I was looking for a Planar P2 turntable in white and an Ortofon blue cartridge. Kind of specific. Was calling around Austin as I had an itch to get these today. Ryan at Austin Stereo answered when I called. Ryan is very friendly and said they had one on display, so I went on over. I'm not a vintage or nostalgic audio buff, but this is THE PLACE if you are. Brought me back many years just looking at all the cool stuff in this small, unassuming shop. Just the receivers alone were amazing. This place is the real deal, and they also have some modern components, such as the Planar. I bought the Planar P2 and Ortofon cartridge from them, at the SAME prices as on Amazon! I waited about 20 minutes as they installed and aligned the cartridge, and then I walked out with my new stuff. Talk about service! What a great find and the perfect outcome to what started as a "wishful thinking" day. read more

Where would i be without Mike? He's kept my dad's handed down NAD 5120 turntable in tip top shape since I've lived in Austin. I also got my vintage Pioneer receiver here, and it's played great for over a decade. Anytime anyone asks me about repairing stereo equipment, I point them here. The repairs may take a little time, but it is well worth the wait. read more

I have not actually set foot into their store! But I will not hesitate to do so should the need occur. I had an issue with the belt on my turntable and asked for a quote through Yelp's process. Not only did I get a prompt and extremely reasonable quote (i.e. free service) they included a video showing me how to perform the service myself. read more

I am a true audiophile and go nuts over equipment. Unfortunately some of the stuff does break down. I use to freak out when something stopped working until I met Mike at Austin Stereo Service. Mike is an engineer and loves working on vintage and tube gear. Whether it was my 1978 Yamaha receiver or an ultra high end tube amp that costs thousands of dollars, Mike got them fixed and even had them running better than before. How? He points out cheap parts that were installed at the factory and upgrades them. I have referred him to many people and all have walked away pleased with his service and his reasonable charges. Mike is also honest. If it's something he knows is proprietary he urges you to send it to the manufacturer instead of attempting to fix it. Be patient though. He has a lot of work all the time. So it could be a few weeks for your repairs. read more

I took my 1982 Hitachi turntable to Mike for a cartridge replacement. Turns out my diamond was in fine shape. Just needed cleaning and the arm needed some adjustment. A few minutes in Mike's care and I am back in action. No charge, since the cartridge didn't have to be replaced. You will get all of my hi-fi business, no question. Definitely a real stereo expert who knows his business. Thanks Mike! read more

If you want to finally get a real stereo, one with authority, they can help. Yes, they know what's what and sell awesome old school components with real power. If you need a fair repair then keep in miind that Mike is an electrical engineer. He's fixed all kinds of stuff for me. They are extremely honest and have a great sense of humor. read more

I went here the other day for a new needle for my turntable. It was quick, easy and the price was right. Mike also adjusted the speed of my turntable. He was easy going and helpful read more

Last year I brought an 1981 Techincs SU-V8 Integrated Amplifier to Mike at Austin Stereo to be refurbished. Mike completely recapped all the old capacitors, cleaned, and touched up soulder hits. Once I got it back home after having it for a week I noticed that my right side output was dropping out mostly on the phono stage. I held on to it for a couple months and then brought the amp back to Mike, he opened it back up and somehow figured out the problem. I have the SU-V8 back at home and use it as my main media center for hdtv, phono, aux inputs, and hopefully for a tuner soon if I can find one. I owe Mike a great deal of gratitude for his time and effort he put into this 37lb monster of an amp. He finally worked out the issues, and yes it took some time and patience, but I am happy to wait for a fully working amp that sounds better than it did when I first came into my possession. He does great work. Highly recommended. Thank you Mike! read more

Austin Stereo Service - Repaired and fully operational Technics SU-V8 - Electronics Repair Near Me - Austin, Texas

I've been twice. Once to find a receiver and the other to get my Dual 1229 fixed up. Each time I've been wooo'd by the service. He showed me to the right speakers for the space I had and learned me on my Dual turntable. I try to spend money there, but he has saved me hundreds just giving me advice (which I'm going to blow on albums). I'm absolutely a fan. Please spend your money here. He won't let me...yet :] read more

Austin Stereo rocks! Turnaround on the repair time was solid and he uses quality materials. My hi fi sounds so good now!

I made the terrible mistake of sending my equipment (Amp and Pre Amp to Austin Stereo. Having described the initial problem to Mike the owner we agreed he would look at the Amp and give me his assessment. The first Red Flag was when UPS had tried to deliver the equipment on a Monday and he said he would wait till they would re-deliver on Thursday. He could not be bothered to go to the local UPS store to pick it up, Next he basically insulted me by saying I had packed my equipment like a "High School Kid" Right than I should have told him to take his attitude and shove it. After his review I asked to get a ballpark of price to fix the problem he said could not just fix the initial static issue but he would have to tear the amp down and rebuild the Amp to the tune of $500.00 not including tube replacement, that would be an additional$ 25.00 a piece!!! I can buy quality tubes all day long for less than 10,00 a piece. Next the Pre Amp would be $150.00. When I told him I had not asked him to rebuild the unit just fix the problem, Let me tell you I have never herd a more arrogent, condesending excuse for a business person. He said he would not do a half assed job it was all or nothing. At that point I was so pissed off I said to just send it back. He refused to juse my origional packaging as his time was to valuable and would only drop it off at the UPS store and let them pack it professionally to the tune of $130.00!! So it has cost me $180.00 to ship my equipment to this looser and no fix. I assure you he has messed with the wrong person and if you are smart you will find ANYONE other than this jerk to fix your gear. read more

Old school sounds !! bring your 8 tracks

I've never written a review for anything before. My boyfriend dropped off our player in July to get fixed for my birthday, then he lost his job. He told Mike that he would pay for it when he could, but if he needed to sell it, that was okay. Mike called and harassed my boyfriend for months, even though he was told that there was no extra money to pay for it, and he could sell it. Now, it's December, and we're finally back on our feet. I called and left a message telling Mike that I would like to pay for the repairs if he still had it, and give it to my boyfriend for Christmas. Mike immediately called my boyfriend and told him that someone 'claiming' to be his girlfriend wanted to pay for his repairs. He never called and spoke with me. Not only did he ruin the Christmas present, but he claimed that I was a fraud. When I told him I was upset by this and not sure if I even wanted the player anymore, he just gave me a jovial, 'Okay'. I am really upset, this guy came highly recommended. He's incredibly unprofessional and now I don't have a gift for my boyfriend :( read more

When you read all positive reviews for a business or service, you have to be a little skeptical. But let me tell you, what you read about Austin Stereo Service is true. I took my 1978 era Yamaha turntable to Austin Stereo Service for repair, Mike not only replace the belt and stylus, he oiled, adjusted and balance everything, plus gave me tips on how to care for my turntable. All this on the front counter as I watched. And the cost was extremely reasonable. Now my 35+ year old turntable sound just like it did back in the day. I have definitely found a home for all my future stereo servicing. Thanks Mike - Live Long and Prosperous. read more

Fantastic. Wonderful. This guy cares about your equipment first and profits second- HOW RARE IS THAT? Took in a vintage Marantz tuner/amp. Since he no longer does general repairs on these and only does full rebuild/restoration (which we really didn't need), he still spent a lot of time checking out our Marantz, explaining things and ultimately sent us to another place for the repair. If you want a full restoration by an "artist" or want to buy vintage stereo equipment expertly restored (but not speakers) THIS IS THE PLACE TO GO. Really regret buying our equipment from Sound Gallery, but won't make that mistake again. read more

I'd heard about this place, so when the electronics inside my subwoofer blew, I took it to this guy. I even brought the schematic for the circuit board inside that the designer of the sub was kind enough to email to me. First, the guy at Austin Stereo smelled of beer at 11am on a Tuesday morning. I wouldn't have had a problem with that if anything he said to me had come true. So, I leave it with him and he thanks me for bringing in the schematic "for his files" and says to come back in a week. I call him more than two weeks later and he hasn't gotten around to it. No problem. I ask him politely when I might expect it to be done, he says one week. Again, two weeks go by before I call him, at which point he says he is "overburdened" and has not even looked at it, but thanks for my patience. I wait another two weeks before stopping by on my lunch hour. I see the subwoofer sitting on the floor exactly where I'd left it SIX weeks earlier. It has become the foundation for a stack of other components. I tell him I can't wait any longer and dig it out of the pile. The best part of all this is that he makes me wait for him to write me a RECEIPT before I go. I ask him what the receipt is for and get silence in response. The next day I ship it to the manufacturer who fixes it and has it back to me before the week is out. This guy could be the best, most knowledgeable electrical engineer in the world, but it means nothing if he can't give even the roughest estimate of how long a job will take. When I followed up with the guy who recommended Austin Stereo in the first place, it turns out that he failed to mention that it took six months for a routine repair to his vintage speakers to be completed. read more

The place to go with your stereo equipment problems, for sure. The owner told me on the phone that he didn't carry turntable needles (which we suspected was the problem), and said we might try with the business down the road. He also said that he didn't work on our turntable brand. We loaded our turntable and headed north from South Austin, stopping at Austin Stereo first, just in case. Within 10 minutes of diagnostics/repair our problem was fixed, no charge, and it wasn't the needle after all. We are hooked on Austin Stereo Service. read more

Had my Pioneer Pl6A turntable repaired--would not track properly. The expertise and professionalism were stellar. My turntable now performs as new. read more

Very confused by my visit after reading the reviews for this place. 3 or 4 people out of 11 stated they went in for a new needle for their record player. When I arrived he told me they don't carry needles. Obviously I have no issues with what they carry, it was just very odd that no one stated that in their review. I live north and was hoping to find a place that wasn't on 6th Street to replace my needle in a pinch and possibly further this store / patron relationship. The store is very, very small, the man was very nice, and they had some really cool vintage receivers. It just wasn't what I expected based on the reviews I read- no fault of the store's, I just thought others should know this is really just a repair place and even then, you might be directed to another service center down the road as he explained he often does. I would call first. read more

I bought a fresh out-of-the-box Yamaha receiver last spring. BOO! It sounded cheap like an old transistor radio, thin tone, no warmth to the music. This $500 new receiver did not sound nearly as good as my 30-year old one when it worked. So, I returned that tinny import and called Austin Stereo Service. I brought my 1980-ish MCS receiver to Mike back in June to clear up the fading signal & crackling on several of the dials. Mike cleaned up the sound such that it was like new; better than that Yamaha by a mile. Mike worked his wizardry and brought that familiar warm sound back to life! Then, a few weeks later, the balance selector began to fade & crackle again on the left. A call to Mike and he said bring it by. Within 3 days, that scratchy signal & loss of balance was gone. Now it's January 2016, and I called Mike again (as he assured me he stands by his work) because the function selector knob was now making a crackling noise. As good as his word, Mike promptly cleans that issue up and I wonder what other magic he's performed on my receiver because it now sounds better than ever. Austin Stereo Service is not your cheapest option, nor the fastest: but if you value vintage gear that sounds better (for the repair price point) than a comparable product from Fry's, you cannot go wrong with Mike @ Austin Stereo Service. Encourage this business by keeping your classic stereo rockin' well into the 21st century: thank you, Mike. read more

My experience? Mike is a friendly hippie mad scientist who loves his craft and offers great service. No intimidating audiophile attitude here. HIghly recommended. read more

Austin Stereo rocks. Mike is a great guy. fun to talk to and he knows his stuff. I've had him service both of my turntables (a Thorens and a Technics), as well as recap an old Sansui receiver from the 70s. A couple of years ago, I bought a vintage Marantz 2275 from him. It sounds great, though not necessarily better than the Sansui he fixed. Bottom line: if you care about good sound and want your stuff to work well, Austin Stereo is the place to go. read more

Super friendly, very thorough, all around awesome. I am no audio-savvy person. In fact, I get nervous with electronics and I am very shy...meaning potential snobbery about my low-end record player is something I don't look forward to. Not to worry, no snobbery here! I was very happy with his great customer service. GO HERE! read more

Great customer service! I've been taking my stereo equipment to them for about 4 or 5 yrs. They've worked on two receivers, two turntables, and a CD player. They brought my '70s turntable back to life and did a full service job on a Kenwood receiver. I took in my '80s JVC receiver and they worked with me to get the service needed within my budget. They also fixed my '80s CD player; they don't generally work on CD players but the problem was mechanical which they agreed to fix. Today I took in an old Technics turntable I recently bought on ebay that was not functioning properly and after some troubleshooting they had it figured out and fixed and I was on my way in about 10 minutes. I would highly recommend them for servicing your vintage stereo equipment. read more

Mike does great work! It isn't cheap but nothing this quality should be. Nice to find somebody with the skill to repair and appreciation for great devices that can't be serviced just anywhere. read more

Mike knows his stuff. He explained why my broken 36 year old vintage, Kenwood stereo receiver needed more than repair. It needed to be refurbished and that doing so would make it sound like new. Boy! Was he right!, After replacing capacitors and other electronic components, he repaired what was broken and gave us back the rich sound that this receiver was known for. Over the years, the sound quality had imperceptibly deteriorated and we had even considered purchasing a new digital receiver to replace it. We even tested a high end one at our home. Yes it sounded good, but the sound did not have the richness that our aging receiver still delivered. That's what drove the decision to refurbish the Kenwood, and we are very glad we did. My daughter and wife were so impressed that they said "It sounds like they (referring to the musicians) are playing in our living room." No matter whether you listen to classical music, jazz, reggae, or what have you, it doesn't get better than that. read more

I came across these guys when I was looking for a repair for an issue I had with a vintage amp (which turned out to actually be an issue with frayed speaker wires). I purchased my amp and pre amp on Ebay, and had purchased them under the representation that they had been completely refurbished. I had Mike take the top off of the amp to see if the work had actually been done, which, it turns out, it had not. I decided to have Mike refurbish both the amp and preamp so that they would be up to the original specs. I had gone to a lot of trouble putting my system together, and quite frankly had been thrilled with it. After Mike got done with the work, I was blown away. The system sounds better than ever and better than anything I have heard in any high-end stereo shop anywhere. These guys really know what they are doing. I would recommend them to anyone. And, oh yeah, they fixed the speaker wires for me for free. read more

I can't say enough good things about Mike and Austin Stereo Service. Before I moved to Austin, the FM tuner on my aging Rotel receiver had crapped out. Took it to a local shop where I was living and they couldn't repair the tuner (despite trying on two separate occasions.) Fast forward a couple of years and I've moved to Austin for school, and now the balance knob on the Rotel goes screwy. I take it to Austin Stereo Service and Mike not only fixes the knob but gets the tuner in working order as well - all within a week. A couple months later, the treble knob begins to show the same symptoms as the balance. I take it back to Mike, he fixes up the treble AND bass controls, has it back to me in ONE DAY because I'm leaving town (having now graduated) and, as if that weren't enough, at NO CHARGE. Seriously, if you need stereo repair and you live in the Austin area, go to these guys. Period. Great service, no attitude and no bs. read more