Stereophile review- Fisher 500 C

Wow, incredible to need to have a 400 repaired every two years. Sounds like it was not really repaired but a band aid put on it. My McIntosh tube tuners, for example, have been working fine non-stop daily use, aside from tube changes, for decades.

Well, one time the volume control on/off switch broke. Apparently this is one of the few weaknesses of the unit. You are supposed to use an external on-off switch. The problem was easy to bypass. The on/off part broke, not the potentiometer.

Another time - recently - a resister (I think it was) blew. Cost $30 total to fix including labor. I also paid to have the unit fully tested to make sure nothing else was clearly going bad.

This last time I had it open, I took tuner spray to all the switches,and that is highly recommended! It cleaned up any noise I was getting from the switches.

If I was keeping it, I'd be tempted to find a way to upgrade the power cord.

I did not feel that the unit was particulary unreliable, just a little more prone to breakdown due to age.

Art

Check out for the 500C:

http://www.fortunecity.com/tinpan/beegee/290/page3.html

http://www.quadesl.com/schematics.shtml

This could make life easier for you for many, many years with respect to similar issues with this vintage equipment. Well worth the investment compared to a used FIM Gold power cord I once thought was such a great value at $600.