High-Fidelity in 1958

[astrotoy]

Here is the December 1958 issue of High Fidelity magazine. Most interesting for the reviews and articles about music and the ads. Look at p.28, where Heathkit (my dad made our first hifi system in the mid '50's using Heathkits) is selling a R2R tape recorder kit! for $99. Doesn't play 15ips 2 track tapes, though. In those days, I think that High Fidelity reviewed just about every classical record that was issued. They even had a special column where all the tapes were reviewed.

http://www.americanradiohistory.com/...y-1958-Dec.pdf

Here is a link to the archive of issues from the early '50s to December, 1970 (when we got married!). There are other interesting mags archived also, including one called Tape Recording.

http://www.americanradiohistory.com/...y-Magazine.htm




Larry

[Rob]

Larry that's cool. I'd love to have the Leak Stereo 20 in those ads, I have a pr of heathkit UA-1s in the closet awaiting restoration. both are still killer amps with my Quad 57s.

[mep]

Larry that's cool. I'd love to have the Leak Stereo 20 in those ads, I have a pr of heathkit UA-1s in the closet awaiting restoration. both are still killer amps with my Quad 57s.

Noticed the ad for the Quad 57s and the Quad II amps. "Contact I.M. Fried" in Philadelphia.

[Rob]

the Quad II amp and 57 speaker were like hand in glove but there's something about amps using the EL84/6BQ5 family of tubes that really sing with 57s and LS3/5a for that matter.

[mep]

The Quad II is a great sounding amp within its power range. A friend of mine has a really nice pair that he has loaned me several times. His pair is decked out with seriously killer all British NOS tubes including the real Genelex KT-66 clear glass output tubes.

[mkuller]

I recall my 6th grade teacher in 1959 telling me they bought a stereo for XMas - one of the first times I had heard of it.

[cpp]

Thank you for sharing Larry.

[MylesBAstor]

I like on occasion picking up from eBay some of the old issues of Audio, Hi-Fidelity, etc particularly if they feature interesting interviews with recording engineers, equipment designers or musicians. I recently picked up an issue of Audio magazine featuring an interview with famed recording engineer Mark Aubort. Even some of the old classical review magazines have some interesting interviews with composers and conductors from yesteryear. Well worth it for a couple of dollars.

[JCOConnell]

I also read December 1964 high fidelity. Interesting issue. Many ads extolling the virtues of the then new solid state amps. good article on the Marantz 10B tuner.

[Alrainbow]

Nice stuff. Back when I had a functioning brain i built a few items of there's. A TV , speakers , a few other items.
I may be really showing my age but does anyone remember echo a company who made kits we built.
I did an amp and a meter , analog vom. I also built a subwoofer active cross over too. Electronic type if I recall correct it had something called pure butters worth. Not sure what that meant now. Unfortunately for me I had a tough childhood to say the least and it effects me to look back that far in almost anything. I love the cars and some other stuff but the adds from 50 and 60'is not so good place.
Sorry for the off topic comment

[MylesBAstor]

Heathkit?

[Alrainbow]

The cross over was HealthKit. It was flat and black rack mounted ready

[JCOConnell]

what surprised me is how expensive color tvs were in 1964. $400 for a kit. 21" and those were 1964 dollars!

[Alrainbow]

Yes the damn tv I built cost about that. That's like 3000 today right. It toool me two years to pay it off. The convergence was the worst part of making it. Hours. and hours. Did you know that back then if you moved it from one room or wall Ina room it effected the convergence. Lol.

[JCOConnell]

the last few sony crts and big screens (not hi def, rear projection) I had, I would go into the service menus and tweek the convergence to get the maximum performance out of the tv but I could never get it perfect across the whole screen, that was frustrating.

[Alrainbow]

Yes wow you know lol. They say it was because of the size of the neck and magnetic fields. Lol you just brought backs good memory. There were two sizes that we the big one not sure what it was I have the bigger one it weighed about 300 pounds right. ???

[JCOConnell]

biggest rear projection I had was 61", that adjusted by pots on a circuit board in service menu, biggest crt I had was 34" HD, that adjusted by remote in service menu. they were both very heavy tvs.

[astrotoy]

I bought my first color TV when I was a first year grad student in 1967. I came out to California and the drug stores sold TV's (it was Payless IIRC). It was a little portable 11" TV that sold for $125 or something like that. In comparison, my studio apartment rented for $95 a month, and a VW Beetle new was $1600 (which I couldn't afford).

TV's are one of many electronic devices that have benefited from advances in technology and economic globalization.

Larry

[Alrainbow]

Oh you had rear projection. I had that too a 55. Not Sony a hitachi I think on nice oak cabinent and yes it had a menu with lines lol. Cool times.
I had before that a crt 36 or 40 not sure what size it too had a convergence menu and weighed about 300. The rear project did not weight no where near the crt