Hi, hope you're all having a good day. This WM-36 has been a bit of an exciting project, not a super well documented Walkman so disassembly and belt replacement was a challenge but totally worth it. It works amazingly well however when I adjust the volume, at slightly lower volumes it sometimes becomes mono sound in one ear - if I lower it any more it becomes stereo again, and if I raise it it becomes stereo again. This problem seems only to exist at a specific volume range, albeit a small one but I'd still like to know if this problem can be fixed as it's a perfectly functional device otherwise with fantastic equalizer control and audio quality. There's a blue ribbon cable connecting to the tape head, capstan etc. that has a slightly scratched surface, the Walkman has been opened once prior to me looking in as someone had done a bad job of trying to replace the belt and stripped all the screws too... The capacitors don't have domed heads and all look in great working order, no leakage of burst caps inside the board as a result. Not sure where this problem is coming from to be honest, would appreciate some extra thoughts on it. Kindest Regards, stereomecha99
Probably as simple as dirt in the volume control. Ideally spray some switch cleaner inside to potentiometer. Although the components in a Walkman are smaller the principle is the same as shown in this video
Hi Longman, you were right. It's all restored up again, after desoldering the volume slider, leaving it to soak in IPA and also cleaning the potentiometer pots it's all working as it should. So glad to have this beauty back to working order again... It's a gorgeous unit and very nicely built, definitely made with servicing in mind. Thanks!
