For your consideration, we have a Conrad Johnson PV10A Preamplifier with its highly desirable phono stage. We are always seeking out CJ gear as all of their units are top shelf, and are a pleasure to work on. We rescued this rare black faceplate unit from a basement in Long Island NY, and did a full service on the preamp. We replaced faulty polystyrene capacitors in the line stage section, and replaced all the electrolytic capacitors. All pots and switches were cleaned and then treated with Deoxit F5 and D5 respectively. A physical detailing of the unit was done inside and out including cleaning all RCA jacks and treating with Deoxit Gold G100, and cleaning all tube sockets. All the tubes were tested on our Amplitrex AT100 tube tester, and we replaced the two 12AU7 tubes in the linestage with a matched pair of JJ ECC82's. In the phono stage we replaced the 12AT7 tube with a NOS Motorola. The two Tung Sol 12AX7's in the phono stage tested strong, so we left them in. We installed two damping rings on all 5 tubes. After servicing the unit, we ran a sign wave through it to visually see on a scope if both channels were clean, which they were. The PV10 then went into our demo space where we ran it for a week in our house system. We used all the line inputs as well as several hours playing vinyl using the phono stage. My first foray into HiFi, and what got me hooked was a purchase of a PV10, so I am very familiar with this unit. While there are many great brands out there, CJ jus has the sound that I always come back to. This unit is set up for another 30 years of enjoyment. It is just a super sounding unit, with an excellent phono stage.
Physically the unit is in good condition. The only real issues are on the faceplate, which unfortunately has some pitting as can be seen in the photos, as well as the knobs having some blemishes. The back panel is in very good shape, as well as the top shroud, which was stripped and resprayed. There are some light scratches and blemishes on the the bottom of the preamp as well. Most importantly, the inside of the amp is in excellent condition. Please see the many photos in this listing for further details.
We prefer to pull all the tubes prior to shipping. Each tube will be boxed and labeled with its location, so the new owner should have no problem installing them. We will provide a diagram and can walk the next owner through the process over the phone if need be.
We don't have the original box for this unit, but we take packaging and shipping seriously. We spare no expense and use heavy duty boxes, several inches of polyethylene foam on all sides of the unit, and use water activated, fiber reinforced tape on all seams.