Yamaha CR1000

$900

Examples of interior restoration results (click on photos to expand)

Exterior photos

Restoration notes

Beyond the list of standard restoration steps detailed on the main page, here are some added notes for this unit :

I acquired this receiver from ebay with assurances of high functionality.  Exterior condition was very good.

The CR1000 was Yamaha’s top-of-the-line receiver in 1974.  It uses the same class A/B amplifier modules as the highly regarded Yamaha CA1000 (rated at 70 watts per channel driving 8 ohms).  Styling is distinctive as sliders and switches are used to leave only 2 knobs (tuning and volume).  These are rather rare compared to its successor (CR1020).  They have a reputation as being hard to work on as the base serves as the chassis (so no access to boards from the bottom).  Yamaha designers did provide ways to separate/remove major modules, so really not that difficult to recap if you read the service manual 🙂

Initial inspection showed some minor cabinet marks on the top and vent grill.   (see last 2 exterior photos for more on these blemishes)

Power up testing went smoothly with high functionality with a few issues

     The meter and pointer lamps were dead (replaced)

     Some switches caused channel drop outs (resolved by cleaning contacts)

     Dial string was stretched/loose (lubed all the pulleys and installed new string)

     One speaker terminal was damaged (upgraded all speaker terminals with modern 5-way types)

Recap went smoothly.  Per AudioKarma best practice, upgraded over 50 “replace on sight” signal transistors with correct modern equivalents. 

The tuner is “FM-only” and sounds pretty good.  

Functional testing complete/passed.  After cleaning and reassembly, I think it came out quite nice.

Bench measurements

The Yamaha spec for this amplifier is 70 watts per channel (20 – 20,000 Hz, both channels driving 8 ohms, 0.1% harmonic distortion)

My results under the same test conditions :

85 watts per channel at 0.5% harmonic distortion (the lower limit of what my test gear can reliably measure). 

Not surprisingly, this matches what I measured on the CA1000 I restored a while back.

Some reference links