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Mini-stereo / boombox nostalgia

Tommy2D

Tommy2D

Active Member
I still have great memories of my Panasonic RX-DT-640 "mini-stereo". I had some very under-powered cassette players, as a kid, but eventually moved up to this unit, as a teenager. This was a "night and day" kind of transition: music finally didn't sound tinny, harsh, and lacking.

I'd honestly still probably use it: if it had an aux-in or I had a garage. It still going, as my Dad's basement radio. The powered speakers, in my bedroom, even have a similar transparent grill aesthetic.

I'd love to hear other tales of beloved boomboxes and marvelous mini-stereos.
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When I joined the USAF in 1980 .. met some fellows who for the first time in their life .. had some serious coin in their pockets (from a teenage perspective).

After basic training and arriving at Tech School .. the first thing these guys would do with their money was to buy a boombox (like the one your picture above). I can still remember them putting it on their shoulders and walking down the street with them playing. You could hear them coming from a block away.

Never owned one .. but use to see them all the time in the early 80's .. you could set your portable rig down wherever you were at time .. six pack of suds and it's party time.
 
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Around 1981 or so, someone broke into my car and stole my car stereo. I was in the process of buying something to use for a stereo at home at the time, so decided to kill two birds with one stone and get a boom box that I could play in the car, then take with me when not driving. I ended up with a Sanyo C-7. (Picture stolen from the internet):

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It was great. You could detach the speakers and put them several feet away. The center stack also unbolted from the frames so you could set the components side by side for a small bookshelf stereo look. I don't remember that it was rated for any particular output, but I'd put it at about 10 wpc. I recorded many a cassette on that thing. It had Dolby (B) and a Metal tape selector, as well. It was a pretty nice unit for the period.
 
I purchased this one around 1986 or 1987; I always considered it a "gentleman's boombox". I bought it to carry with me as I traveled quite a bit with my first real job. I would listen in the car, and then take it into the motel room for the evening. I would while away the hours listening to cassettes, FM, and AM talk radio shows. It is still performing well as a shop radio these days, although the cassette mechanism needs some work. I see one on ebay they are trying to get 250 bucks for- I am pretty sure I didn't pay that much for it new.

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Nostalgia? I'm still using my Sony 444. I got it in 1985 -tuner, cassette and CD player, detachable speakers and a constant flow of "D" batteries. It's in the room with my bench. I still have a little AIWA cassette box in the closet, I think it still works. Party on dude.
 
I have one of these. Bought it at the Navy base shop in summer of ‘91 and it followed me everywhere since. My roommate in the barracks had a portable CD player that we connected to it and it was perfect for our small space. Today I use it in the garage to listen to ballgames or stream from my phone using aux input. It’s remarkably good for such a small, inexpensive unit and I’ve certainly gotten my money’s worth from it.
 

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prisoners said:
I have one of these. Bought it at the Navy base shop in summer of ‘91 and it followed me everywhere since. My roommate in the barracks had a portable CD player that we connected to it and it was perfect for our small space. Today I use it in the garage to listen to ballgames or stream from my phone using aux input. It’s remarkably good for such a small, inexpensive unit and I’ve certainly gotten my money’s worth from it.
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I ran across that model when I was looking for 90s Panasonic boomboxes with aux-in. I was really tempted to buy one but I've got enough stuff, at the moment. I love the way that model looks. The gold trim on the tweeter and the front facing bass port are exactly the aesthetic that I enjoy from that era (aggressive speakers with a somewhat understated console) .

I'm not as fond of some of the models from the 2000s. I realize that the shell / shape is largely decorative but the units that have the "extreme sports" kind of aesthetic don't seem like they'll age very well. Then again, I imagine that some of the kids from that era will want them, when they start pushing 40 ;).

extremesports.jpg boombox.jpeg
 
coman61 said:
I had one of these Sony's when I was in the Navy 1981 or so. It was way ahead of its time. there were actually 4 separate components with detachable speakers
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Yes, this mini-system was really Hi-Fi!
Separate power supply, real 2-way speakers and auto-reverse cassette deck - all I've dreamed at my highschool time. And, it's pretty heavy - over 30 lbs
 
Picked up a heavy Gold Star boom box about a month ago. Yard sale, 10 bucks.

Sadly, while I had it doing bedroom duty with an old Iphone playing sounds of nature, one of the caps in the power supply went AWOL, and it started making real funky noises.

Came back about a week ago, turned it on the radio, no buzz. Not sure how to proceed, as I really like it. Looks like this -

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Among others I picked up this Panasonic SG-J500, everything works, does need some light attention. The pic is an example from the web.
I recently bought a cassette tape Bluetooth receiver that works great with these old boom boxes, paired right up. The cassette player does have to be in working condition, no bad belts etc.
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Tommy2D said:
I still have great memories of my Panasonic RX-DT-640 "mini-stereo". I had some very under-powered cassette players, as a kid, but eventually moved up to this unit, as a teenager. This was a "night and day" kind of transition: music finally didn't sound tinny, harsh, and lacking.

I'd honestly still probably use it: if it had an aux-in or I had a garage. It still going, as my Dad's basement radio. The powered speakers, in my bedroom, even have a similar transparent grill aesthetic.

I'd love to hear other tales of beloved boomboxes and marvelous mini-stereos.
RARE-Panasonic-RX-DT-640-Boombox-AM-FM-Double-Cassette-CD.jpg


index.php
Click to expand...

I had a nearly identical model that was labeled "Koss." I had to work away from home that year, and I got it to be the stereo in the apartment where I lived near work. However, I left the original speakers at home, and hooked it up to some 3-way boxes, I made robbing the speakers from an old console.
 
I know this is kinda off the subject of vintage boom boxes. I spotted this Riva Festival on CL too cheap to pass up. I have been curious about these since I saw them on Madison Sound several years ago.
This little box is very impressive, has incredible bass compared to even moderately size book shelf speakers. With gear like this being produced I totally understand why current generations don’t see a need for HiFi in the traditional sense. Would it work as a stand alone for me, or course not, but in a kitchen or the back porch maybe at a cabin or beach house it does add the ability to play loud with just enough range and depth to be fun to listen too. It still isn’t as fun as the vintage boom boxes in a sense but it sure sounds damn good.
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