Category Archives: Electronics

Bose® 402E Active Equalizer #102853 Repaired

Posted on November 30, 2015 by jwk

From the Rain City Audio Repair Blog: The first Bose® 402E Active Equalizer, for the Panaray speaker system, just came through the Rain City Audio repair bench. It’s a small speaker array system, designed around similar drivers in the 901, … Continue reading →

Posted in Audio, Bose, Electronics, Projects | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Bose® 901 Series I Active Equalizer #51616 Repaired

Posted on November 23, 2015 by jwk

From the Rain City Audio Repair Blog: Another Bose® 901 Series I Active Equalizer came through the shop for an overhaul! This one was from the very end of the Series I production run, serial #51616. This one appeared to … Continue reading →

Posted in Audio, Bose, Electronics, Projects, Vintage | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Harman-Kardon Festival D-1000 Tube Receiver Repair

Posted on November 17, 2015 by jwk

All vintage gear has a story to tell, but something really rare and interesting recently came across the bench: the Harman-Kardon Festival D-1000. While it looks somewhat unassuming, a fairly straightforward 15-tube receiver with push-pull 6L6GC outputs and an AM … Continue reading →

Posted in Audio, Electronics, Hi-Fi, Vintage | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Totem Acoustic ARC Digital HD Amplifier on Kickstarter

Posted on November 16, 2015 by jwk

Totem Acoustic sent me some information about a very interesting new hifi amplifier they’re launching on Kickstarter. Based out of Montreal, they’re an established brand making hifi speakers optimized for desktop and streaming applications, and are coming out with a … Continue reading →

Posted in Audio, Commentary, Electronics, Gadgets, Hi-Fi | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Harman-Kardon Citation 11 Pre-Amp Overhaul

Posted on November 11, 2015 by jwk

From the Rain City Audio Repair Blog: A local customer brought me his brother’s Citation 11 for a full overhaul. After a few decades of faithful stereo reproduction, then a number of years in storage, it was time for an overhaul to … Continue reading →

Posted in Audio, Electronics, Projects, Stereo, Vintage | Tagged , , , , | 15 Comments

Mailbag: What’s the best multitester for vintage radios?

Posted on November 2, 2015 by jwk

I recently got this question in the mailbag, and it seemed like a good one to answer: What’s the best multitester for vintage radio repair? That’s actually a tougher question than it seems. The short answer? Well…it depends a bit, but … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary, DIY, Electronics, Gadgets, Test Equipment | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Antenna Distribution for AM Radios

Posted on October 24, 2015 by jwk

I’ve had a few questions come my way about antenna distribution systems for AM radios, specifically to connect something like a large attic antenna to multiple radios at once. There’s a lot out there designed for VHF/UHF or CATV signals, … Continue reading →

Posted in DIY, Electronics, Gadgets, Radio, Resources | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Hands On with the FLIR One for Android

Posted on October 9, 2015 by jwk

Several months ago I ordered a FLIR One for Android, a small attachment which adds infrared thermal vision capabilities to most Android smartphones and tablets. After the backlog of pre-orders finally cleared out, I got my hands on mine today! … Continue reading →

Posted in Electronics, Gadgets, Technology, Test Equipment | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Check Out LED Filament Light Bulbs: Classic Styling Meets High Efficiency

Posted on September 29, 2015 by jwk

I’ve been using CFL bulbs in most of my light fixtures for a number of years. They’re a pretty solid, mature technology by now and have a ton of benefits over classic incandescent and even “eco-friendly” halogen bulbs. Where a … Continue reading →

Posted in Commentary, Electronics, Gadgets | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Vintage Documentary: How Stereo Turntables Work

Posted on September 2, 2015 by jwk

Documentary Tube on YouTube has digitized an excellent early video documentary discussing the newest hi-fi invention of the time: stereo! In this 4-minute video, the narrator compares mono with stereo recordings on vinyl. Worth checking out!

Posted in Audio, Commentary, Electronics, Hi-Fi, Vintage | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment