Sony TA-N86B

Bestseller of the pre-Esprit series, the N86B is the "little" one - but the best one.

Not as problematic as the TA-N88B - in fact not problematic at all - and switchable in Class A, Class B or as a Class B monoblock.

With four High fT transistors and a PLPS power supply chopping at 20Khz, the TA-N86B is a truly excellent amplifier in Class A, losing a little of its distinction when used in the other two modes.

Almost as hot in Class A as a Yamaha CA-1010, it stays cool, however, when driven in Class B or as a monoblock, but the diecast heatsinks do come handy in Class A for the idle current is to be set at 350mV !
According to the Service Manual's specs, the US and Canada models deliver more power than the AEP (EU) and UK versions...

The heatsinks have a center dent made for a long rubber band to avoid metallic resonance from the fins : theses rubber bands were never shown in the catalogs and got lost by the owners 99,9% of the time.

Japan saw a second production run with updated, larger, speaker terminals at the time of the ASCO > SOAU / DTKK T-Tag transition ('79/80), when about 6000 had been sold in Japan.
Available in silver, TA-N86, too, but only in Japan ; produced until 1984 in Japan and available in Germany until just as late, naturally.

A very successful amplifier in Germany and Japan, the total production run should be of more than 10,000 units so the TA-N86 isn't rare. Companion of the equally sure-fire bargain TA-E86B preamplifier which also sold extremely well everywhere.

I am the lucky owner of three (US, CA and FR), one having problems with its PLPS section, the other having suffered a butcher repair of the output transistors ; the US one is however working like a charm with no servicing whatsoever since 1978 !

Design-wise, reliability-wise, sound-wise and sales-wise all rolled into one, I don't think Sony ever was as successful with a high-end combo : the 86s were, and still are, perfect.