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Meridian 101 Pre-amp Questions

M

Mus

pfm Member
I have a 101 on approval and it sounds dire. The bass is monotone, thudding and exaggerated, the midrange is slightly muffled and the treble dull. I have tested it with both Avondale and Naim power amps and the sound was basically the same. The guy I borrowed it from said this is normal, as they only work properly with Meridian power amps. Is this the case? I had a quick look inside and it all looks original, I guess it could just need a recap/service? The sound is the same irrespective of source or input.

It looks like this:
Meridian_101_ret_3s.jpg


But has the original axial smoothing caps. Any decent 100 series links or information about alternative modules would also be appreciated.

Regards,

Mus
 
Thanks, yours looks a lot neater, is it a 101 or a 101B? What are the three modules in yours? Which power-amp do you use?

Regards,

Mus
 
Hi Mus,
cobbers just beat me to it, I was going to upload mine which, before mods, looked the same as his.
The difference is that ours are earlier discrete versions whilst your pic is the later op-amp version.
I think I am correct in this but MarkS who helped me a lot could confirm.
There is an earlier thread with some info.
http://www.pinkfishmedia.net/forum/showthread.php?t=32838&highlight=meridian+101
I found that they are a little bass heavy but I have fitted ALW Sregs to mine and find it a pretty perfect match to the Exposure IV and Bariks. As I noted after the Sreg mod the bass disappeared but it came back tight after 12 hours initial warm up
I only use CD so I have removed the cartridge modules.
dogrun.gif
 
Hi J&J

Thanks for the information, I did read your thread, very interesting. Am I right in thinking the 101 has +15V and -15V rails, did you use only +15V superregs? Where did you break into the circuit to insert your superregs?

Regards,

Mus
 
Mus said:
The guy I borrowed it from said this is normal, as they only work properly with Meridian power amps. Is this the case?
Click to expand...

ermm...the word bollocks comes to mind...

101 preamp output impedance usually 600 ohms, unless 75ohm output module fitted.

103/105/105s power amp input impedance 11k.
 
MarkS said:
Thats a 101b with, I think, a non original set of caps in the psu.

Pm me your email & I'll send you the cct diag so you can check it out.
Click to expand...

Thanks, PM sent. The picture is not the one I have but near enough, on closer inspection it looks like the PSU caps have been bypassed.


MarkS said:
ermm...the word bollocks comes to mind...
Click to expand...

Yep, to my mind too.

Regards,

Mus
 
Hi Mus
That's how it was when I got it,have since replaced all radial electrolytics with Panasonic FC's and the axials with Vishay's (there were some leaking-you can just about see the stain on the PCB under the 100mfd by the side of the transformer).
It's used as a preamp for a Chiara headphone amp as living where I do all proper listening is done on headphones and the balance is far from how you describe yours,the bass is tight and tuneful with plenty of midrange detail and good treble extension-possibly a little bright but not uncomfortable.
The 3 modules are the input gain stage for a Supex,the RIAA equalisation stage and output stage (cartridge is an ATF5 OCC)
All I need now is a MM input-anyone got one going?
 
Mus said:
Hi J&J

Thanks for the information, I did read your thread, very interesting. Am I right in thinking the 101 has +15V and -15V rails, did you use only +15V superregs? Where did you break into the circuit to insert your superregs?

Regards,

Mus
Click to expand...

HiMus,
Yes 15v pos 15v neg. I used neg and pos Sregs
sregs.JPG
Click to expand...
I've shortened all wires since this to tidy it up a little.
If you turn the board upside down and remove the regs, the tracks leading from the rectifier are easy to see to solder the inputs to and the old output from the regs are easy to see to solder the new outs to. I joined in and out grounds together and soldered to the old ground track.
It all makes sense with MarkS's diagram with the board in front of you.
It is a very good mod, until I did it I thought the 101 would not fit in my system.

dogrun.gif
 
Have a word with Les,he used to modify these fine little pre-amps in days of old,i dont think he works on them any more but i'm sure he would point you in the right direction re- "tweaking"!!
 
Hi Mus,

Is the Meridian for tweaking then?

We need to get the Densen & Dynavector across to you to try out..

Regards,

Kev
 
hamjam said:
Is the Meridian for tweaking then?
Click to expand...
Hi Kevin,

It was originally for a friend, but after a bit of research - and having seen how small they are - I'm interested too. I don't imagine it will escape the attentions of my soldering iron though.

hamjam said:
We need to get the Densen & Dynavector across to you to try out..
Click to expand...

You have an open invite and a rather nice Balti house just opened down the road.

Regards,

Mus
 
Mus said:
The guy I borrowed it from said this is normal, as they only work properly with Meridian power amps. Is this the case? I had a quick look inside and it all looks original, I guess it could just need a recap/service?
Meridian_101_ret_3s.jpg
Click to expand...


Hi Mus,

The original owner is talking tosh.
The 101 is a decent pre amp, especially if you run the phono stage.
Replace any tired old electrolytics and it'll sound great. I've yet to hear any circuit not benefit from SRs but you might find Avondale TPR boards better in this situatuion as they are roughly half the size of a SR with no bulky components on the board. I just built a PSU for my NAT101 tuner using one and I'll post a pic later to give you some idea.
 
Hi Rob,

Thanks, I forgot about the TPRs, I have a pair built I could have a play with.

The owner wants £50 for the 101 - sold as seen - but that includes a MM and a MC module. The case is in average condition, the controls are smooth and crackle free and it seems to work - other that the sound issues. I guess it might be worth having a punt at that sort of price?

Regards,

Mus
 
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