1959 Voice of Music model 582 modular stereo

I have a 1959 Voice of Music model 582 modular stereo. I don't know if it's just me, or if it's the difference between a tube amp vs a solid state amp. To my ears, the VM stereo doesn't seem to have the bass that two of my previous consoles had (previous consoles were a 1968 RCA VIctor New Vista, and a 1969 Magnavox Astro-Sonic; in my teens, I had a tube amp lower-end model Zenith, and it had nice bass). I've had the VM stereo for a few months now. I like having some bass with my music, granted nothing like those bass-mobiles you hear everywhere, with so much bass that it knocks the paint finish off. (I have a recording of a nice classical piece on LP. In one section, on the two formerly-owned consoles, there was a nice vibration of the wood. It's not nearly as noticeable on the VM stereo.) Is it something that I'm just not used to hearing?

I should also mention...personally, I felt that there was not enough 'clearance' between the stylus/cartridge and the record surface with the originally installed Sonotone 8TA cartridge, so I switched it out with an EV 5615 cartridge. I've heard no difference in any audio levels.

Due to the "modular" design of the 582, it's sonics aren't of the same calibre as an "all-in'one" console.
Other factors affecting sound are aged components in the amplifier, limiting and perhaps choking the sound quality.
Additionally, tubes can be "cooking", transformers stressed, overheating, producing a dangerous situation that people don't realize. - then smoke happens.
These sets must be restored in order to perform well, there is no other option.

Ok, Mr. MattTech, it has been in the shop, after I bought it, for a thorough inspection. I was charged $250. One of the capacitors was bad, and a tube was bad (both replaced).

stereoplayers wrote:Ok, Mr. MattTech, it has been in the shop, after I bought it, for a thorough inspection. I was charged $250. One of the capacitors was bad, and a tube was bad (both replaced).

That 1959 VM is now almost 60 years old.
And of all the vintage consoles I've serviced for customers, (including the VM's) they ALL needed more than just a tube or ONE capacitor to sound and perform right.
Whoever did this "thorough inspection" wasn't addressing the big picture, and charged too much for too little.
I'll bet that if a proper restoration was performed, there's be no issues with sound OR performance.

$250. for one tube and a cap. I'm in the wrong business. Every Ecap and paper cap should have been replaced as a matter of course in a 60 year old set. At any rate, ditto Matt on the design of any set having a direct impact on the kind of sound (tone if you will), that the set will impart. I'd be a little nervous about those old capacitors being left in there. The RCAs were known for bass that would defoliate a sheep dog so I think you may be comparing apples and oranges. My '54 Maggie has 2 ea 12" speakers on a push-pull mono amp and yet was not designed for guttural bass, but I can count on it for clear and articulate reproduction. Caveat: I may tweak it a bit to improve it's bottom end later on. Bottom line is I'd worry less about the bass and concentrate on getting the set properly restored. I'll wager it will sound better as well as being safer to use.

This amp has mostly ceramic capacitors, so it may not need a complete re-cap, once the electrolytics are addressed. its an incredible sounding amplifier! I have a model 581 which is the same thing with different cabinet styling. Changing the cartridge could change the frequency response. Ceramic cartridges are very sensitive to circuit loading effects, and many amps set up for ceramic carts had circuits that were fine tuned to a particular cartridges output curve. The Sonotone 8T is a decent sounding unit if its still in good shape. if the needle is too low, have you checked the tracking force? it is adjusted by moving the anchor for the tonearm spring. the spring balances the weight of the arm so more spring tension equals lighter tracking. 8TA should be 5-6 grams, if I recall right. In mine, the original woofers did not produce decent bass, either they were just cheap, or the suspension had gotten stiff with age. I replaced them with Electrovoice LS-12 full range speakers, and the sound is incredible now, try your unit with other speakers. the amp is set up for a 4-ohm load, but Ive used mine with 6 and 8 ohm speakers successfully. Many vintage speakers will work ok in speakers like these that are not sealed. most modern speakers have poor efficiency and are made for sealed boxes, so those may not work well in this application. You need a driver with a high Q to work in open back speakers. If anything, the bass is a tad boomy, because of the loudness compensation built into the amp, I am planning on disconnecting that in my amp.

One difference might be the diameters of the largest speakers on the unit. You are not going to get the bass you got out of a 12" speaker of that vintage with a 6" or 8" speaker of that vintage.

That vibration in the wood is a defect.