To learn more about electronics in a very different and effective way, and gain access to Mr Carlson's personal designs and inventions, visit the Mr Carlson's Lab Patreon page here: www.patreon.com/MrCarlsonsLab
Paul, Thanks for being so prolific while I am house-bound. I know the time and effort required to produce good-quality YT videos, and yours are the best.
I wanted to say how much I enjoy watching your videos. I appreciate the way you explain things, share your knowledge and experience working with different components over the years. I studied electronics back in my college days and have spent almost 40 years in the IT business. Thank you.
I loved Pioneer equipment, all I have left of my old Pioneer equipment is the PL50 turntable I purchased in Vietnam. I used to have a Hitach AM/FM/Cassette recorder/player combo but some prick stole it when I went home for the birth of my son in 71. Best damn radio I ever had.
One more of Mr Carlson's video to enjoy and learn. I hope one day, Mr. Carlson take on a The Fisher 80T hi fi preamp and AM/FM tuner and also a The Fisher 80T amp. I've got both from the person who restored and aligned them. He made a great job. But it's never too much to know more about your favorite equipment.
Why would any one want to put a thumbs down on this guy. He is so good at what he does and he is willing to explain what he is doing to whatever level of expertise you are trained or knowledge you at. I have never seen a video I have not liked or gained knowledge from. Keep it up.
I repaired one of these a while back (not exactly the same model, but the same concept). It was a first for me and probably the only one available in the whole of Portugal :) The idea was to achieve pseudo-stereo by transmitting on FM and on AM simultaneously. There were apparently about 100 stations in the US that used this for a while. The video is here, if you‘re interested. ruclips.net/video/XnJ-QkIMWhA/видео.html
@Dave Micolichek They sounded awful. I had an old TV Console that had one of this kind of receiver in it and I did not sound good. For some reason I thought it was two FM stations that had to be tuned in on separate dials. This was before FM Stereo Multiplexing
There was a nearly similar trick with stereo records, some of the forst (appears I invented a combination of first+worst LOL) were recorded with one channel by vertical motion and the othe by horizontal... the channels didn't sound equal, so the whole contraption was turned by 45 degrees and now both channels have a slanted motion.... vertical motion of stylus corresponds to L+R and horizontal to L-R. Current stereo FM is also a sum-separation process.
@@AERVBlog There were two of the original dual station stereo systems. The FM+AM system that this receiver seems to be designed to use, and there were occasional broadcasts in stereo with a TV station and an FM station. At least in the later case both channels were FM, but the TV audio subcarrier is narrower than the main FM channel, so it still wasn't equal. Not to mention that you probably had a pair of 4" speakers in the TV and a decent hifi speaker or speaker system in the FM side.
I remember my father mentioning those simulcasts; a lot of stations simulcast AM and FM broadcasts in those days anyway, so putting the left channel on one and right on the other didn't take much extra effort. Technically, it would have made more sense to broadcast the sum on FM and the difference (which doesn't need the same fidelity) on AM, but that would have required one more mode on a receiver like this and made it impossible for people to listen in stereo using 2 separate radios.
Way back in the 60s I used to repair a lot of PA amplifiers, many of which used EL84 tubes (6BQ5) in class B push-pull. Those wax capacitors were terrible as you say and when they leaked onto the control grids of these tubes it would often write off the mains transformer as well. There was a problem with the tubes themselves though. Most were Mullard, a usually good make, but the EL84s used mica separators for the electrodes and the mica would gradually break down and cause the same problems as the capacitors, but in this case caused a leak between the screen grid and the control. The solution, after a great deal of experimentation, was to replace the Mullards with a Japanese make, Pinnacle, which used ceramic separators. I have no clue who actually made Pinnacles (maybe someone here can enlighten me!). Solved that problem completely!
After watching one of your extended play videos wherein you repaired an amp, I was excited to watch this video. Fascinating suff. All receiver, not face time. All receiver, not snowflake sound effects. Not a made for tv reality show. I love high end receivers. There's nothing better than super loud music with no distortion. Audiophile vs Van Halen. My ears are still ringing.
Mr Carlson my hobbys are painting pictures and lisining to shortwave and ssb iam thinking about getting my ham license I have 4 shortwave receivers and Iam thinking about getting Tecsun Pl 660 mw lw fm air SW ssb 6 bands
A special thing about Mr. Carlson's Lab, almost everything I have watched, except for your inventions and other test equipment, are older than me. I'm not young. I enjoy seeing how you transform a rats nest of wires and components into a nice logical layout. My very earliest years, I do recall my father working on a TV with tubes, and taking several tubes to Thrifty's to test and buy a replacement or two, but that's about it. These radios "belong" to our grandparents. They are fascinating and it's good to know they can still be serviced. I would like to see an evolution of electronics, documentary/special, where you cover the design and components of the earliest radios to modern times. What technology will likely last the longest?
Very nice Pioneer receiver. Pioneer has always been one of my favorite electronics brands over the years. The best "bang-for-the-buck" there is IMHO. I previously owned many Pioneer car stereo systems, and I still have 2 Pioneer surround sound receivers (and speakers) , as well as a Pioneer turntable. I have never had a Pioneer product fail....ever. Yes, there are more expensive "designer" electronics brands, and even better sounding systems, but for the price Pioneer cannot be beat.
Used to have one of these....love the magic eye gimmick ;) restoring a pair of Marantz monoblock amps found in Dad's garage while clearing it out for sale tubes light up so far ;)
I love this reciver, those caps often go dry ,become dried sludge and the Japanese stuff from the 60's are so well roll crimped that they dont leak very often. Very well made stuff. Please restore this tuner,Don't cast it to pile .I was so happy at the end to hear it will be saved.
Just want to thank you for being there with these videos while so many of us are stuck at home. You are really fulfilling our electronics geek needs.with all you know about electronics I'm surprised you're not Dr. Carlson at this point!
Omg. When I was a child my uncles friend had this exact receiver as well as a bunch of hi-fi audio stuff from the mid- late 60's in his living room. Thank You for posting this Mr. Carlson.
Oh boy a Pioneer SM-B201! It's in fantastic shape! Very worthy of a rebuild by Paul Carlson! In early days of stereo a radio station would send a signal to both an AM and FM frequency using two separate towers. One channel was on AM and the other was on FM hence you would get a stereophonic effect. This was expensive for them to do this and was a very short lived idea. I love anything with "magic eye" tubes BTW!!! Look up Fisher 800-B to see a the competitions version of this kind of receiver The Fisher 800-B had 22 tubes to do what the Pioneer did. But it also supported true multiplex stereo FM of today!
Get real its useless garbage today , who the heck still listens to am or fm on serious terms .. One side fm one side am, it’s gimmicky at best 😂 Nobody
This is awesome. I found this exact receiver at an antique store a couple of years ago. Very little information out there. It didn't sound the best but everything worked well and it looks like new. I listened to it for a couple of days haven't powered it on since. I'm anxious to see the restoration and to hear your opinion of the sound when you get it sorted.
First, Sir, even though I only understand about 5% of what you do, I still so enjoy watching your extraordinary teaching manner. Second, as a mechanic who has restored many different machines, I am always thrilled when I can find an unmolested original condition machine. I expect you are too.
Mr Carlson you are positioned to answer this question better than most electronic engineers: simply speaking , “ how are they (receivers) all different from each other”? What does one brand use in its design that other brands do not? Could also be asked “wherein does the quality lie”?
Interesting. I have a H. H. Scott AM-FM stereo tuner that is similar to this receiver. It has the separate AM and FM tuners for simulcast stereo, but it is also decodes FM multiplex for true FM stereo. This tuner hit the market just as FM multiplex was coming into use, H. H. Scott being one of the pioneers in this technology. H. H. Scott also sold standalone FM multiplex decoders for use with older FM tuners.
Before multiplex stereo came out around 1961, the only way you could get broadcast stereo was via similcast. Some stations broadcast on two AM stations--one for left channel and one for right, or one station channel would broadcast on FM, the other on AM. To get it to work you had to run both tuners at the same time. The separation would have sounded incredible! Thanks for making another great video!
Hi, Paul. This radio was probably made just before the FCC approved FM stereo. Many receivers and tuners of the era had a separate a.m. and separate f.m. tuner. Left channel will be on the a.m., right channel would be on the FM or vice versa. And as you suppose, one of the a.m. tuners would be wider-band and the other tuner would be in narrower or standard bandwidth. Cool find!
Some of the early 1960s console stereos offered exactly the same feature with separate AM and FM mono tuners, with the flexibility to output either mono source from the left or right, or built in vs. remote speakers, plus there is a reverse switch to swap the left and right channels. Some really crazy featured stuff came out at that time.
I've seen a number of these types of units from early stereo. Two AM tuners so you could do AM + AM stereo as well as AM + FM. In some cases, the channels were not identical. I've got a couple of units for stereo retrofit: Stereo preamp but only one power amp. The idea was you were to use your existing HiFi for the other channel. (That mono HiFi probably cost a mint and people didn't want to just push it aside.) Early stereo was weird. It may explain some early mixes. A number of Beatles tunes has vocals in one channel and instruments in the other. I'm surprised this unit doesn't have a reverse switch so you could route the vocals into the less HiFI channel. Given the difference in output transformers, I'm not sure as this unit is a good candidate to restore for enjoyment, bur rather to treasure as a museum piece.
I'd be curious to see how that "MPX" function is wired. If it's like my Sansui, there was a provision for an add-on multiplexer for FM. But instead of the L+R/L-R system we use today, the baseband side fed one channel and the multiplexed size fed the other. Like I said, early stereo was weird. (And on a totally unrelated note, it seems fitting that the word "weird" violates the rule of "I before E except after C".)
@@russellhltn1396 Yes, the Sansui 220 has this MPX out RCA Jack on the rear plus a L+R decoder input, a modern solid state MPX unit connected here does an excellent job. The Sansui 250 was the same unit but with built in Stereo decoder, doesnt work too well though IMO. I have 3 of those units in various states of disrepair, maybe I should upload a video one day..
My father was a HAM an loved stereo systems, Reel to Reel, and my childhood was filled with this awesome electronics, I remember too the smell of this components and fenol boards, solder etc.. Lovely memories.
My brother in law had one of these SM-Q140s purchased around 1967 (it was a showroom demo), with a deep blue enamel in place of the black. With a set of Rectalinear lll Highboy speakers it sounded fantastic. I now have those speakers and they are used every day with my Kenwood KR-A5520 receiver. I had to replace the output transistors & main audio power supply filter capacitors for the Kenwood. I ordered the filter capacitors from China. I needed only two so I ordered four of the filter capacitors, as usual. One of the four "new" capacitors was an open circuit, which is why I "over order" from Chinese suppliers.
That's an awesome receiver Paul. I work on a lot of audio equipment and I think that is the earliest Pioneer stereo reciever that I've seen. Very cool. Thanks for sharing it!
It is a pleasure to watch your videos as I seem to learn something new each time regardless of the content. I suspect that you field this question quite often but it would be a great addition to your commentary if you could offer a story as to how you come to possess some of this equipment. Frankly, it wouldn't matter if it was the truth or fiction as such stories would simply add a touch of magic to the fabled aura of the Carlson Lab.
Very informative. Thanks for this. I have the same SM-Q140 amp and am trying to troubleshoot crackling and popping sounds BUT ONLY when I set the amp to Stereo. I've changed the 6BQ5S andsome oil caps that I found leaky but still have the same problem. Appreciate any suggestions. Many thanks
I have a Pioneer/Allied SM-G204 that is similar to that one .Mine has been restored and i love it. Sits right beside My SX-1980 . Love the old pioneers
I love vintage radios. And I'm new to your Channel. Now, I will say that my knowledge of electronics and radio repair, could be fit on the head of a pin, and still have room left over. Nevertheless, I love watching this channel and I love your videos. And I always learn something new. Learning what transistors, capacitors, and reflectors are etc. I know your doing your video's for those "in the know". But don't forget us newbie's too. And try to explain the function of these components are. Keep the video's coming Mr. Carlson.
i love this channel. and i show all your videos. I still have 2 tube radios that I still have to repair. and only through this channel do I dare to compare. this is usually very easy to do. Greetings from Germany 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
You were the inspiration for me to get back into electronics (from my youth) and built my own lab. It has just snowballed from there. What a fantastic hobby.
I mean... I’ve seen your leakage detector before in your other videos, but it would’ve been awesome to see what the forecast was on the one that did pass. Mainly just re-show is all “new and old” how it works. That and I love how you explain things. Keep up the great work, stay well and have yourself a great day. And thank you so much for your content.
What a nostalgic receiver.... ! Continue with the restoration, please 🙏 (Can be a 22 hours clip, if you want... we have a lot of "confined" time... 😂🤣😂 in this locked down season.... ) 👋😀
The bottom side of the receiver is a BEAUTIFUL site. Wow. Thanks for sharing and I am very much looking forward to the restoration. Also looking forward to learning more about the “eye” tubes. Is it just one side of the tube is a phosphorescent coating that’s shot with electrons to make it glow?
What a absolutely beautiful and well made piece of equipment, I have owned vintage equipment most of my life but I have never seen this receiver made by Pioneer. Thanks for sharing.
In the era just before stereo MPX FM, (late 1950's) these dual turner systems were popular. My mother did "traffic" at a small am/fm station and said one of the DJ's would come in on saturday morning and do a "stereo" show. This was accomplished by feeding the output of a stereo phono preamp to the am mono console and the fm mono console. This must have been very difficult and one channel was very low fi. Stereo was clearly a novelty then.
9:03 "Now a lot of audio guys swear by these oil-filled capacitors; I swear at them."...Paul, I needed that laugh, thank you. I have an eclectic multiplicity of RUclips channels, but I really enjoy your electronic archaeology videos. I can't wait to see these restored.
Looking forward to when you get cracking with this one. I have an SM-R150, which is the same age and is just the amplifier part. There are a lot of paper-in-oil capacitors, so waiting to see your strategy with those.
Good evening Mister ... Beautiful item !!! wonderful construction and very cleaver about the distribution of differrents parts !!! In this difficults times god bless you Mister !!! Eric from France
My father had one of these in the 60's. I still have the manual, in which I found the schematic which I have emailed to you (sales@creativedesigncomponents.com) for your information. Thank you for your video. It was a blast of a trip back in time for me.
"Some guys swear by them... I swear at them" :D Great video. Your videos are very informative, but also relaxing at the same time! I'm sure I'll be joining you on Patreon soon. :)
Wow.. didn't know they did tubes but I got into audio in 70s. Stereo Review subscription for decades. Julian Hirsch sent me 😁 Julian Hirsch (1922 - November 24, 2003) was an electrical engineer and audio critic.
thanks for sharing what you ave learnt its great to learn new things . the front of that unit reminds me a little of a classic 60 ty's American car , just a really cool look , thank you !!
Yep, now would be a great time to be a patron if you aren't already and build some tools! Being the safety conscious type that I am, I would recommend building the Capacitor Discharge Device first.
I have a friend who owns a Fisher tuner from 1958 similar to this one.Separate FM and AM tuners.Awesome sensitivity in both tuners.Still works but FM is Mono.However, came from factory with a connection in the rear of the chassis to add a Mutiplex FM Stereo tuner in development still at that time.
Back in the 60's our neighbor tried to show my dad how to fix a tube tv. He removed the vacumn tubes and took them of all places a Pharmacy which had a tube tester.After getting some new tubes,he installed it back on the tv,powered it up and..............."smoked check" his set,funny as hell!
To learn more about electronics in a very different and effective way, and gain access to Mr Carlson's personal designs and inventions, visit the Mr Carlson's Lab Patreon page here: www.patreon.com/MrCarlsonsLab
Paul,
Thanks for being so prolific while I am house-bound. I know the time and effort required to produce good-quality YT videos, and yours are the best.
Dear Paul, great receiver. My parents had a Grundig Majestic multi-band radio/phonograph. And it had a green magic-eye tube in the front. Great find!
@@ianbutler1983 I concur!
That magic eyes are special and nice
I used to own a Sherwood S-3000 FM Tuner. Great find - two magic eyes!
I wanted to say how much I enjoy watching your videos. I appreciate the way you explain things, share your knowledge and experience working with different components over the years. I studied electronics back in my college days and have spent almost 40 years in the IT business. Thank you.
You are very welcome Phillip! Thanks for your kind comment too.
I loved Pioneer equipment, all I have left of my old Pioneer equipment is the PL50 turntable I purchased in Vietnam. I used to have a Hitach AM/FM/Cassette recorder/player combo but some prick stole it when I went home for the birth of my son in 71. Best damn radio I ever had.
What a huge amount of effort that went into designing and building this unit. Magnificent.
One more of Mr Carlson's video to enjoy and learn. I hope one day, Mr. Carlson take on a The Fisher 80T hi fi preamp and AM/FM tuner and also a The Fisher 80T amp. I've got both from the person who restored and aligned them. He made a great job. But it's never too much to know more about your favorite equipment.
Why would any one want to put a thumbs down on this guy. He is so good at what he does and he is willing to explain what he is doing to whatever level of expertise you are trained or knowledge you at. I have never seen a video I have not liked or gained knowledge from. Keep it up.
Those few are from the anti-matter world
@@MrMartinkimber or simply put, those who spread negativity because that's about all they have to contribute.
Or they might be the people who swear by the oil filled caps
I bought my 1st stereo system in late '70's at a chain. Wanted to hear the best from my phono collection.. Pioneer. This receiver is incredible.
I am an old guy , it is wonderful to listen to you. Just don’t have the drive to learn electronics. But sure a great sense of curiously
I repaired one of these a while back (not exactly the same model, but the same concept). It was a first for me and probably the only one available in the whole of Portugal :)
The idea was to achieve pseudo-stereo by transmitting on FM and on AM simultaneously. There were apparently about 100 stations in the US that used this for a while.
The video is here, if you‘re interested.
ruclips.net/video/XnJ-QkIMWhA/видео.html
I do remember that stereo hocus pocus back in the day. Thanks all
@Dave Micolichek They sounded awful. I had an old TV Console that had one of this kind of receiver in it and I did not sound good. For some reason I thought it was two FM stations that had to be tuned in on separate dials. This was before FM Stereo Multiplexing
There was a nearly similar trick with stereo records, some of the forst (appears I invented a combination of first+worst LOL) were recorded with one channel by vertical motion and the othe by horizontal... the channels didn't sound equal, so the whole contraption was turned by 45 degrees and now both channels have a slanted motion.... vertical motion of stylus corresponds to L+R and horizontal to L-R. Current stereo FM is also a sum-separation process.
@@AERVBlog There were two of the original dual station stereo systems. The FM+AM system that this receiver seems to be designed to use, and there were occasional broadcasts in stereo with a TV station and an FM station. At least in the later case both channels were FM, but the TV audio subcarrier is narrower than the main FM channel, so it still wasn't equal. Not to mention that you probably had a pair of 4" speakers in the TV and a decent hifi speaker or speaker system in the FM side.
I remember my father mentioning those simulcasts; a lot of stations simulcast AM and FM broadcasts in those days anyway, so putting the left channel on one and right on the other didn't take much extra effort. Technically, it would have made more sense to broadcast the sum on FM and the difference (which doesn't need the same fidelity) on AM, but that would have required one more mode on a receiver like this and made it impossible for people to listen in stereo using 2 separate radios.
Way back in the 60s I used to repair a lot of PA amplifiers, many of which used EL84 tubes (6BQ5) in class B push-pull. Those wax capacitors were terrible as you say and when they leaked onto the control grids of these tubes it would often write off the mains transformer as well. There was a problem with the tubes themselves though. Most were Mullard, a usually good make, but the EL84s used mica separators for the electrodes and the mica would gradually break down and cause the same problems as the capacitors, but in this case caused a leak between the screen grid and the control. The solution, after a great deal of experimentation, was to replace the Mullards with a Japanese make, Pinnacle, which used ceramic separators. I have no clue who actually made Pinnacles (maybe someone here can enlighten me!). Solved that problem completely!
After watching one of your extended play videos wherein you repaired an amp, I was excited to watch this video. Fascinating suff. All receiver, not face time. All receiver, not snowflake sound effects. Not a made for tv reality show. I love high end receivers. There's nothing better than super loud music with no distortion. Audiophile vs Van Halen. My ears are still ringing.
Mr Carlson your pioneer tube reciver is cool
Mr Carlson my hobbys are painting pictures and lisining to shortwave and ssb iam thinking about getting my ham license I have 4 shortwave receivers and Iam thinking about getting Tecsun Pl 660 mw lw fm air SW ssb 6 bands
A special thing about Mr. Carlson's Lab, almost everything I have watched, except for your inventions and other test equipment, are older than me. I'm not young. I enjoy seeing how you transform a rats nest of wires and components into a nice logical layout. My very earliest years, I do recall my father working on a TV with tubes, and taking several tubes to Thrifty's to test and buy a replacement or two, but that's about it. These radios "belong" to our grandparents. They are fascinating and it's good to know they can still be serviced. I would like to see an evolution of electronics, documentary/special, where you cover the design and components of the earliest radios to modern times. What technology will likely last the longest?
I still don't know we love receivers this much!!? 😊 Thanks Paul for this share!
What an absolute gem. Looking forward to this restoration.
Very nice Pioneer receiver. Pioneer has always been one of my favorite electronics brands over the years. The best "bang-for-the-buck" there is IMHO. I previously owned many Pioneer car stereo systems, and I still have 2 Pioneer surround sound receivers (and speakers) , as well as a Pioneer turntable. I have never had a Pioneer product fail....ever. Yes, there are more expensive "designer" electronics brands, and even better sounding systems, but for the price Pioneer cannot be beat.
Used to have one of these....love the magic eye gimmick ;)
restoring a pair of Marantz monoblock amps found in Dad's garage while clearing it out for sale
tubes light up so far ;)
I love this reciver, those caps often go dry ,become dried sludge and the Japanese stuff from the 60's are so well roll crimped that they dont leak very often.
Very well made stuff.
Please restore this tuner,Don't cast it to pile .I was so happy at the end to hear it will be saved.
Perfect viewing while we are all in self-quarantine.
That is one gorgeous receiver... great find!
The engineering that went into this is amazing!
Just want to thank you for being there with these videos while so many of us are stuck at home. You are really fulfilling our electronics geek needs.with all you know about electronics I'm surprised you're not Dr. Carlson at this point!
Always thumbs up for you Mr Carlson....your knowledge of tube circuits are second to none....
Omg. When I was a child my uncles friend had this exact receiver as well as a bunch of hi-fi audio stuff from the mid- late 60's in his living room. Thank You for posting this Mr. Carlson.
You're welcome Ric.
Oh boy a Pioneer SM-B201! It's in fantastic shape! Very worthy of a rebuild by Paul Carlson! In early days of stereo a radio station would send a signal to both
an AM and FM frequency using two separate towers. One channel was on AM and the other was on FM hence you would get a stereophonic effect.
This was expensive for them to do this and was a very short lived idea. I love anything with "magic eye" tubes BTW!!! Look up Fisher 800-B to see a the
competitions version of this kind of receiver The Fisher 800-B had 22 tubes to do what the Pioneer did. But it also supported true multiplex stereo FM of today!
Get real its useless garbage today , who the heck still listens to am or fm on serious terms ..
One side fm one side am, it’s gimmicky at best 😂
Nobody
@@MichelLinschoten If you can't appreciate vintage electronics then maybe collecting stamps is more your line?
@he's the Master lol! WELL Said Mr Master ;-)
This is awesome. I found this exact receiver at an antique store a couple of years ago. Very little information out there. It didn't sound the best but everything worked well and it looks like new. I listened to it for a couple of days haven't powered it on since. I'm anxious to see the restoration and to hear your opinion of the sound when you get it sorted.
First, Sir, even though I only understand about 5% of what you do, I still so enjoy watching your extraordinary teaching manner. Second, as a mechanic who has restored many different machines, I am always thrilled when I can find an unmolested original condition machine. I expect you are too.
Mr Carlson you are positioned to answer this question better than most electronic engineers: simply speaking , “ how are they (receivers) all different from each other”? What does one brand use in its design that other brands do not? Could also be asked “wherein does the quality lie”?
Interesting. I have a H. H. Scott AM-FM stereo tuner that is similar to this receiver. It has the separate AM and FM tuners for simulcast stereo, but it is also decodes FM multiplex for true FM stereo. This tuner hit the market just as FM multiplex was coming into use, H. H. Scott being one of the pioneers in this technology. H. H. Scott also sold standalone FM multiplex decoders for use with older FM tuners.
Before multiplex stereo came out around 1961, the only way you could get broadcast stereo was via similcast. Some stations broadcast on two AM stations--one for left channel and one for right, or one station channel would broadcast on FM, the other on AM. To get it to work you had to run both tuners at the same time. The separation would have sounded incredible! Thanks for making another great video!
Nice to see a video from someone with a really good camera and microphone. Plus good lighting,
Mr Carlson your vintage pioneer shortwave tub receiver from 1960 is cool
Hi, Paul. This radio was probably made just before the FCC approved FM stereo. Many receivers and tuners of the era had a separate a.m. and separate f.m. tuner. Left channel will be on the a.m., right channel would be on the FM or vice versa. And as you suppose, one of the a.m. tuners would be wider-band and the other tuner would be in narrower or standard bandwidth.
Cool find!
Some of the early 1960s console stereos offered exactly the same feature with separate AM and FM mono tuners, with the flexibility to output either mono source from the left or right, or built in vs. remote speakers, plus there is a reverse switch to swap the left and right channels. Some really crazy featured stuff came out at that time.
I've seen a number of these types of units from early stereo. Two AM tuners so you could do AM + AM stereo as well as AM + FM. In some cases, the channels were not identical. I've got a couple of units for stereo retrofit: Stereo preamp but only one power amp. The idea was you were to use your existing HiFi for the other channel. (That mono HiFi probably cost a mint and people didn't want to just push it aside.) Early stereo was weird. It may explain some early mixes. A number of Beatles tunes has vocals in one channel and instruments in the other. I'm surprised this unit doesn't have a reverse switch so you could route the vocals into the less HiFI channel. Given the difference in output transformers, I'm not sure as this unit is a good candidate to restore for enjoyment, bur rather to treasure as a museum piece.
I'd be curious to see how that "MPX" function is wired. If it's like my Sansui, there was a provision for an add-on multiplexer for FM. But instead of the L+R/L-R system we use today, the baseband side fed one channel and the multiplexed size fed the other. Like I said, early stereo was weird. (And on a totally unrelated note, it seems fitting that the word "weird" violates the rule of "I before E except after C".)
@@russellhltn1396 Yep! There's a 'science' behind that!
@@russellhltn1396 Yes, the Sansui 220 has this MPX out RCA Jack on the rear plus a L+R decoder input, a modern solid state MPX unit connected here does an excellent job. The Sansui 250 was the same unit but with built in Stereo decoder, doesnt work too well though IMO. I have 3 of those units in various states of disrepair, maybe I should upload a video one day..
Considering the high entertainment value (!!!) of your restorations... GO FOR IT!
I’m still patiently waiting to see the restoration on this one!!!😊😊😊 Gonna be AWESOME!!!
My father was a HAM an loved stereo systems, Reel to Reel, and my childhood was filled with this awesome electronics, I remember too the smell of this components and fenol boards, solder etc.. Lovely memories.
My brother in law had one of these SM-Q140s purchased around 1967 (it was a showroom demo), with a deep blue enamel in place of the black. With a set of Rectalinear lll Highboy speakers it sounded fantastic. I now have those speakers and they are used every day with my Kenwood KR-A5520 receiver. I had to replace the output transistors & main audio power supply filter capacitors for the Kenwood. I ordered the filter capacitors from China. I needed only two so I ordered four of the filter capacitors, as usual. One of the four "new" capacitors was an open circuit, which is why I "over order" from Chinese suppliers.
I find this an exciting project. This is certainly a unique receiver that needs restoration. So purely analog.
That's an awesome receiver Paul. I work on a lot of audio equipment and I think that is the earliest Pioneer stereo reciever that I've seen. Very cool. Thanks for sharing it!
What a cool looking radio! We have some old pioneer receivers from the 80's, but none this old or rare for sure! Can't wait to see this restoration!
It is a pleasure to watch your videos as I seem to learn something new each time regardless of the content. I suspect that you field this question quite often but it would be a great addition to your commentary if you could offer a story as to how you come to possess some of this equipment. Frankly, it wouldn't matter if it was the truth or fiction as such stories would simply add a touch of magic to the fabled aura of the Carlson Lab.
Hey Paul thanks for these videos
What a lovely receiver.
That receiver is a beauty. Pioneer was way ahead of it's time.
Very informative. Thanks for this. I have the same SM-Q140 amp and am trying to troubleshoot crackling and popping sounds BUT ONLY when I set the amp to Stereo. I've changed the 6BQ5S andsome oil caps that I found leaky but still have the same problem. Appreciate any suggestions. Many thanks
I have a Pioneer/Allied SM-G204 that is similar to that one .Mine has been restored and i love it. Sits right beside My SX-1980 . Love the old pioneers
Great video. Thank you and hope you and your family stay safe!
I love vintage radios. And I'm new to your Channel. Now, I will say that my knowledge of electronics and radio repair, could be fit on the head of a pin, and still have room left over. Nevertheless, I love watching this channel and I love your videos. And I always learn something new. Learning what transistors, capacitors, and reflectors are etc. I know your doing your video's for those "in the know". But don't forget us newbie's too. And try to explain the function of these components are. Keep the video's coming Mr. Carlson.
i love this channel. and i show all your videos. I still have 2 tube radios that I still have to repair. and only through this channel do I dare to compare. this is usually very easy to do.
Greetings from Germany
👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
Paul, stay safe, stay healthy and whatever happens, keep breathing!
You were the inspiration for me to get back into electronics (from my youth) and built my own lab. It has just snowballed from there. What a fantastic hobby.
Just love listening to his commentary and knowledge. Every video is a learning experience.
Great looking device, thanks for the video!
Wow that thing is nice Paul, hope you restore it soon!
Big thumbs up. Cool radio. Thanks for the project. The video is appreciated.
I mean... I’ve seen your leakage detector before in your other videos, but it would’ve been awesome to see what the forecast was on the one that did pass. Mainly just re-show is all “new and old” how it works. That and I love how you explain things. Keep up the great work, stay well and have yourself a great day. And thank you so much for your content.
Amazing how beautiful designs were back then. Love these videos. So calming and relaxing.
That is the coolest receiver I have ever seen. In great condition cosmetically as well. nice job Mr. Carlson as usual.
Just amazing. Those tuning eyes wow they were the best. I'm glad this thing is in the right hands.
What a nostalgic receiver.... !
Continue with the restoration, please 🙏
(Can be a 22 hours clip, if you want... we have a lot of "confined" time... 😂🤣😂 in this locked down season.... ) 👋😀
The bottom side of the receiver is a BEAUTIFUL site. Wow. Thanks for sharing and I am very much looking forward to the restoration.
Also looking forward to learning more about the “eye” tubes. Is it just one side of the tube is a phosphorescent coating that’s shot with electrons to make it glow?
Yes, only the top of the circular "target" coated. My reference books say the coating is called willemite.
Never have seen a Japanese valve set like this before, thank you for showing!
What a absolutely beautiful and well made piece of equipment, I have owned vintage equipment most of my life but I have never seen this receiver made by Pioneer. Thanks for sharing.
Excellent project 👏👏
I rewound many of those tuning dials back in the day. Pay very close attention to how it is wound before taking it apart!
Who gives this a thumbs down ? ? Thanks for the video Mr Carlson
In the era just before stereo MPX FM, (late 1950's) these dual turner systems were popular. My mother did "traffic" at a small am/fm station and said one of the DJ's would come in on saturday morning and do a "stereo" show. This was accomplished by feeding the output of a stereo phono preamp to the am mono console and the fm mono console. This must have been very difficult and one channel was very low fi. Stereo was clearly a novelty then.
WOW!!!! That’s one I just cannot wait to see the restoration vid for! VERY COOL!
9:03 "Now a lot of audio guys swear by these oil-filled capacitors; I swear at them."...Paul, I needed that laugh, thank you. I have an eclectic multiplicity of RUclips channels, but I really enjoy your electronic archaeology videos. I can't wait to see these restored.
Looking forward to when you get cracking with this one. I have an SM-R150, which is the same age and is just the amplifier part. There are a lot of paper-in-oil capacitors, so waiting to see your strategy with those.
Excellent content. It's particularly good to see stuff like this on RUclips right now.
All precision, wire wound resisters. Very impressive.
Mrs Carlsons lab your vintage pioneer tube receiver from the 1960s is awesome my friend 😅😅😅
I love your videos on electronics repairs. How about a video on saving faulty or acting -up routers.
thanks for sharing your expertise.
Thanks, Paul! Super cool old receiver! I look forward to the restoration video.
Good evening Mister ... Beautiful item !!! wonderful construction and very cleaver about the distribution of differrents parts !!! In this difficults times god bless you Mister !!! Eric from France
Cannot wait to see the refurb of the old pioneer I had a ER420 loved that old unit it really blasted in the 60's
Very nice RX.......must look for one
an awesome find...an original beauty
God ! Could you imagine Mr Carlson refurbishing your precious receiver?
Really nice unit. I love your way to explain the layout and function. Stay safe and take care.
My father had one of these in the 60's. I still have the manual, in which I found the schematic which I have emailed to you (sales@creativedesigncomponents.com) for your information.
Thank you for your video. It was a blast of a trip back in time for me.
What beautiful receiver! Very cool looking.
This series was beautiful and nicely made.
Fascinating ......... That capacitor test box is a must have item. I have to look for it now. That was a great clip thanks.
I love the look of symmetry on this set it's beautiful!
Great project...very interesting and love your style...Thanks
As busy as that unit is, your camera angle of it would make a neat shop poster.
Take a screenshot for your desktop
Fascinating stuff Mr. Carlson. Keep up the good work :)
"Some guys swear by them... I swear at them" :D Great video. Your videos are very informative, but also relaxing at the same time! I'm sure I'll be joining you on Patreon soon. :)
Wow.. didn't know they did tubes but I got into audio in 70s. Stereo Review subscription for decades.
Julian Hirsch sent me 😁
Julian Hirsch (1922 - November 24, 2003) was an electrical engineer and audio critic.
thanks for sharing what you ave learnt its great to learn new things . the front of that unit reminds me a little of a classic 60 ty's American car , just a really cool look , thank you !!
Thank you for the excellent educational content during this time of isolation.
Damn, that's cool! I can't believe i once sold some beautiful old Pioneer gear for peanuts. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for all these videos while I'm stuck inside with everything going on right now
You are so welcome!
Yep, now would be a great time to be a patron if you aren't already and build some tools! Being the safety conscious type that I am, I would recommend building the Capacitor Discharge Device first.
A look inside and a quick bit of trouble shooting too. Thanks!
I have a friend who owns a Fisher tuner from 1958 similar to this one.Separate FM and AM tuners.Awesome sensitivity in both tuners.Still works but FM is Mono.However, came from factory with a connection in the rear of the chassis to add a Mutiplex FM Stereo tuner in development still at that time.
Back in the 60's our neighbor tried to show my dad how to fix a tube tv. He removed the vacumn tubes and took them of all places a Pharmacy which had a tube tester.After getting some new tubes,he installed it back on the tv,powered it up and..............."smoked check" his set,funny as hell!
I enjoy work on the older pioneer gear they built some nice pieces