Best-Looking Knobs
- Thread starter Zekeman
- Start date
Yea that’s the same knob I started the thread with...!
You know - one of the things that made me create this thread is after I noticed that razor-thin slot cut into the flared base on the Pioneer. Such nice detail!
Take Off, Eh.
Ranchman
Active Member
Yes, who ever designed that knob was pretty creative. Did you notice that thin slot starts and stops in the groove. Subtle little details really add to the design. Back in the day before BC. ( bean counting
Not meant to offend I was a design engineer for most of my working life. Great Post!
That’s exactly what I noticed as well! And agree with you on the BC.
Nightwisher
Farer In The Goldilocks Zone
I prefer Luxman.
OK, if I may be so bold as to nominate my own amp's knobs as, if not the best looking, certainly in the top 100!
They were beautifully machined from solid blocks of aluminum and anodized, with complex knurling. Just a thing of beauty and sophistication, and maybe the reason I bought this amp so many decades ago.
They were beautifully machined from solid blocks of aluminum and anodized, with complex knurling. Just a thing of beauty and sophistication, and maybe the reason I bought this amp so many decades ago.
Bodyblue, Sadly, I never met Brenda Johansen, and I'm probably lesser for it, but I was first-smitten by those Marantz flywheel tuning knobs, back in the 1970s. I loved and sometimes miss my old Marantz equipment (I now have McIntosh). When I was visiting the McIntosh factory in Binghamton, NY, a few years ago, I was shown a prototype for the MR88 tuner. My tour guide, a chief engineer, I think, said they were trying to figure out how to reintroduce an old-school analog tuning knob into the digital 88 tuner, to give it a retro look and feel. Seems customers wanted to physically tune in. He told me never to give up my McIntosh MR78. Then I mentioned the Marantz flywheel. At that, we all swooned a little.
Interesting. I have an SX-1080 and an SX-1250. The tone control knobs on the 1080 do not match that picture exactly. They don't have the flare at the base nor do they have the ring around the flare. The fluting is very similar but slightly finer. On the other hand, the volume knob is an exact match to your picture style wise (but obviously bigger).
The tone knobs on the 1250 are an an exact match to that SX-750 pic.
One tip on cleaning any of these milled aluminum knobs. Make a paste out of baking soda with a bit of water, then just rub it on the knob (yes, rub, knob). It'll take any grime right off without etching the aluminum.
My favorites are the old Zenith knobs made from wood.
