The "track skip" feature seems really impressive to me. I had no idea they made tape decks that were capable of something you would only expect from a CD player.
A friend of mine had a Nakamichi caseiver with the best sound quality ever! The amp,radio and casette player were integrated into a small but powerful unit which provided rich and clear sound. Had an aux input for CD player which was a novelty by then and you were set with a fantastic unit. The only thing was that the cassette unit will only allow you to play not to record cassettes which was very odd to me. I almost cried when my friend told that he had sold it, I would had bought it from him right away.
It's so satisfying to watch. The audio should not only sound good but also look good. That slowly moving counter, those lights in the level indicater, the two spools rotating inside the cassette. All that brings back memories of 1980s.
I got a Technics receiver from a second hand store for about 20 dollars USD. I got some newly refurbished speakers from a record shop near me for 50 dollars. Sounds incredible to ears and loads better than the tiny Bluetooth speakers my friends use all the time. Amazing what can be put together for not too much money. Really enjoying the series. Cheers from Boulder Colorado USA !
I had one of these Technics casseivers. It was great for my flats and bed sits back in my student days. It came with a linear tone arm TT that allowed the selection of individual tracks, auto play, programming of tracks in any order. It was great and became my bedroom player and I added a Cambridge Audio CD player underneath it. One good thing is that the tape heads can be aligned for each cassette, simply by popping off the front cassette cover and turning a screw at the base of the heads.
I hate this guy. Hes already responsible for rekindling my old hifi interests, so indirectly my new old stereo setup and open reel unit. Now he decides to do a hi fi guide, but more importantly i just finished a night shift, I was about to turn in when this popped up in my 'up next' list. So now I just have to watch this now. All joking aside, good stuff as always Mat, keep it up.
The biggest problem I have is that I always find myself wanting the stuff he shows, even if it's something I've never wanted before and don't even have any use for...
I know, he's doing it to me too. I've got a set of Mission speakers in the loft, the other month I dug out my old Denon tape deck. I already have a decent Bluetooth record player. I've just watched this video and though I've got to buy an amp, and get those Mission speakers out of the loft!!! Great videos as always Mat. Looking forward to part 3!
@@fsmoura I want to know a place where you get up at 7 a.m. and go to bed at 10 p.m where I live it's Mountain Standard Time and I'm awake between 2 p.m. and 4 a.m. (i don't like it one bit)
Great video, as usual. Thanks Matt! Now I'm just waiting for the next one. A tip for people who aren't sure if they've connected their speakers in phase (this is important or you'll get a tinny sound) is to play some bassy music and turn the speakers to face each other. If the bass drops out, they're out-of-phase. Turn off your amp (always turn off your amp when connecting or disconnecting speakers!) and reverse the wires on one speaker. Try again - you should now have your speakers in phase and your system sounding good.
For anyone looking for a tape deck: I've bought a few Technics 3 head models at thrift stores, like RS-BX727, RS-BX626 and RS-BX606. Been very happy with all of them, everything has been working and they all have sounded great. Also, they all were around $10-15.
Hey There - As an electrician for over 30 years I thought I’d explain a little trick about how to identify wires. Audio wire for speakers as well as wire used for power such as lamp cord have a way to identify left/right and/or hot/neutral built in. One of the two wires will be smooth/plain while the other wire will have something on it such as - lettering or stripes or grooves or ridges seriously almost anything. When being used for electrical purposes the plain/smooth wire is always the “hot” or “positive” wire. The other wire with lines/grooves/ridges etc is the “neutral” or “negative” wire. Also, if the wires come in two different colours then Gold is positive/right/hot the other will be Silver and it’s used for negative/left/neutral. I’ve observed this in the U.K. and Europe as well as America, South America and all over Asia. And now you know lol Cheers mate
@@saltysoysauce954 This is what everyone used back when dinosaurs roamed the earth :) The antenna that came with it broke the first time you tried to retract it :P
I think I may do this one day. I often find these sorts of things at thrift shops and could build a hifi system on the cheap. I'm not huge into music, but with my failing eyesight maybe I should think about this hobby.
These old radios amaze me everytime, it just shows how good radio receiver can be, unlike todays receivers. Works without antenna as good as todays radios connected to house antenna and why is that.
Gosh, it's like going back in time! But as vinyl analog makes it's return, and even cassettes are now being rediscovered, it makes me wonder how many young people will be watching this and say, 'hey, that analog stuff's pretty cool tech - just what I want!'
They are the same speakers I bought a few years ago for my library where they sit nicely on the shelves unobtrusively amongst the books. I got them because they were cheap, but they sound better than my expensive speakers in my lounge. Glad to know they are still available as I fancy a second pair!
As a teenager that combination of quality cassette deck, FM receiver and amp would have grabbed my attention! The compact footprint would have suited a teen's bedroom very nicely - I would have used it to record the hits off of the radio. Oh the joy of trying to start / stop recording the latest hits while avoiding the ever intrusive DJ chat! Of course reality was that most of us had to make do with a cheap boombox.
I actually just found the white version of those speakers in a garbage dump site that I frequently pass by on my way home. I thought they looked a bit familiar so I went back to this video, lo and behold, they are the same model. I just tested them, they seem to be working perfectly, and in pretty much pristine condition as well! No idea why someone would just throw them out like that.
i've got a pair of 2020is and they are amazing. used them for my main hifi set up for a decade until i replaced them. They are now at home as my PC speakers, replacing some cheapo logitech rubbish and are still great
A lot of people underestimate bookshelf speakers. I did until my friends dad got a pair of used Polk bookshelf , Let me say these things were so efficient that the bass blew away most mid sized Speaker's that were twice the cost . Like you said about the relief bass port , those things throw the bass and sound greatly and its amazing how dense the sound can project , all from little bookshelf speakers. I learned my lesson back then , don't doubt mini Polk bookshelf speakers.
I'm not surprised by the performance of the Technics casseiver. Technics produced some excellent tape decks in the 80s and some of my friends who were into hifi owned them. The Matsushita (National Panasonic) brand are a reputable make, TVs, VCRs, record decks etc.
I just bought a caciever from thrift today.. its also a turn table, radio, an equalizer, and made by yorkx in 1991, and incredibly cheap!! But, enjoyed using everything I learned from your videos to fix it!
It's good to see you recommending any good quality speaker cable will do the job. Audiophiles had us believing for years that you need to spend a small fortune.
Loving this run of videos. Just after New year this year I took my Christmas money and bought a load of older hifi stuff, Mission 760 speakers (£20) Marantz pm4200 amp and cd4000 cd player (£30 each or both for £50) Free Sound Corporation speaker stands. All from Gumtree I then got the matching Marantz tuner for £20 and a friend sold me, for £30, a Technics SLD2 turntable, it's got the expected lid broken at the hinges and looks a bit tatty on the case but works beautifully and sounds great with an original equipment stylus
Stephen, I have some 760ise speakers with a Technics SUA600 amp! You I bet you are not disappointed with the sound - they really are very musical, especially on my Atacama stands (loaded with sand!) Merry Christmas! :)
I adore those Mission speakers, I think they are a different company now but those 80's - 90's speakers were exceptional and, as long as they've been looked after, can often be found used at bargain prices
I have a nice set of Sony Vegas that I installed into some Jensen cabinets and with the Speaker Grills on I was oblivious for God knows how long (maybe a week or two) until I wanted to play some music one day and found out one of the kids had kicked in one of the speaker cones. My advice is to keep the speakers up high or if you have floor speakers like me put chicken wire on the inside of the speaker grill.
In a hi-fi shop with my daughter, assistant showing me some speakers, daughter presses in the phase plug. Assistant tells me not to worry, happens all the time, they pull them back out with a blob of Blu-Tac.
I love this series, really good timing with these videos also. About a week ago I went to the local thrift stores around my area and collected a Yamaha K-40 cassette deck and a Sony PS-LX250H turn table for $20 each. Both sound amazing with my M-Audio BX5a self amplified speakers. I've been hunting for a dirt cheap setup for a long while now, I was really surprised to find both of these in perfectly working condition without me having to repair them.
I really enjoy your videos. Thank you for making them. Just a thought about speaker grills - They do have the added bonus of keeping light, especially UV, from getting at the rubber bits of the speaker cone. Over many years this will destroy them.
LOL. Just bought these speakers from the same ebay seller last week. Amazing value. I put them with a tiny Denon DRA F-100 amp I got for £60. Very happy indeed.
Wife managed to locate (over the course of a few months) two pairs of Realistic Mach-1 speakers. Excellent condition. One pair was free (person doing a clean out) one pair was $75 usd. Went to a local flea market a while back and some of the pawn shop idiots where trying to slog off "White Van Speakers" (look that phrase up if you need to) as being "Amazingly clear and powerful". I simply looked at the wife and said "You're Mach-1 speakers would launch these piles of &hit into the local canal"... Needless to say this vendor doesn't care for us to well.
Awesome 😀 I'd never heard of these so did a bit of a Google. 15" woofers!!! Seriously?!!! I'd be so tempted to build a custom cabinet for those drivers. Find the T&S parameters to calculate the ideal size for ultimate bass!
Just a point to note, when buying speaker cables it's worth making sure that they are copper (OFC), as opposed to cca, which is aluminum coated with copper, copper is only a few quid more, but will give a better sound quality, copper is more conductive and less resistance for the amp to drive.
Here's a tip from me to all of Techmoan's fans: If you have that speaker wire where you have to squint and search for the printing on the insulation... Take the ends of the wire that have the printing on them, slip a little bit of black heat shrink tubing over the end of the wire, sliding it down to the split, and heat that sucker up real quickly. Voila! Instant color-coded speaker cables. You've marked the (-) lead at both ends, and you'll never have to squint again! I used to use electrical tape, but that has a nasty habit of falling off.
One thing about speakers, there are several types of surround used to suspend the cone of the woofers in the basket. PA and musical amplifier speakers sometimes use just a pleated paper surround where the edge of the cone itself is folded many times to become flexible. Woofers usually use either a treated cloth, foam or rubber material which is glued to the edge of the cone and then to the basket. Foam will deteriorate over time, especially in warm - moist climates. If your woofers have a foam surround, you will end up replaced them in a few years time! Treated cloth and rubber surround materials will last much longer. I avoid foam surround speakers like the plague. Strangely, these types are very popular in auto speakers, where exposed to the weather the surround will probably fall apart in just a few seasons! No wonder so many car stereos sound like crap in the low end!
Nice speakers for the price. It reminded me of a few years ago, when I was living in Wales, and I wanted to start building a HiFi system. I'd found a decent receiver and CD player, then found a pair of floor standing speakers for £100 (I can't remember the make, but they were nice looking and seemed well made), so I was pretty happy so far. Then on continuing my search for, separate units spending many happy hours wandering around Cardiff, looking in various shops, now for a decent turntable, I saw a deal in Curry's, (this was all during the January sales period), for a set of 5 Eltax speakers, 2 floor, 2 smaller and one center, for the same price as I'd just paid for my other ones. I asked to hear, just the main speakers, and they sounded great, especially for the price, seemed good quality, so I had to have them. I managed to sell the other ones, and think I only lost a tenner, or so, and when I got everything set up, I knew I'd made the right choice, as these new ones performed really well, and we're capable of handling hard rock music well past a comfortable level of volume and beyond. The amp (Sherwood), and CD player (Sony), were nothing special either, but for a budget starter set up, so far I had been really pleased, and it just went to show that you didn't have to spend a fortune to get a decent sounding system. Unfortunately, life got in the way, and I had to move away and travel light, so had to sell everything. I want to start building another one in the not to distant future too.
Speakers are often somewhere you can save a lot of money if you don't need to follow the fashion for small. Keep an eye open at jumble sales or even in skips where my KEFs came from! Many people don't like the size of old speakers and throw them out, completely failing to understand that the physical size and weight is often what provides the great sound. 2 foot high, wood, heavy and have smooth movement on the bass coil... You could have my interest...
Hi, enjoying your videos. Just a quick one, non-colour coded wires have a raised bit of plastic on one of them to differentiate between what would be red/black, just run your finger against the edge of both of the cables and you'll feel it. Just saves you putting the wrong one in like you say. Cheers.
That's already a pretty cool setup. If you've got a coaxial tv antenna, or cable tv, you can buy a splitter and connect this FM antenna to that for excellent radio reception.
This series of videos is making me think of sorting out my current hifi. I already have an amp and speakers, actually it is a receiver as it is a modern av amp and tuner, but as it has plenty of inputs including a phono preamp it will make a fine candidate for adding a few extra bits to, what I really want to add is a reel to reel as I think that they look really cool. Keep up the great work.
Lamp cord, zip cord etc. Always has some way of placing a marker to differentiate one from the other. Most if not all will have a "spine" on one of the sides of the insulation that if not readily visible, can be felt as a non smooth surface when compared to the other. Wire gauge/size is personal, but in this case more is better, even if you can't hear the difference. Over the years I have some old vacuum cleaner cords repurposed as speaker cables, they usually lay flat and generally look nice.
You never tin the ends of wires if you want them to connect reliably. Untinned wire has a bit of spring to it, but soldered just flattens and you can get a connection that loosens.
Thanks for providing us with good advice on budget hifi! I wish a merry christmas to all. Side note: The casseiver seems to be well protected besides being in really good shape, since testing it at "full blast" without speakers in the first episode didn't do any damage!
The way to tell if you’re wiring your speakers in reverse is to find a track with some panning that you know really well, and play it as a test. I use Father To Son, by Queen - there’s a guitar bend that travels L to R, if I recall correctly.
The old Denon “CD receivers” from the late 90s and early 2000s are lovely bits of equipment and can be picked up now for very reasonable prices. I’d take that over a version with a cassette player if I were building up a system on a budget.
To determine the polarity on those clear cables: Usually there is a tiny ridge along one of the cords that you can feel with your fingertip. I find that easier than look for the printed text.
We have a "Turn-Cassciver" (just made that up), aka. A reciever with a cassette player and a built in turntable on top. Still works like a charm. Think it's from the 70's or 80's. *Edit* For those curious, it a SILVER SS93 (or SS83) Stereo Sound system (Yes, Silver is the brand name. Although it is a silver color..*Insert inception BWAAAAAUN*). It was made by an Japanese OEM manufacturer called Shin-Shirasuna Electric Corp. And if the information is correct the manufactured stereo systems for Harman-Kardon and such. May not be a Pioneer or Sony, but heck, it still works. I think my father bought it brand new and it has worked fine ever since then. Turntable still working, cassette is still working, FM-radio and such is still working. Neat little obscure system.
A good choice of speaker I've had a pair for about a year after reading reviews and getting them at a bargain price. I previously used a slim line Yamaha sub woofer to add bass which my old speakers lacked, no real need with 2020i's as their bass is great already.
I bought myself a lovely pair of Tannoy Mercury M1 speakers from D-D-Dixons a good 20 years ago. They were £129.99 I remember, and I'm still using them to this very day. Sadly the same can't be said for most of the other items I bought using my Dixons Advantage card back then. But those speakers. I've always liked them and them and their brethren seem to be quite cheap on the old ebay these days!
Another helpful tip about speaker wires, in addition to wire colour or the writing on one of the conductors in the pair or (which may be difficult to distinguish, especially for someone who may have a visual impairment, perhaps), is that one conductor will usually have some kind of ridge along the length of it while the other one is smooth, making it easy to work with by feel alone. Just set up a standard that you can remember, like "R=R" (Ridge = Red), for example.
I used a paired wire much like the second one you showed, but it had a white stripe running the length of one conductor's jacket. Only difficulty was memorizing which polarity I connected it to when making the connection starting at one end or the other. And it was far easier than using wire meant for lamp cords... those only had ribbing to segregate the conductors by. Also, a hard lesson I learned was about how one can just as easily choose a speaker that's "too-big" for the unit in question as it is one that's "too-small"... This is in relation to the input wattage ratings. One that's "too-big" will ruin the experience by creating a reproduction of the sound that's muted due the wattage required to initially drive them being greater than the head-unit can produce at volume attenuation levels, thereby requiring it to be set higher to achieve a given level of loudness.
Good design is good design on a speakers. Your most critical element but the electronics ahead set the tone. Bi-wire is of dubious value vs. Bi-amping. I love that you kept the Cassette alive.
A good tip is when wiring speakers use some electrical tape to mark the ends for left and right and do it again on the other end to make sure you don't cross the wire 😁
I used the original speakers for my Technics micro series. They are small and heavy with the aluminium body. The original stands are missing, so I ended up using small cheap silver camera stands. Does look nice.
Love that cassceiver,don't think i've seen one before knowingly, but that is a nice one.Speakers look nice too, but like others mentioned kids like to prod them, so not a good mix.I have an old set made in the 80s or 90s with industrial fixed grills.No kids getting at them without a drill, hedgetrimmers and some ordinary household bleach.
I just noticed how much I like the format of this series. Also the audio sounds terrific, I think I prefer this 'talking head' style as opposed to your usual voice overs. Thanks Mat
Those speakers look to be pretty respectable at that price point, you can still get good quality new gear that's not too expensive if you look around. Sadly, pretty much the only high-street shop in the UK to get proper HiFi gear from now is Richer Sounds. I have no link with them other than being impressed by how old-school they are (in a very good way).
I have a little Cambridge Audio A1 Mk3 and a pair of Pioneer CS-343 speakers on my PC which doubles as my music centre, I have been using them for six or seven years now and they sound lovely and cost me less than most PC speaker setups.
For speaker cables and other good quality but inexpensive cables I use Monoprice in the US. They sell the same 99% oxygen free speaker cable that other companies use at a fraction of the cost and they sell durable interconnects, mic cables etc.
shaping up to be really nice. Had never heard the term "cassiever" (or however its spelled) before part 1 and part 2. This is tempting me to build one....don't care for the CD player aspect because I can get digital music off iTunes or stream it...I just want something like this for nostalgia. Really all I would need is speakers and a unit like the one shown in the video. I've got an 8-track player, turntable and reel-to-reel.
Get yourself a Bluetooth AptX streamer and plug it in the AUX port of your amp for streaming purposes. Then simply make the phone/tablet link up to it that way.
Wowzers! I really want to hear those speakers in person. I can't believe how deep they are! That's my only concern for someone with limited counter space.
Watched part one of this yesterday. On searching eBay immediately afterwards, there were only two "cassievers" showing. One, a Ferguson, which was basically a large music center minus the record deck. The other, ironically was the model of Technics you mention in the video.... Great stuff. Thanks for the videos. Always enjoy watching
Nice to know about the new speakers. Maybe you can do something about a good budget "new" receiver. Vintage receivers around here people want way, way too much (the "retro craze") and usually want around $200 for one, even if it is in not-so-good shape (I even saw one with the tuning dial missing and filthy - $175).
Hi. Have a closer look at the speaker wire. One is silver and one is gold which is common with speaker wire. I use gold for positive so I can't forget.
about the risk of wiring the speakers with reverse polarity, people can easily experiment themselve the audible effects of inverted polarity from one speaker to the other : the bass is "killed" (because the air is pushed in opposite directions by the woofers).
Last christmas i bought myself an adcom cf5500ii amp came with adcom pre amp i forget model o that but its the one with digital tuner on it and remote control function, and it also came with an adcom 6 speaker switcher all for 80 dollars, i had the amp and pre amp for years before just one model lower unfortunatley it bkew up it was my favorite amp i ever had, so wen i saw it at a thrift store/resell shop and dude said 80$ for all, i was in like flynn lol but great series i love these kinds of videos, this and watching repair videos are the best i love it, any who merry xmas everyone
Do not need any writing on most speaker cables to find out which is "positive/negative". Most cables like the ones you show here has a ridge/sharp edge on outside of only one cable and I personally use that as positive.
The "track skip" feature seems really impressive to me. I had no idea they made tape decks that were capable of something you would only expect from a CD player.
It was a very common feature in the '90... also walkmans had it.
I only knew it from car stereos, where it was a standard feature, but have never seen it at home.
in the 1990s I had a Sansui 3-head tape deck with all these nice-to-have features
*attaches copper wire as antenna* NOW this looks like a budget hi-fi rig!
Doesn't everyone?
I have never bought an FM antenna. It just a same thing...
I always used to do this but I was defeated at grandma's house and had to buy a 20€ FM antenna AND a 15dB FM amplifier.
A friend of mine had a Nakamichi caseiver with the best sound quality ever! The amp,radio and casette player were integrated into a small but powerful unit which provided rich and clear sound. Had an aux input for CD player which was a novelty by then and you were set with a fantastic unit. The only thing was that the cassette unit will only allow you to play not to record cassettes which was very odd to me. I almost cried when my friend told that he had sold it, I would had bought it from him right away.
I wasn't expecting to see you bopping that Logic tape 😂
It's so satisfying to watch. The audio should not only sound good but also look good. That slowly moving counter, those lights in the level indicater, the two spools rotating inside the cassette. All that brings back memories of 1980s.
I got a Technics receiver from a second hand store for about 20 dollars USD. I got some newly refurbished speakers from a record shop near me for 50 dollars. Sounds incredible to ears and loads better than the tiny Bluetooth speakers my friends use all the time. Amazing what can be put together for not too much money. Really enjoying the series. Cheers from Boulder Colorado USA !
I had one of these Technics casseivers. It was great for my flats and bed sits back in my student days. It came with a linear tone arm TT that allowed the selection of individual tracks, auto play, programming of tracks in any order. It was great and became my bedroom player and I added a Cambridge Audio CD player underneath it. One good thing is that the tape heads can be aligned for each cassette, simply by popping off the front cassette cover and turning a screw at the base of the heads.
I hate this guy. Hes already responsible for rekindling my old hifi interests, so indirectly my new old stereo setup and open reel unit. Now he decides to do a hi fi guide, but more importantly i just finished a night shift, I was about to turn in when this popped up in my 'up next' list. So now I just have to watch this now. All joking aside, good stuff as always Mat, keep it up.
The biggest problem I have is that I always find myself wanting the stuff he shows, even if it's something I've never wanted before and don't even have any use for...
I know, he's doing it to me too. I've got a set of Mission speakers in the loft, the other month I dug out my old Denon tape deck. I already have a decent Bluetooth record player. I've just watched this video and though I've got to buy an amp, and get those Mission speakers out of the loft!!! Great videos as always Mat. Looking forward to part 3!
Hahahaha
@@the486kgman2 You should probably use your 100 IQ to read the whole post then!
Chris Galgano no I don’t take jokes
Was about to go to sleep, but hey a new techmoan video was posted 42 seconds ago! To hell with sleep :D
This is like Christmas 4 days early
Techmas
I was having trouble sleeping and woke up at 2:30 and saw that he posted a video
I switched to UK time three months ago to better enjoy Techmoan's vids.
@@fsmoura I want to know a place where you get up at 7 a.m. and go to bed at 10 p.m where I live it's Mountain Standard Time and I'm awake between 2 p.m. and 4 a.m. (i don't like it one bit)
I unironically enjoy how much you like hip hop
you can never go wrong with technics they always have quality hifi ! 😎
Techmoan playing logic mad my day
Great video, as usual. Thanks Matt! Now I'm just waiting for the next one. A tip for people who aren't sure if they've connected their speakers in phase (this is important or you'll get a tinny sound) is to play some bassy music and turn the speakers to face each other. If the bass drops out, they're out-of-phase. Turn off your amp (always turn off your amp when connecting or disconnecting speakers!) and reverse the wires on one speaker. Try again - you should now have your speakers in phase and your system sounding good.
This guy is the best. Super down to earth, not pretentious about any of this and his sarcasm is always on point. Plus he has great taste in music.
For anyone looking for a tape deck: I've bought a few Technics 3 head models at thrift stores, like RS-BX727, RS-BX626 and RS-BX606. Been very happy with all of them, everything has been working and they all have sounded great. Also, they all were around $10-15.
6:34 you seem to have great radio stations around.
Do you live in Vice City?
Hey There - As an electrician for over 30 years I thought I’d explain a little trick about how to identify wires. Audio wire for speakers as well as wire used for power such as lamp cord have a way to identify left/right and/or hot/neutral built in.
One of the two wires will be smooth/plain while the other wire will have something on it such as - lettering or stripes or grooves or ridges seriously almost anything. When being used for electrical purposes the plain/smooth wire is always the “hot” or “positive” wire. The other wire with lines/grooves/ridges etc is the “neutral” or “negative” wire.
Also, if the wires come in two different colours then Gold is positive/right/hot the other will be Silver and it’s used for negative/left/neutral.
I’ve observed this in the U.K. and Europe as well as America, South America and all over Asia.
And now you know lol
Cheers mate
Old school! ♥️ Feels like 90s. Really functional cassette receiver.
I'm disappointed you didn't use an old wire coat hanger for the aerial :)
OH I'm gonna do that!
@@saltysoysauce954 This is what everyone used back when dinosaurs roamed the earth :) The antenna that came with it broke the first time you tried to retract it :P
Joseph Lucas old coat hanger will never do, unless you cover it with aluminum foil!!
I think I may do this one day. I often find these sorts of things at thrift shops and could build a hifi system on the cheap. I'm not huge into music, but with my failing eyesight maybe I should think about this hobby.
These old radios amaze me everytime, it just shows how good radio receiver can be, unlike todays receivers. Works without antenna as good as todays radios connected to house antenna and why is that.
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Thank you Scott. Very cool! 😎
Gosh, it's like going back in time! But as vinyl analog makes it's return, and even cassettes are now being rediscovered, it makes me wonder how many young people will be watching this and say, 'hey, that analog stuff's pretty cool tech - just what I want!'
They are the same speakers I bought a few years ago for my library where they sit nicely on the shelves unobtrusively amongst the books. I got them because they were cheap, but they sound better than my expensive speakers in my lounge. Glad to know they are still available as I fancy a second pair!
As a teenager that combination of quality cassette deck, FM receiver and amp would have grabbed my attention! The compact footprint would have suited a teen's bedroom very nicely - I would have used it to record the hits off of the radio. Oh the joy of trying to start / stop recording the latest hits while avoiding the ever intrusive DJ chat! Of course reality was that most of us had to make do with a cheap boombox.
I admire the ammount of thought you put into things.
I actually just found the white version of those speakers in a garbage dump site that I frequently pass by on my way home. I thought they looked a bit familiar so I went back to this video, lo and behold, they are the same model. I just tested them, they seem to be working perfectly, and in pretty much pristine condition as well! No idea why someone would just throw them out like that.
i've got a pair of 2020is and they are amazing. used them for my main hifi set up for a decade until i replaced them. They are now at home as my PC speakers, replacing some cheapo logitech rubbish and are still great
A lot of people underestimate bookshelf speakers.
I did until my friends dad got a pair of used Polk bookshelf ,
Let me say these things were so efficient that the bass blew away most mid sized
Speaker's that were twice the cost .
Like you said about the relief bass port , those things throw the bass and sound
greatly and its amazing how dense the sound can project , all from little bookshelf
speakers. I learned my lesson back then , don't doubt mini Polk bookshelf speakers.
I'm not surprised by the performance of the Technics casseiver. Technics produced some excellent tape decks in the 80s and some of my friends who were into hifi owned them. The Matsushita (National Panasonic) brand are a reputable make, TVs, VCRs, record decks etc.
I just bought a caciever from thrift today.. its also a turn table, radio, an equalizer, and made by yorkx in 1991, and incredibly cheap!! But, enjoyed using everything I learned from your videos to fix it!
It's good to see you recommending any good quality speaker cable will do the job. Audiophiles had us believing for years that you need to spend a small fortune.
That "Cass-ceiver" is pretty cool. I've never seen one before. Glad for you that it works well. Cheers. 🍷
Loving this run of videos.
Just after New year this year I took my Christmas money and bought a load of older hifi stuff, Mission 760 speakers (£20) Marantz pm4200 amp and cd4000 cd player (£30 each or both for £50)
Free Sound Corporation speaker stands. All from Gumtree
I then got the matching Marantz tuner for £20 and a friend sold me, for £30, a Technics SLD2 turntable, it's got the expected lid broken at the hinges and looks a bit tatty on the case but works beautifully and sounds great with an original equipment stylus
Stephen Thom Now that is a great setup!
Stephen, I have some 760ise speakers with a Technics SUA600 amp! You I bet you are not disappointed with the sound - they really are very musical, especially on my Atacama stands (loaded with sand!) Merry Christmas! :)
matthew rose I love my Mission speakers, own a pair of 731s
I even like the sound better than my Klipsch KG4s, even though they have the higher end amp
I adore those Mission speakers, I think they are a different company now but those 80's - 90's speakers were exceptional and, as long as they've been looked after, can often be found used at bargain prices
Ahh, the appearance of speakers without the grills on... Oh wait, I have young children, maybe I'll leave them on for a few more years.
Truth. My 2 yr old would of killed mine if I didn't leave the grills on
I have a nice set of Sony Vegas that I installed into some Jensen cabinets and with the Speaker Grills on I was oblivious for God knows how long (maybe a week or two) until I wanted to play some music one day and found out one of the kids had kicked in one of the speaker cones. My advice is to keep the speakers up high or if you have floor speakers like me put chicken wire on the inside of the speaker grill.
@@ScottStorm1 I'm confused as to how that makes you a bad parent, kids like music too! There's some grade A idiots out there.
In a hi-fi shop with my daughter, assistant showing me some speakers, daughter presses in the phase plug. Assistant tells me not to worry, happens all the time, they pull them back out with a blob of Blu-Tac.
wise choice
Spectrum games should really load up nicely with this deck, I imagine.
Yeah, but it won't run Crysis :(
You should do more Technics reviews! I love to see a Technics m95 cassette deck.
I love this series, really good timing with these videos also. About a week ago I went to the local thrift stores around my area and collected a Yamaha K-40 cassette deck and a Sony PS-LX250H turn table for $20 each. Both sound amazing with my M-Audio BX5a self amplified speakers. I've been hunting for a dirt cheap setup for a long while now, I was really surprised to find both of these in perfectly working condition without me having to repair them.
This old techmoan logo in teal at the beginning would look awesome on a black t-shirt!
I really enjoy your videos. Thank you for making them. Just a thought about speaker grills - They do have the added bonus of keeping light, especially UV, from getting at the rubber bits of the speaker cone. Over many years this will destroy them.
LOL. Just bought these speakers from the same ebay seller last week. Amazing value. I put them with a tiny Denon DRA F-100 amp I got for £60. Very happy indeed.
Wife managed to locate (over the course of a few months) two pairs of Realistic Mach-1 speakers. Excellent condition. One pair was free (person doing a clean out) one pair was $75 usd. Went to a local flea market a while back and some of the pawn shop idiots where trying to slog off "White Van Speakers" (look that phrase up if you need to) as being "Amazingly clear and powerful". I simply looked at the wife and said "You're Mach-1 speakers would launch these piles of &hit into the local canal"...
Needless to say this vendor doesn't care for us to well.
Awesome 😀 I'd never heard of these so did a bit of a Google. 15" woofers!!! Seriously?!!! I'd be so tempted to build a custom cabinet for those drivers. Find the T&S parameters to calculate the ideal size for ultimate bass!
Just a point to note, when buying speaker cables it's worth making sure that they are copper (OFC), as opposed to cca, which is aluminum coated with copper, copper is only a few quid more, but will give a better sound quality, copper is more conductive and less resistance for the amp to drive.
The size reminds me of our Cyrus audio amp. Nice British made amp. Expensive but good.
Here's a tip from me to all of Techmoan's fans:
If you have that speaker wire where you have to squint and search for the printing on the insulation... Take the ends of the wire that have the printing on them, slip a little bit of black heat shrink tubing over the end of the wire, sliding it down to the split, and heat that sucker up real quickly. Voila! Instant color-coded speaker cables. You've marked the (-) lead at both ends, and you'll never have to squint again!
I used to use electrical tape, but that has a nasty habit of falling off.
One thing about speakers, there are several types of surround used to suspend the cone of the woofers in the basket. PA and musical amplifier speakers sometimes use just a pleated paper surround where the edge of the cone itself is folded many times to become flexible. Woofers usually use either a treated cloth, foam or rubber material which is glued to the edge of the cone and then to the basket. Foam will deteriorate over time, especially in warm - moist climates. If your woofers have a foam surround, you will end up replaced them in a few years time! Treated cloth and rubber surround materials will last much longer. I avoid foam surround speakers like the plague. Strangely, these types are very popular in auto speakers, where exposed to the weather the surround will probably fall apart in just a few seasons! No wonder so many car stereos sound like crap in the low end!
Nice speakers for the price. It reminded me of a few years ago, when I was living in Wales, and I wanted to start building a HiFi system. I'd found a decent receiver and CD player, then found a pair of floor standing speakers for £100 (I can't remember the make, but they were nice looking and seemed well made), so I was pretty happy so far. Then on continuing my search for, separate units spending many happy hours wandering around Cardiff, looking in various shops, now for a decent turntable, I saw a deal in Curry's, (this was all during the January sales period), for a set of 5 Eltax speakers, 2 floor, 2 smaller and one center, for the same price as I'd just paid for my other ones. I asked to hear, just the main speakers, and they sounded great, especially for the price, seemed good quality, so I had to have them. I managed to sell the other ones, and think I only lost a tenner, or so, and when I got everything set up, I knew I'd made the right choice, as these new ones performed really well, and we're capable of handling hard rock music well past a comfortable level of volume and beyond. The amp (Sherwood), and CD player (Sony), were nothing special either, but for a budget starter set up, so far I had been really pleased, and it just went to show that you didn't have to spend a fortune to get a decent sounding system. Unfortunately, life got in the way, and I had to move away and travel light, so had to sell everything. I want to start building another one in the not to distant future too.
Merry Christmas. This is making me want to hunt down a decently priced Realistic SA-2001. The amplifier that started me into HiFi.
Nothing better than tea, Biscoffs and Techmoan in the morning. Cheers from Maine
Speakers are often somewhere you can save a lot of money if you don't need to follow the fashion for small. Keep an eye open at jumble sales or even in skips where my KEFs came from!
Many people don't like the size of old speakers and throw them out, completely failing to understand that the physical size and weight is often what provides the great sound.
2 foot high, wood, heavy and have smooth movement on the bass coil... You could have my interest...
Glad you acknowledged the annoyance of that word.
Hi, enjoying your videos. Just a quick one, non-colour coded wires have a raised bit of plastic on one of them to differentiate between what would be red/black, just run your finger against the edge of both of the cables and you'll feel it. Just saves you putting the wrong one in like you say. Cheers.
That's already a pretty cool setup. If you've got a coaxial tv antenna, or cable tv, you can buy a splitter and connect this FM antenna to that for excellent radio reception.
This series of videos is making me think of sorting out my current hifi.
I already have an amp and speakers, actually it is a receiver as it is a modern av amp and tuner, but as it has plenty of inputs including a phono preamp it will make a fine candidate for adding a few extra bits to, what I really want to add is a reel to reel as I think that they look really cool.
Keep up the great work.
Got my dads book shelf speakers going, can't believe how go they sound after 40 years . Found a Marantz Gloss black, glass door cabinet for $10
Great speakers, I use them as the front pair in my 5.1 setup.
Lamp cord, zip cord etc. Always has some way of placing a marker to differentiate one from the other.
Most if not all will have a "spine" on one of the sides of the insulation that if not readily visible, can be felt as a non smooth surface when compared to the other.
Wire gauge/size is personal, but in this case more is better, even if you can't hear the difference. Over the years I have some old vacuum cleaner cords repurposed as speaker cables, they usually lay flat and generally look nice.
You never tin the ends of wires if you want them to connect reliably. Untinned wire has a bit of spring to it, but soldered just flattens and you can get a connection that loosens.
Thanks for providing us with good advice on budget hifi!
I wish a merry christmas to all.
Side note:
The casseiver seems to be well protected besides being in really good shape, since testing it at "full blast" without speakers in the first episode didn't do any damage!
Thomas Weitzel a
Yes, love this series :) merry Christmas Matt :)
The way to tell if you’re wiring your speakers in reverse is to find a track with some panning that you know really well, and play it as a test. I use Father To Son, by Queen - there’s a guitar bend that travels L to R, if I recall correctly.
The old Denon “CD receivers” from the late 90s and early 2000s are lovely bits of equipment and can be picked up now for very reasonable prices. I’d take that over a version with a cassette player if I were building up a system on a budget.
To determine the polarity on those clear cables: Usually there is a tiny ridge along one of the cords that you can feel with your fingertip. I find that easier than look for the printed text.
*There is no raised edge on this wire. Some other wires I’ve had in the past have had a raised edge - like QED 79 - but not this one.*
there is huge difference in sound with grill off. brighter highs definitely. thank you for your great work. allways special time watching your vids
We have a "Turn-Cassciver" (just made that up), aka. A reciever with a cassette player and a built in turntable on top.
Still works like a charm. Think it's from the 70's or 80's.
*Edit*
For those curious, it a SILVER SS93 (or SS83) Stereo Sound system (Yes, Silver is the brand name. Although it is a silver color..*Insert inception BWAAAAAUN*).
It was made by an Japanese OEM manufacturer called Shin-Shirasuna Electric Corp. And if the information is correct the manufactured stereo systems for Harman-Kardon and such.
May not be a Pioneer or Sony, but heck, it still works. I think my father bought it brand new and it has worked fine ever since then. Turntable still working, cassette is still working, FM-radio and such is still working.
Neat little obscure system.
I remember when this channel was all about dash cams, which is the reason I found it. Now it's at 735,000 subs and well deserved :-)
A good choice of speaker I've had a pair for about a year after reading reviews and getting them at a bargain price. I previously used a slim line Yamaha sub woofer to add bass which my old speakers lacked, no real need with 2020i's as their bass is great already.
I bought myself a lovely pair of Tannoy Mercury M1 speakers from D-D-Dixons a good 20 years ago. They were £129.99 I remember, and I'm still using them to this very day. Sadly the same can't be said for most of the other items I bought using my Dixons Advantage card back then. But those speakers. I've always liked them and them and their brethren seem to be quite cheap on the old ebay these days!
Another helpful tip about speaker wires, in addition to wire colour or the writing on one of the conductors in the pair or (which may be difficult to distinguish, especially for someone who may have a visual impairment, perhaps), is that one conductor will usually have some kind of ridge along the length of it while the other one is smooth, making it easy to work with by feel alone. Just set up a standard that you can remember, like "R=R" (Ridge = Red), for example.
edit: spelling
I used a paired wire much like the second one you showed, but it had a white stripe running the length of one conductor's jacket. Only difficulty was memorizing which polarity I connected it to when making the connection starting at one end or the other. And it was far easier than using wire meant for lamp cords... those only had ribbing to segregate the conductors by.
Also, a hard lesson I learned was about how one can just as easily choose a speaker that's "too-big" for the unit in question as it is one that's "too-small"... This is in relation to the input wattage ratings. One that's "too-big" will ruin the experience by creating a reproduction of the sound that's muted due the wattage required to initially drive them being greater than the head-unit can produce at volume attenuation levels, thereby requiring it to be set higher to achieve a given level of loudness.
Good design is good design on a speakers. Your most critical element but the electronics ahead set the tone. Bi-wire is of dubious value vs. Bi-amping. I love that you kept the Cassette alive.
Hope there's a nice puppets Xmas episode at the end of part 4 🙂
Yeah i do expect the puppets to show up before xmas.
crossing fingers for that puppet show
@@ReinaldoGonzalezreix2x everytime i see a techmoan upload 😁
oooo me too!
Maxx Fordham! Patrons have early access so they've seen all 4 parts already.
Thanks, not planning to build one yet, because of funds. But enjoy dreaming.
One of the most interesting channels on TH-cam!
A good tip is when wiring speakers use some electrical tape to mark the ends for left and right and do it again on the other end to make sure you don't cross the wire 😁
I have recently been re creating a full HiFi system. Kinda fun to see this.
I used the original speakers for my Technics micro series. They are small and heavy with the aluminium body. The original stands are missing, so I ended up using small cheap silver camera stands. Does look nice.
Those are the same speakers I have and they are great! you can get them for a lot less in HiFi stores like RicherSounds, I got mine last year for £79!
Love that cassceiver,don't think i've seen one before knowingly, but that is a nice one.Speakers look nice too, but like others mentioned kids like to prod them, so not a good mix.I have an old set made in the 80s or 90s with industrial fixed grills.No kids getting at them without a drill, hedgetrimmers and some ordinary household bleach.
Sounding good. Speakers will be even better on stands of course. Correct setup is everything in hifi.
great little series, seperates all the way for me .
I just noticed how much I like the format of this series. Also the audio sounds terrific, I think I prefer this 'talking head' style as opposed to your usual voice overs. Thanks Mat
Most of the video is voice over.. The only parts that are "live" is when he is on screen.
I do generally prefer the sound from Matt's tie clip mic. By comparison the voice over one seems thin and bass light.
Those speakers look to be pretty respectable at that price point, you can still get good quality new gear that's not too expensive if you look around. Sadly, pretty much the only high-street shop in the UK to get proper HiFi gear from now is Richer Sounds. I have no link with them other than being impressed by how old-school they are (in a very good way).
I have a little Cambridge Audio A1 Mk3 and a pair of Pioneer CS-343 speakers on my PC which doubles as my music centre, I have been using them for six or seven years now and they sound lovely and cost me less than most PC speaker setups.
For speaker cables and other good quality but inexpensive cables I use Monoprice in the US. They sell the same 99% oxygen free speaker cable that other companies use at a fraction of the cost and they sell durable interconnects, mic cables etc.
I do like the look of those speakers...
shaping up to be really nice. Had never heard the term "cassiever" (or however its spelled) before part 1 and part 2. This is tempting me to build one....don't care for the CD player aspect because I can get digital music off iTunes or stream it...I just want something like this for nostalgia. Really all I would need is speakers and a unit like the one shown in the video. I've got an 8-track player, turntable and reel-to-reel.
Get yourself a Bluetooth AptX streamer and plug it in the AUX port of your amp for streaming purposes. Then simply make the phone/tablet link up to it that way.
Wowzers! I really want to hear those speakers in person. I can't believe how deep they are! That's my only concern for someone with limited counter space.
Watched part one of this yesterday. On searching eBay immediately afterwards, there were only two "cassievers" showing. One, a Ferguson, which was basically a large music center minus the record deck. The other, ironically was the model of Technics you mention in the video.... Great stuff. Thanks for the videos. Always enjoy watching
Use a black sharpie marker for the black lead on wire that is hard to ID. Cheap and easy.
Nice beginer system
Q Acoustic 1010 is a great speaker too
Having bought their next generation (3010i and 3050 for my home cinema), this is a nice brand and a good quality for their value
Nice to know about the new speakers. Maybe you can do something about a good budget "new" receiver. Vintage receivers around here people want way, way too much (the "retro craze") and usually want around $200 for one, even if it is in not-so-good shape (I even saw one with the tuning dial missing and filthy - $175).
Good choice. I have some of the Q 3020s and they're very good.
if you are to buy anything from technics you will not be disappointed.... well made and great sound. on to the next video of this handsome man.....
These speakers are now trending on eBay, coincidence? I think not.
Well done techmoan you are officially an influence on the internet.
Was surprised at the Logic from YSIV, you've got some good taste in Rap!
Hi. Have a closer look at the speaker wire. One is silver and one is gold which is common with speaker wire. I use gold for positive so I can't forget.
I’d love to hear the whacko hi-fi press justification for the silver / gold mix :)
about the risk of wiring the speakers with reverse polarity, people can easily experiment themselve the audible effects of inverted polarity from one speaker to the other : the bass is "killed" (because the air is pushed in opposite directions by the woofers).
Last christmas i bought myself an adcom cf5500ii amp came with adcom pre amp i forget model o that but its the one with digital tuner on it and remote control function, and it also came with an adcom 6 speaker switcher all for 80 dollars, i had the amp and pre amp for years before just one model lower unfortunatley it bkew up it was my favorite amp i ever had, so wen i saw it at a thrift store/resell shop and dude said 80$ for all, i was in like flynn lol but great series i love these kinds of videos, this and watching repair videos are the best i love it, any who merry xmas everyone
That casseiver is very impressive, for the price it’s got some nice features
That zip cord with the writing on it should have ridges on one side of the jacket so you can avoid crossing wires.
Do not need any writing on most speaker cables to find out which is "positive/negative". Most cables like the ones you show here has a ridge/sharp edge on outside of only one cable and I personally use that as positive.