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Vintage Audio (record players, hi-fi etc) Amplifiers, speakers, gramophones and other audio equipment.

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Old 28th Nov 2020, 8:05 pm   #1
christian27
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Default Sony 511A restore/fix - newcomer

I’ve bought this Sony 511a record player, I like the look of it and came with three big speakers.. I’ve never owned a record player before so probably shouldn’t have bought it. I thought it might just need a new belt but having a closer look it seems there are more things wrong/missing.

The up/down switch for the stylus is missing, I’ve only just noticed, what can I do to replace/fix that?

Does anybody know these machines well that can spell things out to me or have an operators manual?

I have since bought a belt but don’t know if I should try to fix these faults first..

I’ve just joined the website so will keep looking up old threads and try to absorb as much information as my brain will allow but any help or point in the right direction would be much appreciated. I’ve also attached some photos so you can see what I mean..

Thanks, Christian
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Last edited by christian27; 28th Nov 2020 at 8:18 pm.
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Old 29th Nov 2020, 9:42 am   #2
Diabolical Artificer
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Default Re: Sony 511A restore/fix - newcomer

It's seen better days, first off I notice it doesn't have a platter, big round thing, do you have it? If not that's problematic. The up/down thing is probably a lever of some sort, maybe possible to make one.There also looks to be some damage, last pic, melted black plastic on the speed selector.

Manual available here - https://elektrotanya.com/sony_hp-511a.rar/download.html it might be wise to study it to check the parts mentioned before spending any money,this looks like a challenging repair.

Andy.
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Old 29th Nov 2020, 10:22 am   #3
Edward Huggins
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Default Re: Sony 511A restore/fix - newcomer

I suspect the OP will have removed the platter to replace the Belt. Noting the terminology the OP is using, I suspect he has little experience of these e.g. this is a bit more than just a "record player" per se. As regards the tone arm lift, for the purposes of testing this does not need to work as long as it is in the "DOWN" position - and of course both speakers must be connected.
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Old 29th Nov 2020, 11:28 am   #4
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Default Re: Sony 511A restore/fix - newcomer

With the platter off and power on, try starting the turntable just to see if the motor shaft spins.

Nothing looks broken, it might just need a cosmetic clean-up. Leave the arm lift control until you see whether the rest of it is working.

Take care with the speaker connections, a stray strand of wire can bridge between the terminals and will short the output of the amplifier, usually destroying transistors. There have been a couple of threads on the forum of people trying to fix these after such an error, and they've found it a heck of a job.

For the arm raise lever, I think you'll have to photograph as you dismantle that area of the turntable unit and find out how to glue on an alternative lever without getting glue onto its pivot and things it slides against.

David
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Old 1st Dec 2020, 7:10 pm   #5
christian27
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Default Re: Sony 511A restore/fix - newcomer

Hi thanks for all the replies, I have the platter, I had removed it to replace the belt. The motor runs fine but I have had the belt slip off a couple of times.. So maybe the speed selector will need adjusting. Thanks for the link for the manual Andy, I’ll have a good read through that.

The quality is awful though. Lots of distortion, think I had the speakers too close which didn’t help, but I guess it could do with a new cartridge. I’ll keep reading up and see what I can learn. But you’re all very helpful, much appreciated.

As far as the up/down lever I will get round to dismantling the turntable and see if I can fashion one together at some point but not absolutely necessary is it..?

Thanks a lot,
Christian
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Old 1st Dec 2020, 9:49 pm   #6
Edward Huggins
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Default Re: Sony 511A restore/fix - newcomer

If the distortion is present on both the FM (or AM) radio signals and the pick-up, it's unlikely to need a new cartridge as the fault is liable to be in the amplifier. I do not understand what you mean by saying the speakers were "too close"?
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Old 2nd Dec 2020, 8:13 am   #7
christian27
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Default Re: Sony 511A restore/fix - newcomer

What I meant is that some people have told me that if the speakers are too close to the turntable then this can cause distortion(?), and when I installed the new drive belt and tested it the speakers were right next to the turntable.. I will keep at it and keep reading up on the subject. It’s a lot to take in for a simple mind like mine.. Thanks again (:
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Old 2nd Dec 2020, 10:44 am   #8
Edward Huggins
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Default Re: Sony 511A restore/fix - newcomer

It might cause acoustic feedback, but that's not the same as distortion.
Speakers should be placed some distance apart anyway.
To ask again, is the "distortion" you hear on both Radio and Record sources - or only on Records?
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