Help with vintage Beogram 1700

4 replies

Hello, new user here, recently inherited my mother's like new beogram 1700.

I have had this unit for 2 years and it has been a trusty friend with 0 issues...until I attempted to update my speakers...

Until Christmas, this beogram was connected to a similar aged receiver and passive speakers.  Things ran perfectly smoothly.....but life is changing and I needed to downsize my set up.  So, I purchased a behringer pre-amp and active Edifier speakers.   Suddenly, sound only plays from one speaker at a time.  I can swap which speaker plays by switching the wires coming out of the turntable.  This happens when I bypass the preamp entirely, only sound from one speaker that I can swap by switching the turntable wires (albeit very quiet sound).  The other speaker just hums.  I assumed this was a cartridge or wiring issue with the beogram, so I brought it to the local repair man and he said he tested the beogram and it produces sound strongly from both channels.  He even tested the preamp.  He swears the beogram is in perfect condition and has no clue what is going awry.  The speakers are brand new and work perfectly well with phones and computer input.  

Any help, please? Is the local repair guy just wrong?  Is there some issue with translating between vintage B&O technology and new RCA input active speakers?  Thank you so much, friends.

Thank you, Mark! This is really helpful and what I’m hoping for. Do you think it would suffice to cut off the problem plug, expose some wiring and replace it with a new RCA plug? Trying to avoid opening the thing up too much, I’m a novice at wiring. Thank you!

Actually, I would do that with both plugs. Also you can confirm both channels by using a meter to measure the resistance between the shield and hot (center) conductor when the turntable is unmuted (on and tonearm lowered). You should get about 1000 ohms.but the actual value doesn't't matter as much as the 2 channels being within 5% of each other. 

Excellent, thank you!

or
BeoWorld Gold Membership card
Join BeoWorld

Register to access the forums, reference material, and exclusive member benefits — including our monthly prize draw.

Become a Member

December 2026 Prize Draw

Gold Members Only

As a Gold member you're automatically entered into our exclusive prize draw — your chance to win iconic Bang & Olufsen products. A unique benefit of BeoWorld Gold membership, every draw brings a new opportunity to win something special.