UPDATE: So I’m running a 3-part LIVE workshop that takes us on… A Time Travel Through Vintage Electronics. We’ll rewind the clock, dive into the tech of the times… (and study the very history of how things were broken and repaired has evolved) The workshop is coming soon, but if you're reading this then you're in luck (or not)... And there's still time for you to sign up using the link below: www.menditmark.com/mend-mark-workshop The workshop dates are mentioned in the link above too.
How on earth did you acquire such intricate knowledge of your subject Mark? You surley must have started when you were very young. With your enthusiasm for the work, you make it look so straightforward but to be able to identify faults amongst such a hornets nest of components is a truly gifted talent. Your videos are an absolute joy to watch.
In the mid-60s, my parents had exactly this Modell.Es was in our living room.I did an internship as a radio and television technician in 1976 and repaired the radio more often than it was defective. Greetings from Germany.Thank you great video
A lot of the German made radios had a lot of features like this in this era. They were made so well too. Lovely radios when you get them going. A lot of the paper caps and electrolytics in the filter will be needing replacing in these, but it is always good to see some proper trouble shooting done instead of just wholesale replacing the capacitors. A lot will be like this one and not operational due to the capacitors and sometimes resistors that drift in value. Those old paper capacitors go acidic inside and the paper breaks down,. They basically turn into resistors internally, which is why a lot of restoration channels will just replace all paper caps. The "Black Beauties" are also paper and foil inside. Guess it is hard when you are doing it for a customer to know how far to go as it takes time. The Ferrite rod in this likely originally had rubber mounts and plastic brackets that held the ferrite rod in place. Epoxy will stop it moving for a while. I usually put the bluetooth on the tape input on these when I do them. That way the bluetooth only works if tape input is selected. I designed my bluetooth module to run off the 6.3V AC heater line rather than adding an extra transformer :) There is usually plenty of power available and the bluetooth takes very little current.
If you ever need dual can caps, they still make them. I service tube amps and regularly order them. Usually from Hotrox or Watford valves. JJ, F&T and ARS are all decent and always available. Excellent video, as usual!
A paper business card drawn through switch contacts will polish them right up. No need to bend them or wedge a Q-tip in there. You can start with one slightly soaked with DeOxit, then move to a dry card. Works the best for all of the pinball machines and old telephone contacts that I restore. Love you videos Mark!
My late Father had 1 of these radios at our home in Essex...I think it was Bush but looks identical. I am in awe of your knowledge, skill and patience.
Hello Mark it’s a Yank from across the pond and I watched your full video last night on fixing the Cassette Player. I must say I am amazed at your ability and skill level. We live in a Disposable Society now a days. As a kid I was constantly taking anything apart before my Mom got home, those old heavy rotary phones were weapons and could save your life if a sneaky burglar came through the window from the fire scape. Those were tough times, we all had to pull our weight, shoveling snow, collecting soda pop bottles for the deposit, etc. This early obsession with wondering how things worked stayed with me through out life. I became a plumbing and heating mechanic and I learned on the fly. Oh I would attend any seminars for new equipment. I eventually got a Class C electrical license for low voltage. But I was originally a one man band, but a neighbor liked that I tried to do the best job, most people don’t understand various types of heating systems, Steam, Hot Air or circulating Hot Water. But as the old saying goes, Anything is Easy when you’ve done it before. LOL My friend was retired from IBM & NuTone, he was the only person I knew who had an Oscilloscope in his basement workshop. As time went by I showed him the sequence of the electrical system, most were a simple Series Circuit. But much like yourself he started to repair a broken controller box. This was when a controller had multiple ports and to let the controller handle other boilers, which was fine for a temporary repair in a Blizzard. But Insurance companies tend to object when a possible problem occurs and even causing a fire, which had nothing to do with the controller. It’s a bit ironic that people spend thousands for the system and jam it into a small closet or cupboard ? Usually next to a washing machine and clothes to near the firebox, or a leaky oil line, not a good idea. Although Paul knew how to rewire a controller, Insurance and Liability can make not a good idea. But as I started, we live in a Disposable Society, I still enjoy the challenge of fixing stuff. Perhaps it started at a young age with watching Sherlock Holmes ? Oh btw Mark, Thanks again for showing us that many things can be repaired and restored to great working quality. It’s sad that many of the Joes Fix It Shops are rare and far between. Oh Mark btw, do you have a website or any contact information. I recently started an old hobby again, collecting Vynil records and Vintage HiFi components. Cheers Mark 👍🇬🇧🍺
Mark makes working on electronics like tying shoes. He has such a positive demeanor when approaching a electronic problem. If only World Leaders be more like Mark 😊
Those little black speakers may be electrostatic tweeters. A lot of German top of the range radios from the late 1950's had them - connected via a small capacitor to the anode of the output valve.hajjj
I remember as a teenager in the 1970s being given a Grundig reel to reel tape recorder . It was enormous and the most complex mechanical and electrical monster I'd ever seen ! It was built on a cast iron chassis , and all the piano key controls operated solenoids that in turn pushed and pulled all the various pinch wheels etc on the deck . It had a total of 8 valves ( tubes), and a huge finned selenium rectifier on the power supply unit. It was only mono , but the built in speaker was huge, and the microphone was a very heavy ribbon type. All it required was the heads and pinch wheel cleaning and it worked perfectly. The neighbour who gave it to me said it was from the very early 60s ,and cost the equivalent of around £ 200 when new ( bearing in mind this was 1971 and a new Ford Escort was about ? £750 at the time!
Mark, lovely old radio! I've collected vintage valve radios for 14 years, and what I've found is that initially when a radio is turned on after many years of slumber, it'll work okay for a while, but then the old capacitors will short or go open, sometimes explode after an hour or two's usage, so that's why it's advisable to replace as many caps as possible, even the low voltage ones!
As always attention to detail and their is one thing I do like very much is just the humming of your workshop with just your voice and the sound of your tools 😊
As always, a pleasure to watch Mark. You really brighten up my day. They sure don't make them like they used to, in many ways it's so much easier today.
Congratulations,friend Mark. I from Perú.I dont speak english. Y me gusta como abordas las reparaciones,con tu carisma y toda la instrumentación profesional. Dios te bendiga. God blessyou.
The original main filter caps were placed away from the RF section on the opposite side of the board in a canned cap to limit noise, your replacements were very close to the coils. Generally warming up with a Variac is recommended rather than hitting with full mains if it hasn't been turned on for a while. Good video.
Thanks for sharing your know how, and taking a 60+years radio and give it one more life of making music.. and demonstrating at the same time how precious thes old technologies were.. and they were within reach of the people who wanted to learn about them and repair them, right at the corner of the street, nearby. Now, try to open any recent Dac or Streamer and see if you can get it to work again.. my EAD Dac just died, and no one can repair it.. sigh. Thanks Mark! 👍
Man, they don't make 'em like they used to... and good thing too. The transistor completely transformed electronic gadgets and made today's computers, internet etc, possible. Another great video. Excellent presentation and technical knowledge as usual. :) If I had that radio, I'd just have to try those speakers with a stereo amp and hear what they sounded like. Imagine stereo sound from that classic radio!
Amazing radio. I have the 1956 American version, different colors and the 4 smaller speakers are mounted on the side. Still all original, still gets played a few hours a week. 😊
When I was taught, I was told it's best practice to cut the component leads to length BEFORE soldering them. That is supposed to avoid the joints going dodgy down the line. You cover the cut end with solder and it protects it.
Amazing to watch you repair these old radios, it looks like first port of call, replace every capacitor before you start fault finding as you will probably fix 90% of the problems instantly 😂
Watched this with fascination, because although I'm not technically minded, the assurance displayed here made compulsive viewing. I do like restorations, and this one fitted the bill perfectly. Thank you Mark.
Well done Mark saving something ending up on scrap heap I am a bit like you I try to repair them if can to much ending up on the dump good video great repair
Very very interesting. I have a question, though: why didn't you use the tape input ("Tonband") for bluetooth? So it would have been selectable from the appropriate button...
fantastico trabajo!!!! yo aprendi con valvulares en 1982 aqui en santiago del estero al norte de argentina a los 16 años. me trajiste hermosos recuerdos de esas epocas ... hoy ya etoy casi retirado del oficio a los 59 por la vista y la firmeza de las manos. pero el amor a la electronica no se va mas...me especialize en computacion a los 45 años y eso me permite prolongar el vicio que es la tecnologia electronica.celebro que todavia haya gente como vos que trabaje con cosas de epocas antiguas electronicas... saludos desde el norte de argentina mark de un colega que se niega a retirarse...
Omg I just found your videos , my late father use to repair TVs radios ,all those names and the components you mention brought back so many memories of when I use to watch him as a child ,im now 59, btw your knowledge is amazing how did such a young guy learn all about these old period sets , thanks great watching on a Sunday afternoon
That's what I like about old radios, you look inside at a wonderland - unlike the single chip and one or two surface mount components I have seen on modern things, they have no soul. Most enjoyable, thanks for sharing.
I’m fascinated by this, there used to be a fantastic wood cased radio where I served my apprenticeship it had a round front with big wooden louvres and a vertical tuner array along with the magic eye. I used to think about replacing the internals with some modern hardware and have a radio with what looked like a 1940’s American car grille.
That took me back a few years. I used to sit with my Grandad in the early 70's and watch him "repair" old broken radios and anything else he could get his hands on, he never had the electronics you have, just screwdrivers, soldering iron and a hammer 😀. Brilliant stuff, liked and subscribed.
@ 51:56 those grid coupling caps have different voltage ratings because the 500v rated cap blocks off the anode voltage of the phase inverter triode to the top output valve grid whereas the 250v rated cap to the grid of the bottom output valve grid is connected to cathode of the phase inverter, thus much closer to ground potential. I have fixed countless of these radios and have experienced most of these ERO and Wima paper- foil caps failing within hours of them testing ok, problem being that they attract moisture and the paper goes acidic, so I save myself the grief of having to (almost inevitably) repair a second time by binning all of these caps at least in the audio section. Excellent video and Bluetooth tutorial!
Hello, The first thing to do in Restoring these old Valve Radios to exchange all those called Tarbombs (capacitors) Why didnt you use the Tonband (Tape) Input for Bluetooth? Well done this Radio is ready now for the Future
My uncle was the agent for these in Cape Town I remember seeing one in his repair bench I was just 6 yrs old - inspired me to unscrew everything in sight become an it audio engineer
Марк, вы великолепный мастер своего дела. Всегда улыбка, несмотря на некоторые вещи что идут не так. Спасибо вам. Всего доброго семье. Привет из России 🇷🇸
28:42 I was surprised the coupling capacitor for the bass speakers wasn't a non-polarized type. All-in-all a fantastic rebuild. It seems when you fix something, *it's fixed!*
You can use non polar caps for small and large signal coupling with no issues, as long as the offset voltage across it is a good bit lower than the cap's voltage rating. Polar coupling caps will introduce a tiny amount of distortion... In this old radio it wouldn't be measurable compared the amp and speaker distortions.
A very nice great repair. I like it. But let me give you one advice: these brown metall-paper capacitors (Brand ERO) are really bad in general after 60 years. Especially when used as a coupling condenser their leakage current may even destroy the power tubes and/or lead to damage of the speaker transformer due to increased bias current. (One end of the coupling condenser goes to Anode of the preamp stage leadind 150V, the other lead goes to control grid of the power tube which has -7,5V in respect to the kathode of this tube. Any little leakage can cause a big problem) So i don´t take any risk at all, they go to the garbage bin first before I just even think about to put power to the radio. Testing them on a insulation tester they all read bad, because the tar seal is cracked and the paper dielectric has absorbed moisture from the air. You could try to cook them in wax, driving out moisture, but the result and sustainability is quite questionable. Modern foil caps are just much better. And there´s another spot where such a 5000pf ERO can cause serious risk of electrical shock. It is connected across the chassis and one of the power supply conductors. I'm not sure about the situation in GB, but in Germany it is possible to insert the power plug in any orientation. Therefore the mentioned cap can either be connected to N or L. Nowadays a X1/X2 safety capacitor would be required on that spot. The reason for this capacitor at all is to ensure good AM-receiving quality, when poeple were lazy to connect the ground wire. Many people understood the necessity of an antenna for radio reception, but they did not understand the importance of a good ground connection as a counterpoint to the antenna. To avoid annoying complaints, many manufacturers decided in favour of this capacitor. For the radio waves, it doesn't really matter whether you use the L or N wire as the aerial opposite pole. But it's no fun for people if this damn capacitor fails and the chassis is now at 220V potential. As a safe solution for my projects, I have decided to remove this capacitor without replacement and instead use a three-core mains cable with PE conductor and establish a safe connection between the chassis and PE. The local safety regulations must be observed here. Remember: not only you, but also people you love want to enjoy the radio. With best regards from Germany Peter
And me. 99% of the time I have no idea what's going on, but that doesn't mean I don't find his repairs/restorations fascinating! Mark certainly knows his stuff.
Fantastic Mark one of the more challenging projects you have done and certainly one of the more interesting ones too. It amazes me just how knowledgeable you are nothing seems to upset you and you keep coming through with results. keep the jobs coming Mark you have a very loyal following we continue to need a "fix" from yourself. Take care.
Great video but just a little tip: These small, Tar-filled Caps with the brown sleeve made by Roederstein (usually marked with ERO) are well known here in the german vintage radio community for failing really quickly due to the bad tar sealing leaking moisture from the air. So it‘s better to just change them right away
My Parents had an unusual Philips radiogram in the 50s & 60s that had separated individual Bass & Treble speakers. With a record player in a cabinet. Unfortunately I no longer have it. It did have a good sound. I think they bought it in Holland, we lived there when I was very young. I wish I'd kept it now, it was an unusual layout. Not as sophisticated at the one you're working on. My mother used to play Sachmo 78rpm Recordings in it.
Just for all who are interested in this: Volkswagen actually produced and produces only commercial vehicles in Hannover. The other main production location is Wolfsburg (sometimes also called „Golfsburg“ because of the quite famous VW Golf line of cars; a city that as a matter of fact only became one because of the factory). The actual first factory was build in Braunschweig though.
Mark, what can I say? What a fantastic vlog, full of so much content and skill. We'll done, I always look forward to seeing your work. Wish you could be more frequent with more posts 👍👏👏👏👏
bonjour de la France mark ,je connaît strictement rien en électronique , quel patience ,et quel savoir faire ! vos vidéos sont excellente et passionnante a regarder ! tu a gagné un abonné.
Greetings from Wombourne, I enjoy your work and have watched many of your videos, always a pleasure. I,m glad none of the caps exploded when you juiced it up.
All those caps should be replaced, except the ceramic discs. Leaking coupling caps will present a large plate voltage to the succeeding stage grid and cause overcurrent. This can pop the tube or burnt out the power transformer . Leaking main filter caps will overtax the power supply. Cut them out of the circuit but leave in for the look. Attach modern electrolytics underneath.
It’s funny, I’m American and I far prefer the term ‘valve’ over ‘tube’, to me it makes more sense. Given the frequency that caps turn out to be dodgy, why not just replace all of them to start with? The OG ones in there will likely just have issues in the future as well.
I'm surprised you haven't had a lot of valve radio restorers on here telling you to change all the wax capacitors as they go leaky. But to be fair I think you have changed all the high voltage wax caps i.e. plate to grid couplers - you just didn't make a big point about doing it. There's plenty of videos out there doing that anyway. If other wax caps fail it probably will still work. It all depends on if you're doing a deep restore or just trying to get it to work reliably at a reasonable cost. Great video again, always enjoy watching your work.
UPDATE:
So I’m running a 3-part LIVE workshop that takes us on…
A Time Travel Through Vintage Electronics.
We’ll rewind the clock, dive into the tech of the times…
(and study the very history of how things were broken and repaired has evolved)
The workshop is coming soon, but if you're reading this then you're in luck (or not)...
And there's still time for you to sign up using the link below:
www.menditmark.com/mend-mark-workshop
The workshop dates are mentioned in the link above too.
Das ist großartig, Mark!
The confidence of Mark is unbelievable, an example of an expert who smiles when something goes wrong.
How on earth did you acquire such intricate knowledge of your subject Mark? You surley must have started when you were very young. With your enthusiasm for the work, you make it look so straightforward but to be able to identify faults amongst such a hornets nest of components is a truly gifted talent. Your videos are an absolute joy to watch.
Well said
Always a great night when Mark gets a new video out!
Yes indeed !!
Especially as it’s an hour long
bro it sets up my whole evening, sit down and watch MendItMark with a cuppa - love it @@king_ofgames3650
The best way to go to sleep !❤
IKR@@PuiuM3u
In the mid-60s, my parents had exactly this Modell.Es was in our living room.I did an internship as a radio and television technician in 1976 and repaired the radio more often than it was defective. Greetings from Germany.Thank you great video
There's nothing like the glow of a magic eye. Brought back memories of when my late father used to repair these. Thanks Mark
And his Jap's eye as he waved it under your nose.
What an absolute gem to restore to beyond it's original capacity. Awesome work Mark
I think Telefunken Largo still the best...👍👍👍
I know nothing about electricity or electronics, but these videos are fascinating! Thank you Mark, always a pleasure!
i know quite a bit, but it facinates me too 🙂
A lot of the German made radios had a lot of features like this in this era. They were made so well too.
Lovely radios when you get them going. A lot of the paper caps and electrolytics in the filter will be needing replacing in these, but it is always good to see some proper trouble shooting done instead of just wholesale replacing the capacitors. A lot will be like this one and not operational due to the capacitors and sometimes resistors that drift in value. Those old paper capacitors go acidic inside and the paper breaks down,. They basically turn into resistors internally, which is why a lot of restoration channels will just replace all paper caps. The "Black Beauties" are also paper and foil inside. Guess it is hard when you are doing it for a customer to know how far to go as it takes time.
The Ferrite rod in this likely originally had rubber mounts and plastic brackets that held the ferrite rod in place. Epoxy will stop it moving for a while.
I usually put the bluetooth on the tape input on these when I do them. That way the bluetooth only works if tape input is selected. I designed my bluetooth module to run off the 6.3V AC heater line rather than adding an extra transformer :) There is usually plenty of power available and the bluetooth takes very little current.
its unbelievable how the circuits were constructed without circuit boards it all hangs in the air .. brilliant repair!! nice work
You cannot beat UK electronics engineering channels, so relaxing and informative. Big Thumbs Up.
It’s a real joy to watch someone with such competence go about doing their work.
If you ever need dual can caps, they still make them. I service tube amps and regularly order them. Usually from Hotrox or Watford valves. JJ, F&T and ARS are all decent and always available. Excellent video, as usual!
Mundorf make twin caps with a common ground pin too. Think it's the MLytic HV range.
You made a fantastic job of that Mark, especially with the Bluetooth added to it.👏👏👏👍
If you have a bad day, watch Mend it Mark and you will be mended to! What a guy, love it!
Thats exactly what i do!
A paper business card drawn through switch contacts will polish them right up. No need to bend them or wedge a Q-tip in there. You can start with one slightly soaked with DeOxit, then move to a dry card. Works the best for all of the pinball machines and old telephone contacts that I restore. Love you videos Mark!
My late Father had 1 of these radios at our home in Essex...I think it was Bush but looks identical. I am in awe of your knowledge, skill and patience.
31:58 Your initial repair brought Hall & Oates back together! Love your channel. Cheers from Canada!
Hello Mark it’s a Yank from across the pond and I watched your full video last night on fixing the Cassette Player. I must say I am amazed at your ability and skill level. We live in a Disposable Society now a days.
As a kid I was constantly taking anything apart before my Mom got home, those old heavy rotary phones were weapons and could save your life if a sneaky burglar came through the window from the fire scape. Those were tough times, we all had to pull our weight, shoveling snow, collecting soda pop bottles for the deposit, etc.
This early obsession with wondering how things worked stayed with me through out life.
I became a plumbing and heating mechanic and I learned on the fly. Oh I would attend any seminars for new equipment.
I eventually got a Class C electrical license for low voltage. But I was originally a one man band, but a neighbor liked that I tried to do the best job, most people don’t understand various types of heating systems, Steam, Hot Air or circulating Hot Water.
But as the old saying goes, Anything is Easy when you’ve done it before. LOL
My friend was retired from IBM & NuTone, he was the only person I knew who had an Oscilloscope in his basement workshop. As time went by I showed him the sequence of the electrical system, most were a simple Series Circuit.
But much like yourself he started to repair a broken controller box. This was when a controller had multiple ports and to let the controller handle other boilers, which was fine for a temporary repair in a Blizzard. But Insurance companies tend to object when a possible problem occurs and even causing a fire, which had nothing to do with the controller.
It’s a bit ironic that people spend thousands for the system and jam it into a small closet or cupboard ?
Usually next to a washing machine and clothes to near the firebox, or a leaky oil line, not a good idea.
Although Paul knew how to rewire a controller, Insurance and Liability can make not a good idea.
But as I started, we live in a Disposable Society, I still enjoy the challenge of fixing stuff.
Perhaps it started at a young age with watching Sherlock Holmes ?
Oh btw Mark, Thanks again for showing us that many things can be repaired and restored to great working quality.
It’s sad that many of the Joes Fix It Shops are rare and far between.
Oh Mark btw, do you have a website or any contact information.
I recently started an old hobby again, collecting Vynil records and Vintage HiFi components.
Cheers Mark 👍🇬🇧🍺
Mark has steady hands laying those micro parts in position. Amazing intelligence Thank you.
Reminds of my childhood. The sound, the smell, the broadcasts. Great piece of history.
That was a great video.. Tq. 🎉
Those Telefunken tubes are worth big money - far more than the radio.
Mark makes working on electronics like tying shoes. He has such a positive demeanor when approaching a electronic problem. If only World Leaders be more like Mark 😊
Muito bom parabéns pelo vídeo 😊moro no sul do Brasil🎉❤❤❤❤
Different class of workmanship. Well done. I am loving your videos and you are a lovely chap who is so passionate about what you do. Brilliant mate 👏
Those little black speakers may be electrostatic tweeters. A lot of German top of the range radios from the late 1950's had them - connected via a small capacitor to the anode of the output valve.hajjj
I remember as a teenager in the 1970s being given a Grundig reel to reel tape recorder . It was enormous and the most complex mechanical and electrical monster I'd ever seen ! It was built on a cast iron chassis , and all the piano key controls operated solenoids that in turn pushed and pulled all the various pinch wheels etc on the deck . It had a total of 8 valves ( tubes), and a huge finned selenium rectifier on the power supply unit.
It was only mono , but the built in speaker was huge, and the microphone was a very heavy ribbon type. All it required was the heads and pinch wheel cleaning and it worked perfectly.
The neighbour who gave it to me said it was from the very early 60s ,and cost the equivalent of around £ 200 when new ( bearing in mind this was 1971 and a new Ford Escort was about ? £750 at the time!
I don't think I have ever witnessed a better electronics repair job ... Outstanding , Mark Cheers
Mark, lovely old radio! I've collected vintage valve radios for 14 years, and what I've found is that initially when a radio is turned on after many years of slumber, it'll work okay for a while, but then the old capacitors will short or go open, sometimes explode after an hour or two's usage, so that's why it's advisable to replace as many caps as possible, even the low voltage ones!
I love the old switch gear - a solid vintage "CLICK"....how satisfying. A little finesse of the contacts and its ready to go after all those years.
As always attention to detail and their is one thing I do like very much is just the humming of your workshop with just your voice and the sound of your tools 😊
As always, a pleasure to watch Mark. You really brighten up my day. They sure don't make them like they used to, in many ways it's so much easier today.
Great to see another cheery journey through old tech with Mark. Great content - thank you!
Congratulations,friend Mark. I from Perú.I dont speak english. Y me gusta como abordas las reparaciones,con tu carisma y toda la instrumentación profesional. Dios te bendiga. God blessyou.
mark a very educated engineer far far beyond my ability // great towatch his videos // thanks mark for the enjoyment
The original main filter caps were placed away from the RF section on the opposite side of the board in a canned cap to limit noise, your replacements were very close to the coils.
Generally warming up with a Variac is recommended rather than hitting with full mains if it hasn't been turned on for a while.
Good video.
Nice job Mark.👍
You are so cheerful even when faced with a mess of failing capacitors.
Thanks for sharing your know how, and taking a 60+years radio and give it one more life of making music.. and demonstrating at the same time how precious thes old technologies were.. and they were within reach of the people who wanted to learn about them and repair them, right at the corner of the street, nearby.
Now, try to open any recent Dac or Streamer and see if you can get it to work again.. my EAD Dac just died, and no one can repair it.. sigh. Thanks Mark! 👍
Man, they don't make 'em like they used to... and good thing too. The transistor completely transformed electronic gadgets and made today's computers, internet etc, possible. Another great video. Excellent presentation and technical knowledge as usual. :)
If I had that radio, I'd just have to try those speakers with a stereo amp and hear what they sounded like. Imagine stereo sound from that classic radio!
great video Mark
Amazing radio. I have the 1956 American version, different colors and the 4 smaller speakers are mounted on the side. Still all original, still gets played a few hours a week. 😊
When I was taught, I was told it's best practice to cut the component leads to length BEFORE soldering them. That is supposed to avoid the joints going dodgy down the line. You cover the cut end with solder and it protects it.
its all well over my head but I can see just how smart and talented Mark is at his trade, well done Sir and cheers from NZ
Excelente video, saludos desde Tegucigalpa ,Honduras
Wow! What a stress buster to watch Mark fix things up. Highly optimistic. Thank you so much. 🎉😊 Good luck and best wishes to you and yours.
I could go into deep sleep... every time i listen to Mark ... the broken electronics whisperer.
Superbe video!!! I am an old man and I remember these. They were expensive and very good. Cheers from Patagonia. Argentina
Amazing to watch you repair these old radios, it looks like first port of call, replace every capacitor before you start fault finding as you will probably fix 90% of the problems instantly 😂
You really are an amazing technician. Love watching your videos.
Watched this with fascination, because although I'm not technically minded, the assurance displayed here made compulsive viewing. I do like restorations, and this one fitted the bill perfectly. Thank you Mark.
Well done Mark saving something ending up on scrap heap I am a bit like you I try to repair them if can to much ending up on the dump good video great repair
Very very interesting. I have a question, though: why didn't you use the tape input ("Tonband") for bluetooth? So it would have been selectable from the appropriate button...
Best electronics repair channel on yt by far. All the best Mark.
fantastico trabajo!!!! yo aprendi con valvulares en 1982 aqui en santiago del estero al norte de argentina a los 16 años. me trajiste hermosos recuerdos de esas epocas ... hoy ya etoy casi retirado del oficio a los 59 por la vista y la firmeza de las manos. pero el amor a la electronica no se va mas...me especialize en computacion a los 45 años y eso me permite prolongar el vicio que es la tecnologia electronica.celebro que todavia haya gente como vos que trabaje con cosas de epocas antiguas electronicas... saludos desde el norte de argentina mark de un colega que se niega a retirarse...
Omg I just found your videos , my late father use to repair TVs radios ,all those names and the components you mention brought back so many memories of when I use to watch him as a child ,im now 59, btw your knowledge is amazing how did such a young guy learn all about these old period sets , thanks great watching on a Sunday afternoon
That's what I like about old radios, you look inside at a wonderland - unlike the single chip and one or two surface mount components I have seen on modern things, they have no soul. Most enjoyable, thanks for sharing.
I’m fascinated by this, there used to be a fantastic wood cased radio where I served my apprenticeship it had a round front with big wooden louvres and a vertical tuner array along with the magic eye. I used to think about replacing the internals with some modern hardware and have a radio with what looked like a 1940’s American car grille.
"Thanks(for)giving" us another stellar peak into your brilliance in the workshop.
That took me back a few years. I used to sit with my Grandad in the early 70's and watch him "repair" old broken radios and anything else he could get his hands on, he never had the electronics you have, just screwdrivers, soldering iron and a hammer 😀.
Brilliant stuff, liked and subscribed.
@ 51:56 those grid coupling caps have different voltage ratings because the 500v rated cap blocks off the anode voltage of the phase inverter triode to the top output valve grid whereas the
250v rated cap to the grid of the bottom output valve grid is connected to cathode of the phase inverter, thus much closer to ground potential.
I have fixed countless of these radios and have experienced most of these ERO and Wima paper- foil caps failing within hours of them testing ok, problem being that they attract moisture and the paper goes acidic, so I save myself the grief of having to (almost inevitably) repair a second time by binning all of these caps at least in the audio section.
Excellent video and Bluetooth tutorial!
Hello,
The first thing to do in Restoring these old Valve Radios to exchange all those called Tarbombs (capacitors)
Why didnt you use the Tonband (Tape) Input for Bluetooth?
Well done this Radio is ready now for the Future
My uncle was the agent for these in Cape Town I remember seeing one in his repair bench I was just 6 yrs old - inspired me to unscrew everything in sight become an it audio engineer
Марк, вы великолепный мастер своего дела. Всегда улыбка, несмотря на некоторые вещи что идут не так. Спасибо вам. Всего доброго семье. Привет из России 🇷🇸
28:42 I was surprised the coupling capacitor for the bass speakers wasn't a non-polarized type.
All-in-all a fantastic rebuild. It seems when you fix something, *it's fixed!*
You can use non polar caps for small and large signal coupling with no issues, as long as the offset voltage across it is a good bit lower than the cap's voltage rating. Polar coupling caps will introduce a tiny amount of distortion... In this old radio it wouldn't be measurable compared the amp and speaker distortions.
Wish I had the electrical skills of this guy very few people any where have this talent.
A very nice great repair. I like it. But let me give you one advice: these brown metall-paper capacitors (Brand ERO) are really bad in general after 60 years. Especially when used as a coupling condenser their leakage current may even destroy the power tubes and/or lead to damage of the speaker transformer due to increased bias current. (One end of the coupling condenser goes to Anode of the preamp stage leadind 150V, the other lead goes to control grid of the power tube which has -7,5V in respect to the kathode of this tube. Any little leakage can cause a big problem) So i don´t take any risk at all, they go to the garbage bin first before I just even think about to put power to the radio.
Testing them on a insulation tester they all read bad, because the tar seal is cracked and the paper dielectric has absorbed moisture from the air. You could try to cook them in wax, driving out moisture, but the result and sustainability is quite questionable. Modern foil caps are just much better.
And there´s another spot where such a 5000pf ERO can cause serious risk of electrical shock. It is connected across the chassis and one of the power supply conductors.
I'm not sure about the situation in GB, but in Germany it is possible to insert the power plug in any orientation. Therefore the mentioned cap can either be connected to N or L. Nowadays a X1/X2 safety capacitor would be required on that spot. The reason for this capacitor at all is to ensure good AM-receiving quality, when poeple were lazy to connect the ground wire. Many people understood the necessity of an antenna for radio reception, but they did not understand the importance of a good ground connection as a counterpoint to the antenna. To avoid annoying complaints, many manufacturers decided in favour of this capacitor.
For the radio waves, it doesn't really matter whether you use the L or N wire as the aerial opposite pole. But it's no fun for people if this damn capacitor fails and the chassis is now at 220V potential.
As a safe solution for my projects, I have decided to remove this capacitor without replacement and instead use a three-core mains cable with PE conductor and establish a safe connection between the chassis and PE. The local safety regulations must be observed here. Remember: not only you, but also people you love want to enjoy the radio.
With best regards from Germany
Peter
I think UK sets did this too with the Earth.
People who really know what they’re doing make their work look easy.
Great video! Those old radios sound wonderful!
I have a Philco Transglobe that I enjoy listening while having my 5 o' clock tea!
Love to have your knowledge Mark. Even a little bit!
Dude, your work on the jam box 📻 was amazing. The fact that you customize pieces - so cool!
I've gotta say, that's one of the prettiest pieces you've had on your bench.
What a clever chap you are Mark. Even thought I don't understand electronics I still really enjoy your content. Brilliant!!!!!
And me. 99% of the time I have no idea what's going on, but that doesn't mean I don't find his repairs/restorations fascinating! Mark certainly knows his stuff.
I have to say that compared with PCB construction these old radios look downright dangerous to me! Brilliant you can fix them for sure!
Fantastic Mark one of the more challenging projects you have done and certainly one of the more interesting ones too. It amazes me just how knowledgeable you are nothing seems to upset you and you keep coming through with results. keep the jobs coming Mark you have a very loyal following we continue to need a "fix" from yourself. Take care.
Nicely done with the radio.
correct me if i am wrong , it all replacing caps and cleaning contacts to make valve radio's work again.
Great video but just a little tip: These small, Tar-filled Caps with the brown sleeve made by Roederstein (usually marked with ERO) are well known here in the german vintage radio community for failing really quickly due to the bad tar sealing leaking moisture from the air. So it‘s better to just change them right away
My Parents had an unusual Philips radiogram in the 50s & 60s that had separated individual Bass & Treble speakers. With a record player in a cabinet. Unfortunately I no longer have it. It did have a good sound. I think they bought it in Holland, we lived there when I was very young. I wish I'd kept it now, it was an unusual layout. Not as sophisticated at the one you're working on. My mother used to play Sachmo 78rpm
Recordings in it.
Absolutely love watching your videos Mark! Skillset is off the scale and also learned a few tips and tricks!
Just for all who are interested in this: Volkswagen actually produced and produces only commercial vehicles in Hannover. The other main production location is Wolfsburg (sometimes also called „Golfsburg“ because of the quite famous VW Golf line of cars; a city that as a matter of fact only became one because of the factory). The actual first factory was build in Braunschweig though.
Beautiful material! Are you sure it's not Wolfsburg that is the home of VW?
Absolutely wonderful and the icing on the cake was listening to Andrea at the end of the video.
Most satisfying. I love those sound from those old radios.
Nearly choked when you put the neutral on the fuse until I remembered our British plugs are fused. Very nice work.
Mark you make it all look so easy. Great work once again.
Mark, what can I say? What a fantastic vlog, full of so much content and skill. We'll done, I always look forward to seeing your work. Wish you could be more frequent with more posts 👍👏👏👏👏
Wonderful upload, thanks Mark. I really enjoy wizards like you bringing these old gems back to life.
bonjour de la France mark ,je connaît strictement rien en électronique , quel patience ,et quel savoir faire ! vos vidéos sont excellente et passionnante a regarder ! tu a gagné un abonné.
Greetings from Wombourne, I enjoy your work and have watched many of your videos, always a pleasure. I,m glad none of the caps exploded when you juiced it up.
All those caps should be replaced, except the ceramic discs. Leaking coupling caps will present a large plate voltage to the succeeding stage grid and cause overcurrent. This can pop the tube or burnt out the power transformer . Leaking main filter caps will overtax the power supply. Cut them out of the circuit but leave in for the look. Attach modern electrolytics underneath.
चाळीस पन्नास वर्षांपूर्वी ज्याच्या घरावर मंगलोरी कौले ,सायकल, रेडिओ, म्हणजे खूप मोठा माणूस समजला जायचा.भारत.
Amazing!!!! You almost did that radio again to bring it back to life!!! Now it is a Markefunken!!!
Great Mark, i follow many restorer but you're my favourite. Thumbs up
1:24 ist for an ext. Speaker, yes Mark. 🙂
It is an classic German Radio with German Letters.
fascinating to watch you do your magic as usual Mark-great work!
Hello there! I love the way you troubleshoot. I enjoy and learned steps by step how to attact the trouble. Keep it up. 😊
It’s funny, I’m American and I far prefer the term ‘valve’ over ‘tube’, to me it makes more sense.
Given the frequency that caps turn out to be dodgy, why not just replace all of them to start with? The OG ones in there will likely just have issues in the future as well.
I'm surprised you haven't had a lot of valve radio restorers on here telling you to change all the wax capacitors as they go leaky. But to be fair I think you have changed all the high voltage wax caps i.e. plate to grid couplers - you just didn't make a big point about doing it. There's plenty of videos out there doing that anyway. If other wax caps fail it probably will still work. It all depends on if you're doing a deep restore or just trying to get it to work reliably at a reasonable cost. Great video again, always enjoy watching your work.
Beautiful set. Masterful work. I wish we had LW in the states for more than aircraft. AM is so crowded.