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Beogram repairs

Sue Pertwee-Tyr

Sue Pertwee-Tyr

Accuphase all the way down
I know there are people on here knowledgeable in matters B&O, and hope you may be able to give me a steer.

A friend has a Beogram turntable. Not sure which model, not a parallel tracker. Probably 20-30 years old. They've just pulled it out of loft storage and would like to get it running again.

The tonearm is very slender, and very floppy. The stylus rests on the top plate when at rest and I think, given the arm has bounced it up and down on the top plate as it's been manhandled, the cart is probably toast. Not sure if there's an arm rest missing - there's no obvious provision for one but it just doesn't look right sitting down like this.

Is there a knowledgeable and reliable repairer they could entrust this to? (We're in South Manchester area - there's a local B&O dealer in Wilmslow, but I rather doubt they are good for anything beyond shifting boxes to footballers).

Thanks
 
Beobloke helped me with a neighbours B&O 8500, we boot to booted at the Vintage Wireless sale and I then picked it up from his repairman in Farnborough a couple of weeks later. Very reasonable price that made a hard up widow very happy.
 
Be aware some of the original B&O turntables do not have replaceable styli, the whole cartridge has to be replaced. This should be your first consideration when it comes to refurbishing one of these old decks as the cost may be prohibitive.
A quick check online shows even the older cylindrical bodied replaceable sp10 stylus are fetching £150 these days. Surprisingly the later MMC integrated cartridges are now fetching £70 upwards so best check via Beoworld which cart is fitted to the deck and price it before looking at a repair.

Worth checking if anyone is refurbishing these cartridges as an alternative.

It was common for the B&O decks not to have an arm rest I suspect for aesthetic reasons. The older more simple decks are likely to be more easily refurbed especially if they only require lubrication and a belt but with a model number you can do an online check for parts availability.
 
As mentioned, most Beograms do not have arm rests. The arm cueing system simply remains raised when the arm returns to the ‘rest’ position. If it’s a later deck, these use two geared cogs to drive the mechanism and it’s not unheard of for them to go out of sync.

Consequently, it may be that the mechanism simply needs a service. Model number or photo would be handy!

Of course, if the resting on the plinth has damaged the stylus, it’s going to be an expensive repair…
 
Thanks. Just got some more info. It’s a Beogram 1700. I haven’t examined the cart, but as mentioned above, the arm sits with the cart resting on the top plate when not in use. There’s also, apparently, a problem with a broken mains or interconnect connection somewhere so it can’t be powered up and tried out.
 
This is wrong. The tonearm might also be broken, hard to say. The 1700 is a good deck worth fixing if it isn’t beyond repair. Do bear in mind the cost of the cartridge though. About £200 for a new one from Soundsmith.
 
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Thanks, is there anybody within realistic travel of Manchester you could point me to? I believe the repairers mentioned upthread are south coast or thereabouts?
 
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