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Fisher Consoles 1959-1965

i pm'd you the thread link.

i completely agree, though i lack listening knowledge other than fisher and pilot (and mcintosh, but not a console). i think i am just astounded that a "second tier" brand like pilot would pull in that much more cheese than fisher or scott...if indeed they were considered "second tier" at that point.

i am hoping to find a fisher console my wife will like as our new tv stand...among other things :)
 
I sort of doubt Pilot was considered "second tier" myself. But the idea of trying to figure a hierarchy for console brands is making me dizzy. I've been having enough trouble trying to piece together Fisher's model line-up. I've heard from quite a few folks who have consoles that are the exception to the rule as far as Fisher's sales literature was concerned. That probably speaks more about the mindset of Fisher's sales department than anything else.

Thanks for the link to the earlier thread I missed before.....but the pictures are so small.
 
Pilot made some very fine gear do not discount them just because it is not as familiar a name as Fisher. Great thread BTW!
 
i am not doubting that pilot was first class gear...the difference in sales numbers is no doubt a function of the price. fisher and scott stuff was *relatively* less expensive (per that advertising circular), so it was purchased more frequently. i'd LOVE to see more advertisements like you posted, red, from that time period...certainly it would enable us to get a better picture (no pun intended) of pricing and what was being sold.

and, i'd send you larger pics, but can't do that via audiokarma. and i haven't got them up on the web right now.
 
madwing said:
i am not doubting that pilot was first class gear...the difference in sales numbers is no doubt a function of the price. fisher and scott stuff was *relatively* less expensive (per that advertising circular), so it was purchased more frequently. i'd LOVE to see more advertisements like you posted, red, from that time period...certainly it would enable us to get a better picture (no pun intended) of pricing and what was being sold.
Click to expand...
Haven't run across many ads that feature consoles the way that one did. That was a byproduct of my search for JFK's Oval Office console which turned out to be an RCA console TV (thanks orthaphonic) current whereabouts unknown. Here's one other that features brands other than Fisher from June of 1960:
Phonograph-Radios.jpg

Does the ad in the lower left-hand corner for the Stromberg-Carlson Symphony Hall with the "labra-port" speaker system actually say 30 speakers? That can't be right.

And an ad for my console from Feb. 1960 which may well be from the very store where mine was purchased. Note the "Evolution of Sound" box at the bottom - Meet Avery Fisher, Dean of high-fidelity! See Charlie Byrd in an actual recording session! How cool is that! Plus I was able to figure out that my console cost $945! This ad may well have sold my console to its original owner:
Premiere.jpg

More information on that Hi-Fi Show (The only reason I didn't attend was that I wasn't born for another four years.):

From The Washington Post - Feb. 4, 1960:

"The Hi-Fi Show has been ruled out of the Armory this year, but at the Shoreham Hotel on Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 13 and 14, there will be an exhibit of talking machines, phonographs, and hi-fi from the private collection of Avery Fisher, one of the leading figures in sound reproduction equipment these days.

Fisher will be on hand both days, speaking at intervals, and meeting visitors. The machines, all of which will be played, date back to an 1873 Reginaphone which plays 14-inch metal disks, the first Edison Gem phonograph built in 1893, playing wax cylinders, and lots of their descendants."
 
TheRed1 said:
(The only reason I didn't attend was that I wasn't born for another four years.):
Click to expand...

Ha, that's about 2 years before I was born. :D I wish I could find out which Fisher console my grandparents had when I was a kid, & get one. That had a LOT to do with my interest now in tubed gear, because it sounded so good. :music:
 
Stromberg Carlson made some GINORMOUS systems, on the same scale as the big Pre-war Capehart 500. Easily 15 drivers in the left, right, and center speakers, more in the extensions, so yeah, a 30 speaker system from them is possible.
 
analog addict said:
Great thread! I was wondering if you could ID the console type that this set up came from.
attachment.php
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I've been filling in some gaps in my Fisher website with information from old newspaper ads and, from Sept. 1957 (which would make these '58 models), I came across this:
ContemporaryChathamSept1957.jpg

I don't think analog addict's chassis came from a '58 model but this ad has me scratching my head. I have the '58 catalog and price list and neither lists a Chatham. The price is the same as the Custom Electra II Normandy. However, the "C-33" chassis are clearly 1962 vintage. It's a puzzler.
 
 
Great thread!
I have one that I'm guessing is from 1958 as it looks like a smaller version of the "contemporary". It has a built in 15" woofer. It also has a turntable housed in a smaller matching wood cabinet and a 2 way external speaker setup that wires to the main unit also in matching wood. I listen to it often although I don't use the turntable or external speaker. Nice sounding and very compact!
 
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vendo81 said:
Great thread!
I have one that I'm guessing is from 1958 as it looks like a smaller version of the "contemporary". It has a built in 15" woofer. It also has a turntable housed in a smaller matching wood cabinet and a 2 way external speaker setup that attaches to the main unit also in matching wood. I listen to it often although I don't use the turntable or external speaker. Nice sounding and very compact!
Click to expand...

I love looking at this stuff. Serious eye candy from an different era.
 
vendo81 said:
Great thread!
I have one that I'm guessing is from 1958 as it looks like a smaller version of the "contemporary". It has a built in 15" woofer. It also has a turntable housed in a smaller matching wood cabinet and a 2 way external speaker setup that wires to the main unit also in matching wood. I listen to it often although I don't use the turntable or external speaker. Nice sounding and very compact!
Click to expand...

Sorry I didn't catch your post earlier - I just got married on the 5th so I've been a bit preoccupied.

You have a very interesting Fisher which appears to be based on the 510/560 modern cabinet but it doesn't seem quite right. What are the dimensions of your speaker cabinets? If they're 22" wide then they were probably a pair of 560 companion speakers originally. Here's a 1959 ad for the 510/560 for comparison:
Series510Mar59.jpg


The Medalist II was a mono '57/58 model that came in a much larger cabinet. The way the face plate is mounted off-center makes me suspect that you have some sort of FrankenFisher composed of bits and pieces of other models. The chassis number appears to be R-20 which would make sense. That corresponds to the 1958 Medalist II in my Fisher chassis database. Here's an ad for that model:
MedalistIINov57.jpg
 
Hello TheRed1.... My external speaker does look like the model 560. It's in storage so I can't measure the width but it looks more like the 560 than the 510. The chassis is mounted in the center of the cabinet but looks off center because of the sliding louvers not completely open. If it was made from parts it was done decades ago as the mounting wood has changed color where the chassis sits and it outlines it perfectly. Anyway it's small and is the perfect size for my garage! I listen to it almost every night and it sounds great :yes:
 
Any info on what came in a Royal Electra 494? There is one locally but the individual knows little about audio and just looking to get rid of it. I don't need another console but thought maybe someone on this thread may know what components may be included.
 
There is a Model 61 on my local craigslist. You guys are making me want a Fisher console now....
 
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