SACD repair?


I have a Marantz SA11S1. Wonderful deck, but starting to fail to play SACDs reliably. Plays rebooks without issue. 

It recently spent almost three months at my local repair shop (only one within a couple of hours that would even look at it) until they threw their hands up.

I know it's pretty old, but it still sounds great when it does work, so I'd like to get it repaired if that's still an option. So I'm wondering if anyone can recommend a skilled shop that I can talk with about this. I realize I'm looking at packing and shipping, and the cost will likely get up there. But when it's working, It is a very high end component.

Thanks in advance if anyone can help.

wpcheadle

Sorry but I got busy and hadn't checked here..............

Yes, the HOP1200 replacements have a horrible reputation. I once read that they should be ordered in batches of 5 in order to get a couple good ones. But I have no experience with them.

If you want to play your sacd's seems like you need a new player. I guess you have to decide that for yourself. The Marantz SACDN30 is now about the cheapest option. 

Otherwise you can rip your sacd's and buy a dsd capable dac.

wpcheadle,

You could try a different laser supplier for the HOP1200. Donberg in UK is a good reliable source.

 Audio Spare HOP1200R (HOP 1200R) - CD LASER UNIT (PICK UP) (PICK-UP) HITACHI - UK (GBP) (donberg.co.uk)

They have several listings for HOP1200 with pictures of each. 

Buying from east Asian sellers on Ebay other than Supermanmeliu, usually results in a dud unit, as you just learned.

Steve

share - thanks for the info...I'm getting ready to pack it up and ship it off to a shop that thinks they can repair it, I'll pass on the source to the shop FWIW, they may be unaware of them.

Wpcheadle

 

Thank you for the update.  Keep me posted on the repair process.

Happy Listening!