Panasonic Tape Recorder Restoration & Chillout (Boombox RX 5120LS)

[@ralphreinhardt6020]

Another really cool video MML ! 😎👍

[@neilw3149]

Ah the search for the AUX input on old audio equipment as a kid, i used to bodge wires on things to get one... Oh the good old days in the late 80's early 90's. Good to see you video... haven't seen one of your pop up for ages. Anyway i always enjoy your Amiga and retro audio videos! 👍

[@MsMadLemon]

This sounds like me in the 80s and 90s! desperately seeking an AUX input on tape recorders. I have been posting, maybe missing a week here or there but i posted the week before last, thanks, glad you enjoy 🙂

[@neilw3149]

@@MsMadLemon Definitely was fun growing up in them times, I remember dad getting a Sansui cassette deck, equaliser and amp and it was like having a recording studio after my boom box. Anyway, love the chilled atmosphere to your videos, I'll keep an eye out for them 🙂

[@westelaudio943]

This is a nice boombox but I would check all the caps for green legs (corrosion) because they are notorious for leaking which wrecks the PCB traces over time.

[@MsMadLemon]

I'm goin to do a recap on this in coming months anyway. As tedios as I find recapping, I feel its necessary on electronics this old.

[@westelaudio943]

@@MsMadLemon It depends but concerning anything Matsushita made (or otherwise using their caps) that's certainly a good idea...

[@williamhelms9942]

Back of the motor is a clutch screw. Loosen to speed up, tighten to slow down.

[@MsMadLemon]

Normally yes but inaccessible on this motor. Even if I pry open the bottom plate of it there's nothing there.

[@williamhelms9942]

@@MsMadLemon : Not even a plastic dot like as a trap door or slit seal kind of thing? It's totally sealed and inaccessible?

[@MsMadLemon]

@@williamhelms9942 unfortunately yes.. Normally motors have something like this. This one no.. Not even in my other Sanyo boombox.. Though the speed change circuitry is external on that one.. They don't seem like standard tape deck motors.

[@basicforge]

Love it. I recently bought a used Panasonic stereo boombox from the 90's. I had one in my early married years and wanted to play my old cassettes. So much fun.

[@Error42_]

Your vacuum cleaner is even retro! I've not seen one of those Electrolux cleaners for years. I think it was my gran that had one. I used to love pulling the power cable out then pressing the button down and watching it pull it all back in. I think hers might have been green. Totally off topic I know 😆

[@MsMadLemon]

Lol! This was my mums, and I did the same, pull the cord and press the button again and again 😆

[@robertogutierrez1183]

Hello I enjoy your videos, I'm from Puerto Rico.

[@kumarsajal8400]

Thankyou so much Madija. Because of you I discovered "Cyrine" and her great music 🤩

[@adrian9901]

Whoaaa thats sound so good, for boombox recording quality. It is very good. Thank you Ms Mad Lemon for the good demonstration ❤

[@pauljackson6168]

That sliding door on the Astrad radio is such a nice feature and with the wood surround, such a lovely design. I always loved reading the station names that were printed on the tuner dials. Such exotic sounding places to me back then. Luxembourg, Istanbul, Helsinki and... um... BBC Radio 4. 😁

[@MsMadLemon]

That astrad radio has such character, I always loved it.. To me personally it feels like home and yes! I did the same, Istanbul and Luxembourg were always the ones that caught my eye also haha. It seems you did the same as I did back then. Turn the radio on and just go radio surfing. Innocent and simpler times 🙂

[@BloodRayneUK]

Hiya Maddi ☺️ This was a great upload and nostalgia wise for me it works on multiple levels. I remember listening to the radio at my grandparents house for many an hour over long summer school breaks. They had a lovely Sanyo radio tape unit with extremely chunky buttons from the 1970’s that was so beautifully built, l loved it. The “imperfect” wow and flutter you get with these late 70’s/early 80’s machines when recording is just part of the warmth and character, couldn’t agree more with you. Back in the day, the preciseness of audio recordings was for me as a kid not important. Having that latest recording from the radio or from a record for my personal tape player was key. As you get older your listening tastes may change but l think how you hear any sound or music matures over time and you recognise things more clearly. It funny how with both music and film that we have to digitally add in the distortions if it’s needed as part of the story telling process as the technology has becomes so good in cancelling it out lol 😂 Love seeing these boombox projects and restorations and it’s fabulous to see you using them in such an organic way as they were meant to be used. As always, all the best to you, Rich, Mr Neelix and everyone there and l hope you all have a great rest of the weekend ☺️

[@JamesPearson]

Great video Maddi, I do love your restoration videos. The Panasonic looks excellent. I love this vintage of devices as everything is so much more accessible and easier to maintain. (Well except in this case replacing the belts is a bit of a hassle!)

[@aftertheendtimes]

This is epic dear Maddie , as i am a Panasonic fan, thanks for your presence and content always enjoy your channel =)

[@hoquangngoc1990]

Giọng nói cô ấy ấm áp

[@griswold67]

Another excellent video. I loved when you described the "feeling" and the "charm" of recording on this type of equipment in the 80s. I was a teenager then and understand what you describe perfectly. Ah nostalgia!

[@coreyostman]

I'll be curious to see how you try different ways of converting line level to phono for the boombox. When I was a teen, I did it the naive way which was first using a potentiometer inline and adjusting it to my taste. Then I took the potentiometer out and measure its resistance and installed inline resistors with close to the same value. Like you, I was interested in just getting some of my Apple ][, Vic 20 and Commodore 64 audio onto cassette. I definitely wasn't obsessed over the audio quality! lol Imperfection has its own beauty. Thanks for another fun video, Maddi!

[@cdl0]

Any "user interface" is a prime suspect for TLC and repairs. Try Servisol Super 10 spray for cleaning, because this also contains a lubricant, so switches and pots run smoothly after applying it. Another common problem is bad solder joints. Simply redo any that you find. The Panasonic RX-5120LS was made in about 1987. You might like the SK-353L (1982) which has line in and out, Dolby, and both chrome and metal tape settings.

[@MsMadLemon]

Thing is, I used to use Servisol Super 10 before Dioxit, but was advised that dioxit is better, I think i'm going to revert back to servisol 10 for faders again. thanks for the suggestion!

[@kaitlyn__L]

Also, was the mint tea you mentioned one where it's green tea and mint? That's been my favourite way to have both green tea and mint tea lately, superseding all others for either for me!

[@paulb4uk]

Panasonic boom boxes always sound superb .

[@andrewgardner8330]

Great video.. analog is here to stay..👍

[@superbird24]

I also love the nostalgia that cassette players bring back. What were the songs you used to test the Panasonic?

[@paolorams767]

very interesting video, it seems have fe-cr position!

[@milosjez]

❤

[@imnickleonard]

Really enjoyed this. Could you do an internal switchable mod which is reversible and will use the pre-amp or bypass it. It’s only soldering that would be meddled with wouldn’t it?

[@MsMadLemon]

I've thought about it and yes it is possible, just soldering and will need a switch somewhere so modding the case would be a must which i'd try to avoid. I think i'm giving myself a challenge to try and do it externally.

[@albertocabezas282]

Hello. Wonderful video. I noticed the erasing head is just a permanent magnet (which erases quite good but adds a ton of tape noise to the new recording). Is there a way to replace that head without too much hassle?

[@rev.waynet.oleary7387]

Excellent, and very helpful. I get it too!

[@frankowalker4662]

Nice Ghetto Blaster, it's strange that the AUX is turntable only, I've seen them with a swich to swap from turntable and line in. Strange decision that Panasomic took.

[@jaycee1980]

if it's turntable only, you could build an inverse RIAA equaliser circuit to feed it. Rod Elliot has one on his website

[@kyfeam]

cool to see a female interested in old school boomboxes.. wish my wife was more into them.. i have owned more than 300 boomboxes.. and they are all cool.. i repair them too.. which is a dying breed..

[@midwestguy42]

I wouldn't know how to adjust the tape speed since the tape drive motor doesn't have a hole to insert a screwdriver into to make an adjustment.

[@mohamedabidli519]

Good souvenir

[@m80116]

Equinoxe... I've got a collection of original cassettes of JMJ, wonderful Agfa Super Ferro Dynamic with red leaders, they're awesome and sound very good. Why do you recap boomboxes? Are the vintage caps degraded?

[@MsMadLemon]

Electrolytic capacitors tend to dry out over time, especially in old devices from the 80s, when this happens the values of them shift..Another thing that can happen is leakage from them, which is corrosive to PCBs and other components.

[@m80116]

I lube the capstan bearings but don't usually change the caps unless I have to. I'll test the theory when I collect my next lot of vintage decks, mostly from the 70s (I don't make videos about it).

[@ghassanalshamali9807]

كل الحب والاحترام الك

[@pranabkishoremishra9987]

Iwant to buy

[@antoniodellavalle8387]

6 bellissima❤👍

[@kaitlyn__L]

I totally understand explaining why you're using this for effect rather than fidelity, but I'd hope you wouldn't get any flack even without the explanation - tons of musicians deliberately collect the lowest-fidelity tape decks they can, like dictaphones which were never expected to carry music, to impart that effect for certain sections of tracks. And you've got an even more specific effect you want to make, not just degraded but degraded in exactly the right way. It's totally valid! I guess, though, that you're addressing it more to the audiophiles than the musicians...

[@MsMadLemon]

Yes that's right about some musicians deliberately using low fidelity equipment for effect. I'm not really saying all this because I think I'm gonna get flack.. Although In the past I've had snobby comments for having a marantz amplifier. This guy just got so angry in the comments saying that everyone should get decent (expensive) amps, naming those which most can't afford. I don't understand the anger tantrum other than trying to make me stop enjoying what I have lol, which I tend to not take seriously and just ignore. It's more for the people who are curious and ask why I'd do that. I know a lot of musicians understand my aims.

[@kaitlyn__L]

@@MsMadLemon that’s so weird! AIUI Marantz were only just behind Sony when it came to field recorders. So I’d assume the amplifier would be fine! Maybe I was just viewing through the lens of my own experience, of being made to “prove” I knew what was going on to “the boys” (I’m sure you understand what I mean!), when that section came up. Explaining to someone less-familiar with it all how it can be a desirable effect for music definitely makes a ton of sense! It’s just a couple of parts, specifically the ones regarding how you do have “better” tape decks than this and you definitely understand the limitations of this particular deck, struck me as preemptively deflecting (audiophile) criticism if that makes sense. Like, separately from the wider explanation of the musical/nostalgic utility.

[@MsMadLemon]

@@kaitlyn__L It makes perfect sense, I once used to be more like that, mostly at the beginning time of my channel. Though even then I was starting to realise what was actually going on. A lot of people out there, mostly those who give flack, the questions they ask (or things they moan about) tend to be irrelevant to their intention, power shifting, and they don't particularly care about the answer you give other than it being ammo for them. I've learned to question why someone is asking a certain question, being passive aggression or pushing a certain opinion/criticism onto me, then adjust and respond accordingly, things are much more peaceful this way. Life's too short for anything else 🙂

[@kaitlyn__L]

@@MsMadLemon I’ve definitely found myself noticing that more over the last 3-5 years. When people say things just to say things, or make themselves feel superior. (And indeed trying to notice when I might be doing that…) My wee autistic brain used to take everything said on good faith, all questions equal kind of a thing. Hopefully now I’m a bit better at figuring out when someone is genuinely trying to learn/teach and when they’re just trying to puff themselves up. I do find it quite exhausting to analyse interactions one or two levels removed from what’s being said on the surface though. It’s super useful to weed-out bad faith discussions, or figure-out when someone’s just trying to make themselves feel better about buying something. But sometimes, even though it’s great for avoiding people who aren’t worth my time, I still feel just as crazy trying to figure some folks out 😅

[@MsMadLemon]

@@kaitlyn__L I used to be the same, think people are saying things in good faith, i'm not autistic or anything like this but for me it was more naivety on my part ,until it clicked one day. It can be exhausting constantly having to look past the first layer. however, it does get easier, you start to recognize cues quicker and know whether to just let someone be. Think of an interaction as being a possible mini tornado, at first you may not see it. If you recognize the feeling of it trying to suck you in, (by using anything like tiggers, button pushing, manipulation basically, trying anything to get you to engage) you can then choose to abandon the tornado and let it spin itself around depleting it's own energy, while you're free lol The worst place to be is in the centre of it, the eye of the storm where peace is a mere illusion. I agree though life is too short for this crap! I don't get why people waste their lives doing it. We need to recognize that it's a weakness in them and not to get sucked into their narrative. That part is liberating.

[@preferredimage]

Always connect your pube.... :)

[@jimburns348]

It’s good to see a woman getting both feet wet in restorations. 🥂👍