In the bygone days I used to buy stereo components from Bernstein Applebee that look just like what you have in your console. I’d build cabinets to put them in and sell them.

It was just the receiver and later they started coming with an 8 track deck. They cost less than $5.00 each if you bought 4 or more.

Most had some little problem and at first the parts needed to fix it came with it. As time passed the repair parts were no longer included.

A lot of them that came with the 8 track deck, the decks were so far gone that you could only salvage the receiver. The parts for the decks were not available.

But if you bought as many as I did in a years time you could generally get a few of the decks in working condition.

When eBay was a new thing and I had dialup internet I was ‘diskman’ I sold thousands of LP records to folks all over the states.

I only have maybe 100 of my favorites left these days. I have replaced most with CD’s over the years. I get a lot of stuff off you tube and make my own compilations just like I used to do when I first got my 8 track recorder and later the cassette deck. I have around 50 7&½” reel to reel tapes as well.

When I was young I wanted a Pioneer SX 850 receiver and all the things that went with it. Over time I managed to purchase one and most of the things that went with it. I have the reel to reel deck, the 8 track deck, the 10 band per channel equalizer, an echo reverb box thing, and an adjustable speed belt drive Pioneer turntable. I have a pioneer cassette deck that matches pretty well, but it did not come out when the receiver did.

I never did get genuine Pioneer speakers but I do have a decent pair of Radio Shack Nova 500’s. There is also a pair of home built speakers that use the same drivers so I‘m running 4 speakers.

With its rated 65 watts RMS per channel output it is an asswhackinmonsterkiller stereo.

Just about the same week I finally procured the decent turntable most labels quit making vinyl records. Oh, sure, you can find some artist on vinyl these days but not in my price range.

I do have three spare magnetic cartridges and a few needles, oops I mean stylists for them.

 

Fun stuff!

I've been playing my doubles to choose which one to keep and stuff that I got for cheap to try out.

Rolling Stones ~ Some Girls (1978)



Led Zeppelin IV (1971)



Pink Floyd ~ Relics (1971 British)



Ronnie Montrose ~ Open Fire (1978) - no Bad Motor Scooter here



Buskers (1970) - weird



Eddie Condon ~ Bixieland (1955)



The Bix Beiderbecke Story, Vol. 1: Bix and His Gang - looking for Vols 2 & 3



Count Basie ~ One More Time (1959) - He's always baked



Count Basie ~ From The Pen Of Benny Carter



Sinatra/Basie ~ An Historic Musical First (1962)



Sinatra/Basie ~ It Might as Well Be Swing (1964)



Sinatra at the Sands (1966 2LP) - with Basie



First Time! The Count Meets the Duke (1961)



Duke Ellington ~ Ellington '66 (1965)

 

Mowgli - came across a couple of articles you might like to read
- http://www.wired.com/reviews/2010/11...eo_components/
- http://www.wired.com/underwire/2011/...a-kickstarter/

Grizzley Old Man - yeah the old stuff was a lot of fun. I started out with a huge tube mono amp back in the early 60's - kinda wish I still had it, as I cannot remember where it came from, or what make it was. I still have a working version of an Advent SoundSpace that does a digital time delay to rear speakers. But I still have to tear apart a Technics Power Amp to fix a bunch of dirty switches for the speakers etc. to put it all back into service. My 8-track and reel stuff are all gone these days - but still have a huge collection of self-recorded cassettes which I use on the motorcycle. Cheers man

 

Miles Davis ~ In Person Friday Night at the Blackhawk, Vol. 1 (1961)



Charlie Parker ~ Bird Is Free (1961)



Charlie Parker with Strings ~ April in Paris (1957)

Ahmad Jamal at the Penthouse (1959)



Ahmad Jamal ~ Happy Moods (1960)



Miles Davis ~ In a Silent Way (1969)



Artie Shaw ~ Mr. Clarinet (1952)



Kraftwerk ~ Autobahn (1974)



Duke Ellington/Teresa Brewer ~ It Don't Mean a Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing (1973)



Buddy De Franco Plays Benny Goodman (1957)



Cat Stevens ~ Buddha and the Chocolate Box (1974)



Cat Stevens ~ Tea for the Tillerman (1970)



Cat Stevens ~ Teaser and the Firecat (1971)



Charlie Byrd ~ Brazilian Byrd (1965)



Stéphane Grappelli ~ Just One of Those Things (1973)

 

Cool. here's another - Vinyl May Be Final Nail in CD's Coffin

Maybe a nail but I don't play LPs in my 6-disc changer...

...although I did play some 78s on my 1912 Victrola in the bed of my 87 S-10 at a campground in Vermont once.
It got totally rehabbed and works as good as new (new in 1912 still sux compared to a good Maggie)
The cover stayed at home for the trip, it is an excellent Vickie.

The wifey helps keep the jams kicking while I keep the shutter clicking

.

 

Oh man you need help!!! LOL You are so doomed to spend the rest of your life listening to vinyl - hey, but what a way to go!!

Kraftwerk Autobaun - landmark album in it's day. I took the album to work when I bought it and had a guy translate the german for me - was pretty much nonsensical gibberish if I remember right. and Cat Stevens - can't lose on any of his albums.

 

Someone on the AudioKarma forum dissed me saying that my big score 100+ at once would feel empty to him.
That he remembers getting every one of his albums, what was happening in his life at the time, etc...blah blah blah
He's usually a good fellow but it ruffled my feathers.

Here was my response:

I'm 50. I've already done all that numerous times.
With my records and tapes growing up and CD's in the 90's and 00's (more than one collection)
My current record collection is ~1000 rock, ~300 classical and ~150 jazz/blues and assorted other stuff.
I've worked very hard to collect and upgrade what I have in the past year or so.
I go through it trimming to jettison stuff I won't actually listen to but seemed like a good idea at the time.

I only kept ~100 from this batch and spent a few hours last night inspecting, comparing and upgrading the dozen or so that I already had.
I'll absorb and assimilate the new-to-me stuff over time.

I'm proud of my collection and enjoy it daily.
I'd replace most of it again if I had to dump it for disaster relief cash or if the house burnt down.
That would suck but it's just stuff.

My emotional attachment is to the music.

Like singing Louis Armstrong with my folks and dancing with my Mom when I was an ankle biter.
Like jumping up and down on the bed yelling woohoohoo when Sympathy For The Devil would play on RKO before I knew anything about The Stones.
Like cranking AC/DC TNT/Live Wire in my Grand Prix on the way to play chicken with the car and fight a guy I hated.
Like The Sickness (Kilslug) playing at a party at my parents' house.
Like how my girlfriend used to flip Song Remains The Same tape over and over while blowing my mind.

Like playing Gift Shop by The Tragically Hip in my car at The Grand Canyon.

Like that.

YMMV

 

In the attic at the house I have a vintage RCA floor model multiband radio ceria late 1920-1930’s its all tube but it does have a 4 speed record player in it.

I’m pretty old but I have never in my life actually seen a 16 rpm record. I used to have a fairly large stack of 78 rpm records but sold them on eBay long ago.

I’m pretty sure whoever bought the radio originally paid a premium price for it. I got it for hauling it away.

I have upgraded the tone arm to a much lighter one that takes a ceramic cartridge, and I have a diamond needle in it, because the original took what looked for all the world like steel brads.

I replaced all the paper and the mica capacitors in it and eventually found a replacement speaker with the electromagnet on the back so its as close to original as I could get it and still have it work. I also replaced the original cloth wrapped power cord with a more modern cord.

The cone on the original speaker had simply dry rotted to bits. For a while I was using just a permanent magnet speaker and had the wires for the electromagnet taped out of the way. It really does sound much better with the original type speaker in it.

Of course it is not stereo just somewhat nostalgic. It does have an FM band but its different than the FM band of today. The frequencies for the FM band were different when it was new.

 

Mowgli - I can see both sides of that story - but the thrill of finding that hidden treasure in a huge acquisition is good too - so really it doesn't matter how one acquires them. :)

And by grabbing a huge collection one does a great service in preserving them, rather than seeing them go out in the thrash somewhere

I still remember pulling off to the side of the road when I first heard Red Shoes by Elvis Costello on the car stereo, just so I could listen to it - and it remains one of my favorite songs to this day. So, yeah I understand that emotional attachment.


Grizzley - that takes dedication to rip them apart like that and restore them to working condition. Good on ya.

Tis all good guys. :)

 

Henry Gross ~ Plug Me into Something (1974)



Flatt & Scruggs ~ Foggy Mountain Jamboree (1957) - I played it for S & G but I love it



Al di Meola ~ Tour de Force: Live (1982)



Fiddler extraordinaire - Jean-Luc Ponty

Imaginary Voyage (1976)



Enigmatic Ocean (1977) - I found bonuses inside
handmade Valentines Day card from ... to ...
Concert program & ticket JLP stub from The Orpheum in Boston



Cosmic Messenger (1978)



A Taste for Passion (1979)



Civilized Evil (1980)



The fiddle was getting tedious 2 albums ago so NFSCD - MPFC

Relix Records Sampler (1986)



This Flamingos record books at $500 in the Goldmine Price Guide - Can anyone identify it as real or counterfeit?

The Flamingos ~ Flamingo Serenade (1959) - Doo wop - BTW, it's mint and cost me 10¢



Uriah Heep ~ Salisbury (1971)