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Hi. I´m a newbie, and I would really appreciate, if someone could help me answer these questions.
And bear over, if I ask questions that are all ready answered in other threads in here. I haven´t had time too look around here yet, but I will just as soon as i post this.
I´m looking to buy a pre-owned Beosystem. I´m looking at the 5500 thru 7000. I wouldn´t use the tape deck, but I would like to connect the master to a dac for streaming through an airport express. Furthermore, I would connect my non-B&O tv set, which has rca out as well as optical. Just for 2-channel stereo.
I´m danish myself, but I know little about B&O, except that it can be difficult to connect it to non-B&O products.
I read that the Beomaster 5500 has rca connections as well as the proprietary ones. Or would it be possible to connect tv and dac to the Beosystem 7000 as well?
The 7000 costs more, but then it could be 9 years younger.
Regarding remote, I wouldn´t do any programming. Just the basic commands would be fine. Input and volume toggle and such. Is it necessary to have the Beolink 7000 to operate System 7000? Can I make do with a Beolink 1000? Is it possible to program a logitech multi-remote to vintage B&O products?
Last question: For now, I have an excellent pair of Dynaudio book-shelf monitors. They´re only in 4 Ohms - is that a problem for the Beomasters in question? I´ve heard, that these monitors are not too demanding on amplifiers, but I don´t want to take any chances.
In time, I would like to find some nice B&O speakers as well. Two pairs at least.
Kind Regards Thomas
Welcome to Beoworld Thomas. Are you looking for old used ones to repair or do you want to get a complete refurbished system ?
There are plenty of Beoworlders living in Denmark who can advise you better of where to get what
Well, I was hoping to come about it as cheap as possible. So I´m looking at used ones from private sellers. I would make sure that it was working properly, before I would buy it. It has to sound proper too:)
But I can see the point in buying it refurbished with a six month guarantee. Only, the price is about double. I´ve found a musician who has a 5500 for sale. He states that it´s in good working order. So I´ll probably ask him a few questions.
I don't consider the RCA inputs in 5500 much of an advantage - you can connect anything to the DINs as well with simple cheap adapters. Furthermore, 6500/7000 have one more usable input, as TAPE2 and AUX are separate, not sharing an input as in 5500. But, if you are not going to have/use a tape deck, 5500 will have enough inputs for your needs.
A Beolink 1000 will be enough for all these systems (and the most practical remote for daily use). However, if you get a 5500, make sure the Beolink is a version with the RESET button - otherwise you can't turn loudness off
Your speakers will be fine. Many B&O passive speakers are either 6 or 4 ohms, and the Beomasters can drive two pairs connected in parallel, so the effective impendance can even be 2 ohms.
If you are not going to repair anything yourself, don't get fooled into buying a cheap system with "minor" problems.
--mika
Thank you, Mika. You just answered my questions. Do I press "verify answer" or something?
You say the system shouldn´t have any minor problems. I just spoke to the seller of the 5500, and he sais that the only problem is that you have to re-tune the radio stations, if you unplug the power chord. He sais it´s probably something you need to press the right code for, but he hasn´t solved the problem. The MCP 5500 comes along with the system.
That the tuner needs to be set again after turning the power off - can it have anything to do with an internal battery of some sort?
Do you think the problem sounds grave? I think I would only cut the power when I go on vacation.
Otherwise, it sounds like the system is fine. Even the PU (MMC2) should be in a good shape. He told me to bring my own records.
Anyway, the seller is on vacation now, so I still have a week to find something better. I will keep an eye on the refurbished ones too.
Thank you for your advice. I really appreciate it.
Thomas1974:That the tuner needs to be set again after turning the power off - can it have anything to do with an internal battery of some sort?
Yes, there's a lithium backup battery in the CPU module that is most probably flat. Replacing it requires soldering and some non-trivial disassembly work, not a beginner job. However, I believe the only problem with a flat battery is the loss of settings after a power break.
Thomas1974:Otherwise, it sounds like the system is fine. Even the PU (MMC2) should be in a good shape. He told me to bring my own records.
That's a definite plus, even though you can't really trust those old pickups. They can fail in a very short time for no apparent reason. But if it works (it shouldn't sound distorted, and the stylus should not sit at an odd angle either at rest or while playing), the best thing to do is to not worry and just use it while it lasts! They can be refurbished eventually, which is a better option than buying another used pickup.
Try a few different CDs as well. If the CD deck has problems looming, a burnt CD-R will often be the first to not play.
For the MCP, check that the volume ring works, and it should also work at some range. If it needs to be close or pointed directly at the Beomaster, there might be some repair work coming up.
I bought a secondhand Beosystem 7000 direct from the private original owner. The only thing that did not work properly was the tape recorder. It was in need of service. I bought the vinyl player second hand from Denmark. Many Beosystem 7000 is missing the vinyl player as the original owner never bought one. Vinyl was out of fashion by the time the Beosystem 7000 was released.
The Beolink 1000 is a very nice remote. I have one and its very simple to use, but since I own newer B&O equipment I use a Beo4 for day to day use. The Beolink 5000 remote is very fragile. I got a broken one together with my Beosystem when I bought it. The screen does not work as it should. But I don´t think its worth repairing. The Beolink 7000 is not necessary for everyday use. Only if you want to do more advanced settings.
I have a Airport Express connected to my Beosystem. Use the AUX. The correct cable can be bought at the local B&O store. Play Spotify at times from my IPhone 4S.
Thank you for your advices. There´s also a 7000 nearby for sale. Maybe I will take a look at it.
Could you tell me, because I can´t make it out from the b&o product list on this site: Is the RIAA built into the Beomaster (5500 or 7000), or is it built into the Beogram? I know some of the Beograms have RIAA biult-in, it´s just difficult to see which.
Thomas1974:Is the RIAA built into the Beomaster (5500 or 7000), or is it built into the Beogram?
5000/5500: Beomaster
6500/7000: Beogram
...so it isn't too convenient to mix between these series. The aluminum versions wouldn't fit visually either (5000/5500 are brushed, later models are polished).
Thomas1974: Thank you for your advices. There´s also a 7000 nearby for sale. Maybe I will take a look at it. Could you tell me, because I can´t make it out from the b&o product list on this site: Is the RIAA built into the Beomaster (5500 or 7000), or is it built into the Beogram? I know some of the Beograms have RIAA biult-in, it´s just difficult to see which.
"Note that the RIAA phono-preamplifier was placed in the Beogram 7000 and if a Beogram without RIAA was to be connected, a RIAA kit must be mounted in Beomaster 7000 by means of a minor service operation."
http://www.beoworld.org/prod_details.asp?pid=375
"The BeoGram 6500 also contained an inbuilt RIAA pre-amplifier, which essentially means you can just "plug in and play" with any modern B&O system through an AUX or similar socket - making this a very desirable deck! "
http://www.beoworld.org/prod_details.asp?pid=304
Note that I am not an expert in these questions but I believe that the Beomaster 5500 has RIAA built in, not the Beomaster 5500.
http://www.beoworld.org/prod_details.asp?pid=354