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Will I ever get a cabinet like this?

With components like these!

Above pictures courtesy of Laura % Michael - scctv@cruzio.com

Or a combo like this! Which at the first glance could look like a preamp, tuner and power amp. However, I know about no such Sherwood preamp. On the contrary. I think this is an integrated mono (stereo preamp) amplifier, tuner and a separate power amp supposed to power the second channel - a stereo retrofit, maybe? The "trannies" look extremely well-made! Sherwood had a reputation for using only the best of components. Already at that time the Sherwood people were occupied with broadening the listening area stage. This led to an early adaptation of the Dynaquad 4-channel system. Later receivers also had taps for a center-channel speaker. But, at that time there was no special volume setting for the center speaker. This had to be catered for in a separate volume pot in series with the speaker wiring. Today, the Sherwood brand is one of the largest in surround sound. Only a logical conclusion of their past.

The Sherwood tube integrated amps

Above: Sherwood S-5000 - one of the classic Sherwood integrated tube amplifiers. These were made in many variants - I am still not sure how many - I am working at it! The most powerful version yielded 2x36 watts continuous in 8 ohms. Not bad for such a handy design. Many of the "old" tube amps - of various brands, had a lot of interesting features. Take the above-pictured S-5000, for example. One could easily mix the sound from a microphone and a tuner by connecting ea. of them to the left and right inputs of the same source. By selecting "mono 1+2" at the front panel the signals would be summed to both sides. As tuners often had separate level controls this could work fine.   The S-5000 could also be used as a mono power amp, giving 72 continuous watts. This was done by connecting the two speaker leads to the same figure (4.8 or 16) at each output channel at the rear. By using the "phase" switch at the front both amps would drive the same speaker - with double power. Two pieces of S-5000's would then give you stereo 2x72 watts! However, in this instance it would be important to connect the same way at both amps - otherwise the stereo signals would be out of phase.   In the beginning of consumer stereo one was also a little occupied with "hole-in-the-middle". That is, if you put the speakers too far apart - or if you wanted a broader "wall" of sound. A center speaker could then be fed from the two channels by connecting each of the speaker leads to same impedance output at each side - just like when the amp should be used as a mono amp. A volume pot should be connected in series with the speaker. However, because you are not using the phase switch in this example you would be getting the "difference" signal in this - center - speaker. If you wanted a "summed mono" signal in the middle - you could take this from a special output - "channel 3" - to feed a separate power amp driving the center speaker - like subwoofers are utilized today. This amp should, ideally, have a volume control to balance it to the right/left speakers.

The Sherwood tube tuners

The Sherwood tube receivers

Above: Sherwood S-8000 tube receiver. Used same output tubes as the late versions S-5000/5500, giving 2x36 watts cont. power. A much slimmer design than most of its competitors. This was made possible by slanting the mounting of tubes and capacitors. Sherwood tuners are legendary for their high sensitivity, stability and lack of noise.	The back view picture shows how Sherwood could make their units so slim. The output tubes are placed in back of the unit for best cooling, with a heat cover separating them from the rest of the unit. The bases are lowered in the chassis and the tubes slanted backwards. The heat cover, and the placement of it and the tubes, allowed a closer proximity to the unit cover

Above pictures of S-8000 courtesy of mr. Gary Kaufman.

Please look into his web-site:

http://www.the-planet.org

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Sherwood solid-state amplifiers and tuners

The Sherwood S-9900 integrated amp. This amplifier was featured in the '68 allied catalogue. Specifications were rather hyped up - stating: "140 watts amplifier". What it cooked down to was approx. 2x30 watts cont. in 8 ohms, both channels driven. THD: 0.4 %. Facilities for 2 sets of stereo speakers and plenty of inputs and verstility. The S-9500 was a lower-powered version in the same general design. The phono input volume control (lower left corner) was soon to disappear. A pity!

This Sherwood S-2300 AM/FM solid-state tuner was also featured in the '68-'70 Allied catalogue. Specifications were: Sensitivy: 1.8 microV for 30 db s/n Channel separation: 40 db. Capture ratio: 2.2 db Cross-modulation rejection: Better than 95 db.   These are very good specs - and properly stated. Many other manufacturers cheated on these, for example quoting sensitivity for 20 db s/n ratio. S-3300 had only FM receiver.

The AM/FM-scale can be seen clearly here. The S-2300/3300 also had automatic stereo switching. Notice the nice curve as the front bottoms out! No other brands approached the elegance of this period's Sherwoods. Just my opinion!   Picture courtesy of Laura % Michael - scctv@cruzio.com

 

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Sherwood solid-state receivers

Above left: The S-7100A (ca. 1971). While the original S-7100 had transformer-coupled outputs, the "A"-version was transformer-less. Also, the flip-switch problem had been solved. At the first version the switch springs had a tendency to break. All the other models in the range had push-buttons for switching. Due to its relatively low price the S-7100 was quite popular. Common on all the models in this range was the "loudness" function - as the volume knob function was called. At the "loudness" control the Fletcher-Munson frequency curve compensation was the default setting and had to be de-coupled for a flat response. As volume was increased the curve was automatically, and gradually, flattened. A good idea in theory, but only correct at a given speaker sensitivity and room acoustics. Sherwood always catered well for the tape enthusiasts, as there were connections at the front panel,too.

Power rating of the S-7100A: Approx. 2x17 watts. In the best Sherwood tradition the tuner section was quite good, considering the price of this unit. Above right: Sherwood S-7200 solid-state receiver (ca. 1972). 2x32 watts cont. full-range, 8 ohms FM sensitivity: Less than -30 db noise and distortion at 1.8 microvolt Damping factor: 40:1 at 8 ohms. Provision for 4-channel in/out

Above: Sherwood S-7310 (ca. 1974). The 7X10-series had a slimmer design than their predecessors in that the cabinets were pulled in behind the silver fronts. If you compare the S-7200 and the S-7310 you will note that the exterior facilities are much the same. The differences were inside. Better tuners, stronger amplifiers, less distortion.

Above: The S-7010. The cheaper Sherwood receivers had just the same high quality materials and facilities as the more expensive models. The S-7010 was at the low-end of the scale as can be seen from the number of buttons. The tuner, however, was very high quality - as in all Sherwood models. Proportions same as the "larger" models. Power: Approx. 2x10 watts full-range into 8 ohms . These were all made in Japan.

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Sherwood in the '68-'70 Allied-Knight catalogue The Allied Knight company, a large warehouse and mail ordering company, usually had a selection of Sherwood models in their inventory. Below are the models featured in their '68-'70 catalogue.

Above: the S-2300 and S-3300 tuners. While the Allied catalogue of '67 contained no Sherwood units, the '68 catalogue featured no less than 6 different units in 3 categories: 2 receivers, 2 amplifiers and 2 tuners. We never imported these models as new models had taken over when we started to deal with Sherwood. That was the 7100-series upwards - a total break with the Sherwood tube era design, most of them being manufactured in Japan. While the integrated transistor amps continued in much the same exterior design as the tube units - mainly rocker switches taking over for the sliding switches, the receivers and tuners were rather different in that they got much larger, and off-set, tuning scales. The tradition of superior performance in the tuner sections was upheld.

Above left: The S-7800 and S-7600 receivers. These were supposedly the first totally solid-state receivers in the world! In the Allied '70 catalogue a new exterior receiver-design was introduced. This was to continue well into the seventies.   Above right: The S-9500 and S-9900 integrated amplifiers. Main difference in exterior design of the integrated amplifiers was a switch-over to rocker switches instead of sliding switches. While in the "tube era" the Sherwood factory had kept to a "sound" policy regarding specifications on their units, in '68 they were on par with many other brands, in that figures were exaggerated. They came to their senses again in the beginning of the seventies.   In the Allied '70 catalogue the suffix "B" was added to the S-9500. Also, the power output was raised from 80 to 100 watts. (Promotional watts, that is) At the bottom line it was quoted as yielding 2x30 watts. continous. Whether this was for 4 or 8 ohms impedance is not stated. Also, it was mentioned specifically (not in '68) that this amp had "overload protection fuses". Had they experienced blown output transistors on the earlier models, maybe?

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