I recently overhauled and restored this stunning Accuphase E-202 integrated amplifier. Read on for all the details.
Firstly, my apologies for the delay in bringing new content like this article on the Accuphase E-202 to my site. My hi-fi repair and restoration business here in Perth has been incredibly busy, I barely have time to even respond to inquiries at the moment!
I’ll be writing more content, by organising a more time for it. I have literally dozens of repairs and restorations ready to write about, hopefully they will be of interest. Let me know if there is anything in particular you would like to see.
On to the Accuphase E-202. The E-202 was Accuphase’s first integrated amplifier, and it’s become a true hi-fi classic. With superlative build quality and stunning sound, the Accuphase E-202 is all that most people need at the heart of a really serious hi-fi system.
Accuphase E-202 Specifications
Courtesy of the Hi-Fi Engine:
Power output: 100 watts per channel into 8Ω (stereo) Frequency response: 20Hz to 20kHz Total harmonic distortion: 0.15% Damping factor: 50 Input sensitivity: 2.5mV (MM), 160mV (line) Signal-to-noise ratio: 74dB (MM), 80dB (line) Speaker load impedance: 4Ω to 16Ω Semiconductors: 53 x transistors, 4 x FETs, 44 x diodes, 2 x thermistors Dimensions: 455 x 152 x 355mm Weight: 19.5kg
This gorgeous E-202 has been in her original owner’s hands since new. She came to needing some serious TLC – bits didn’t work, crackling and popping noises, scratchy controls, etc.
In situations like this, I opt for a conservative, reliability and performance-enhancement approach. How this all comes together in the equipment is documented below.
Let’s start with a few images of the amplifier as it looked when it came in. The unit was stored in a garage for a long time, not turned on for many years.
Note the typically well laid out Accuphase front panel. A couple of large (and dark with their blown lamps) power output level meters are a very nice touch.Fairly grubby-looking old girl at this point, but these amplifiers always come up well after a really good clean.
Chassis
I began as I always do, by stripping the E-202’s chassis and removing the modules in preparation for a thorough wash.
Pulling the lid reveals lots of dirt and a completely original unit. This amp had NEVER been worked on.Kind of Accuphase to provide primary and secondary transformer tap information, handy when troubleshooting without a schematic. Looks ravaged by time…This E-202 has developed a quite lovely ‘patina’ in fact. Amazing how the sands of time slowly change the appearance of materials. As you’ll see though, it looks very different afterwards.A light coating of dirt and dust might seem benign in electronics but actually it isn’t. The extra insulating properties of the dirt can lead to components running hotter than they should. Also, in high-impedance circuits like phono stages, the dust and dirt can create significant electrical leakage paths.Dirt quietly covers everything…An overview, of dirt…So let’s get rid of some of it, starting with knobs…That’s betterThis is also a great time to tackle the faceplate…Using, of course, my favourite foaming cleanser.
After carefully washing the chassis, I set it aside to dry and focus my attention on the modules themselves.
Boards
The modules are all original, untouched and pretty crusty. I replaced a few small capacitors that didn’t measure well and addressed a large number of dry joints. The boards were also very fluxey, so I carefully reworked each of them until I was happy to reinstall and test them in the finished clean chassis.
Here we have the phono board, top left, and two amplifier boards, as found. Most of the caps test perfect. Accuphase were (and are still) careful to use the best parts when building these amps. For this reason, it’s common to only need to change a few of the smaller caps, subject to the greatest thermal cycling and having the shortest lifespan.This is secondary power supply board. I changed a couple of the smaller caps on this board.Areas of heat stress and lots of flux are visible here. The card edge connectors also need attention. I clean these and then gently abrade them with a glass-fibre pen, before applying contact enhancer to them.A close up of the dry joints in this thermally degraded section of board on the secondary power supply module.Here are the small filter boards.I start by washing everything including the boards. People are sometimes surprised by this, assuming that electronics and water should never be mixed. In reality, they should only not be mixed when energised – very important! Washing is part of the production processing of most boards and most electronic parts are sealed and safe to wash.Washed boards drying in the Perth summer heat.
Results
So, with everything cleaned and the re-work done, time to put her back together for some performance testing. Let’s have a look at the results.
Overview of the now much cleaner chassis. I can’t stress how important all this hard work is, when restoring or overhauling equipment. I’ve found that it makes a big difference to long-term reliability, performance and owner enjoyment of their equipment. It also improves the resale value.Check out the before pics to see the difference, the chassis is shining once again.Boards and components are now much cleaner and this contributes to improved performance when combined with edge connector reliability enhancement as described earlier.Filter capacitors look great. One of these had suffered minor leakage but tested very well. The owner understood that she would need to come back for stage two but preferred that I do that work in a separate stage, later in the year.Overall, it’s not hard to see the dramatic improvement in the entire chassis and boards.This image demonstrates that well I think.
After some testing, setting of power supply parameters, bias current and DC symmetry, and meter operation, this E-202 is working perfectly again. Her owner is extremely happy with the result and I now have yet another E-202 to overhaul in much the same way I did with this one.
If your Accuphase or other quality stereo amplifier needs some TLC, and you live in Perth, Western Australia, feel free to get in touch to discuss your requirements. As always, thanks for reading and enjoy the last few images.
Doesn’t she look a million bucks!Everything now operates, quietly, reliably.New lamps for the meters have a warm tone, as they should. Lots of folks like to replace incandescent lamps with LEDs in older equipment, but I prefer the warmth of these original incandescent lamps.
Good job, I bought a second hand two years ago in Perth, very nice.
But the balance has some cracking sounds occasionally. Would like to get this done soon. I have used more than 10 ampliers Hi end,
Including Audio Research 600W tube, Usually I kept Accusphase E202 as it is good qualitly and friendly to use, very liable. I left one to my sister 30 years ago , and I am using one myself. Matching KEF speakers, very nice for classsic music.
Hi James, thanks and yes I specialize in this sort of work. I’d be very happy to assist with servicing your E-202, give me a call to discuss, anytime from 10am to 5pm, Tuesday to Saturday.
I read this with great interest as I have and E 302 which I love… mostly works well but a few issues creeping in by now – probably needs much the same kind of work – just wish I was in Perth as I don’t imagine it’s easy to find someone with your specialised skill in Sydney!
Hi David, thanks for commenting and I’m glad you enjoyed this article. I work on a lot of 202s and I have a number of eastern states and overseas customers, so if you don’t find someone, you are welcome to ship your amplifier here for work.
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Great work.
Good job, I bought a second hand two years ago in Perth, very nice.
But the balance has some cracking sounds occasionally. Would like to get this done soon. I have used more than 10 ampliers Hi end,
Including Audio Research 600W tube, Usually I kept Accusphase E202 as it is good qualitly and friendly to use, very liable. I left one to my sister 30 years ago , and I am using one myself. Matching KEF speakers, very nice for classsic music.
Hi James, thanks and yes I specialize in this sort of work. I’d be very happy to assist with servicing your E-202, give me a call to discuss, anytime from 10am to 5pm, Tuesday to Saturday.
I read this with great interest as I have and E 302 which I love… mostly works well but a few issues creeping in by now – probably needs much the same kind of work – just wish I was in Perth as I don’t imagine it’s easy to find someone with your specialised skill in Sydney!
Hi David, thanks for commenting and I’m glad you enjoyed this article. I work on a lot of 202s and I have a number of eastern states and overseas customers, so if you don’t find someone, you are welcome to ship your amplifier here for work.
Excellent read as usual Mike!!
Thanks John, I still need to write yours up too!