Sony TTS-8000 Turntable

[Nonnegativ]

Good decision - and it looks good ! I came to to same conclusion and send one of my TTS-8000's to "good old hifi" in Berlin where it is currently being refurbished.

I consider the TTS-8000 my final turntable, and don't want sleepless nights over its old caps etc.

[karma67]

the guy that both myself and beobloke use for tt repairs hates changing capacitors unless they have failed,he sights the lifespan of new caps (low) compared to the old ones (high),
make of that what you will but as adam will testify the guy knows his stuff.
personally im on the fence with this view.

[oldius]

I can understand that perspective. Nearly all my vintage equipment has been serviced and recapped by the engineer I use and all of it, bar none, has been faultless for several years afterwards. I have no intention of selling the Sony, it is the best I have had, so if it gives me many years of fault free service I will be delighted.

[DiveDeepDog]

My TTS was NOS, would you consider it safe from needing work?

[paulf-2007]

the guy that both myself and beobloke use for tt repairs hates changing capacitors unless they have failed,he sights the lifespan of new caps (low) compared to the old ones (high),
make of that what you will but as adam will testify the guy knows his stuff.
personally im on the fence with this view.

The fella I use for repairs didn't see any need to change the caps on my denon DP80 when he repaired the strobe. He gave them a visual inspection and said better to leave well alone

[Nonnegativ]

QUOTE=DiveDeepDog;1116311]My TTS was NOS, would you consider it safe from needing work?[/QUOTE]

Well...There are various views about that..

I would at least check the grease in the bearing which is reported to degrade. On both my TTS-8000 very little grease was left after 30 years.

Amp8.com has some nice pics of their restoration af a TTS-8000:
http://www.amp8.com/amp-etc/record/sony/tts8000.htm

[karma67]

i didnt know grease was used for the spindle,i wonder what spec?

[JohnG]

I have a recent history with Lenco's, so have a reasonable knowledge of the importance of overhauling a bearing, as a result of such a support to carry out such works, the Lenco Bearings have ended up with a host of alternative parts to be used, these bearings are from a design, that can be improved upon, whether it be a tighter tolerance DIY added part, a part made available from a additional machining operation, or a complete new bearing.
A unwanted noise/vibration can be received at the Stylus from a bearing,
the amount will usually increase when the bearing is not pristine.
Like all mechanical interfaces between two metals, following any treatment of the metal surfaces, a lubricant is the usual simple choice to control unwanted wear and maintain the design tolerances.
Lubricants have a limit to their life, so a service, i.e Lubricant Exchange will be the minimum requirement, as and when felt required from monitoring usage. The longer a Lubricant is left unchanged whether being used or at rest, the more the requirement to replace it with a up to date material, that will meet the requirements set out at the time of design.
A discussed case with the Lenco Bearing is the longevity of a Thrust Pad,
a part that can show wear relatively early in its service, there will be a time when a thrust pad is exchanged, that can become part of a periodical routine, at a time of changing a thrust pad, a exchange of Lubricant will take place as well.
I am not aware of any other TT that receives this type of attention on the Bearing.
A investigation into how to clean out and exchange oil/grease in a bearing is a worthy exercise, especially on any vintage TT that is in use.
There is usually a reported noticeable audible change, when a bearing is stripped cleaned and serviced, as well as the obvious extended time of platter being able to free spin.
If there are any free parts in the Bearing Make Up, that are showing signs of wear, then identifying if a replacement part is available, is worth the effort.
A obvious change to a free spinning platter will not be so identifiable on a DD TT, but the reassurance that the bearing is serviced, will be valuable.
There are up to date oil/grease technologies, it is worth looking into the types other vintage TT's have been using on their bearing overhauls, to check for compatibility with another bearing design.

[karma67]

very interesting john,in contrast an example would be the bearing on a pioneer pl-590 which i owned,the manual states that no lubricant is needed,the bearing in question was an oillite bearing i believe.
now we tt chaps,including myself think that after 30years it must need oiling despite the designers/makers claims,the question is what do we use? or do we head what they state and leave it alone?

again in the case of the sony tts-8000 nothing is mentioned in the service manual about oil,hence why i found the above comment about grease interesting.

[Nonnegativ]

very interesting john,in contrast an example would be the bearing on a pioneer pl-590 which i owned,the manual states that no lubricant is needed,the bearing in question was an oillite bearing i believe.
now we tt chaps,including myself think that after 30years it must need oiling despite the designers/makers claims,the question is what do we use? or do we head what they state and leave it alone?

again in the case of the sony tts-8000 nothing is mentioned in the service manual about oil,hence why i found the above comment about grease interesting.

It is easy to check the bearing on the TTS-8000 and see if any lubricant is left: Remove topplatter, unscrew small topplate and after removal of it - pull up the bearing by lifting the spindle.

And I know that all of us knows, but anyway: Since the topplatter on a DD is part of the drive, never start up the tt again without the topplate back in place.