PDA

View Full Version : Help needed - sansui 517



Wakefield Turntables
17-12-2011, 19:32
HELP!

I'm trying to put together my mates system from our teenage years. Its basically this one http://audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=322365&page=2 but can anyone remember what deck and speakers went with the system ?? I'd love to have it up and running again at home. Sad, nostalgic, but it'll bring back my teenage years!!

Andy

Reid Malenfant
17-12-2011, 19:47
Your mate had a Nakamichi Dragon or CR7E did he :eek: I guess he did multiple paper rounds & washed cars all weekend long :rfl:

Wakefield Turntables
17-12-2011, 19:59
No Mark its what he inherited of his Dad when they lived in South Africa so his Dad bought it. I have fond memories of that system because it was used to introduce me to the delights of Iron Maiden to which I'm still an avid fan all these years, the year was 1985, happy days!

Reid Malenfant
17-12-2011, 20:04
I was just messing with you Andrew, but there is a Nak in the top picture ;)

I'd suggest you look up google images for Sansui equipment with the number 517 & see what comes up :) Might be a winner..

Wakefield Turntables
17-12-2011, 20:11
I was just messing with you Andrew, but there is a Nak in the top picture ;)

I'd suggest you look up google images for Sansui equipment with the number 517 & see what comes up :) Might be a winner..

just spent the last hour doing it and not found anything yet, probably try finding the sales leaflets so if that helps.

Reid Malenfant
17-12-2011, 20:14
:eyebrows: Well it's great to know we both thought of the same thing, even if it didn't work :doh:

jazzpiano
20-12-2011, 18:47
Hi Andy,

Not sure, I can't see the sides or back, but the speakers look like large Vandersteens, either 2's or 3's. Hope this helps.

~Barry

Wakefield Turntables
20-12-2011, 20:34
Barry,

Sorry mate I should have made myself I bit clearer I'm after the name of the speaker that may have been supplied with the sansui i.e. did Sansui produce there own speakers, I'm also after the TT as well, the only thing I know is that it was definitely a Sansui TT and it had a strobe light but apart from that I dont have a a bloody clue, this is a TT that I only vaguely remember playing Judas priest on when I was about 18!! (20 years ago and beyond!!)

Andy

Reid Malenfant
20-12-2011, 20:44
Sansui most likely made their own speakers, there are lots out there & I happen to own a pair of more modern Sansui speakers myself. Nothing like the older ones though I might add ;)

The older stuff that I have seen appears to be similar to early Kenwood speakers, loads of drivers (all over the place), a big possibly 15" woofer & some kind of funky grille. I think the equpment you have is later though so I'd expect a more normal looking pair of speakers :eyebrows:

The Grand Wazoo
20-12-2011, 21:03
http://audioklassiks.de/Bilder/sonics/sonics_as-227a_00.jpg

Reid Malenfant
20-12-2011, 21:04
Aye, that's the kind of beastie I was refering to ;) Thanks Chris :)

The Grand Wazoo
20-12-2011, 21:08
Usually quite tubby in physical stature, hand made wooden grilles - there were a lot of different models over the years.

Wakefield Turntables
20-12-2011, 21:09
Chris,

Do you know if these were sold directly with the Sansui 517 around 1978/9??

The Grand Wazoo
20-12-2011, 21:12
Not off the top of my head - let me do some digging.

The Grand Wazoo
20-12-2011, 21:14
What sort of height were they, can you remember?

The Grand Wazoo
20-12-2011, 21:16
...........and how many drivers?

Wakefield Turntables
20-12-2011, 21:28
Chris,

I honestly cannot recollect. I think they could have been three way drivers I dont think they had wooden grills and I do not think they had horn drivers. From memory I think they all a black cloth and a switch on the front. They mostly lived under a pile of books and fag packets, and the occasional 12 pack of skol or whatever cheap lager we could buy at the time

andy

The Grand Wazoo
20-12-2011, 21:29
OK - that does help!

Reid Malenfant
20-12-2011, 21:32
I thought they may well have been a little more up to date :)

Typical Japanese speaker of the time may well have had an 8" bass, 3-4" midrange & some kind of tweeter, I say some kind as it could well have been a dome or a cone ;)

The Grand Wazoo
20-12-2011, 21:38
Andrew,
PM me your email address - I think I have something for you!

The Grand Wazoo
20-12-2011, 22:21
In addition to the catalogue I just sent, here's a list of all the speakers I can find details of for those years - maybe you could Google the model numbers of the ones that fit best:

(Sorry for yelling with the capitals!)


AA-2900 1977-1979 2-WAY 2-DRIVER 6.5"WOOFER BASS-REFLEX
AA-3900 1977-1979 2-WAY 2-DRIVER 8"WOOFER BASS-REFLEX
AA-4900 1977-1979 3-WAY 3-DRIVER 10"WOOFER BASS RE
SL-7 1975-1977 2-WAY 2-DRIVER 8" WOOFER
SP-10 1979-1982 3-WAY 3-DRIVER 15W 6.5" WOOFER
SP-100 1979-1982 3-WAY 3-DRIVER 25W 8" WOOFER
SP-1000 1979-1982 3-WAY 4-DRIVER 70W 10" WOOFER
SP-150 1976-1982 3-WAY 3-DRIVER 10"WOOFER 5" MID
SP-3200 1972-1977 4-WAY 5-DRIVER 13"WOOFER 6.5" MID
SP-3200A 1972-1977 4-WAY 5-DRIVER 13"WOOFER 6.5" MID
SP-35 1972-1977 2-WAY 2-DRIVER 6.5" WOOFER
SP-65 1975-1977 2-WAY 2-DRIVER 8" WOOFER
SP-70 1978-1980 2-WAY 2-DRIVER 30W 8" WOOFER
SP-X6000 1978-1982 3-WAY 3-DRIVER 10" WOOFER 100 wpc
SP-X7000 1978-1982 4-WAY 5-DRIVER 130W 15" WOOFER
SP-X8000 1978-1982 4-WAY 6-DRIVER 160W 16" WOOFER
SP-X9000 1978-1982 4-WAY 6-DRIVER 16" WOOFER 220 wpc
SP-Z6 1977-1980 4-WAY 4-DRIVER 100W 12" WOOFER
SP-Z7 1977-1980 4-WAY 4-DRIVER 100W 15" WOOFER
SP-Z77 1978-1980 4-WAY 5-DRIVER 120W 12" WOOFER
SP-Z770 1978-1980 4-WAY 4-DRIVER 350W 12" WOOFER
SP-Z7II 1978-1980 4-WAY 4-DRIVER 100W 15" WOOFER
SP-Z9 1978-1980 5-WAY 6-DRIVER 320W 17" WOOFER
SP-Z99 1978-1980 4-WAY 5-DRIVER 320W 14" WOOFER
SP-Z9II 1978-1980 5-WAY 6-DRIVER 320W 17" WOOFER

Wakefield Turntables
20-12-2011, 22:24
OMG! Looks like I'll be doing a load of digging around!

The Grand Wazoo
20-12-2011, 22:36
Well, there are only 6 three way models in that list & just having some model numbers has got to help the search.

The Grand Wazoo
21-12-2011, 01:33
Something else that may help - in Japan the AU-517 was called the AU-607!

pete_mac
21-12-2011, 02:16
Unless you are absolutely set on the appearance and originality of the Sansui speakers, I would look at different speakers from this period instead. Sansui's speakers were not up to par with the rest of their gear, and do not allow the AU-517 to sound as good as it otherwise can.

Tape-deck-wise, the SC-1330, SC-2110, SC-5110 etc are the matching tape decks for the 517.

Wakefield Turntables
21-12-2011, 19:02
Unless you are absolutely set on the appearance and originality of the Sansui speakers, I would look at different speakers from this period instead. Sansui's speakers were not up to par with the rest of their gear, and do not allow the AU-517 to sound as good as it otherwise can.

Tape-deck-wise, the SC-1330, SC-2110, SC-5110 etc are the matching tape decks for the 517.

Thanks for the latest info in the quest to get this system put together. I must admit that I dont really fancy another pair of crappy 70's speakers in my collection but I would just like to know which ones I used to listen to back in the day. I already have some Quad ESL's, celestion's, and ATC's, now if a nice of Yamaha ns1000m's popped up at a nice price then yes of course I need another pair of 70's speakers. I dont think I'll be bothering with the tape deck I have a nice nakamichi to mess around with but I do fancy one of these http://classichifi.info/SansuiSR-929.htm :eyebrows:. I'll be speaking with my mate and his dad this weekend down the pub so I may be able to update the thread a little more. Finally, I may have tracked the 517 tuner down, but I'm only buying it if it has the cool retro handles. ;)

jazzpiano
21-12-2011, 19:22
Thanks for clarifying for me Andrew. A friend of mine has a Sansui t-table that his dad gave him that he bought back from Vietnam in the early 70s - might this be what you're lookin for? I'll see him later today and he could give me the low-down if you want?

~Barry

Wakefield Turntables
21-12-2011, 20:21
Barry that sounds great, thanks mate. If it turned out to be a SR929 that would be a real turn up for the books, but yes please get details and if the TT looks 1/2 decent it maybe worth a punt.

Wakefield Turntables
21-12-2011, 20:23
Unless you are absolutely set on the appearance and originality of the Sansui speakers, I would look at different speakers from this period instead. Sansui's speakers were not up to par with the rest of their gear, and do not allow the AU-517 to sound as good as it otherwise can.

Tape-deck-wise, the SC-1330, SC-2110, SC-5110 etc are the matching tape decks for the 517.

Thanks mate! I'm still trying to track down the tuner and itergrated amp for a decent price, and they must have the retro handles! :ner:

jazzpiano
25-12-2011, 04:43
Hi Andrew and Merry Christmas! Unfortunately my friend's table is a 2050C. However, as I was doing a little research for you I came across this gallery of Sansui decks:

http://www.sansui.us/Turntables.htm

-on a few of the nicer table pics it noted the images were supplied by ebay member hifinut1, who is a UK resident. I found him under stores and it looks like he has nothing at the moment but perhaps there is a link to an e-mail where you could let him know what you're looking for. He may be a Sansui specialist, which has it's ups (knowledge/quality) and downs (price?). In the meantime I'll keep an eye out.
Sorry I couldn't be of more help.

Best,
Barry

Wakefield Turntables
25-12-2011, 20:25
Hi Andrew and Merry Christmas! Unfortunately my friend's table is a 2050C. However, as I was doing a little research for you I came across this gallery of Sansui decks:

http://www.sansui.us/Turntables.htm

-on a few of the nicer table pics it noted the images were supplied by ebay member hifinut1, who is a UK resident. I found him under stores and it looks like he has nothing at the moment but perhaps there is a link to an e-mail where you could let him know what you're looking for. He may be a Sansui specialist, which has it's ups (knowledge/quality) and downs (price?). In the meantime I'll keep an eye out.
Sorry I couldn't be of more help.

Best,
Barry

Barry,

Many thanks mate for taking the time to point and do research as well. I may have some news soon about the status of this project, depends on if an ebayer in the states can be coaxed into sending the intergrated amp and tuner over. :)