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Thread: Sony TA-E86B preamp mods

  1. #1
    Join Date: Oct 2017

    Location: Ontario, Canada

    Posts: 791
    I'm Svend.

    Default Sony TA-E86B preamp mods

    In this thread http://theartofsound.net/forum/showt...-advice-needed I was mulling over what to do to improve on my then rather lame preamp performance for phono. Well, after much thought and research I decided that the best course of action for now was to get the Sony modded and bring it up a notch or two. I could have stuck with the Sugden C28, but it is destined for our second system. The Sony has a very good and flexible phono stage, so why not try and make the best of it and the rest of the unit? If the upgrade failed, I could always pass it along to my daughter for her system so the money wouldn't be wasted.

    So, off I went to see Dan Santoni (DTS Audio, known here as Blackdog) to discuss this. He looked it over and declared he could make it sound better than the Sugden. Tall order! I honestly didn't believe him, as I think the Sugden sounds terrific. Well, "Have at it", was my reply. Got a message from Dan last week that the Sony was ready and I picked it up this weekend. Finally plugged it in last night and nearly fell of my chair when the first track started playing! Wow! This thing sounds COMPLETELY different! It doesn't even sound at all like the same unit I brought to Dan. Just fantastic! This was one of those "Holy Cow!" moments when your system takes a huge leap forward in a single step.

    How to describe the changes? Incredible clarity, speed and attack. Expanded tonal range - deeper bass, higher highs. At first I thought it was too bright, then realized that the Sugden (and the unmodded Sony before it) were rolling off the highs. This was not too bright, just much more accurate and detailed. Speaking of detail and transparency, that is probably the one area where the mods have made the most improvement -- there is so much more detail now, I really can't believe my ears. As for imaging, amazing! Almost pin-point imaging on some recordings, especially vocals where it seems the voice is just hanging there in space and you could reach out and touch the singer. Remarkable.

    Overall, what I describe above adds up to much more "presence", if that's the right word. The music seems like it's in the room, and not coming from a bunch of components.

    Here's a quick snapshot of what Dan did, for those who may also own one of these and are contemplating a mod:

    + replaced about 60 capacitors(!); pretty much all of them, incl. the ones in the phono stage; don't ask me which ones or what the new ones are, Dan can better answer that one.

    + removed and bridged a couple of caps that were not doing anything useful.

    + replaced the 2-wire lamp cord power lead with a proper 3-conductor heavier gauge cord.

    + fixed a grounding(?) problem which had low level current leaking into the chassis.

    And that's all I recall from my chat with Dan...I probably missed a bunch of things, but perhaps Dan will chime in here if he finds this thread.

    All in all I couldn't be happier. This was more than worth the time and expense. What I'm also so very pleased about, is how all the rest of the components in my system have risen along with this upgrade, which tells me that at the moment there are no weak links in the chain. Everything sounds better, from CD player and turntable (Heybrook!), through to the power amp and speakers.

    There is no way I'm selling or giving away this preamp now.

    Cheers,
    Svend
    Last edited by Svend N; 22-01-2018 at 21:41.

  2. #2
    Join Date: Aug 2009

    Location: Staffordshire, England

    Posts: 37,779
    I'm Martin.

    Default

    Glad that has worked out for you man.
    Current Lash Up:

    TEAC VRDS 701T > Sony TAE1000ESD > Krell KSA50S > JM Labs Focal Electra 926.

  3. #3
    Join Date: Oct 2017

    Location: Ontario, Canada

    Posts: 791
    I'm Svend.

    Default

    Thanks Martin. To say it exceeded expectations would be an understatement.

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