My friend brought over his LBPete re-capped Sansui Eight for an extended comparo with my stock Eight. We did a proper setup in my living room and used speaker stands. The -*test*-('") speakers were KEF Chorale III's, which are two-way acoustic suspension and the source was a Magnovox CDB-650. Music was mostly period correct 70’s rock and disco, jazz and some 80’s and classic.

We started with the stock Eight. The sound was good tending towards warm. Composure and smoothness were very good which makes for easy listening. In went the re-capped Eight. It was like a slightly out of focus camera becoming focused. Much more dynamic with better frequency response at the top AND bottom. All of this helped to bring out the nuances in vocals and instruments (like guitar and piano) that separate the good from the great.

Next with the re-capped Eight, we tried larger floor standing speakers including HPM-60’s, HPM-100’s, JBL L-112’s, and EPI Tempest. Speaker stands were used. The re-capped Eight was good enough to reveal the strengths and flaws of each, which by itself is very impressive. The 60’s didn’t pack the punch of the 100’s and sounded almost tinny. The EPI’s had too much bass. The JBL’s sounded about right but my friend thought the upper treble he likes was lacking. So, he settled on the HPM-100 which the Eight drove with surprising ease. The combination of the Eight’s smoothness took the bright edge off the HPM’s to give a satisfyingly BIG sound. We found we could go as loud as we dared!!

My friend also brought over his re-capped 7070DB. (Not LBPete done.) The Eight beat the 7070DB with ease scoring points for better balance. The 7070DB has a heavier bass and midrange that was noticeable after the Eight. We agreed, the Eight was better and if I had both, the Eight would get the majority of play. IMO, the Eight is a better receiver to begin with so the result is not a surprise.

nice review sam,

elroy

Nice comparo. I'd be VERY interested to see how the Eight compares to a marantz model 19.

The Eight was a 1971 model so I think the 19 was a competitor. It would have been huge fun to walk into a stereo store in 1971 and do comparison shopping.

yeah, no kidding! I'd PAY to be able to spend a day in a 70s audio store auditioning gear.


as for the marantz 19, you should add it to your wanted list. i've heard it's one of the best quality receivers ever made.

Thanks for the info. I also have an Eight sitting around somewhere. Put it in the main when I first got it to drive some Cannons. Sounded good but have always wanted to hear what a recap will do to any unit.

Pete is very knowledgeable and a great guy, so I'm quite sure if you have a recapped unit that he personally did the work on, it would sound as good as can be.

Although the Eight is undoubtedly built like an early 70's tank, to my own ears, I have to say that my preference is more toward ther latter 70's era, thus with Sansui, I think the G series models were the best receivers they made. In comparison, the earlier models such as the Eight seem a bit old-fashioned, and the sound quality seems to lack the smooth clarity that the later-decade models have, as well as the extra boost in power capability. Ditto the integrated amp models - I have a 1971 AU-999 as well, and likewise its built like a tank, but when it comes to music listening, I definitely prefer the sound of the AU-717 & 919, both of which are superb models and examples of the finest that Sansui made. I'd also put the AU-D11 into that category as well.

The Eight that I have isnt setup at the present time, but when Ive used it in the past, I recall that it had a very bass-heavy sound and would seem to almost clip too easily, so perhaps it was/is in need of some adjustments and component replacement. I also wasnt keen on having the display go off when switched into Aux mode, as I would accidentally then forget that the unit was still On when it appeared to be powered off.

I think it would interesting to do a sound comparison with the Eight's preamp section bypassed and use only its power amp section which might produce a better sound (depending on which preamp you use in its place).

Of course, a decent listening room and the speakers will play a big role in properly evaluating the sound quality. Ever since Ive owned my Infinity Renaissance 90's, Ive been treated to exceptionally good sound reproduction. Just imagine what a 300 Watt Sansui BA-5000 sounds like thru speakers like these:

Yes, Pete is a great guy and very generous with his time. He is a true Sui enthusiast and very knowledgeable. He talked about how much of a pleasure it was to work on the Eight. He thought the Eight did not show any signs of cost cutting that plagued later Sansui's including the G-9000DB and that the engineers were limited only by the available technology.