Don't Overlook Some of These Vintage Stereo Bargains

In this week's video, Kevin goes over a few hidden gems that are hanging around the shop. They may not be the top brands people are looking for, but they may just be a surprise you didn't see coming. These might just be some good pieces to keep an eye out for when you are searching for your next hi-fi deal.
Are these vintage bargains, otherwise known as sleepers? Are they pieces you should avoid? Kevin goes over his thoughts on all of these diamonds in the rough.
Not all of these are home runs. Kevin will show you some aspects to think about, and possibly avoid when you are staring at what you might think is a deal right in front of you.
Let us know in the comments if you have any stories about your sleeper or nightmare finds. Is there any advice you'd like to add? Enjoy!
MENTIONED LINKS
Here is the link to the Hi-Fi Haven link about class G amps: hifihaven.org/index.php?threa...
Speaker Pins: amzn.to/3HTeixZ
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Some product links below are affiliate links which means if you buy something we’ll receive a small commission at no additional cost to you.
Grado Phono Cartridges, Record Cleaner, and more- available at skylabsaudio.com/shop/
U-turn Turntables amzn.to/49hbuWW
Rega P1 Turntable amzn.to/3HJ8Ayp
Audio Technica ATLP120 turntable amzn.to/3Ou2VzU
Audio Technica AT LP60 Turntable amzn.to/3uhLRGK
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Pro-ject Turntables amzn.to/49eUAbi
Ortofon Phono Cartridge amzn.to/3Oy2955
Tracking force scale- amzn.to/42tok1Z
Pyle Phono Preamp amzn.to/3HPbqSo
Ampapa Phono Preamp amzn.to/3HLSeFs
Klipsch R-51 Powered Speakers amzn.to/42pgIh6
Edifier Powered Speakers amzn.to/48U4teS
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[@nsb_drum]

Really enjoy these videos about lesser-known gear that is worth picking up. This would make a good reoccurring series imo.

[@chrislupson217]

I have been a big fan of Hitachi’s Class G since buying a SR-904 almost 10 years ago.

[@martyjewell5683]

Got my SR-804 in 1979 and still use it as my main amp. It's boss.

[@jerrypowers7671]

I love seeing the old unique pieces. I had a Phillips back in the 70's with EPI speakers.

[@billsmith5166]

Really good show and very interesting. More of these!

[@tedcorey3054]

I bought a Pioneer 1250 receiver back in the '70's , from the Navy Exchange in Naples Italy , a friend kept bugging me to sell it to him , so I did , then he wanted to borrow my Bose 901's so I let use them (I was in the USN at the time) . He dropped one while moving , put a lit cigarette on one (while drunk) . After I found a Technics 5770 , but it ain't my Pioneer . I picked up a Technics SA 5150 a couple yrs. ago . I'd like to check out your store in person , but like Al Bundy said :"My cars only got half a tank of gas". Good stuff.

[@72vespa]

This is a great type of video to help us budget collectors. Please make this a continuing series "Hidden Gems" out is wild. I for one feel that build quality & serviceability is more important than overall features such as power ratings and/or # of inputs. keep'em coming .....

[@rotaxtwin]

Great reading these comments and seeing some brand names from the 70s & 80s that I've forgotten like BIC & Superscope, Sherwood... wow.

[@fredyellowsnow7492]

Glad to see you featuring Toshiba. Was gifted a matching pair of Toshiba SY330 pre-amp and SC330 amp a few years ago. They sounded absolutely excellent until the amp developed an output fault. I've been meaning to get around to repairing it for a while. as it will be worth it.

[@HawklordLI]

Glad to see Hitachi getting some respect. My first receiver was a SR 703 and I still have it.

[@NCislander]

Laughing out loud at the "Frankenstein" drop in. Nice job. Really fun video seeing the different equipment passing through your shop. Really fun to watch. Keep throwing these in the mix every now & then. Thanks Kevin, Thanks Eric.

[@BadWolf762]

I've got a couple sets of Realistic MC-1000 speakers that I "Frankensteined" with new generic woofers and they sound fantastic.

[@chelle12368]

I'm so excited that you mentioned Grafyx speakers! I have the SP-10 which is actually my favorite speakers. They sound pretty fantastic. I also have the SP-6 and had the SP-8 which I'd still have if I hadn't made a cross country move. It is very difficult to find info on these speakers. The SP-6 sounds decent for its size but the magic is in the 8s and 10s with the Phillips tweeters.

[@anthonyross8102]

Great video. The Nikko NR 815 is a sleeper I found at a Mexican flea market in Detroit for 75 bucks. I took it home and used it in the garage and during bbq's where it stayed for another 20 years. I cleaned it a month ago, and now it has earned a place in my living room and is still jamming.

[@briannewell6064]

That was a good one. Information I can use while hitting the estate sales. Thanks.

[@natanpierce495]

You will like this story. I was driving in my neighborhood in Philly about 12 years ago. Came across a pair of ADS (8) Braun speakers on the side of the road. Didn't know how long they had been sitting there for. (Trash day) and I scooped them up because the cabinets were in great shape as well as the dust covers. I figured of the speakers were bad I would make a Frankenstein set out of them. Well, fast forward to a month ago- I never tried them out, I kept them in the box after I moved and when my center speaker blew in my theater, I decided to switch out my B&O's to the theater and pulled the ADS out of the bacement. -WOW! Sound amazing. (Not as good as my ol B&O's but the sound stage is larger by far. Free- Who would have thought??? They pair nicely with my JBL L80T

[@vulgarninja9]

Thank you for the Hitachi love. Our little SR-503 boasts 20 watts and sounds great. You've got an eye for quality, kid.

[@jeffbranch8072]

Enjoyable and informative episode, thank you. It's always interesting to learn about the lesser talked about brands. Just a thought - how about an episode on store brands? Airline, MCS, Sears (often Fisher?), Realistic, Lafayette, etc. Store brands are often overlooked and priced low.

[@jimplosay8352]

Would love to see more unique items, like Optonica.

[@uncle-salty]

When I was a kid I inherited my grandfathers Toshiba SA-420. It was my bedroom stereo until I got an all in one with a CD player as a teenager. I recently had the Toshiba serviced and am beyond happy to have it running once again. I'm just glad I never stuck any crappy glam rock band stickers on it as a kid, LOL. I've got it hooked up to a pair of Studio Lab Series speakers that I remember my Dad bringing home talking about the killer deal he got on them from a white van at a gas station, Ahhh the good old days.

[@whip-its_dad4239]

Thank you guys for these videos on all the vintage equipment .They are very interesting to me . Subscribed .

[@skylabsaudio]

Thanks for the sub!

[@georgepetrovic567]

Another great sleeper is the Sanyo Plus55 receiver. Super tuner with combo analog/digital dial. Plenty of clean power, led power meters, nice stepped volume control and great phono section. Very clean sound.

[@LordSamuelJ]

I picked up a Mitsubishi DT40S three head cassette deck. Its a rare bird and built like a tank. The sound quality is amazing! Its also easy to work on. Mine needed belts and the mechanism removed and came apart super easy. Its quickly become my favorite deck besides my Nachamichi RX505. It also looks very nice and has rack handles. I love this deck!

[@mr.krinkle8261]

I have a pair of JC Penny MCS 8232 Rated @ 10-100 watts rms. Sensitivity (1 watt at 1 meter) 92db. Crossovers at 700hz-8000hz. Frequecy range 30-20,000 hz. They have dome mids and sound incredible!

[@johnwaynes4417]

Bring this back on a continuum. There are so many sleepers out there so be got

[@319flashbanger]

Those 4ft devices from the 90's! Oh that's a classic memories. And the music!

[@g.fortin3228]

My best sounding sleeper is a Nikko NR-815. Not talked about in many circles, but sounds very pleasing. No super bowl here either, instead was setting up a new cartridge / old turntable and enjoying brand new vinyl. Never thought I'd be doing that. Edit: Turntable is a nice clean PL-A45D , was my dads.

[@drmbgls1]

I had a Nikko 6065 receiver, 34wts/ch. It powered a pair of Ohm E speakers with no problem. Great tuner, and great phono output! Also had an Akai AA-6300 receiver.Boy I miss that receiver. 40wts into 8 ohms. Super smooth tuner, very quiet with the FM mute on.

[@markmurray5619]

I love the vintage equipment. Being a "boomer", and having an older brother in Nam that sent equipment state side, he was into Pioneer, Garrard, Akai, and Coral. It would be interesting to see an evaluation on the late 60's early 70's receivers specifically the Pioneer SX-1000tw , which I own a minty full functioning survivor, or the SX-1500 receivers. There is something about the sound of the early Pioneers receivers that is unique.

[@marcr6749]

You mentioned Realistic brand and they deserve a showing of their speakers and receivers. Currently im looking for an STA 95. 45w per channel. I had one when i was a teenager and it was a tank. It would fry speakers and keep on trucking. It met its end when a buddy spilled his soda in it. I tried to repair the amp circuit but in 1997 we didnt have ebay and amazon for replacement components. 2N3055s didnt work.🔥🔥

[@mladenbasic1]

Love your new style of video. Especially the back and forth.

[@skylabsaudio]

Thanks, hoping to include more of these dingbats at the shop in more videos.

[@insolentstickleback3266]

Another great Skylabs video, have a fine Sunday evening! Best Regards, from Oregon!

[@skylabsaudio]

Thanks, you too!

[@truhunk1]

I very much agree the Hitachi receiver is a fantastic unit. I owned the next model up, the 904 Dynaharmony, I think it was 120 watts per chanel, but I don't remember exactly, and it was very powerful and LOWD. I regret parting with it. I needed a stereo with surround. One of my life mistakes.😢.

[@edholmwood2263]

My first new receiver was a Toshiba, maybe the same model. Is anybody old enough to remember Shaack Electronics? That's where I got it and its matching cassette deck. Fun video. Thanks Kevin.

[@markmorrow3250]

I enjoy seeing what you come up with on journeys like this one. My first receiver was a Rotel Rx-403 if I remember correctly. I bought it and a pair of AR 18 speakers in about 1978. My brother in-law has the Rotel and uses it to this day. I don’t remember where or when I parted with the AR 18s, probably in the later 80’s when I bought a pair of Boston A-400s. I sold audio in the 80’s and 90’s, and Onkyo, Sony, Denon all offered a wide range of products that went from budget to pretty serious stuff that was really excellent sounding and reliable. Why isn’t there more interest in them? And a couple other brands that were more expensive and harder to find, but offered prime performance are Kyocera and Nakamichi. Both companies offerings were a cut above the rest. Especially Nakamichi tape decks, they rained supreme. If you can find one of their products from the 80’s or early 90’s , you would probably be very happy.

[@63MGB1]

That little Toshiba receiver looks sweet. I like how they made it look like a couple stacked separates.

[@danwheetman6914]

That was fun, thanks!

[@VB-bk1lh]

A few more vintage brands I've run across here are Gradiente from Brazil, often sold as Garrard in the states, Lenco, Tectronic, Winthrop (Possibly built by Panasonic/Technics?), Aiwa, Akai, Mitsubishi, NEC, Sankyo/Sanyo, SAE, Stereotech, Sherwood, MCS (JC Penny), Vector Research, Nikko, Optonica, Concept, Project, Scott, and Philips.

[@nicevmax]

Great vid, would like to see more on less mainstream or lesser known brands and components. I really like the Hitachi receiver, I like the lighting of the meters, a nice look. Didn't Hitachi make some of Radio Shacks components?

[@drsbranch-wn2vx]

Thanks for another fun video!

[@geomark8851]

Fisher 800-C! I love mine. It's paired with a pair of Klipsch Heresy speakers and is a delight to listen to. The warm, dynamic sound is literally music to these old ears.

[@jeffreyklaum13]

I had a Fisher RS-1056 a long time ago. Wish I never got rid of it. Im always looking for one though. ;)

[@edwardbagu1252]

The fisher 440-T is a nice small 60's unit that punches above its weight. It gives the later fisher RS 2007 a good run.

[@fb6performance271]

I forgot to mention my garage setup. Fisher CA 880..Fisher EQ 276 driving JBL LX 44's and a vintage Cerwin Vega 12" powered sub. This setup bangs hard for heavy metal music when hanging out outside.

[@hhvictor2462]

In my army barracks days, especially during late 70s W. Germany, people displayed their expensive stereo gear in their quarters. Theft of that kinda property was never an issue. Something to be said for security.....

[@AlexMitchell-sj4sb]

There are a couple here in UK, Stereo Review X and Michael Yates/Budget Audio Review. Both review vintage audio equipment. I do recommend Rotel, they made some good receivers in the 70s and I have had two and they both worked great without a service. Well built.

[@JohnReall]

I'm listening to this through a Sansui 661 receiver I bough for a dollar at a tag sale about 15 years ago. It still works great. I think I got a good deal.

[@alanmaier]

I have had good experience with that era Hitachi receiver. Class G and H are multi-rail for cooler operation with higher power on demand. Think Carver but not as extreme. Long ago I had a pair of the Graphyx SP-10, the largest model with a 10" rubber surround woofer and a Philips dome tweeter - amazing extended bass. They are real walnut too. Toshiba built some of the Project/one receivers. I restored a Mark IVb and it was a performer.

[@aammdj]

Picked up a 70s JVC JRS81H Receiver, incredible sound quality and build. Even has the rack handles. It's right there (soundwise) with my Pioneer 1050, 1080 and 950.

[@LordSamuelJ]

I have the same reciever and am blown away by it! I replaced my yamaha cr420 "sleeper" with it and couldnt be happier. The sound is a lot like my pioneer sx9000. Very very impressive reciever!

[@pedrofernandez8729]

Japan has been making good stuff for a long, long time. I remember the old Sony Trinitron color TV's. they were the world standard

[@ripjones5294]

Enjoyed this installment. I still own a JVC table, and it has served me well over the years. I also still own the JVC JRS-501 that I bought new from Franklin Music, just as I was leaving. Yes, it too, has served me well. Another lesser known vendor was Setton. We sold them, and it was created by I think, the major Pioneer importer. Some of the Pioneer engineers did some of the design work. When I see one pop up on eBay, they are asking what "they" think they are worth. Rare, and think "Marantz Tax".

[@adsph]

Great content here. Well done.

[@WC0125]

The JVC turntable is pretty decent for what it is. It was their entry level DD model built to look like the JL-B51/55/T77 and incorporating an arm with their TH (Tracing Hold) technology. For the technology in it, the JVC Jl-B31 had a list (without cartridge) of $355 but a much lower street price of about $199 (even with a budget AT11/e cart) when it was introduced in the fall of 1975. By 1981 leftover stock was going for $100 As for more on the arm, JVC described the tone arm as using the "TH method to improve tracing capability by lowering the center of gravity of the moving part. This tone arm has a non-resonance design with anti-vibration material in the bearing and pipe, and is equipped with an anti-skating mechanism with a 0.5g click, a lifter point for accurate lifter operation, a rubber ring-wound shell locking nut, and a counterweight." While the upper end arms used machined aluminum components even for non-critial parts, some of those parts on JL-B31 were made of plastic to save cost.

[@aq9095]

Another enjoyable video! Curious, what type/brand of vinyl wrap do you use for turntables and receiver cases? Thanks!

[@williamdenton5716]

This is a fabulous episode !!

[@carloreubenvongerkin9760]

I had a 2 foot Graffix device in the 80's. best "speeker" I ever used. LOL! Aquarium rocks in a soup can.

[@Manny2211]

Toshiba receivers are very nice 👍 and sound great Toshiba made a lot of the power amplifier transistor used in my different brands audio equipment

[@ColtLuger]

Great video, my daughter is starting college in Iowa next fall, really hoping to get to the store.

[@skylabsaudio]

You can do it!

[@therocknessfnmonster]

I gotta say, I love my Sanyo DCA 1400. Like many of the viewers to this channel, I have quite a few amps and my Sanyo is one of my favorites. They've made my most boring speakers sound great.

[@CheerfulPoodle-cx4xr]

😅😮😢😅😊

[@samholte7354]

Really enjoy your videos. Ever though of doing a top 10 cassette decks?

[@ThaxterTewksbury]

Concept. Some the absolute best sounding 1970s era audio receivers I've ever heard. The smallest , the 2.0 was their 20 wpc receiver. I still own it and it sounds wonderful. I've owned the 4.5 and it was equally great. The 12.5 was their flagship 125 wpc monster and packs a massive punch and I would put it up against any of the big Sansui, Pioneer, Marantz, etc. of comparable power. If you find one in good working condition, don't wait.

[@williamcampbell3868]

The Hitachi receiver you opened up had a clean layout inside. The good sound quality you mentioned is probably due to the Mosfets that Hitachi was known make and put in some of their amplifiers and receivers. Knowledgeable hi-fi enthusiasts know about the tube like sound quality of Mosfets. I have a classic Hafler 120a 60 watt power amp that I love the sound of. I use it in the spring and summer, then I switch back to tubes in the fall and winter.😊 It shares biamp duties covering midrange and treble with my Adcom 555 mk2 on bass. In fall and winter i use my Conrad Johnson mv55 to cover those frequencies, while the Adcom is on bass all year round. I'm biamping Maggie 1.6's with Vandersteen stereo subwoofers.

[@topekasub]

Love the bong reference!🤣

[@Richard-jq6mq]

Truly enjoy your videos. I learn a great deal from your knowledge. If it’s ’stereo related’ I’m interested. Great channel….

[@skylabsaudio]

I appreciate that!

[@keithvincenttucker9923]

Some of the products in the Sears Professional line were surprisingly good. The hard part is determining which ones before you shell out any money for them.

[@garyconway6769]

I have been trying to buy the separates for a long time. They are either to far away or way over priced.

[@maxique]

I have a Nikko 7050, build quality is superb and sound is big and very lively.

[@lukemorgan4412]

Sleeper alert!!! Tandberg tl 1500. 2 way speaker from Tandberg. 25 watts. Truly outstanding. Running off a marantz 2215 bl .

[@jeffsheets9389]

Like your style great content thank you ❤

[@Generic_Eric_1977]

I have a Toshiba SA-735 that is a lot like the one you have shown. Excellent build quality in my opinion. A bit on the large size for what is in it. But it sounds great. Had a bad power switch so I installed a toggle. Sherwoods are a good buy too. i have both the s-7100 and S-7100A and recently acquired a S-7125 that needs similar work to the Toshiba unfortunately. Also have an Akai AA-1030, a HH Scott Stereomaster 344-C, Allied 369 that is really a pioneer, and some Fishers that are pretty cool too. Too many to mention really, lol.

[@cle-chi]

Funny u mentioned a toggle on your Sa 735 cause I do too. lol It came that way from Ebay purchase. Also own Toahiba Sa 750. Now that one rocks hard ( paired up with sansui Se-7 equalizer).

[@bobasher2197]

I have a small collection of vintage stereos, a couple Sansui G series, a Kenwood model eleven, and an Onkyo A-10 integrated( an absolute beast!), but my favorite is my Sherwood S-7200. It is in original unrestored condition and sounds great. It's not a powerhouse by any means, but to my 60 year old ears sounds nice and warm with a fantastic tuner that pulls in all the local stations w/o an antenna. I found it in the trash 15 years ago, replaced a fuse, and it has been in service in my workshop ever since.

[@tf7274]

Find a low price 2215B Marantz. Put all your audio thru it before going to a Kenwood. Warms it up nicely.

[@hjalmarfossi5728]

Definitely gonna be a fun one

[@pmp6972]

I'm with all these folks. I am a bit of a collector of older amps. I currently have two GAS AMPZILLA' S when matched with the right speakers, pound the hell out of my drywall. I also have a nice SAE power amp that is just as strong. Unfortunately, the last five years prices have creeped up making the hobby pricey but still viable.

[@JanPippel]

Pretty happy with my exotic vintage components…amp is a Onix OA21s, turntable is a Toshiba SR355 with Jelco arm and speakers are old eastern germany RFT BR25. Nice vid guys, many thanks.

[@donello430]

RFTs!!! I had a pair of those bookshelf speakers as a teenager but could never remember the brand name!! I’ve spent years trying to remember. With the fall of communism they started seeping into the western market in the early 90s, but then disappeared. they were superb imaging, blew competitors away

[@JanPippel]

@@donello430 mine are reworked (surrounds, crossover, casing)…so they look fresh an new. But sound and image like the older version…love them. Never expected anyone knows this overseas ☝🏽 Bought mine one eBay…sometimes there are a pair. But not often nowadays …

[@jeffreyklaum13]

I collect Realistic and Superscope stuff. Realistic has a lot of sleepers. I was running a STA-76 as a daily driver for my office system with a set of Jamo S803's for the longest time. Always sounded warm and full. My daughter has a STA-64 and it's also a real nice receiver for it's size. I am currently running a Superscope R-350 on my office system with a Lab-500 turntable. The Superscopes phone stage is so warm. I listen to mostly jazz. My living room system has a Zenith MC 7051 pushing a set of Mach 1's and Optimus Pro LX8's on top. Again...awesome. I have a MC 7041 that still needs gone through. So many sleepers out there. I recently had a Olson RA-195 redone. Mostly because it was a Akron Ohio company (the area where i'm from). I like it for the history. But, it does sound very good. I'm currently looking for a Fisher RS-1056. I had to sell one years ago. Wish I never did. That was also another nice one.

[@reneaceves8820]

Hitachi equipment seems to last forever, in my experience. I had one of their turntables for 30 years until I traded up to a Rega Planar 3. I gave the old turntable to a friend.

[@jeffreyroberts7438]

I’ve just got an Onkyo CR725 dab, it’s exceptional!!

[@pplebite8844]

Have a Carver AVR100, an absolute banger of a receiver. I didn't even consider the fact that it had more than plenty of wattage to push my Klipsch speakers. I was actually afraid of plugging it into the wall and turning it on. I mean, for a unit made back in '87, it made me pause for awhile, about 2 years, tbh. I still want to take care of some cap upgrades, however, just to be sure. It's a keeper.

[@ctrlzyx2]

Most of the descriptions of class g here are close enough. The refereced internet post severely overstates the duration these amps can operate on the higher voltage rail. It is not minutes, but milliseconds, like 500 or so. So you get doubled to quadrupled power for about 0.5 second, enough to support transient peaks. Whether this headroom is 3 or 6 dB depends on the voltage difference. The duration depends on the capacitors supporting the rail.

[@dubious3749]

Class G is a hybrid between class A (at low/mid volume) and A/B at high volume. Recently bought the Arcam sa20 class G. Very nice for low/mid listeners.

[@SteveNielsen-oc8br]

Have you ever compared Realistic recievers to see how they stack up to others ? Because I would call them a sleeper and good bang for your buck. Cheers Eh! 🍻 🍁

[@Blitzkreger00]

I've always went for the more popular vintage brand throughout the years of collecting. But I think I've found my most favorite receiver that not many people even look at because of the brand. The SANYO JCX-2400KR Receiver & SANYO TP-1030 Turntable are my reference pieces. My speakers are DIY with JBL 8340 cinema crossover and drivers. It's a killer set up! Great videos!

[@skylabsaudio]

Thanks Blitz. Sanyo had some winners to for sure.

[@Blitzkreger00]

@@skylabsaudio wow! Thanks for replying! Hope to see some SANYO stuff in another sleeper video. Thanks again!

[@LynnMitchell-wk7po]

Nakamichi preamps, amps and receivers are an excellent buy, if you can find one. Especially the Stasis models

[@Audiojunkabus]

cool video. do not pass up on Nikko receivers -- I have two NR-1019's --- amazing looks and sound. Their story is very interesting IMO .. If I remember correctly, Nikko was started by an audiophile/electronics engineer that had a very wealthy father in-law. I also have the Beta II pre-amp and love it.

[@jskobe808]

I had a Sanyo 2050 as a teenager. Rocked that reciever all through high school. 👍

[@BadWolf762]

I have two 2050s, a JCX-2400 and a JCX-2900. I like my Sanyo receivers.

[@David-lr2tj]

Good catch on that toshiba! I have a larger pair of grafyx, 18-19 liters, same tweeter brought forward, run out of phase with a 3rd order crossover. Definitely a 'thing' with the designer at grafyx. Oh, one had a seized woofer also- not the best magnet glue, I'm afraid. That was common for less-than-aerospace quality epoxy back then

[@tee-jaythestereo-bargainph2120]

I have a Yamaha CA 810 intg from 1977 and for price point hard to beat with new age amps

[@longi625]

I still have and use a 25+ Audiolab 8000S amplifier and a pair of Tannoy Profile 636 speakers. I love them and will never part with them. I still also use a Sony minidisc player from time to time. That's an amazing bit of kit. Very underrated. It cost £350 back in 1999 and I love it.

[@scottmitchell7852]

Nice to see a hitachi. I have two HTA-4001's and a HGE-1100. I realy like them.

[@jamiewykes8585]

The Grafyx SP8 speakers sound great that I have. They used a Philips dome tweeter. I bought them for less than $10 at a thrift store.

[@quiksr20]

I think when you knock certain brands ill use Kenwood vs Sansui, Its not that Kenwood didnt make a good unit its that they didnt "Consistently" put out a good unit. Some brands IE Marantz/Sansui every model at a certain time was good regardless of its watts.. Not so much with Kenwood / Technics etc.. I totally get it, I also dig that Hitachi.. The Fisher 202 im working on is made by Hitachi and socket'ed driver boards seems to be a key to their design and I wish more brands did this.. Dream to service! Another cool brand ive come across is PhaseTech, I thought it was whitevan and its far from whitevan. Great vid!

[@phildirt3]

Infinity 305 s, phillips turntable, kenwood 60 watter, sony cassette. 1978 really miss that system

[@blubyu]

Ha ha - love the shout out to G-Graphics!

[@kathyroberts3905]

first time I saw this,great!

[@doctorwacky5680]

I have always wondered about the old Panasonic thruster series that stuff looked so cool, and I often wondered if it was decent at all. The other one that has fascinated me and I cannot think of the model number, but sound design the junkie stereo people had to receiver back in the early 80s that was really impressive looking Used to see it in discount stores and I’ve often wondered about those.

[@blackportspeakercabinets4145]

I've heard "Frankensteins" which have sounded better than all original.

[@rotaxtwin]

Glad you gave a couple of the underdogs some exposure. I think you're right, most of the Japanese stuff from that time was of similar quality and likely sourced a lot of the same component manufacturers. I would snap up either of those two receivers if I stumbled across them. I enjoyed the 'gut shots' of inside them too, I'm guessing I'm not alone.i like to peek inside any electronics that come into the house, at least the old stuff where it's feasible. Gives you a chance to blow the cooties out with the air compressor while you got it open.

[@tf7274]

I'm a Marantz/Kenwood guy...but I found a Technics SA-1010 that I'm really enjoying. 125 watts and was not making sound when I bought it for $7 at my local thrift. Did a thorough cleaning and spent some time tuning the tuner until I got Stereo working. Once the switches were clicked 40x each, they all fired up. I'll get it professionally restored now that I know it sounds like.

[@martyjewell5683]

I got to use a Marantz 2252B receiver for a month while my SR-804 was in the shop (for new lamps) and found it most satisfying with my Ohm L speakers. Very robust to say the least but I liked my SR-804 better.

[@user-lt7jq7ym2w]

Juet some food for thought on the JVC platter. I noticed both 45 and 33 rpm had pitch control. I had a Duel 505 with pitch control and I liked it because I didn't have to depend on an electronic controller. I'm sorry but I am old. Thank you for another interactive video. George from St. Pete

[@mbilden]

Never be sorry that you are "old". Hopefully we all get there some day!

[@LakeNipissing]

I have the big brother to the SR-804, the Hitachi SR-2004. It is also labeled "Class G", and has the four meters. The output meters top out at 600 WRMS for each channel. Very solid. Mostly Hitachi's own components, including the output transistors. Huge toroidal transformer, capacitors and side-mounted heat sinks on each side for the 8 output transistors. Very good sound. Insanely loud. AC power consumption is 1190 VA / 850 W... Serious stuff. Those mini Mesa speakers look great !! The Toshiba shows how much quality went into even small, low wattage entry-level receivers in the late 1970s. Five internal fuses and three external fuses. *_Eight_* fuses to protect an 18 watt / channel receiver !!

[@theclearsounds3911]

Hitachi is a very underrated brand. They were less expensive than other comparable units, and not as flashy, so I don't think they sold very well. But I've had 2 tape decks and one TV made by Hitachi (one under the Realistic brand), and I've been very impressed by all 3. They made some surprisingly good stuff for the money.

[@LakeNipissing]

@@theclearsounds3911 I believe I read somewhere (years ago), that the SR-2004 was close to 1,100 $ when introduced in 1977.... and that's Hitachi 'value' !

[@altokheim]

Grafyx speakers were true "sleepers" from their time. Although the SP-6 featured in the video was an entry level speaker, the SP-8s and especially SP-10s were incredible value for the money. I sold many pairs of all models in the shop where I worked and even owned some SP-10s (wood veneer version) myself. As you noted as a boutique Illinois speaker company, fewer were sold as new and therefore are relatively rare in the marketplace.

[@jimhines5145]

I had several JCPenney MCS turntables and receivers in the late 70s and early 80s. The turntables were fantastic (Technics made) but the receivers varied quite a bit depending on who manufactured them.

[@Mustang-Mike]

I’ve owned the JVC JL-A40 turn table and JR-S300 Mark II receiver since 1977. Still sounds and works great after all these years. What’s your opinion on these two pieces from JVC?

[@BobBlarneystone]

There are still many many excellent receivers and amps at garage sales. Just add and aftermarket Bluetooth receiver and plug it into the phono receptacle jacks, and you're set.

[@cyberqid]

I had 2 brand new Toshiba SA 420's back in the 70's... they were great sounding but both units had issues with amp scr's and function switch going bad. Easy fix for a pro.