Technics all the way... my SL-family is growing !

[djchriswoods.co.uk]

Have you got a SL1200 mk1? I picked one up about 6 years ago, its my livingroom centre piece. Took me a while to find one with an original tonearm

[HighTopFade]

1979?!?! Nice

[JohnnyDrama]

Thanks for posting !

It's been a busy weekend, had to collect some parts for ongoing 'projects'....and it's so rewarding to DIY !

Project 1:

DAP Palladium P-700 vintage (sjees what a name...)

8 Ohm Stereo Power (RMS): 240W
4 Ohm Stereo Power (RMS): 360W
8 Ohm Bridge Power (RMS): 720W

Not a spectacular amp by any means, but very easy to work on and it was free with a flightcase I bought for 25 euro (received it with one dead channel).
It looked brand new (inside & outside), only the cover plate was scratched...besides that no visual damage.

I already opened it up before and my multimeter told me one end stage was dead, so I had to replace a few transistors (toshiba).
It's a known default on these amps (P-500/P-700/P900) that good transistors (toshiba 2sa1941 & 2sc5198 ) were used but the specs were insufficiant (160v max). When powering on/off (no soft start) they can receive peaks above 160v, so I wanted to change them with toshiba 2sa1943 & 2sc5200 (230v max).

My electro-shop didn't have any on stock and they were hard to order...I was able to pick them last friday and started my DIY weekend with repairing this amp.

1 hour for disassembly unit, clean & check the PCB's (little dust, 2 bad soldering points) and clean & lube both fans.
1 hour dissassembly end stages (PCB's & heatsink), soldering & assembly
20 min of testing (no fine-tuning of the bias and clip-range needed)
Sanding, filler (+sanding), base coat (+ sanding) and top coat made the cover plate look like new.

For 40 euro in parts and some paint and sweat and I have a brand new amp....SUCCES

Picture of the dead end stage:

DSC07125.jpg

Project 2:

Rodec mx180 mkIII

This is a great mixer in so many ways....

• it's 100% handmade in Belgium
• eq's sound better them my xone 92 based on what my monitors tell me. Still have to test it on a large sound system but i'm confident (and yeah..I own both mixers and know how to use them )
• no frills, or other stuff...this mixer is like driving a naked bike (going 60 feels like 100)
• old skool VU meters
• price I paid
• FANTASTIC after sales... !!!!!

So, I bought this from an add on a WTS website...175 euro and it stated it 'needed some attention'...
I went to check it out, the seller was the owner of a very big PA & lighting company and the rodec was installed in a bar that closed down after 6 years. He told me he tested it and 3 faders needed to be replaced and some knobs were missing (3). He didn't want to invest time repairing it because renters only wanted the pioneers. But he ensured that besides the faders & knobs, it was 100%.

For the price, I didn't check it and took it with me...

It needed some TLC and I decided to take it apart 100% and rebuild it again after checking every aspect & detail.
My heart skipped a beat when a blade of an iron saw fell out of the casing when removing the very damaged & non OEM cabinet screws (another warning). Those blades are conductive, so I was afraid some DIY repair was done by a butcher of some kind.

To my surprise, all the PCB's looked great and was amazed by the high quality & modular build:

DSC07143.jpg

So still a score...let's make this beast pretty again
Shopping list (5 new line faders / 3 output faders / replacement set knobs / 6 RCA PCB mounts / small part for on/off button / OEM screws). I was able to pick up the parts @ Rodec HQ for a wholesale price...130 !!!! total and they were fantastic (info/service/...).

Then disassembly totalis...

DSC07144.jpg

This is how I roll on a saturdaymorning @5.30 AM

DSC07145.jpg

To do:

• Check all parts (power supply, VU meter, ...)
• Clean & wax face plate
• Clean & check PCB's + solder 6 new RCA pairs (PCB mount)(a few of the old ones were cracked)
• Check, clean & lube all potentiometers & switches
• Disassemble, clean & lube crossfader
• Assembly all parts with new OEM screws
• Reconnect the on/off button with OEM part (was used as an installation mixer with a direct power-on connection on a central point)
• Install new faders & knobs
• Sand, fill, prime & spray the casing

Almost done...patient in recovery room:

DSC07148.jpg

Casing finished & on/off button reconnected...all done:

DSC07154.jpgDSC07155.jpgDSC07156.jpg

Looking & sounding like new...let the fight Xone 92 vs MX180 MK3 for main setup begin

Cost: 175 euro (purchase mixer)& 130 euro (parts)

Total cost: 305 euro not bad for a 1200 euro (retail) mixer !

Next project (in progress)

Restore a pair of TT flightcases.
I've been looking for ages to find these (not china mass produced, high quality wood & hardware, professional build) with handle on top + divider for cables.

DSC07150.jpg

Ps. I use DeOxit and/or kontakt chemie products for cleaning & lubing pots, faders, PCB's, contacts, switches, ...
Pss. picture of my technics hifi system:

DSC07162.jpg

[JohnnyDrama]

My package of 5x2 leds arrived today (not China but Hong Kong)...

10x white
10x red
10x blue

Should I go all white or only a red/blue pitchled ?
Not that it will work, because I dissabled the 'pitck lock' for more accurate pitching.
I'm not aware of a tweak that make the led shine on '0' AND have the pitch lock dissabled ?

[Destiny]

Amazing job on the mixer. Love it! And that little Technics hi-fi looks great as well. Keep up the good work.

[JohnnyDrama]

Amazing job on the mixer. Love it! And that little Technics hi-fi looks great as well. Keep up the good work.

Thanks !

I've been busy with other stuff that last 2 weeks..
My wife was emitted to the hospital because the pregnancy is making her very sick and she was dehydrated.
The baby (boy !!!) is doing well and the wifey will be back home soon.

I'm also happy to say we bought an awsome house and will be moving @ end of february
The complete attic (3 rooms, +90m2 total) will be dedicated for my:
- music studio
- man cave / HT room (beamer, poker table, ...)
- office @ home

Besides that, I did work on some of my projects !

The SL's now both have a blue pitch led, by only disconnecting the orange wire the led works without the pitch lock enabled.

The rodec amp is completely refurbished
It was a lot of work to disassemble & desolder all the parts then testing them and cleaning the PCB & parts.
The amp has a perforated deckplate so loads of dust, grime, ... was inside the amp.

After all that work, I'm very happy with the result and the sound and looks are fawsome (+ no fans...perfect for studio/home use).

Will post pictures asap, battery is charging...

[HighTopFade]

My place is like a refugee camp for DJ equipment. My buddy can't mix with water damage to his laptop. Plus he needs space. He brought over a coffin with 2 Technics 1200MK2, Numark DM-1800, and Serato SL2. Other than the SL2, everything looks mid 80s. Doing some cleanup. Pretty dusty.

[JohnnyDrama]

Time goes fast...but here is an update (bought/repaired more stuff )


We moved a few months ago and our baby boy was born end of April (the second one is a lot more hassle). There is always work to do when moving into a new house, so I had other priorities in the past few months...but now I'm finally building my temporary music studio. Installed now is ->

Booth:

2x SL1200MK2
2x CDJ2000
Rodec mx180mk3 / Rane XP2016a / Xone92r / DJM 909
TSP 2 / audio 8 / MBP
Machine MK2

Hifi (all Technics):

SL-1200 MK1
SL-1200 MK2
SU-8080
ST-8080
ST-9038
SL-P770
+ B&W DM14 with fresh crossovers

Sound:

Speakers
2x RCF L15P200 (subs)
2x Beyma cx12 (mid/high)
2x Focal 7v313 (mid)
2x JBL 075 (high)
2x Prodipe Pro ribbon 8 (monitor)

Amps
Dap Vision 1600 (rcf's)
Dap Palladium 900 (beyma's)
Rodec 340 (focals)
AD vintage (discreet) stereo amp (JBL's)

Processing
DEQ 2496
DCX 2496

For now, everything is just hooked up, in 2 months I will have to remove all the gear and start finishing up the room & acoustics. At least I now know the ideal set-up for the room.

The total cost for the whole mini sound system (speakers & amps) was the retail price of the dap vision amp (about 600 euro). Peanuts if you ask me, because everything is made with quality components & parts (neutrik connectors, Tasker/cordial/... wires, penn elcom, ...). The JBL 075 tweeters are valued at $500 (mint early pair with all wax seals intact).

Still amazed how much nice stuff you can find for cheap/free when searching in the right places. Once the room is finished and tuned in, I can finally start testing the rodec, Xone & Rane and also record mixes.

Feel welcome to post some feedback, questions, ... I will post some pictures later today.

Ps. checking out a Rodec MX1800 (Progressive series) in 2 days...don't need it but the deal is so sweeeet (600 for NIB)

[johney]

jeluz.

let us know how you like the rodec... i play on it once in a while and i'd like to hear someone elses opinion

[JohnnyDrama]

Hey Johney,

Unfortunaly that deal went sour so was not able to test it....
Please let me know what your opinion is about the 1800 (versus older rodec mixers).

Did score a pair of 1200's for 400, going to check them tomorrow but if the look as good as the pictures i received they are coming home to play with my 909...