A stereo with a twist
Added 2024-11-15 18:17:45 +0000 UTCHere’s a compact video about a neat little portable stereo radio cassette recorder from the mid eighties. It’s unlikely you’ll have encountered this model before, I certainly hadn’t, which is why I thought it deserved a video.
I really wish that ‘Portable Stereo Radio Cassette Recorder’ formed a better initialism than PSRCR - it would be nice to have a simple one-word phrase that could be used when talking about smaller versions of these devices.
I didn’t want to use the term ‘Boombox’ not because of the usual chorus of ”We used to call these Ghetto Blasters’ - but because anyone calling this little thing a Boombox or a Ghetto Blaster would have been laughed out of the 80s.
I’m sure there were some better names used internationally, I’ve always appreciated the fact that Cassette can be abbreviated to K7 in French - so if you’re aware of any concise non English language phrases for describing a small portable stereo radio cassette recorder, let me know and I’ll see if I can use it in the future.
I hope you enjoy the video and have a good weekend.
UPDATE: Video swapped out due to typo correction.
UPDATE 2: Video swapped (again) . This time it was to fix a verbal typo(verbo) - (thanks to Mike for spotting it.) Also took the opportunity to do a few nips and tucks which should slow the pace down to a more palatable level.
Comments
Nice design! Funny that with the simple speaker setup and the equaliser included they still did the effort to put a tape equalisation switch on it... I guess the erase head is just of the permanent magnet type?
MrHammond
2024-11-26 18:51:32 +0000 UTCThe 'other name' which people called Boom Boxes when I was a kid I didn't even make an association to anything dodgy in any way at the time, but then again I also thought the song RELAX was about being calm and relaxed before going somewhere.
GraphicsMonkey
2024-11-23 01:53:08 +0000 UTCLate to the party, but how about calling it a 'Minibluster.'
Grace Robbins
2024-11-20 04:43:18 +0000 UTCAs a kid, I always just called a small stereo like that a "tapedeck". A boom box, or ghetto blaster was one of those huge things you'd see carried on the shoulder in movies or pictures. The sort of thing, as a young fella, I could never afford, but always wanted.
PaxilonReaver
2024-11-20 02:00:07 +0000 UTCA bit strange audio on this one, feels like sitting inside a barrel
Braxen
2024-11-19 18:32:10 +0000 UTCI see your 'The Fifth Element' reference.
Grace Robbins
2024-11-18 10:16:46 +0000 UTCI concur. In the U.S., nobody referred to small to medium-size boomboxes as "ghetto blasters". That term was exclusively reserved for the huge 1980s models, and usually in a derogatory sense from people who were not fans of hip-hop music.
VWestlife
2024-11-17 23:18:00 +0000 UTCI 100% agree and this is the reason why 'We used to call them Ghetto Blasters' thing really winds me up. I feel like asking them - 'Oh and what did you used to call (insert different nationality of person here)' - is this really something to be celebrated?
Techmoan
2024-11-17 21:51:02 +0000 UTCInteresting that there's ever a chorus of "we used to call them ghetto blasters." From the American midwest, we called them boomboxes as the regular term. A ghetto blaster, to me, is a derogatory term that suggests... let's say antisocial use by a social undesirable. It's not a term you'd use in polite company. It's very much a term I've heard, but I don't think I'd ever use it.
James Hamilton
2024-11-17 21:32:25 +0000 UTCThey covered several different bases https://stereo2go.com/forums/threads/blasting-through-time-the-yellow-submarine-from-the-philips.9019/
Duncan
2024-11-17 18:42:10 +0000 UTCSome of them are really squeakboxes. I'm still trying to think what my B&O Radio Cassette is. A Gentrified Area Soother ? According to the person I got it from it came from a model / publishing agency.
Duncan
2024-11-17 18:40:00 +0000 UTCWhat about a BingBox? Then you'll have a Bada Bing and Bada Boom.
Rudy Rodriguez
2024-11-17 14:51:50 +0000 UTCLook forward to watching you cover one of these on your channel:)
Andrew Fletcher
2024-11-17 10:11:21 +0000 UTCYou've changed, dude... you used to be about blasting ghettos and booming boxes.
antzpantz
2024-11-16 20:21:33 +0000 UTCThat website is a disaster.
Techmoan
2024-11-16 20:00:46 +0000 UTChttps://www.boomboxcity.info/boomboxes-1980-1989.html
Pin Swede
2024-11-16 18:08:16 +0000 UTCSony referred to their small to medium-sized boomboxes as "TranSound", but I don't think that name would fly today. A name I thought of instead is "handlebox" -- a boombox with a handle but no "boom".
VWestlife
2024-11-16 18:00:50 +0000 UTCOr "boomboxlet" (boomboxlette?).
VWestlife
2024-11-16 17:53:51 +0000 UTC😄 deffinately, I remember a teacher at school in the early 90's bringing that philips one in and thinking then it was a bit of an ugly monster. Deffinately like Akai's style though. Without the speakers it remind me of the Technnics M1 you showed us a few years back.
Tim Barker
2024-11-16 16:21:00 +0000 UTCGood spot.
Techmoan
2024-11-16 14:26:46 +0000 UTCA small correction. At time 1:35, you say, "play and rewind point to the left," but I think you mean "play and FF/Cue point to the left."
Mike Coless
2024-11-16 13:31:44 +0000 UTCI can see what you mean…but blimey didn’t Philips know how to do bland and ugly better than anyone else.
Techmoan
2024-11-16 13:07:07 +0000 UTCIt just makes them muffled.
Techmoan
2024-11-16 13:05:59 +0000 UTCIt’s a start.
Techmoan
2024-11-16 13:05:38 +0000 UTCOk. Here's my attempt at a suitable name for your video. The BBB. That stands for the Baby Boom Box!! I know, I had to at least give it a go 😀
Andrew Fletcher
2024-11-16 12:37:01 +0000 UTCCracking video, Matt. Kinda interesting that this looks like a unit my uncle had in his garage in my late teens. Had spray paint all over it, and brings back some good memories. Cheers, Lee
Lee Coles
2024-11-16 11:20:21 +0000 UTCI would imagine aiming the speakers downwards would increase base?
RobotOnline
2024-11-16 10:12:34 +0000 UTCThe angled speakers kind of remind me of the Philips AW7694 from the early 90's https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/276396386169?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=vB9tff3nS72&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=Zix7OFIUSYS&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=FB_MSG
Tim Barker
2024-11-16 10:04:09 +0000 UTCYou see snow fences in the UK too on roads like the Woodhead Pass and the M62 to stop drifting snow, in that case they're permanent and just look like normal fence with a passing glance, the giveaway is that there are usually several rows and they don't enclose anything (well, apart from snow).
Steve Bailey
2024-11-16 08:44:36 +0000 UTCWhat a great little device! Incidentally, we always seemed to call those smaller devices "radio cassettes" or "radio cassette recorders". They seemed to be far more common than the larger type of units that we called "ghettoblasters", probably due to price.
Steve Bailey
2024-11-16 08:39:27 +0000 UTCLast week I watched a recently purchased 4K Blu-Ray of Aliens. Been a fair number of years (10? 12?) since seeing it so it was a grand movie night. I've got a FHD Blu-Ray of Alien, but will probably never watch Alien3 again.
Mark Hesse
2024-11-15 23:30:26 +0000 UTCLiked the video. When you talked about pointing the speakers backwards it reminded me of a stupid craze in the late 70s when I was in college. It was to put your floor speakers in the corners of your room and then to flip them around so the speakers faced the corner. That was supposed to give a better spread of sound. My roommate thought it was cool and every time I’d return from class he’d have the things facing the walls, cranked up twice as loud as they needed to be… and they were my freakin’ speakers. Needless to say, we weren’t on the best of terms. And yes, I ended up having to get new speakers. And a new roommate.
CrimsonPig808
2024-11-15 23:11:30 +0000 UTCJust found a black one on ebay Australia. For parts $100 AUD with $75 ship
BlueChainsawMan
2024-11-15 23:04:02 +0000 UTCI just used to call them "portable stereos".
Dan Xepha
2024-11-15 22:55:44 +0000 UTCNow I want one! That "banana" discovery was neat!
Randall Jennings
2024-11-15 22:28:47 +0000 UTCI share the Alien franchise love.
Grace Robbins
2024-11-15 21:52:15 +0000 UTCInteresting. I’ve seen that stuff and assumed it was something to do with construction, perhaps it is sometimes, but now I know it’s a snow fence too.
Techmoan
2024-11-15 21:48:51 +0000 UTCWhat an intriguing device. Personally, I'd want to label it a "Portable Stereo". However, I'm not sure that will catch on.
Kris Graney
2024-11-15 21:45:53 +0000 UTCTried other devices and comments are there. Just seems to be my mobile, even though I've cleared cache and uninstalled/reinstalled YouTube, comments are still not there. Maybe it will right itself in time. Very odd 🤔
Luke Biddle
2024-11-15 21:44:26 +0000 UTCWhat a great video! With its red colour, sci-fi font and Nostromo vibe this is definitely something I would have gone for back in the day.
David Peaker
2024-11-15 21:42:40 +0000 UTCIt's this, posts and all. Almost done.. https://ibb.co/kyv2rkY It creates an artificial drift barrier so that when/if blizzards happen it will lessen the amount of snow piling up on her driveway.
Grace Robbins
2024-11-15 21:39:17 +0000 UTCIn Dutch we would have just called this a “radiocassette (speler)”. “Speler” being “player”.
Kurt Hansen
2024-11-15 21:34:28 +0000 UTCAlien and Aliens definitely the best. I saw the new one is already available for rent and buying.
Bram Kessels
2024-11-15 21:30:44 +0000 UTCI’m probably due a rewatch of the first two… but I also need to see the most recent one.
Techmoan
2024-11-15 21:28:14 +0000 UTCIt’s sounds a bit too deeply embedded a feature to be able to strip out. Perhaps try a different browser to double check.
Techmoan
2024-11-15 21:26:41 +0000 UTCAs soon as I saw the coiled up wires on the back, I wondered if they thought the user might have the speakers detached long-term. Not much stereo separation with such short wires though.
Jason Wellband
2024-11-15 21:22:00 +0000 UTCTotally offtopic but I like your talk about resemblance with the Nostromo :) For me Alien is a yearly rewatch. Actually the whole franchise, also the rather poor ones :)
Bram Kessels
2024-11-15 21:19:04 +0000 UTCInteresting video but a little concerning after watching directly on YouTube. There is no comments section there, not on any video I'm watching today. Is it an internal issue or the beginning of the Australian government's censorship on social media? Yes, they have been working on it.
Luke Biddle
2024-11-15 21:18:41 +0000 UTCGreat speakers on that tape recorder well thats what my father would call it. Great video. I enjoyed it very much Mat.
MJFJ
2024-11-15 21:12:50 +0000 UTCWhat is a snow fence? I could use Google, but where’s the fun in that?
Techmoan
2024-11-15 21:07:58 +0000 UTCAux in makes it far more useful than many portables. My "computer speakers" are actually a twin deck Sony Megabass boombox hidden behind the monitor.
Duncan
2024-11-15 20:27:20 +0000 UTCPSRCR, PS RCR, piss racer 🤪
Adam Wishneusky
2024-11-15 20:26:17 +0000 UTCFun fact: Akai is the Japanese word for red. I bought a very used red Akai PJ-35 without speakers in about 1987 which I used with some cheap music centre ones for years. It wasn't until years later that the ionternet showed me what the real speakers looked like. Dolby was a high end feature back then, while the deck is one of those power assisted "softish touch" ones.
Duncan
2024-11-15 20:25:03 +0000 UTCI watched the video right after work and really enjoyed it. The design is certainly unusual, perhaps a bit gimmicky, but surprisingly functional. I’d love to help out with a catchy international name for that device, but all I’ve got is 'Brüllwürfel' (literally 'blare cubes'). That doesn’t quite work, though, as most people over here would associate it with cheap PC speakers, and they’d no doubt be quick to point that out in the comments. The starship Nostromo was named after a novel that’s been on my to-read list for ages. I’ve at least managed to buy the ebook. It’s not about starships, but rather a fictional South American country plagued by dictatorships and political turmoil. The book was written in 1904, so I imagine I’ll have to look up a fair few words, but hey, I did make it through Flatland (written in 1884).
Tunix
2024-11-15 20:11:04 +0000 UTCIf it makes you feel any better about the coughing and wheezing - I am coughing, wheezing, and occasionally gagging while I put up my mom's snow fence today. 😓
Grace Robbins
2024-11-15 20:10:59 +0000 UTCTheirs turned out to be broken, too, but he's managed to get his hands on a scan of the service manual and is going to try to see if he can fix it. That will be covered in a second video, at some point, could be worth getting in touch to see if he'll send you a copy? Forgot, he did manage to extract the audio from one of the CDs.
Adam Gurney
2024-11-15 19:36:02 +0000 UTCHope the cough clears up.. probably noodle dust poisoning lol
GraphicsMonkey
2024-11-15 19:16:47 +0000 UTCI think I would've liked to have had this back in the 80s, the separate speakers coupled with the portable nature of it is quite charming. Not quite as useful today perhaps, but still. Let's hope the funky thumbnail gets people's attention.
Paul Coates
2024-11-15 19:16:13 +0000 UTCOh it's still good.... Just a little quicker than normal. Your videos are played here a lot as a chill out thing when working, cleaning or relaxing lol... So we are very used to your cadence.
GraphicsMonkey
2024-11-15 19:15:42 +0000 UTC😀 no shade on my part intended. I'm the first person that would be thrilled if you get the dream home you deserve. 🤍
Grace Robbins
2024-11-15 19:15:11 +0000 UTCIt's all about trying to get a full sentence out, in between bouts of coughing. It's not easy to make it appear like it isn't a complete shambles.
Techmoan
2024-11-15 19:11:02 +0000 UTCUnfortunately it'll be displayed on a shelf in the locker in the dark. If I had the space though it'd definitely be a suitable thing to have on a shelf behind me, slightly out of focus. I can dream. As soon as that money I've been promised from a Nigerian prince comes though I'll buy my dream house. Apparently it's just tied up in customs and they need (another) small fee to release the funds.
Techmoan
2024-11-15 19:09:25 +0000 UTCYour rate of talking is erratic like you need the bathroom badly for some parts... Not quite as relax and (Techmoan Relaxed) as usual. Cute system
GraphicsMonkey
2024-11-15 18:59:57 +0000 UTC• I am so happy to see this in your hands. It's a cute little thing - let's ask the YT Gods for maximum views. • Your voice over sounds 1.25X but that may be due to my slow brain response affliction. • Prepare for the barrage of 'why didn't you' comments: test wow and flutter, take it apart, test it outside, use more aux components, etc. It's enough to want to ask them 'why didn't you take a hike during the last thunderstorm?' • I've seen some of those other models on eBay in the US; many of them extremely beaten up and at extortionist prices. • The Nostromo would be blushing at the favorable comparison, if it not were blown to bits. • I love this little video and I enjoy seeing this rare item. Will you be displaying this, perchance? Take care. 🤍
Grace Robbins
2024-11-15 18:59:34 +0000 UTCYes I was recommended both of these and I saw the Verge one and commented under it. As for the other, I’ve avoided it because I just know what it will be about and I’ve got a broken one in storage.
Techmoan
2024-11-15 18:56:52 +0000 UTCLovely little unit, that. A small Boombox could be a Popbox.
CBits Tech
2024-11-15 18:50:36 +0000 UTCI can imagine the conversations that went into the concept of this. Several Japanese salarymen went to the local bar, got hammered on sake and one of them said "I know...let's combine a small portable cassette radio with a Rubik's Cube!" And the next day at work, one of them remembered what was said.
Matthew Lawrenson
2024-11-15 18:43:02 +0000 UTCSorry. I hate having to re-export video. On my aged PC and newer laptop, it typically takes 1.5 times the video length. Maybe it's the crappy software I use.
CBits Tech
2024-11-15 18:42:43 +0000 UTCtotally had one of these. it was pretty neat, though underwhelming in almost every metric. did sound good for the smal size, and i used the aux a lot, but it wasn't powerful enough.
Brian Cummings
2024-11-15 18:41:52 +0000 UTCSome videos I've been meaning to share with you, that showed up in my recommendations. I small namecheck in one from The Verge: https://youtu.be/2DWtkSVNvTg A long play CD format for muzak: https://youtu.be/ffcIt-XdTNc
Adam Gurney
2024-11-15 18:40:43 +0000 UTCI did and I’ll change it.
Techmoan
2024-11-15 18:39:29 +0000 UTCHi Mat. Did you add the blue Hi-Fi-archive.info text at 4:25? The URL is hifi-archiv.info from what I can see.
CBits Tech
2024-11-15 18:38:07 +0000 UTCVery cool -- thanks!
MM
2024-11-15 18:36:11 +0000 UTCI appreciate people who took some pride in unusual industrial design. Things can be something other than a plain black functional Borg cube.
Marlo Delfin Gonzales
2024-11-15 18:32:02 +0000 UTC
