Yamaha C-4 Preamplifier - Serviced and Upgraded - Vinyl Lovers Dream Phono Preamp

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If you're into vinyl this might be the most effective vintage preamp that's also priced reasonably.

Featuring not one - but THREE phono inputs - including MC (Moving-Coil)!

You can even fine tune your phono cartridge loading and capacitance via front panel controls. You can tell Yamaha was serious about the phono section since they made sure to upgrade only the phono RCA jacks to gold plated.

This preamp also features very capable tone controls with a bypass function, perfect for getting the most out of your vintage speakers.

You can assemble a KILLER setup by pairing this with our matching T-2 Tuner and M-2 Amplifier (click here).

Amazing mid 1980's Yamaha looks from the golden era of Yamaha when they were still being made in Japan.

Surely to become a collector piece over time.

Repair Notes:
This unit's buttons have been upgraded with LED backlights. This offers extended lamp life and reduces overall heat in the unit. The new LED's are bright white and do alter the color from stock. The new buttons appear white, teal, and teal/green - where the original incandescents appeared amber and forest green.

This C-4 has also undergone routine maintenance, including a full solder reflow of the main PCB's, and a full cleaning of all controls. All service manual adjustments for rail voltage, DC offset, and phono balance have also been completed.

Our Testing Process for Preamplifiers at SkyFi:

We start with a visual inspection of all internal components to make sure there are no signs of stress or aging. Capacitors are checked for telltale sings of bulging or leaking, resistors are checked for signs of overheating or cracking, and transistors are checked for signs of stress or damage. Special attention is paid to the power supply which is the most common source of failure for preamps. We then power up the unit and run a simple 1k sine wave while monitoring the low voltage output on an oscilloscope for signs of distortion or noise to get a baseline.

At this point we will lubricate and clean all switches and potentiometers (that are not sealed) with a high quality contact cleaner, and then re-test all functions for any signs of noise or scratching.

Final testing involves putting actual music through the preamplifier We have learned over time that some issues are only noticeable to a trained ear while listening to a familiar source material. Our test bench has reference vintage Kef speakers that we are super familiar with which will quickly reveal any discrepancies. Some preamps will then move into the listening room where they will be tested with our in-house reference system.

Please click here for detailed specifics regarding our specialized packing process that separates us from the rest.