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Counterpoint SA20

Hey all happy new year ..

I just pick up this beautiful amp this was at a estate sale was only able to plug it in to see if it power up and it did ... So now I buy the unit get it home open the box power it up for about a Half hour or so before I connect anything to it ..

I also had the lid off to take a peak in side all look look .

Now I set my self up connect everything and power it up . I was so please with the sound I was very happy .. so for the first hour it all went well then here is were it went south .. I notice that the right was sounding a bit weak and then the pop and the smoke and no sound I power off look inside the right side went ,,,

Well here is were I ask for help . I know that it can be repair by a few repair place on line .

My big question is who should I use have any one use or had any issue with some of the repairs and experience with some of the repair places .

I would like to repair it or should I sell it with one channel down .

Has anyone had this issues with the Counterpoint ... .

Any help and answer would be nice and thanks to all for the help ...

Be well and Have a Happy New Year ..
jackandcoke
johnsonwu
469 posts
 
One more note to the OP, CHeck to see if your SA20 has boards on each side next to the heatsinks. If so it's an SA220 (many SA20s were upgraded) which has the more sophisticated current detector which sadly does little to protect the mosfets.
The SA220 is much harder to convert to use Exicons or 2SK1530s than the SA20 due to available space and mounting.
Something you should bring to the attention of David Genther if you choose to use Greenstreet Audio instead of Michael Elliott.
barrysandy
192 posts
 
I have owned Counterpoint products for at least 25 years (still own an SA20) and have had personal dealings with Mike for at least a dozen (own another NP220 upgraded). Mike's a reasonable guy and he stands by his products - he's taken care of me at his own expense. Know that the SA-20 is a beautiful sounding piece even by todays standards but that's not really your issue - you want a reliable amp more than anything. The two weaknesses of the amp, at its age, are the output transistors and the transformer. If either requires repair, you're looking at several hundred dollars. Short of a total upgrade, you can't be sure you won't have other repair problems down the road with something this old. I think you'll be able to sell it at the price you've listed it. Good luck.
johnsonwu
469 posts
 
If an altavista rebuild is beyond budget then a repair using Exicons or Toshiba 2SJ201 2SK1530 should not be that expensive. Other than some tricky procedure with replacing the relays the swap should be pretty easy on an SA20 (not the 220).
A tranny going south would likely mean someone trying power on the unit many times after the mosfet failure and tripping the fuses many times... otherwise my experience tells me the tranny is pretty robust.
usblues
1,217 posts
 
I have had a half dozen dealings with Michael and he is a stand-up guy.Just be ready with the checkbook and you will come out fine.Fortunately he tells you upfront what costs will be.Thats all one can ask for,cheers,Bob
bigkidz
3,381 posts
 
J is correct when he states - I know how to repair these things but based on my experience with SA100, SA220, NP100, and NP220 your best bet is to get a basic rebuild from Mike and add an upgraded Hammond 158L choke. He got me started and then I have gone on from there. The "newer" version of these amps that eliminates the 6DJ8/6922 is what I prefer. Get the basic version and upgrade yourself. Plenty of help from the guys responding here. The only change I would recommend is the Hammond 185L choke. I will be making a custom choke for the amp by mid-year. I swapped out the Hammond for an oil choke and the amp changed dramatically. Also a simple change like the filament resistor worked wonders as AC is different in many places.

As far as the sound, simple changes can take you in a few directions. Overall I have compared it to so many amps and the Counterpoint is one that I will never sell. It is very open sounding, lots of air, very musical sounding, transparent, and it gets the piano correct!

Happy Listening.

Also if you are located in the NYC area let me know as I can help you out.
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