Introducing myself and seeking guidance on TPS-L2

Hello, My name is Matt and I have taken time to read through a number of incredibly posts by the experts and collectors on this site. It looks to be a wonderful community.

I recently received my Sony TPS-L2 with half of the original box, case, never used strap, and 2 original headphones. It showed power but no movement when I got it. I asked a local service person to look at it. He changed a couple bands, replaced the "Servo Amp" IC(whose part number is: CX183), and oiled it. It now plays but still has issues. The right volume doesn't work at all (with or without a cassette) and slows when it is raised. If the Walkman sits for a day I need to hit fwd/rev before play to get the wheels turning.

Does anyone on this site know someone in the US that could fix this? If it were completely dead I'd try it knowing I couldn't make it worse. Since it is mostly the way there I'd like help. In the end it may have to go as-is to someone who knows better.

(I removed the top to change the speed)




Thank you in advance.

 

Half hazard guess id assume a failing capacitor(s) causing your audible issues here. Its about ~45 years old, caps fail, same happened with mine although i havent gotten around to recapping it yet.
Your need to hit FF/RW to play after sitting might be old lubricant/dirt settling and sticking things in place, needing extra oomph to dislodge. Assuming, but id wager that's it, if not at least close.
Slowing at higher volume more specifically, all i can assume is the amp or servo ic might be drawing more current than whats available due to failed decoupling capacitor(s), might be oscillating, meaning higher draw - less to the motor, and that up/down in/out volume you're hearing.
Ie collapsing voltage stability due to capacitors that arent really charging correctly anymore, caps being a sort of small battery for the circuitry.


Think i saw a while back that Valentin offered service, but im not 100% sure if true or not. Could try messaging him to ask though he would be based in Europe. (Worth)
I do commissions (Texas), but i have ~3-4 units to service with another coming in a week or two so there would be some wait time. Plus as i only started when i was ~14 (21 now), im not exactly as much a specialist as others you might find regarding circuitry.
If he confirms id go with Valentin, I consider him pretty much the gold standard for walkman servicing.

 

Thank you Squiggly! I was hoping my local tech did this kind of research. I wonder if the new Servo IC that was installed caused the new issues. Can the capacitors be replaced? I don't think I had more than 1 option on the Servo IC I bought off ebay.

 

its probably correct, if it wasnt, it probably wouldnt even partially work to begin with (plays normal at lower vol)
caps can be replaced, you make a list of the old and order some new parts off a website like Digikey

 

I mean shit, if that service guy didnt even do basic cleaning while offering service on vintage audio gear, id have some concerns lol.
Gonna just leave some footnotes here-
-My player has same issues, known faulty caps. Fluttery audio, wonky speed at times, although it only has audio periodically cut out when i have 2 devices plugged into the jack, your missing right channel is likely due to something completely failing
-Volume cutting is rhythmic, not random, wouldnt point to audio jack or pots for that reason (scratching or periodic in/outs depending on where you move it)

And main reason for assuming bad caps, excluding they are only 46 years old, i leave you with-

makes the most sense imo, but maybe im wrong. its not super straightforward to diagnose circuitry without poking at it yourself
given its 46 years old, id give it fresh caps regardless. working on 80s crap for the last few years taught me even if they arent bad now, it wont be long. Usually 1-3 months if not immediately (noticeably) bad/worn

 

Thank you both for your input. Pretty displeased with my local expert and hope I can find someone else if I go that route.