Perpetuum-Ebner PE 66 -- treasure or trash?

I have this unit for some time now. The top of the cabinet has cracks and the rubber on the platen has dried and flaked, but it is otherwise in good condition. I also have the original owner's manual and paperwork -- in German.

I have no idea of the potential value of this unit. Is it valued by collectors or is it due for Friday's trash collection? If someone could let me know, I'd appreciate it. Thanks in advance.

Sorry...I thought that perhaps someone who knows this piece of equipment and who is smarter than me about these things might be able to help educate me on the unit. I thought that it would be a good 1st step for me to go to the experts and have folks who know about the unit let me know if it's worth keeping, refurbishing, selling or trashing. Sorry if I was out of line in any way. Just looking for a little expertise where I have none.

In the event anyone can help.

Hello rip518,

I do not much about these units however this is what I have found out. They were produced in Germany in 1961 to 1967.
Styli and cartridges are availible on Ebay in USA with a few dealers.

Here is a site that has pictures of your hifi,I can see from your picture that it must have been on short legs (there was a leg stored behind the turntable) that was typical of the 60/70 era.


http://www.radiomuseum.org/.../perpetuu ... _delu.html

Sorry the link does not work so you will have to search on the site.


Regards
Alan Hood
ami-man
UK

Alan:
Yes, it was on rather spindly legs. I took the legs off as I was afraid they might snap off in transport or storage. Looks like PE 66 is just the turntable and not the surrounding hi-fi. I believe the hi-fi is short wave and I have additional paperwork that I'll sort through. Thanks for putting me on the right track.
-- Rich

Hello Rich,

The reciever had a look of a Pye one to me.

Please let us know how your research goes on.

Regards
Alan

Alan Hood
ami-man
UK

Alan:
Here's another piece of the puzzle.

...and this link: http://www.radiomuseum.org/r/schaub_bal ... 38550.html

Everything is worth "something" to somebody, even if just for parts, or to knock apart and use for an extra shelf in the pantry
The problem is always how much is it worth to "that" somebody.
It's not a high end big brand unit with 15 or 20 tubes that would spark interest from most collectors, so unless you can find a buyer who is looking for a radiogram in the 60's retro style to match their decor, or a person who wants that particular model for sentimental reasons because their parents or grandparents owned one, then it's probably not worth anymore than the price of a pack or 2 of cigarettes to most collectors.
These old units must have electronic restoration work carried out to make them safe to use with regular use, but unless you can do this yourself, you can easily spend between $100-$200 to have the mechanical and electronic restoration done for you, only to find that it's still only worth 1/4 of the cost.

If you have a record collection from the 50s to 70s era that you intend on playing regularly & want that "authentic" sound, then you could probably justify the restoration cost as you'd get great sound from your record collection for the next 20 or 30 yrs, without spending any more apart from occasional replacement cartridges &/or styli.
If however, you're hoping to invest in it's restoration and turn it over to make a quick buck, then I'm afraid the news is all bad (at this point in time).
There is of course a chance that in another 20 or 30 yrs, when these types of models have a bit more age to them, they will become more "collectible" and sell for what they should be worth, but for now, even the more collectible RCAs & Magnovox etc are seldom a profitable undertaking if you have to pay for the necessary restorations to be done. The parts are generally cheap, but the man hours involved with checking all components & circuitry, replacing capacitors etc etc are usually many.

That said, I dont think your Perpetuum is trash & deserves to end up as land fill.
It's very complete, having the legs, instructions & other paperwork, and appears to be in fairly good cosmetic condition, which are all a plus.
If you prefer Beatles CDs over records, are not interested in having it restored or hassles of trying to sell it, then there are better alternatives to dumping it on the footpath.
Next time you go to the supermarket, bottle shop or church, throw it in the car & drop it off at an op-shop, or give it to someone on the white elephant stall at the next school fete or church yard sale.
Even if they only get $2 for it, the money is going to a good cause, the Perpetuum is given the chance to find a new owner, and you've done something to help recyle and preserve a small part of history.