80s Symphonic CD Player - BRAND NEW??

[@HostiaRecords]

Two days ago i found an Aiwa CD Player, is from 1988 and is the same model as my first CD player, i know that it feels

[@chrisa2735-h3z]

I'm just thinking of how much the world has changed since it was first put in that box. I'm amazed by that!

[@cjc363636]

So true. In my car now I tell my phone "Rock Playlist" and the music starts.

[@cjc363636]

@@Riskteven True! Now, where's my phaser?1

[@christo930]

My memories of CDs in that era was "can't afford them!" I also got my CD player in 88 (I was 18), but the CDs were still around $15-20 while the tapes were around $6.99 and sometimes on sale for 4.99. The only CDs I had were gifts. But what the CD player was good for was making tape copies of CDs. You would get great quality sound with a decent tape deck. While my tape deck wasn't top of the line, it wasn't a boom box either. I was the king of borrowing CDs. The library had them too.

[@christo930]

@Jingle Nuts Not in 88. The average hard disk couldn't hold more than a song and CD-R, IIRC, was still in the future.

[@christo930]

@Jingle Nuts Where it is practical, I agree. But I still listen to tapes and CDs. You can pick up tapes and CDs dirt cheap now. It's a cheap and fun way to increase your music collection. I'm a cyclist and use a tape walkman when I'm cycling. I can easily control the player while it is in my pocket and I can listen to the radio, both AM and FM.

[@christo930]

@Jingle Nuts It's actually more dependent on the deck you are using. I have a bunch of tapes I made in the late 80s from records and they still sound great even on name-brand, but still fairly low-end cassettes. I made them with a decent (not great) tape deck. I personally like ferics the most. You can get lots of volume on them. Chrome tapes are quieter, but they cannot take as much level. Metal sounds nice and is great for classical music (with Dolby), but they were very expensive. A decent metal tape ran like $5 and up back then.

[@christo930]

@Jingle Nuts I don't understand why you lose the highs without Dolby? I've never heard anyone say that before. Do you happen to know why that is? I've heard Dolby S is outstanding and basically on par with either VHS Hi-Fi or CD even with a high quality type I. I tend to make my recordings hotter than that, peaking around +4. But these DB meters aren't necessarily connected to reality. I suppose it is more accurate to say I peak them at +4 on the particular meter on my particular deck. I only have one deck and so I can't really compare the level meter to a different level meter. My deck has an auto feature and it will peak the meter at zero db.

[@Recordology]

B + H is a major electronics resale company still to this day! Cool video!

[@Musicradio77Network]

It was Bell & Howell, the company that first manufactured movie projectors back in the 1930’s through the 1970’s for home and educational use including Filmo 8mm movie projector and the Filmosound 16mm movie projector and the Filmosound Super 8 movie projector. In addition, they also made cassette recorders as well.

[@Recordology]

@@Musicradio77Network Ahhhh ok that makes more sense....

[@cjc363636]

Thanks for sharing! Summer of 1985 I'd laid away the first CD player Radio Shack sold, I think CD-1000. It was grey and actually not as wide as most component gear. And it was so slow! The track seek would just gear grind like an old TRS-80 disc drive from 1980. It was all metal, though, and heavy. I loved that thing. By early 1990s I'd moved on to changers and eventually gave it away. I'd love to see an original box unboxing of that one! But this will do, and again, thanks for sharing!

[@erniesdeck7550]

I was 10 in 88, I didn't get my first CD player untill 92 in the form of a Sanyo boombox CD player from Wal-Mart. And my first CD was Bryan Adams. And then I upgraded the following year in 93 to a Sony Discman. And I loved the heck out of that thing.

[@grassulo]

OLD Funai stuff was better than we ever thought it could be and they made Crown and Lasonic boomboxes too (I was a spoiled kid I had a SHARP probably GF series) but I have tapes made on it and they still sound awesome old TDK SA and Chrome tapes! It WAS as nice as I remember awesome deck and I miss my old Panasonic 1970s crazy stereo drop in tape deck radio thing with BALL SPEAKERS and even IT could record really nice stereo tapes from FM radio too! Speakers were supposed to be hung like from the ceiling or something really odd but it sounded awesome and made great cassettes when I was a kid!

[@musicnerd72]

I so feel you on this! I bought my first CD player in 1987. It was a Sharp.....(can't remember the model#) My first CD was Dead or Alive's "Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know"... 🤣. Oh the memories..........

[@CommodoreGreg]

My first one was a Sharp as well. I think it was the DX-670.

[@musicnerd72]

@@CommodoreGreg Mine is the DX-111. I actually still have it buried at the bottom of a closet. Plugged it in last night and it still powers up and spins the disc, but won't read it.

[@Musicradio77Network]

Symphonic made a lot of great portable record players back in the 1950’s and 1960’s known for its trademark “The Symbol of Superiority”. By the 1980’s and 1990’s, they made CD players and VHS VCR’s as well as DVD player until Symphonic stopped production during the 2000’s, and it was made by Funai, the company that made garbage VCR’s, and also the last company that made VHS tapes until they stopped production by 2016 after JVC has already stopped production on VHS tapes back in 2009. This CD player from 1987 is also compatible of playing CD-R recordable discs, and it will not play CD-RW discs. I used to have CD’s, but not anymore, I can go back to cassette tapes and reel-to-reels just for the fun of it.

[@Sierra747]

Great video with a nice story of getting your first CD player back. I recently got my first CD player which was a Sony hifi unit from about 1992 out of my parents loft and got it working again. The CD player needed a new belt and some dry joints needed soldering and tape head needed a really good clean but it’s all working again now.

[@Schlipperschlopper]

Funai was a dept. store brand of Toshiba they also offered TV sets and Video recorders for a budget (that stuff lasted quite good)...these machines are still much better than most chinese junk of today, maybe some electrolytics also need replacement too due to such a long resting without electricity

[@danielponder690]

"the best stuff is made in Japan" - looks around the room at his audio equipment, his Japanese car, and two Yamaha instruments - a bassoon and piano, I'd agree

[@Recordology]

“What do you mean Doc, all the best stuff is made in Japan!” - Marty.

[@alberthofmann420]

With cars I have to disagree with you... Imho german cars are by far the best!

[@BlaBla-pf8mf]

You keep your car in your room?

[@danielponder690]

@@BlaBla-pf8mf yes!

[@rich_edwards79]

@@alberthofmann420 maybe 20 years ago. Now they're designed to break expensively once out of warranty. BMW and Mrrcedes don't want their cars lasting long enough for plebs to buy them for $500, stick big wheels on them and damage the exclusive cachet of the brand. Meanwhile, my Mum's 1997 Camry has only ever needed service items and tyres in 23 years. It's barely run in at 110k - the 2.2 4-cyl routinely covers three times that without pausing for breath. Once the Japanese cracked rustproofing, their cars became unbeatable.

[@jeremytravis360]

Most manufacturers put a big label inside the box which you would not usually miss. They would Say "Important Remove Transit Screws before Use" and they would show the base of the machine and the screws. Perhaps this issue was missed the makers. The labels were inside all the major brands like Sony & Technics.

[@robrambrose]

This is very nearly identical to my 1987 CD player, the Kenwood (aka Trio) DP-460. I recognized the sound of the mech and that transit bracket. A quick search on Google images shows what looks like the same board and mech. It was a good-sounding machine - though stolen in 1998!

[@misterhat5823]

As for the transit screws: RTFM.

[@Madness832]

Been awhile since I've heard that!

[@cheeseparis1]

Walking us through a 1987 CD Player manual should be interesting. Good thing operating the player with the shipping protection didn't damage it!

[@janosnagyj.9540]

These are the exact 4 letters that came in my mind when he was claiming about how could he know about these transport things...

[@nickwallette6201]

Yep. Every time I buy a device I’ve known how to use for 35 years, I read the instruction manual cover to cover. Even the other languages.

[@janosnagyj.9540]

@@nickwallette6201 Using something is one thing, starting it up for the first time is another...

[@Baptack074]

Haha the transit shipping screws those older CD players have... I remembered my dad thought there was a fault with our new Kenwood DP-320 from 1989 out of the box it would only play the start of the first track then jump back to the start again pay to check the instructions 😃

[@ThriftyAV]

This makes me want to reacquire some of the gear I used to own in the 1980s! Glad you got it running. Awesome New Old Stock find!

[@probnotstech]

That was lucky finding one new in box like that. This makes me want to find my family's first CD player, that was later passed down to me. A Yamaha CD-X2 from 1985, that my dad bought used in 1988.

[@audioman3017]

That was also my first player! They pop up on eBay from time to time

[@davidjgomm]

Did the original National batteries for the RC work?

[@Doman2000]

Yeah my first thought also was if those batteries were still working..

[@tookitogo]

13:00 That’s not the whole power supply. It’s just the transformer. The power supply proper is the upper left corner of the main PCB.

[@rcsjbm]

Cool find. I graduated HS in 1987. Back then i was heavily into stereo gear. I do remember that Symphonic was not exactly a great brand though. They occupied a tier of reputation among enthusiasts that was well below that of JVC, Sony, Kenwood, Sansui, technics, etc. This brand was more along the lines of Sharp, Emerson, Realistic, etc. Which was far more a budget brand. You wouldnt find Symphonic equipment in a listening room of a specialty audio/video electronics store. You would find it in a K-Mart or Wal-Mart electronics dept. I used to service VCRs back in the day. Symphonic was unimpressive when you opened them up and saw the build quality.

[@MrSpacelyy]

Manual reading would have shown the transport bracket...

[@MrGil1995]

Oddly enough, FUNAI is also the name of the Brazilian agency that deals with the natives affairs, the name stands for National Foundation of the Native in portuguese...

[@DreamGrandDragon]

That thing was manufactured two months before I was born how ironic I wish I felt as young and new is that thing probably does

[@IgnacioSanchezWebDesign]

Beautiful machine... well taken care of... I enjoy your videos very much. Keep it up!

[@chezsnailez]

Did the National batteries have any charge left in 'em?

[@CommodoreGreg]

@Eric Belinc I wouldn't assume that. Those are clearly heavy duty batteries and you'd be surprised at how stable a lot of them were when left unused or rarely used. Fran from Franlab found and old 90s toy of hers that still ran on the original batteries that were in it. I still use a pair of 1991 Radio Shack Enercell heavy duties in my 1991 Micronta multimeter. I only recently got a low battery warning.

[@MorgoUK]

Teterboro? Wasn’t that a potential diversion airport for Flight 1549? (cf: Sully)

[@fbelard]

That CD player is a lucky guy.

[@michaelturner4457]

Late 80s. I was expecting to hear some Rick Astley.

[@Recordology]

Symphonic was part of Funai.

[@Recordology]

Oh you said that... lol sorry.

[@spankysmp]

Great stuff. I bet you were well chuffed finding this. I know the feeling. I found a cassette player I had when I was about 10 (1975) on Ebay and my daughter bought it for me as a surprise. Fast forward a good number of years to when I was 18 in '83, I bought a Toshiba Radio cassette which cost me £100 ($132) at the time. Found a mint one on Ebay last year and it's one of my most treasured possessions. Glad you found the transit screws - always a killer.

[@shawnschnaufer4942]

Mine you to make that same noise when accessing tracks. My first cd was a portable Magnavox that ran on 6 c size batteries and was built like a tank. Been looking for another one just like it but unable to find one. Now I'm sorry I sold the one I had. Such great memories!

[@saiprasad8078]

I think during the heydays the dealer would have removed the transit screws and sold it.

[@skinnyblinddude]

Sai Prasad My first players, EMERSON and SONY respectively, had their transport mechanisms installed and needed removing before use.

[@joechlystun7979]

Nice video! i graduated High school in 1988. i was still buyin cassettes at that time (and 4 or 5 years after) CD players (and CD's) we're just so darn expensive! I'm currently using an old 80's NAD CD Player i bought at goodwill that actually sounds better (to me) then two brand new highly reviewed models that i bought in the last several years. it wasn't new but It also still had the shipping locking screw in it. it took me awhile to figure it out aswell. the only thing's that were wrong with the player was the open/close CD tray belt was broken and it skipped some due to some old dried up grease on laser sled rods. i was initially worried that it wasn't compatible with my favorite DAC because it such an old CD player. but the sound is so warm and dare i say "Analog" i don't miss it one bit (pun intended).

[@DavidBerquist334]

I bought my first stereo when I was 18 optonica amp sm 1515b & st-1525b tuner and Sony tape deck TC-k2a and turn table pst3 all still works

[@wogfun]

This video is so... familiar? I'm roughly the same age as Mr bits and just about six months ago, randomly felt the need to hunt down my first CD player, a Technics SLP xx on eBay and purchase.

[@TheVCRKing]

Brad, you look younger than around 50. You look more 37. Also, you looked pretty handsome in high school.

[@probnotstech]

I was thinking the same thing. I had to stop and do the math because I thought he was only a few years older than me!

[@BilisNegra]

I do agree too, looking younger than his actual age. Unsurprisingly, I'm not sharing the same amount of luck in that aspect.

[@TheNdume23]

I called it in the first three minutes. I say to myself, I wonder if he check the shipping screw. Yay for the OldSchool

[@new-knowledge8040]

Transit screws ?? WOW. My 1987 DENON DCD-900 CD player, that I have been using for 33 years now, is still up and going, and there is still not even a single scratch on it. Several years ago, it did however require a few drops of electric shaver oil on the motor worm gear that moves the LED/Detector. This fixed the skipping and track selecting problem. But that was it. It is as good as new.

[@DAVIDGREGORYKERR]

One of the best albums out.

[@CannondaleCAAD]

Nice CD player. I wanna get one like that.

[@6581punk]

Will the remote batteries still work though?

[@rich_edwards79]

Real men don't read manuals lol. I like the look of this machine. Still has the glossy black front panel - within a couple of years, most of the major companies (Sony, Matsushita, Pioneer etc) had gone to the matt black style that would last throughout the 90s until everything started to go silver again around the turn of the millennium. I like the 7-segment displays too - the orange is unusual and looks more high-end than it is, and they tend to hold up better than the blue / cold white VFDs that fade over time. (I have an Aiwa reciever from 2001 and a Panasonic DVD / VCR recorder from 2008 that are now almost unreadable in bright light, and had to recently junk a 1988 Sony Digicube radio alarm clock because the digits were no longer legible. I hate VFDs). My first CD player was a Goodmans portable which I plugged into the 1970s Sanyo music centre I'd had handed down from my parents when they upgraded to Sony separates in the early 90s. It sounded nice, in that rich, warm way that Seventies kit seems to. Then I got a top-loading Akura unit for my 12th birthday (from the Argos catalogue in the UK!) that was complete crap and lasted about 3 months. That got returned and replaced with the aforementioned Sony stack which as you can imagine, I was chuffed with - I think my folks felt guilty over the Akura and it gave my dad an excuse to upgrade to a fancier Sony. I still have those components but on the odd occasion that I want to play a CD, the Panasonic does a good job of that too :)

[@dannytse8767]

"National" is a brand of Panasonic's. It is still being used today.

[@rich_edwards79]

Yes, some of their stuff was sold as 'National Panasonic' - I have a pair of vintage speakers, which I believe came with a 1970s music centre, that are branded so. Technics is another Panasonic (really Matsushita, the parent company) brand - between them they've always made some of the best quality and most reliable consumer AV equipment out there, and indeed still do.

[@JasonHalversonjaydog]

excellent music choice!

[@ToTheGAMES]

Awesome! I'd still re-lubricate everything though. :)

[@theannoyedmrfloyd3998]

I would love to find new old stock Zenith DVD players.

[@mushroomsamba82]

wow, databits was such a Chad back in high school lol

[@CommodoreFan64]

A chad with an inner geek 👍

[@Recordology]

Lol

[@williamchow1624]

The top cover is not flat.

[@mistermatix8241]

I noticed that, there's a hump over the display area, nice looking player tho

[@haxxy40]

I noticed that too

[@janosnagyj.9540]

Thank You, Capt. Obvious! :)

[@The_Laser_Channel]

I'm just glad you didn't pull out a Justin Beiber CD or Miley Cyrus CD when you gave the barf warning LOL.....

[@alleykat6273]

@Jingle Nuts the side

[@volkerking5932]

De-install the screws from the transport blocker! first. Change the Electrolytic-Caps and clean the Transport from the door. So it will work - do not align the Potentiometers! This is very important that you don't twist any Potentiometer!!! This CD-Player was one of the inexpensive ones in the late days of the 80s. You can see that on the 7 Segment Display the expensive one CD-Players had a LCD most with inversion and a Orange Back light or a blue/green like the Philips CD-Player. But it is very interest that this Player worked after 33year - incredible. But I like that what you're doing here.

[@jordantomblin2302]

According to what I can seem to find, B&H Distributing is still around!

[@skinnyblinddude]

I had to laugh when you realized the need to remove the transit mechanism before operation. I remember when that was necessary with early players. While CD technology is truly a product of its era, I still think compact discs and their players are cool! My first machine was an Emerson from '87. Thanks for sharing, and I enjoyed your enthusiasm!

[@crooner2007]

Looks like it has the early Chebyshev analog brickwall filters in the output stage (green encapsulated dual components on the PCB) Perhaps a multiplexed single DAC as well. 1983 technology in 1987, hence the low price...

[@gavincurtis]

3:32 the markings on the box indicate if you praise the Borg Collective Cube while looking towards the heavens, you shall be rewarded 12 times over.

[@Ice_Karma]

"Teeterboro", rather than "Tetterboro".

[@m.m.radiochannel1969]

Yes it's noisey player. When u were having to remove shipping block I remember having to remove it. Mine was the CD 1000. Mine skipped terrible. But was my first with California raisins singing lol.

[@InconsistentManner]

you say people are either gonna be sick or cool dude. I laughed harder than I have in awhile at the sight of Randy Travis.

[@seand67]

WHOA what a find

[@dan_from_australia]

Nice work. How do you rate the built in DAC? Do the national batteries still work?

[@836dmar]

What dac chip did it have?

[@randyc8171]

Pretty nice !! Needs some new capacitors ????? Rubber belt not turned to goo ?

[@atrac88]

My first CD Player was a Crown CD-110n.

[@Kejaishdhejjsbshsbebe]

Aren’t you the weather station guy

[@MetalGreggNY75]

Can the play & stop button on the player be any more massive!?!?

[@mogyoroattila9754]

I had the same, years ago, bought a used NAD cd player, and when i tried to play a cd, it has done nothing, but played the first 10 seconds. After 30 minuits sweat, and try ( i thought it was a bad business) i found the users manual on net. There was a shipping screw to turn, and voilá... On that day a learn something important:Always check the manual first. As i sold it, i made a note for the buyer, to turn this srew first.

[@haxxy40]

Stop finding excuses. It's your fault for not looking under :P

[@sydneybiscuit]

B & H Distributing? Maybe related to B&H Photo Video?

[@misterhat5823]

I don't think B&H photo was ever that far south.

[@MickeyD2012]

Very nice.

[@manueldi_77]

Lol. This reminds me when I was a kid and my parents bought a new washing machine. During the first tryout it started to jump around while spinning. Why? Because they didn't know that they had to remove the transit brackets... Nice interesting video as always. Cheers from Austria.

[@frankowalker4662]

I've still got my first CD player from the early 90's, a Technics something or other. (no idea what the model number is). I don't use it anymore as it wont play home made CD's.

[@adamstoby96]

If you think the inside of that unit is something you should see inside technics Sl-P116

[@joe6096]

My first CD was Paula Abdul's Forever Your Girl album....... this is coming from a guy who is now firmly entrenched in the blues, classic rock, the Beatles, the Who, etc. In 1988 I was 11. I didn't know any better about music, I just thought she was hot.

[@pippolupin8715]

Nice CD player is very rare !!

[@BilisNegra]

16:55 Oh really? Was this even mentioned in the manual? Assuming you will be looking at the bottom of the case before operating the unit is taking way, way too much for granted!

[@RicardoFerreira-hm4jf]

Very good

[@EastAngliaUK]

been given a nice Technics SL P202a but the belt has gone seen one on ebay for £7 may get one is it easy to fit?

[@rabit818]

It looks like my ADC CD player from the same era

[@Starcat128]

Believe it or not most lasers makes the squeaky noises some can be pretty loud

[@Ice_Karma]

10:15 Ahahaha... I have that on LP. (I wouldn't get my first CD player until early 1995...)

[@Kenny-bw2cz]

And how things changed by 1988. I remember when I was a kid in the 1970s .. whenever something broke down or easily or was cheaply made we use to laugh and say " it's made in Japan" .. ironically.

[@m.m.radiochannel1969]

I had the symphonic cd 100 in 80s. It skipped like crazy I had it till 2005.

[@jmorsch2890]

Looks like a Technics i had.

[@chrisa2735-h3z]

Oh my god! I have that randy travis album on cassette!

[@daniellcruikshank7922]

it does look like a old Toshiba XR series CD deck

[@Capturing-Memories]

You have changed quite a bit but not in the aging direction, Looks like you changed from character A to character B.

[@buretehudesi]

If you want to check sound quality, dont connect it to a rubbish Chinise d-class amp with micro speakers.

[@DaniRadioCat]

Heh, I have a whole box of assorted CDs of music I don't really care a lot about that I use for testing optical drives or CD players, etc. (I don't want something like Mariah Carey or Alanis Morissette to get scratched, lol)

[@jack-sv3lb]

I didn't switch from cassette to CD until 2004 haha

[@MichaelBennett1]

I wonder what the oldest new old stock electronics anyone has ever opened (on KZbin).

[@CommodoreFan64]

Randy Travis 👍

[@AidanTheLoverBoyOhDwyer]

are you from alabama or mississippi bruh

[@MrAmaar]

Most of the cheap VCD players from China make those weird sounds when they operate back in the early 2000

[@CommodoreFan64]

a lot of the "cheaper" DVD players from then did the same as well. My first DVD player an APEX branded model which cost me $220 USD in 99 could have been 1/2 it's size because it repurposed parts for a PC DVD ROM drive, and it sounded like a jet spinning up when it was playing a CD, VCD, or SVCD in such a big hollow case.

[@CommodoreGreg]

@@CommodoreFan64 Those were great! Those Apex units had that awesome bypass mode where you could skip the menu system on a DVD entirely and just play the VOB files!

[@timothy2830]

You sure you're not going to get a "Content Strike" from KZbin for that Saved By The Bell clip? lol Edit.. WHAT? B&H is out of Biz??? I used to do so much with them. In the late 2000's They were an advantage to the west-coast as they didn't charge internet tax and had free shipping over a specific amount... I wasn't their account manager, I was only Sales in several categories... weird finding this out randomly on this video... poor B&H

[@maiconvengrzennunesbusolog4864]

Muito bonito 😍🙏

[@minerkyle0]

How about that!!!

[@musicman8270]

For an extra 30 to 50 bucksyou can get a Bose speaker,blows away that speaker of yours, used to play my CD's on my laserdisc player,also made in Japan.

[@macintosh3990]

You could have cut the tape through the bottom of the box to conserve the original tape on the top of the box ! LOL

[@Rudolf_Edward]

Am I the only one who is curious if the ‘87 remote batteries still have some juice in them?

[@jamesdemuro5923]

How much did you pay for it?