their adjustment, they are "Scratchy" and not very Linear...
B: I got it up and running yesterday, and... it sounds rough... it has quite alot of distortion, less in the higher frequency, but still enough i think something is up, and just a TON in the lower end of things, no matter how i adjust it. Could this be Tubes? or maybe some Leaky Caps?
C: Can I use a "Modern" speaker with this thing? i have heard the new Drivers are not going to be efficient enough? that i wont get proper volume levels? is this True?
D: And anything else you guys think I should know about this!
Here is all the Pics!
Thanks For any help!
Try contact cleaner, you may be able to recover them.
All the caps are likely in need of replacement, and some of the Rs may have changed value.
Sure.6V6 SE is going to prefer something with a smooth impedance curve, and with about 4W output you will want to consider efficiency based on how loud you play.
OPTs under the hood? I'd guess they are on the smallish size, likely not capable of deep bass.
dave
Thanks for the Response!
it seems more and more people are saying the same thing, i have a tec in town willing to let me borrow his Cap Tester, and im thinking im going to take him up on that offer.
How sensitive to Impedance changes are these old girls? if i cant find a driver with sufficient sensitivity, would it be safe for me to drop an OHM or two?
And is there a way to maybe boost its available base output?
It's probably not worth testing the caps. For their cost, you may as well just spend that time replacing them. Even if they're OK capacitance wise, given their age they'll surely go out of spec once in use.
The blue looks good by the way.
The blue looks good by the way.
I was kinda thinking that ha ha, the only ones I'm thinking that might be worth testing are the large external ones? Pretty sure the ******* things are riveted on tw chasis ha ha. But that's what I will do then 🙂
After I put my transmission back into my jeep....
Also thanks! It turned out great!
Here's what it looked like before...
Hard to tell but it was in really rough shape...
It is mandatory to replace all electrolytic caps., as they literally dry out over time. You are LUCKY that the unit did not go up in smoke, when power was applied.
I'd like to see a straight on photo of the back side. I have a sneaking suspicion that you have a monophonic item. The tube complement chart and the view showing a 2 section variable cap. strongly suggest that the tuner is AM only.
The record changer is a POS that employs a piezoelectric cartridge. 😡 It will damage irreplaceable LPs, if an attempt is made to play them.
I'd like to see a straight on photo of the back side. I have a sneaking suspicion that you have a monophonic item. The tube complement chart and the view showing a 2 section variable cap. strongly suggest that the tuner is AM only.
The record changer is a POS that employs a piezoelectric cartridge. 😡 It will damage irreplaceable LPs, if an attempt is made to play them.
The record changer is a POS that employs a piezoelectric cartridge. 😡 It will damage irreplaceable LPs, if an attempt is made to play them.
The TT is axtually one of the very best of its ilk. A garrard that is likely only a step behind the revered ones. The cartridge would needto be dealt with.
dave
Well, however good the turntable were when it was young, a ceramic cartridge with a sapphire stylus will surely damage any vinyl record played, due to high tracking force, bad tracking ability and the unevitable wear on the stylus, which is of a spherical geometry with a rather large radius.
It is mandatory
The record changer is a POS that employs a piezoelectric cartridge. 😡 It will damage irreplaceable LPs, if an attempt is made to play them.
The Unit is AM, Mono. As for the turntable, correct me if I'm wrong but the cartridge is meant to be able to be changed am I right?
I looked into it a bit when I originally got the unit that the turntable was really not that bad, not something highly sought after but not something to be thrown away?
Dave (planet10) recognized the record changer as being made by Garrard. Garrard changers can be serviceable.
A mono cart., equipped with the correct stylus, can play stereo LPs.
A schematic, if necessary traced out manually, would really help the cause. It appears that the 12AX7 is shielded. That might be indicative of the tube being used as a mag. cart. preamp. Look at the cart. that's currently mounted in the changer's arm. See if a make and model can be deciphered. Post that info., if you get it. If push comes to shove, the "crowd" resident on this forum will help you build a phono preamp.
The unit uses push/pull 6V6 O/P tubes, which can yield as much as 15 W. A 90 dB. sensitive speaker, with a reasonably flat impedance curve, will work well.
Definitely post a photo of the underside.
Well respected Caig Labs offers a product for use on pots., etc.
A mono cart., equipped with the correct stylus, can play stereo LPs.
A schematic, if necessary traced out manually, would really help the cause. It appears that the 12AX7 is shielded. That might be indicative of the tube being used as a mag. cart. preamp. Look at the cart. that's currently mounted in the changer's arm. See if a make and model can be deciphered. Post that info., if you get it. If push comes to shove, the "crowd" resident on this forum will help you build a phono preamp.
The unit uses push/pull 6V6 O/P tubes, which can yield as much as 15 W. A 90 dB. sensitive speaker, with a reasonably flat impedance curve, will work well.
Definitely post a photo of the underside.
Well respected Caig Labs offers a product for use on pots., etc.
My thoughts also, if it is mono it might be P-P, might be two SE but that seems odd. A good picture of the guts should help.
That unit is definitely mono....
I've worked on half-a-dozen Vikings exactly like the OP's.
The Garrard in question is no better, no worse, than all the base turntables of the period found in these Eatons (Viking was the house-brand nameplate used for all Eatons products) department store consoles radio/record-player combinations....but certainly nowhere near the quality of the better Garrards like the 301.
A great little set to tinker with to develop some familiarity with tube circuits etc...but that's about it IMO.
BTW these chassis were all manufactured by Dominion Electrohome.
I've worked on half-a-dozen Vikings exactly like the OP's.
The Garrard in question is no better, no worse, than all the base turntables of the period found in these Eatons (Viking was the house-brand nameplate used for all Eatons products) department store consoles radio/record-player combinations....but certainly nowhere near the quality of the better Garrards like the 301.
A great little set to tinker with to develop some familiarity with tube circuits etc...but that's about it IMO.
BTW these chassis were all manufactured by Dominion Electrohome.
My wife would murder me if I brought that home. 😛I was kinda thinking that ha ha, the only ones I'm thinking that might be worth testing are the large external ones? Pretty sure the ******* things are riveted on tw chasis ha ha. But that's what I will do then 🙂
After I put my transmission back into my jeep....
Also thanks! It turned out great!
Here's what it looked like before...
Hard to tell but it was in really rough shape...
I've pulled quite a few consoles apart. This particular Garrard isn't up to a 301, but is definitly better than the typical garrard/BSR ilk found in most consoles. I have a couple stashed away for rebuild.
dave
The power trafo looks competent. Extract that and use a 5AR4, instead of the OEM 5Y3, to bring the B+ rail voltage up. Salvage the 12AX7 and 6V6s. Add a couple of Edcor GXSE15-8-5K O/P trafos and the makings of a "5" WPC SE stereo amp are present. 😉
We definitely need a photo of the underside. It may be possible to save the AM tuner and sheet metal.
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OK, the changer is not a POS. Still, that arm is massive and, I highly suspect, not especially gentle to the cartridge. Stanton carts. are popular with DJs, as they tolerate the abuse of scratch mixing. In addition, Stanton carts. are decent sounding. Perhaps the Stanton 520 V3 Cartridge would work well in that old Garrard TT.
Cheapo two pole motor, more levers, gears and mechanical flotsam underneath that Garrard than a juke-box and to top it all off, mated to a tonearm (if you can call it that) barely a step above a Mickey-Mouse portable record player.
Worth tuning up only if one wants to maintain the cosmetic/historic integrity of the console in question but hardly a candidate for serious phonographic reproduction or modification.
I am all for salvaging, tinkering and improving upon these old sets but you have to have something reasonably substantial to begin with....
A great starter set for the OP to tinker with and listen to...but the law of diminishing returns should be pointed out IMO😉
Continuum copied that arm in carbon fibre for their $60K Caliburn 'table...
Continuum Caliburn Reference Turntable - Worlds Finest
😉
Continuum Caliburn Reference Turntable - Worlds Finest
😉
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