Beocenter 9500 vs 9300

[CharlieWednesday]

I currently have a Beocenter 8500 and Beogram 8500, but I also have a Beeogram 9500, and would like a Beocenter 9500 or 9300 to match it.  I wonder if anyone can offer me any advice on the differences between those models however?

I know the 9300 does not have 2-way control (which I don’t need, so that’s no problem).  I also read that it has an ‘improved’ CD player compared to the 9500.

Are there any other differences I should consider?  I ask because the 9300 generally sells for noticeably less than the 9500.

 

 

Location: Liverpool
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[Madskp]

Take a look at his thread that seem to have a lot of info regarding differences between the two

https://archivedforum.beoworld.org/forums/t/31120.aspx

I have a BC9300 and am very satisfied with it. Might miss the 2 way though as I acquired a Beolink 7000

Link capabilities are the same (MCL and datalink) so should make no difference compared to your BC8500

Some of the BC9300 has the newer linear CD mechanism which might be more prone to laser failure than the older types.

 

 

Location: Denmark

[AdamS]

Beocenter 9500 every time.

Beocentral explains it, and isn’t very complimentary about the 9300! – https://beocentral.com/beocenter9300

 

[CharlieWednesday]

Ah thank you, I had no idea the internals were so very different in the 9300.

I don’t think I’ll ever have use for the 2-way remote capability of the 9500.  I have a two Beo6 remotes but my understanding is that while that is a 2-way remote, that’s not compatible with the 2-way system in the 9500.  I think the 2-way functionality of a Beo6 is only for the BS5 Encore (which I don’t own).

However, the lack of a phono stage in the 9300 is a deal breaker – I’ll make sure I look for a 9500 instead then, not a 9300.

I’ve restored a few in this range before (8000, 8500 and 9000) so it’d also help me that the 9500 has many of the same components that I’m familiar with, unlike the 9300.

Thanks both for your help.

Location: Liverpool
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[Madskp]

Also worth noting is that the BC9500 has both a phono and a tape2 connection where the BC9300 use the same connection for both of these commands

Location: Denmark

[CharlieWednesday]

I got hold of a Beocenter 9500 pretty cheap because it needed new tape belts (I know I can fix that though, done it before), and it has a cracked glass panel but otherwise in great condition.  I’ll find a new glass panel for it, given time.

However, it also suffers from another common problem – the Speakers 1 outputs don’t work.  I know this will be due to a faulty mute relay, but I’m useless with a soldering iron and my last attempt to fix that same issue in an old BC9000 only made it worse.

However, I do have a full amplifier component from a Beocenter 8500 which I stripped down for parts a while ago.  Can anyone tell me if the BC9500 and BC8500 amplifiers are the same?

I intend to use the BC9500 with active Beolabs, but all the same, it’d be nice to have it fully working.

Location: Liverpool
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[Guy]

CharlieWednesday wrote:

Can anyone tell me if the BC9500 and BC8500 amplifiers are the same?

The 9500 and 8500 share the same service manual, so I just had a quick look through and can’t spot any highlighted differences on PCB60, but it’s probably worth a more thorough scrutiny.

CharlieWednesday wrote:

I don’t think I’ll ever have use for the 2-way remote capability of the 9500.

There is one other useful feature of the 2-way remote capability, that doesn’t need a 2-way remote.  The fact that the BC9500 can transmit (as well as receive) IR commands can be of use:  You can use Beo4/BL1000 to transmit a LIGHT command from an MCL link room and the BC9500 will re-transmit this in the main room.  I found this useful to relay LIGHT commands from an MCL link room to a Lightmanager Pro in the Main Room, which then controlled (by RF) lights back in the link room (or anywhere else in the house in RF range).  The BC9500 has to be in  A.OPT 1 or 2, and I did not try it from an ML link room (I didn’t have one).  It’s a bit of a specific case and may not be of value in your setup, but worth mentioning.

Location: Warwickshire, UK
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[Author]

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