Realistic Minimus 20's

bigshawn

Active Member
Anyone know if these are any good? They have a cool metal grill (like ADS) and have this vented tweeter (like on Mach 2's). Maybe 10" x 8" with what looks like a 6" woofer.
 
I see this thread didn't generate a lot of discussion. Just nabbed a set of these very pretty speakers at VV. Heading home to see what they sound like. Has anyone else used these? Or are they either so rare or contemptible as to not be worth discussion?
 
Well a picture would be nice but I've never heard of them??? In RS ...speakers, I only have ... the usual suspect's! Nova 8's, LX 5's and of course ... Mach One's! :)

I also have one .. "Solo One??" Not sure how that happened ... aside from liking the look of the box?? So now I have to get a pair of them for a three channel front and sigh ...might as well get two pair for 5.1 in another room ...just cuz??


At any rate you have the RS 20's. What do you have them hooked up to and how do you like them???
 
Well a picture would be nice but I've never heard of them??? In RS ...speakers, I only have ... the usual suspect's! Nova 8's, LX 5's and of course ... Mach One's! :)

I also have one .. "Solo One??" Not sure how that happened ... aside from liking the look of the box?? So now I have to get a pair of them for a three channel front and sigh ...might as well get two pair for 5.1 in another room ...just cuz??


At any rate you have the RS 20's. What do you have them hooked up to and how do you like them???
Not home at the moment, so haven't tried them out. They look like a poor man's version of the A/D/S L420 speakers, due to their square cornered wood cabinets with metal grills up front. They are 2 way speakers with what appears to be 6" woofers with buytl surrounds. Tweeters have some sort of louvered arrangement in front of them like Mach 2s. Will post photos and report when I can.
 
I think back in the day RS was real big on making speakers that looked like something else??? The Mach One's if you squint ...look like Altech 15's! And the LX 5's while a "unique" look, used the Linæum tweeters. Back in the day I auditioned the actual "linaeum speakers!" :)

And while they were "nice," to me ... they were not, uh 800 dollars better than what I had in my LX 5's??? And all the bitching and moaning about the LX 5's tiny woofer in two a box??? I don't care ... mine have always been used with a "Sub!" And I bought "new" and on sale in 1995??? Not sure but even as I type ... they are playing right now!

But they are also playing on my HTR driving four speakers in the front no center channel. Plus to plus minus to minus with my latest score Sansui, SP1200's! :)

Japanese Speakers are fairly new to me. And I went into withdrawals not having my LX 5's, in the chain??? So you know screw it I'll hook up all four! Most likely kinda odd but I do stuff! They were also used with a and b with my Mach One's on another AVR and that crap would play crazy loud! :)

At any rate I don't what your sounds like as I have never heard of them ... but the caps are what twenty to thirty years old??? SO they should be changed before you make a final decision on them, I would say. :)
 
IMG_20181205_092358.jpg Have them currently playing on a compact 40 watt Yamaha receiver, and they sound good, with surprisingly deep and controlled bass for such a small speaker. A worthy member of the Minimus line of speakers, and pretty to look at too. Wonder why they are not better known?
 
IMG_20181205_095350.jpg The whole shebang being tested on my kitchen counter, driven by a Yamaha RX-E600 receiver. As sweet a compact system as one could imagine.
 
Seriously? No one can comment on their experience with Minimus 20 speakers unless I post a pic?

Yep. There are a lot of different Realistic speakers, as there are with other brands. Posting a pic may jog someone's memory and then you may get an answer to your post. I do not remember the model numbers of all my equipment, past and present. I am not going to do a random Google image search just to see if this is the model I may have owned 20 years ago. Posting pictures helps.

Another reason is that by including pictures you are helping to build a record that is useful for others that come behind you looking for information. They may have a speaker with no tag or label and an image search may match up with pictures posted in a relevant thread.
 
Yep. There are a lot of different Realistic speakers, as there are with other brands. Posting a pic may jog someone's memory and then you may get an answer to your post. I do not remember the model numbers of all my equipment, past and present. I am not going to do a random Google image search just to see if this is the model I may have owned 20 years ago. Posting pictures helps.

Another reason is that by including pictures you are helping to build a record that is useful for others that come behind you looking for information. They may have a speaker with no tag or label and an image search may match up with pictures posted in a relevant thread.
Well, as requested, pics are posted. I await the deluge of information that will ensue. :)
 
Late to the party.

It's not surprising there's little familiarity with Radio Shack's Minimus 20. It's somewhat rare.

With resounding early success of Minimus-7, Radio Shack/Tandy were keen to explore market prospects of similar products. They tested the waters in '81 with a silver Minimus 7 and a "big brother" Minimus 11.

Must've done well; 1983 exploded with Minimus 7 spinoffs. Alongside Minimus 20, other newly minted models include wall-mount 22, walnut veneered 7W, large 50, tiny 3.5 and the bold little Minimus 21 (not offered in North America). Most of these sport metal grilles, likely intended to evoke styling association with the immensely popular Minimus 7.

Not all of these excited the market. Minimus 20, 22 and (I believe) 21 were offered one year only and then dropped from the 1984 catalogue. Minimus 50 fell the following year. Hence the rarity ...
 
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Those are cool looking, I’ve never seen a pair but would be great candidates for upgrades, if needed. I love the little acoustic lense.
 
Those do look neat. I wonder what type of tweeter is lurking under those fins. I’ve seen regular cone tweeters ‘dressed up’ like this on some speakers before.
 
My experience for the most part is that Realistic made some very respectable stuff.

This looks to be another sterling example, tho I'd relocate that sweet little system to somewhere that wouldn't generate comb filtering.
 
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