RetroTech: Seeburg 1000 BMS1 Background Music System (1959-1986)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 27 ก.พ. 2017
- Background music machines once derided are now collected. The BMS1 featured in this video might be the most desirable of the lot.
Here's Part 2: • Seeburg 1000 BGM Part ...
The full 'disco' version of the ET Theme • THEMES FROM E T WALTE...
The tune I didn't know the name of is East To West - Voyage
Seeburg Background Music can be heard here: seeburg1000.com
I demonstrated another BGM machine a while ago - (The 3M Cantata) if you missed it, here it is: • Retro Tech: This 1960s...
Update - Apparently the Android App doesn't work at the moment.
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--INTRO---
Thanks to Jerobeam Fenderson for the oscilloscope animation.
oscilloscopemusic.com - วิทยาศาสตร์และเทคโนโลยี
A few people have asked about the clock in the corner at the end of the video. It's the Lametric Time - here's the video I made about it. th-cam.com/video/aEIhc-2vmIM/w-d-xo.html
what's the song called @7.34?
Techmoan wow I like the seeburg music player.
Techmoan In the last video it lost connection which honestly isn't the best advertising.
I just want to say is like your videos. Are you going to do more old audio videos ?( like records)
Hi. I like your clock in the background. I recently put my hands on a nixie display and I think I will make a copy of it. I already mentioned your voice is close to the one of the famous "James May". Now I see you also borrowed one of his shirt. No offense, just kidding.
Hi I worked for the Ditchburn organisation in Lytham Lancashire who imported 50 of the Seeburgh BMS 1000 machines in 1960, I worked on these machines in 1968 to when I finished in 1973. My work was on the Amplifiers which after 6 years or so realy did need it the capacitors were leaky and the paper ones were crap but with a full service they performed brilliant. They were the best BGM machine ever produced far better than the Symphonare we produced or the later symphonet , I am now 77 Happy days.
Great video, as always.. I miss not seeing the muppets often anymore...
Love your vids
Yeah if you stick a paperclip in your powersupply, it should raster a puppet show on the screen, thats always the fix i go for
yea
I'm always blown away when stuff like this works so flawlessly. Even more blown away by disco ET... sounded like a dallas mash up.
You're not the only one who heard Dallas for a moment there.
Nostalgia Nerd I always got the ET, Dallas, and Star Wars themes mixed up as a kid! I guess I'm not the only one.
I was like that's ET, no Dallas, no some other TV show, but most certainly a TV show...
William Hayden: I thought it was the theme from "Love Boat".
Same here for Dallas... Nice to see you here NN!
I have 2 of these machines and the very rare Seeburg Encore machine
The warble your having is a common issue
The 2 rubber drive tires you have need to be redone
The rubber gets divots in the rubber tire from age and they need to be redone
Also there are 2 more oil points your missing
There's two to the right under neith the main platter
It's hard to explain but do a search on TH-cam, there's a fellow collector on there who points them out.
They are the drive tire bearings
There's two little felt oil pad circles, you'll see them
They need a good oiling to
But to get the most out of the machine, have the two drive tires re rubbered.
Thanks for the information - very much appreciated.
TH-cam at it's best.
The hive mind. ^^
I too have owned several of these machines over the years. Note the red T stylus, it is specific to this machine. The "micro groove" of the Seeburg BMS machines is smaller than a standard LP. I'm sorry but I can't remember the exact size now. You can use a Seeburg Jukebox T needle (.07 mil) and it will play, however it will cause damage to your records. The Red T needles are very hard to find. A real treat for these machines that can make them a bit more enjoyable are the Holiday or Christmas records. They play holiday tunes intermixed with the usual elevator music. Rowe also made records that will fit these machines. Rowe Custo-Music I believe they are called. Lastly, keep in mind the smaller groove of these records and the slow playing speed, handle them gently. They seem to be more prone to skipping from scratches.
@Kent Teffeteller yes, thanks for that.. I have an NOS set somewhere in the house and can't find them. Ha..
Well i went to the seeburg1000 site and started streaming. This is the most delightful background music I have ever heard. you will find yourself transported instantly into every mall scene and tv ad from older movies ever. It actually makes me want to buy one of these things.
There really is something strangely charming about that whole era of "Throw a disco beat behind ALL THE MUSICS! in ALL THE PLACES!" Even the "techno remix" trends of the 2000s really never reached that level of absolute ubiquity, at least in the US and (I'm guessing) much of Europe.
I mean, it's no wonder disco died. It hit a point of absolute saturation for a couple years in there.
Indeed, like all music, hip hop is being propped up and rock actually died in the late 70's, nice one Jonny, you really did use the 'NME'. House is homeless, and dub step will soon walk the walk.
Elvis epitomised rock and roll, he was a pedophile who died of a drugs overdose on the bog. Where is music heading, I can't see anywhere for it to go, Britain's got talent, a dog, I rest my case.
Music died when they invented polyphony. Plainchant died, and now playing melodies over chords is being propped up. Hildegard von Bingen epitomised monophony, she was a reptilian freemason pimp who overdosed on Nintendo Switch. I rest *my* case.
Fernie Canto I do hope you're being sarcastic.
Carson King If you think rock died, you haven't been paying attention. There is plenty of good modern music of all genres - including rock - though it can be harder to find due to the proliferation of the DIY ethos and sheer abundance of music being produced. Good with the bad.
Where do you get that Elvis was a pedophile!? Remember that that term means you're involved with _children_ - people under the age of about 12. I know of no such incidents with Elvis. Being involved with a _teenager_ who is not yet 18 is usually seen as improper, but that's far from pedophilia. Sometimes older men fall in love with young women who aren't quite 18; I don't necessarily approve, but it doesn't make them monsters.
I'm no elvis fan, but I do have an issue with people being painted as horrible people for either unproven rumors, or actions that really aren't as horrid as many assume. I'm not sure what you're basing your comments on, and of course I don't know his true history, I'm just saying your assumptions are likely inaccurate. For whatever reason, people love to create monsters.
An 18 minute Techmoan video today? My life is complete.
Definitely wouldn't have "increased productivity" with me... I'd be standing there, trying to figure out what song it was I was listening to! XD
Woah, 2 intros.
sakamoto!
The best of old and new, perfect!
Koa Lee heh, Sakamoto-san
Sakamoto, you can't speak ! :3
I feel I N T R O D U C E D
Your blazer and shirt look SHARP!
I like your profile picture
Cyclops_ Something about soap advertisements these days sure are odd.
Senpai Kei god that episode really freaked me out with those Japanese advertisements!
I never understood why people hate this type of music. I actually quite like it. It is also much better than most modern music.
Just woke up and received this notification, I think it's a good day already!!
you just woke up? it's like midnight bro
you live on Flat Earth ?
Not everywhere in the world, here it is like 09:46 AM
Today, Isaac learned what timezones are.
Same, breakfast in bed and Techmoan is the best start to a morning!
I am 50 years old but I have a very vague memory of this muzak being played back in the day.
It's May 2020 now, Covid19 is affecting us worldwide. Most of the world is in lockdown, or should be, and after downloading the Seeburg app for my phone, I now really miss going to the mall. Did not see that ever happening. Even so, thanks for mentioning the app, I'm really enjoying it :)
Love it!
That disco ET theme sounds a lot like the work of Meco who is somewhat (in)famous for disco covers of Star Wars and The Wizard of Oz among others. Don't know if he was still making records at that point, but it's probably someone else anyway.
When I worked in retail, this muzak drove me absolutely nuts.
I think it's sad they these were essentially made to be destroyed in the end. Music is art and should never be thrown away.
Groovy suit.
Best looking device you've reviewed Techmoan. What a thing of beauty!
Dear Techmoan, my parents and I happen to own a few pieces that you could make a video on :
A semiautomatic turntable fp 320
A compact disc player cd 320
A double auto reverse deck fc 330
A digital synthesized stereo tuner ft 330
And a digital convenience system
All of these are from Philips and they do work
Thanks for the offer, however I try and find things that lie a little bit more off the beaten path.
14:05 It's always tricky with John Williams' stuff, as a lot of it sounds vaguely the same.
That machine looked quite nice all polished up, but your outfit was in another league entirely!
It’s et
Really enjoyed the BMS versions of "Blue Bayou" and "Dreaming" on this video. Great machine. I'm only a little envious. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for this. I really enjoy that the old machines of yesteryear. You are not only recording them for history here but I find them very fascinating. I found you years and years ago when I was looking for a home security camera. I did buy the one you had recommended and shown the set up with. It still works and I have been enjoying you and your content ever since. Basically, thank you for being you and taking the time to do this for us all. Cheers from the US.
I worked at a firm that used that system. I remember a version of "Oh My Pa Pa" that made me physically ill! As you said, you really can't tell what some of the song are unless you really listen hard or hear it a thousand times. Someone somewhere told me that kind of music was kept deliberately vague, whatever that means.
Its amazing how you show us so many devices/formats that I've never heard of. I'm sure I've heard them being used in stores as a kid but never gave the source any thought. Real cool.
Thanks for bringing the old intro back. And I really love that beautiful suede smoking you're wearing here! Fits nicely with that shirt. Also, I absolutely loved this episode. I can't _wait_ for part 2.
I recently re-watched the 3M Cantata video, and saw the link you put up to the Seeburg 1000 site. I then thought "wouldn't it be cool, if he made a video about the Seeburg 1000?". A very pleasant surprise!
It's interesting you bring up the idea of listening to these old songs. A fellow TH-camer Mark Davis has a rather collectable music library too. When he worked for Kmart in the late 80s early 90s he was in charge of changing the background music cassettes and instead of throwing them away he kept them. They've all been digitized and are available on archive.org
I love your channel you always show some of the coolest old tech!
You're getting dangerously close to a Jukebox!
Love this channel. Very entertaining to old crap hoarders like me.
I always get excited when I see a new Techmoan video on my feed. They never disappoint. I was an audio tech for over 20 years and worked on some of this technology when it was current. Thanks for the great content.
That is so cool. I love Muzak and background 70's music, I had no idea that device even existed! I want one!
damn dude, awesome outfit!!!!
Camgore 88 Man! I dig that jacket and shirt!
Bert Bacharach anyone?f Love it.
Yeah baby yeah!
As soon as he popped up, I had to come down to the comments and say that is one LOUD shirt! Love it! Okay, back to the actual video. :D
I really liked the shirt too
You know I kind of like that slow version of "On Broadway" :D
INTROCEPTION!! 2 intros! Definitely like them both and I think the way you've done it with the older one opening the video and the newer one breaking between the opening sequence with the rest of the video is the way to do it! Always excited to see Techmoan videos out!
I love all your videos about old AV technology, always informative, well shot and with a bit of humor thrown in there for good measure. Always excited for your new videos.
Reminds me of the Muzak device you reviewed before that took the giant tape cartridges.
Yes this is the sequel, you've reminded me to put a link to it in the video description.
Duncan Burden - So it's twice as nice!
it's the result of choices made during editing.
Yeah please keep the two intros, I love the old one but some people like the new!
Andre Fish I personally like the old intro for the retro tech, while the new one suits the modern tech of the digital era and camera reviews.
I can't even get my head round how the mechanics of this work, really impressive what engineers could do.
Beautiful mechanism. I love how it raises the stack back up to the top.
Ever since you mentioned Seeburg in your earlier videos I'm completely hooked on the online station. And now you made a video of the the device itself. I...I just want to hug you!
11:55 No need for a cover; Cliff Richard's version of "Dreamin' " was already background music.
Music @ 15.12 - 15.22 is " Voyage - From East to West " from year 1978 .
les reed orchestra-from east to west
Yes.. Funny how they made this HI NRG Disco track into back ground music..
David Dalton Thanks for identifying. I knew it sounded familiar. Always preferred “Souvenirs” though.
6:35 Lamb Lies Down On Broadway :-)
The predecessor to the Seeburg 1000 system was the Seeburg Library Unit. You could get them in a few different flavors. The first one was the SL1, a huge console that played 100 78 RPM records. It was a double-sized version of the Seeburg M100A jukebox and used the same mechanism. The mechanism was told which records to play, side A or B or both, or skip via 4-position levers beneath each vertical record slot.
When Seeburg went to 45's in 1950, they updated the Library Unit to the 200LU-1, also holding 100 records, but 45's of course. It was updated to the LU-2 and LU-3 over time. Each variation came in a standalone console with amplifier and large 10 or 12 inch speaker in a nice cabinet, a standalone tabletop or bookshelf version in a blonde cabinet about 20cm x 100cm in size, and a mount-in-wall version that was just the standalone without the outer cabinet.
I've always found your videos fascinating as a retro tech / audio junkie myself. I currently work at a few licensed venues in Brighton and when it's near closing time, we put on music like this to get people to finish their drinks. However, people like me like to sit around and listen, as per your video, to try and figure out what the original track is.
Keep up the good work! I've been sharing your posts to other retro head friends and they're saying "HAVE YOU SEEN THE NEW VIDEO YET? I MUST GET ONE"
Thank you.
3:19 "I do not like rock and roll music! It is too loud! I like folk music, soft, nice music, eh? Polka, waltz, anything?"
"Percy Faith?"
"Percy Faith! Good!"
miss the puppet family at the end! need more puppets lol
Watching this with my breakfast has already made my day. Thank you Techmoan for the obscure electronic greatness.
I just found this channel thanks to a lot of free time at work and I gotta say it's fantastic dude. You look like actor Jim Broadbent, your calm demeanor and the way you talk about old tech is a great way to kill a few hours. As for the video I'm a big fan of instrumental music, I love this sexy retro-futuristic background music jukebox thingy.
The track at 11:17 sounds suspiciously like rock and/or roll!
Excellent shirt/jacket combination!
Haha! Posted my "fashion review" first before I heard your "Liberace" note...
Not enough frills AND gemstones to be Liberace. It's more Austin Powers.
App downloaded!! Life complete! I AM IN AWE OF YOUR CHANNEL!! Thank you so much for the work you put into them
I'm a Chicagoan and I know that Zenith and other audio companies were based here, but I'd never heard of Seeburg before. Very fascinating video, Techmoan.
To me, even tho I am listening to them in my sony headset and recorded by those small mics, it still has a good sounding speaker. :D
When you’re alone and you’re feeling lonely, you can always go downtown.
Wonderful TH-cam channel! Lots of memories! Thanks for the effort. Look forward to lots more!
Seeing the Seeburg's heartlight gave it away!
First song that is played is called 'On Broadway'
Clay3613 if you're referring to the song at 7:33 that's "my town, my guy and me"
6:35 Lamb Lies Down On Broadway :-)
I see you are wearing James May's dashing style with the velvet coat and colorful shirt!
My dad has been collecting Seeburg devices and discs for about 15 years. It's a damn cool system for sure. He has almost every Disc made.
I saw this machine being used in a yacht club in the Virgin Islands back in the early 1970s.
15:14 You're the First, the Last, My Everything
It's Voyage - From East To West
Another brilliant video. I always look forward to a new video of his. he's not trying to copy anyone or jump on a new craze. You can tell he's passionate about what he's talking about. Keep it up mate!
fastfiatjames t he is absolutely unique
This has to be your best video ever. I really enjoy your videos, and this one brought a huge smile to my face. Don't ever stop (:
1:22 One year old video and I've just now noticed the suitcase overfilled with money that was Photoshopped in... nice one.
My god... Can you imagine if someone built a low-cost, in-home digital-audio player styled like this? Seeing how those dodgy, low-cost Crosley phonographs are selling these days, it'd probably do rather well.
"kow-cost" is now my favorite typo ever...
There are people doing similar things already. One 'thing' seems to be revamping junked old tube radios with modern electronics and streaming music or playing MP3s through them. Instructables.com has a lot of articles.
was about to sleep... nevermind 😃
Who needs sleep when you have Techmoan!? ;)
William Hayden When I first discovered techmoan I had a marathon all night and was late for work. True story. XD
Samee King me too!
Absolutely beautiful machine and what a great video. Thank you for such professional videos and showing us equipment that we would never get the chance to see
Fantastic Video. Great video quality, clarity and framing. Very informative as well which might be useful for people wanting to repair their own machine.
Keep up the great work, you're doing a fantastic job. Really like the interactive "Music Guessing" game at the end , great idea kept me entertained.
I want that TH-cam Subscriber clock!!
I seem to remember some early record decks had a 16 1/2 rpm speed. Maybe my memory is playing tricks with me !
ovation99 You're correct about some players having a 16 RPM speed. The format was used in the consumer market mostly for audiobooks and other recordings that were mostly just speech. It never really cought on though
You are correct, decks that played 16-1/2, 45, 33-1/3 and 78 RPM were common. You can still buy such a deck from Esoteric Sound. I have an Esoteric Sound Restoration Deck that I primarily use for transcribing 78's that has settings for all those speeds. It has a speed control adjustment that also allows, e.g., playing Edison Discs at the correct 80 RPM speed. For LP's I use my Technics SL-1200MK2 Quartz-Lock Direct Drive deck. You could play the Seeburg records on an Esoteric Sound deck by fabricating an adapter for the spindle (it is supplied with a 45 RPM adapter).
Thanks for taking the trouble of bringing us this. It's quite an impressive device. I'm sure I heard them playing somewhere in the background during my childhood without realizing it!
Great video Mat. I admire your enthusiasm and production values.
Love the classical version of “Don’t let me down” 3:15
Record players from the 60s had speeds of 16, 33 and a third, 45, and 78 so you could have played them on there with an adaptor for the middle :-) I always wondered why they had a speed of 16 when all records were made for 33 or 45 then
The 16 and something speed was used primarily for audio books, where high fidelity wasn't needed. I used to have a couple of those, and our family's record player had a setting for that low speed. Also, great fun to listen to the Beatles at half speed. Creepy, but fun. And on rainy days, we'd listen to records on 45 or 78. Ever hear chipmunks singing "Eleanor Rigby"? I had an awesome childhood.
If i remember correctly, the Seeburg system used a special stylus for its records, much finer than is common for 33 and 45 rpm records. It's possible to play the Seeburg records on a regular phonograph at 16-2/3 rpm (there are videos on TH-cam of people doing this), but it's not optimal.
Chrysler (yes, the automobile manufacturer) also had a record player that used a 16-2/3 rpm speed; it was called the HiWay HiFi or something to that effect. Yes, it was a record player FOR A CAR and was a factory option in the 1950s. It, too, used special records, available only from Chrysler. It was a massive flop. Even though it (reportedly) worked better than you might expect, it was expensive, bulky, there were only a handful of records available, and when it DIDN'T work, getting it repaired was next to impossible.
Other companies were trying this same thing (interestingly, the origin of Motorola - literally, 'Motor Victrola'!) with players that used standard records, but they tended to ruin the records after only a few plays. Mr. William Powell Lear, one of the men behind Motorola, and creator/manufacturer of the Lear Jet, went on to develop and market the 8-Track tape cartridge.
Yes you have reminded me we used to play the records at different speeds. We had a Dansette record player I think it only had two controls Volume and Tone ..... those were the days
+VWestlife Ah, thank you for the clarification. I thought the stylii for the Seeburg system was finer than that. I must have confused it with the Highway HiFi.
As I recall back in the days when Motorola was getting its start companies were putting "ola" on pretty much everything having to do with sound. Motorola was making some of the first radios made for cars so... Motor...ola.
nice to see you in the videos! Awesome watching this channel grow and matt getting more confident with the channel
Love your content and your videos. Absolutely brilliant. Always looking forward to the next videos. Highly entertaining and educational.
Just FYI, I used to use the Seeburg 1000 app for Android but it quit working some time ago. Developer hasn't updated it since September 2015, so I guess it's been abandoned. Not sure about the state of the iOS version.
Go to the seeburg1000.com site and download the new apps for iOS and Android. It has the link to the apps on the main page.
dennman1 Thanks. Yeah, I eventually discovered that after doing some sleuthing later in the day and was going to post a follow up, but you've beat me to it. :)
@@dennman1
Site is hard to use.
I don't know if it's a coincidence, but almost a year after Techmoan comes out with this video there's a new Seeburg 1000 app on the Google Play store.
Bring back Zac, Bring back Zac!
I don't watch TH-cam much but your video's are the best it has to offer. I appreciate you time and skills. This one, and the Answer 3 in 1, are my favorites.
As always , thank you Techmoan , I love your Retro Tech videos !
Can you please scan the instruction manual, I've been looking for a decent copy!
If you ever need the service manual for this machine, my mate has one I can send you?
Do you have a way you can scan and send the service manual? I have the Installation Manual, but not the Service manual.
is it bad i figured that Disco version was ET as soon as it started?
Orson Zedd nope
Orson Zedd I like it ☺
I thought it was going to be the Star Wars disco version
Daniel Crocker So did I, I've heard several Disco Star Wars, they ALL start the same way as that E.T. remix.
You could just dub Bill Murray's voice from an SNL Star Wars skit he did and it will still work with this
Awesome! Thanks for finding the lost equipment and formats!
The details of the pipes for the oil are amazing.
Sounds like they broke a few records!
About ten to 15 years ago, I yanked out about 4 of those systems, from old government buildings, and as much as I wanted these units, we were not allowed to keep anything, it was all demanded for the landfill/garbage.... especially, because they not only had the music disks, but, they had a stack of like every bit of 300 to 500 various disks, titled "training" and the sub titles like "Basic sales tactics" or "basic wiring.... soldering"... etc... etc... there wasn't any power to the front part of the building where this stuff was... bummer!.. the sound track "E.T." kinda also sounds like the U.S.A. theme sound track T.V. show "Dallas"...as well..
Nice ! Watch all your vids, really appreciate the time you put in to this one, top work.
Thoroughly enjoyed this "review" of sorts Mat, keep educating us on this kind of stuff, we obviously love it :)
Probably not first.
MattExzy The Force of trying the first post is strong in this one ☺
Why would anyone give a thumbs down, what were you expecting from this channel, cocaine and dancing girls?
Great video, bollocks to the nay sayers, I enjoyed it. Are there dancing girls in part 2?
I am a new subscriber, this is like my 5 or 6th vid I watch of yours this morning I should really go to bed as it is nearly 2 am but I love old tech; there is always something cool to find from the “old” days.
Wonderful video as always! As someone who was born in 1985, I find all of these old machines super fascinating! Also, your outfit is absolutely on point! :)
That TH-cam Subscriber count on the retro clock is awesome !
Been watching Tim Hunkin's remastered "Secret Life of the Washing Machine". Seeburg tried to use their jukebox tech to make automatic washers. They were a failure, but did result in a sideline making controllers for other company's machines.
Use to hear this stuff played in our mall in the 80's when I was a kid. I remember the buffet and J.C Penny's mostly playing this kind of music. Of course the mall it self had this stuff echoing throughout the walk ways. The style done of the E.T theme reminds me more of something that would have been used on a 70's show for it's intro bit. BMS1 would sure be my first choice too. Very stylish and would be at home at Mel's Drive-In.
Thanks Matt for posting this...I would have had no idea what this was today (10-1-2021) when i found one at a Flea Market in western Oklahoma for the princely sum of...wait for it...40 dollars US! It is in great condition and everything appears to be there but of course I have no idea if it works. Thanks again!! Cheers!!
This is so great! Thank you for making this video!!
What a beautiful piece of machinery. Looks like the front of a 60's muscle car... all business and high emissions. Excellent stuff.
I remember hearing that disco version of the ET theme on the radio once a while back, and I've been trying with zero success to find it online. You just did the work for me...cheers! XD
I love the Seeburg1000 app. I had to pause your video and download the app as soon as you mentioned it. Lots of fun