BBJames

Oh, and my pre-amp doesn't seem to have that purple hue. Or maybe it does, a bit. Here is a pic....

Thanks again AndrewJohn. That would be one way to take some of the pain away, make a road trip out of it! I think for me the question is whether $1K in restoration is good investment for my pretty casual listening. Seems like a good value considering my acquisition price, but need to figure out if I'd get a good return, vs. moving along into something else not as high end but nice enough and more convenient. My speakers are Klipsch Quartets, which don't need much power. I'm just getting into vinyl. I just scored a nice collection on marketplace, and I'm shopping for a decent vintage TT. I'd be curious to hear anyone's thoughts on how well this kit would with with a vinyl setup. That's probably a silly question, I'm sure it would be great. Thanks again everyone!

Thanks everyone, and thank you very much to AndrewJohn for the recommendations and advice. Yes, the economics of rebuild vs. band aid for this seems to point to a rebuild. I'd describe myself as a "budget audiophile", so the investment to get these up these up to spec is really high in a relative sense. However, I realize that this seems to be some serious gear that would be very high end when rebuilt. (something that I don't see much when looking for deals) Does anyone care to weigh in on what kind of range these things typically sell for, as fully restored? (C-16, TFM-42) That could be another factor in the equation. Thanks again to the responders and AndrewJohn. I've always seen Carver gear here and there but never had the chance to play around with any. Oh BTW, I'm in the North burbs, Vernon Hills area. A road trip to Nelion would be a hike! Thanks!

Hello all. Recently picked up a nice looking Carver stack, a TX-12 tuner, C-16, and TFM-42. Saw it at a yard sale for a hilarious price and scooped it up instantly. I'd post pics of the gear but I don't think I can yet. Tuner seems to work fine, pre-amp works (as far as I can tell), but the amp is not working. It powers up, but seems to emit an audible hum from the case, and when I connected it to some old speakers is just made a very loud low hum before I switched it off. Lights on one channel flashed and the other stayed red. I understand Nelion is the place to go for a re-build, but not sure I want to make that investment. Oscillating between just trying to get it "repaired" and everything cleaned up, or listing it for sale and moving on. Anyway, if anyone has some reputable techs in the Chicago area that I can reach out to, please let me know. It seems to be nice stuff and I would love to get it up and running, but don't think I want to invest in a full rebuild right now. (although I would if I had very power hungry speakers) Thanks, and looking forward to reading through the forums when I get a chance!