Inspiration from 2010 - UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum

valvekits · 31st Dec 2010, 10:44 pm

I took a lot of inspiration from other forum members in the last year. I acquired a tip-bound mahogany Murphy A494SR radiogram, with a view to practicing some cabinet scraping. When the summer came, I stripped everything out and tried my hand at cabinet scraping according to the instructions in Col’s thread. A bit of polish later and I found that I quite liked the look of it. I think around that time Trevor was sparing no expense on his beloved Lola but I was already thinking of Linsley Hood pastures.
I built a JLH using pcb’s from China and a massive heat sink, everything was mounted into the radiogram. ( I don’t use the inbuilt speakers)
With some slight modifications it houses my mini disc and CD player,
There was also a long thread about phono - preamps and although I built a valve phono years ago I was inspired to have a go at an op amp version using the National LM4562 which turned out to be very accurate indeed. I incorporated this into a box with a stepped attenuator and selector switch (often referred to as a passive preamplifier) which is sat on top.
It all sounds wonderful to me I'm happy to report that all that class A heat came in handy in the last month and of course I still have the remaining parts of the Murphy for future use.
Happy New Year to All
Eddie

Silicon · 1st Jan 2011, 9:47 pm

I have been thinking about hiding my 'modern' audio equipment in a stylish vintage enclosure and I have also thought of modifying a radiogram. In my case I could hide my functional but ugly (unfinished) JLH MOSFET amplifier inside the radiogram.
I have also thought about making an 'art deco' or 1930s Murphy style facia for my floor standing speakers.

Can you operate the amplifier with the doors closed?
Which version of the class A amp did you make? 1969 or 1996? Did you make a regulated PSU?

p.s. Nice choice of music!
Brendan

valvekits · 1st Jan 2011, 11:05 pm

Well there is a very nice sticky on here about radiograms and it really does sum them up – they just aren’t loved or practical anymore. Unless of course you have got a very ugly JLH heat-sink to hide which was the case with me.
All the heat goes out the back so closed doors is not a problem, the heat-sink really is a beast.
The JLH is a 2005 constant current source type i.e. an up market 1996 version.
I originally started with regulated supplies which were fine, but on a whim went back to a shed load of caps as you can see in the pics. After these pics were taken I realized I could split the cap sections by inserting 0.5 ohm 7W resistors.

I don’t suppose many folk have Rotters Club as their main test record or maybe this one in the pic below; it was a warm evening.

Eddie

Tractorfan · 2nd Jan 2011, 5:30 pm

I've got "The Rotters Club" on cassette!
Cheers, Pete

31st Dec 2010, 10:44 pm	#1
valvekits Pentode Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Nottinghamshire, UK. Posts: 239	Inspiration from 2010 I took a lot of inspiration from other forum members in the last year. I acquired a tip-bound mahogany Murphy A494SR radiogram, with a view to practicing some cabinet scraping. When the summer came, I stripped everything out and tried my hand at cabinet scraping according to the instructions in Col’s thread. A bit of polish later and I found that I quite liked the look of it. I think around that time Trevor was sparing no expense on his beloved Lola but I was already thinking of Linsley Hood pastures. I built a JLH using pcb’s from China and a massive heat sink, everything was mounted into the radiogram. ( I don’t use the inbuilt speakers) With some slight modifications it houses my mini disc and CD player, There was also a long thread about phono - preamps and although I built a valve phono years ago I was inspired to have a go at an op amp version using the National LM4562 which turned out to be very accurate indeed. I incorporated this into a box with a stepped attenuator and selector switch (often referred to as a passive preamplifier) which is sat on top. It all sounds wonderful to me I'm happy to report that all that class A heat came in handy in the last month and of course I still have the remaining parts of the Murphy for future use. Happy New Year to All Eddie Attached Thumbnails

1st Jan 2011, 9:47 pm	#2
Silicon Nonode Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Coulsdon, London, UK. Posts: 2,163	Re: Inspiration from 2010 I have been thinking about hiding my 'modern' audio equipment in a stylish vintage enclosure and I have also thought of modifying a radiogram. In my case I could hide my functional but ugly (unfinished) JLH MOSFET amplifier inside the radiogram. I have also thought about making an 'art deco' or 1930s Murphy style facia for my floor standing speakers. Can you operate the amplifier with the doors closed? Which version of the class A amp did you make? 1969 or 1996? Did you make a regulated PSU? p.s. Nice choice of music! Brendan

1st Jan 2011, 11:05 pm	#3
valvekits Pentode Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Nottinghamshire, UK. Posts: 239	Re: Inspiration from 2010 Well there is a very nice sticky on here about radiograms and it really does sum them up – they just aren’t loved or practical anymore. Unless of course you have got a very ugly JLH heat-sink to hide which was the case with me. All the heat goes out the back so closed doors is not a problem, the heat-sink really is a beast. The JLH is a 2005 constant current source type i.e. an up market 1996 version. I originally started with regulated supplies which were fine, but on a whim went back to a shed load of caps as you can see in the pics. After these pics were taken I realized I could split the cap sections by inserting 0.5 ohm 7W resistors. I don’t suppose many folk have Rotters Club as their main test record or maybe this one in the pic below; it was a warm evening. Eddie Attached Thumbnails

2nd Jan 2011, 5:30 pm	#4
Tractorfan Dekatron Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: St. Frajou, l'Isle en Dodon, Haute Garonne, France.(Previously: Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, UK.) Posts: 3,183	Re: Inspiration from 2010 I've got "The Rotters Club" on cassette! Cheers, Pete __________________ "Hello?, Yes, I'm on the train, I might lose the signal soon as we're just going into a tunn..."