Picked up a Rock-ola 446 and a seeburg STD2 Entertainer locally for..... NOTHING! I love free stuff.

Obviously they both didn’t work. Was told the Seeburg worked but stopped after sitting for a year in the garage. Was told the Rock-ola never worked.

Well there’s no way the Seeburg was working lol. Got it running mechanically but no sound. A lot of hacks and cut wires in there. Winter project. It’s the one i want to keep. I need to rebuild the 5-bit controller also and replace a lot of the infinity lighting bulbs.

The Rock-ola mech had been disassembled and then put together incorrectly. Fixed all that. Rebuilt the mech motor. Found all the loose bolts from the previous disassembly. Did a re-cap of the amp. I still have a buzzing sound when things are silent but otherwise all working. When i put a finger on or near the tone arm the buzzing goes away. Seems like a build up of static. However when i put a jumper from the tone arm to a ground lug it buzzes much more.

I dont really like the style of the 446(console) and will put it up on kijiji or craiglist before winter.

Mike

443A8630-538F-4098-B90C-0687C26134DE (resized).jpeg

875ED785-A074-49E4-BC54-148B2A1805D3 (resized).jpeg

8B55A3BA-FB9F-46C9-868E-AD8B199377A2 (resized).jpeg

The amp is messed up. I will try to fix it but may take you up on your offer if it proves an insurmountable task!

Cheers,

Mike

I'd be interested in the lot as well but not as collectables. I need a quick way to stuff my Seeburg STD2 with 80 records. Only have about 20 on hand now. I prefer 50's-60's rock n'roll and that seems to be what you have.

Well I did the unthinkable. Converted a juke to MP3 (while maintaining the original look and feel). You wouldn’t know unless you opened it up. It’s a Seeburg STD2 Entertainer.

Now before slamming me consider that the juke is cosmetically so-so. Repainted using what looks like brushed on Tremclad for the black. Some chrome painted black. Most of the remaining chrome is rusted/corroded/scratched. The electronics were hacked to sh$t. Unending mess of cut wires, splices, and electrical tape all over. Blown amp. Non functioning audio pickup(in addition to blown amp).

So here’s what I did:

I programmed an Arduino mega with MP3 shield to control my jukebox. With the programming and hook up done I need to clean up the installation and make it more “permanent” instead of jump wires all over. Then I will get to the infinity lighting. The only “non-original” behaviour is the initial bulb test when I turn it on. The volume control and skip song switch in the back are both functional.

I was worried about tackling this since last time I coded anything was 20 years ago and in C++. Never coded an Arduino before. It was fun to get rid of the cobwebs in the brain lol. I’m pretty happy with the result

I kept all lighting original (incandescent bulbs). Controlled by 2 x 16 channel relay boards. The 20 “selection playing” bulbs run on 12v(#19 bulbs). Missing 3 bulbs that I will get from a “local” operator (110 miles away lol) when I go pick up a spare semi-populated Dr Who playfield soon.

The “status panel” lights were converted to 555 running on 5v. Those were 656 wedge bulbs running on 28v before. Missing a few twist sockets (on order). I will change the text back to English and add “Please Wait” at the bottom and “Thank You” once a valid selection is made.

The scanning sound I recorded myself from the mech before I disassembled it. It’s the only thing that was semi working. Love the squeaking lol.

The juke in action:

Note that I fixed the brief flashing of “select song” prior to “please wait” since taking the video.
1683A03D-D3BA-45FC-8FAD-A2D892AD8548 (resized).jpeg3AADBEDB-8E87-47D3-9482-326FEC4E02F6 (resized).jpeg

Yeah that’s what I like about this mod. It still operates like 45’s but i can put a whole album as 1 MP3 and just use up 1 spot in the play list.

My other (fully functional) juke is a Rock-Ola 446. I hate it. Not only is there no visible mech but it looks like my parent’s 1960’s console stereo. Fugly. But hey it works and has 45’s in it.

I got both for free last summer. Had to repair a lot on the rock ola to get it running.

Thanks!!

GLWTS.

Here up in the Great White North I've had a Rock-Ola up for sale for 250$ all summer and nuthin. Lots of "I'm interested I'm coming over tomorrow" then silence lol..

Just added a NSM Emerald Ice wall hanger. Playing through the speakers of my Seeburg Entertainer(that’s been converted to MP3).

Sounds crappy. The amp probably could use a cap job. I’d rather just tap into the pre-amp output and run an external amp(the amp I have already in the Entertainer - sounds awesome).

2342579F-1F58-4FFC-95C8-789859C79FA7 (resized).jpeg

That’s what I like too. My gf has hundreds of CDs and no real CD player(other than xbox) so the Emerald is perfect.

You do amazing work and you should show before/after.

Keep in mind most if not all wall hangers don't have speakers. I have an NSM Emerald Ice and love it.

Gummed up motor from years of dried and dust filled lubrication. Take it apart and clean it.

You cleaned the brushes and commutator? Are you sure the the 2 brushes are making good contact with the armature/commutator? I had one that had issues on a Rock-Ola. With only 1 brush making good contact the motor was weak and pretty much useless. Also make sure the continuity from the brush to the outside connection is perfect.

You might have better luck asking the question in the jukebox repair group on FB.