Best looking quad gear?

[Reed]

It sounds like most people agree that Marantz and Sansui made the best performing gear, but how about looks? one of the things I have always liked about 70s era audio gear was how well and interesting it was to actually WATCH the unit work. All sort of lights and meters and guages. It was fun!

I would love to see some pictures or even short movie clips of old quad gear that had cool and gimmicky visual features. Scopes, strobes, guages, whatever.

 

[callmez]

Check out Tab's site for some very cool clips and a lot of great information:

http://hometown.aol.com/matrixquad/logic.htm
(Not the home page but a great place to start.)

Mark Z

 

[Reed]

Yeah, that's a good one, but I want to see more variety.

 

[Q8Repair]

I like technics best. Well. Sorta. I like technics in a classic audio sort of look... everything is metal, nothing looks TOO complex and girly (like pioneer, sorry), everything is sorta chunky and 'brash'. They also made a great audioscope... lots of pics and movies of it here:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=IaF3zC9YmIs

I just dig their style the most. Sansui, audio merits aside, generally produced some really ugly gear, IMHO.

The best looking stuff was obviously from B&O though....

 

[mtgc]

Just a thought. Go to EBay. Use the following search parameter:
quadr*phonic
Set the search parameters to Search title and description

Then look at all the pretty pictures.

MTGC

 

[Reed]

That Technics scope frickin' awesome! I love it!

I have gone to eBay. It appears that most people can't take a photo to save their life. Most are blurry and smal
l so it is near impossible to get a good view.

 

[sspsandy]

I always liked the way the Phase Linear 4000 Amp and Preamp looked together. All brushed aluminum, a cool joystick, great looking dials. JVC made some pretty nice looking stuff, and Sony put out a unit with a wild looking scope like meter. As for Technics, I have the SA 6700X with the built in audio scope, love the look of it.

 

[Discrete]

That Technics scope frickin' awesome! I love it!

I have gone to eBay. It appears that most people can't take a photo to save their life. Most are blurry and smal
l so it is near impossible to get a good view.

My nephew just got a Technics receiver with a scope (I think) so I'll bug him for pictures..paid $10 at a garage sale!!!

 

[Q8Repair]

Lucky SOB. That's okay though. I'm happy with my 8500X, audioscope, rs-858us, and four matching hi end technics speakers for $140.

 

[Obbop]

Always thought Marantz, on the whole, was kinda' purdy.

 

[DaneelOlivaw]

What does the scope on the Technics "describe" about the 4.0 signal?

Also, anyone know what band is playing on that Youtube video (which is fun to watch btw)? It's really out there!

 

[dmt]

any equipment with that faboluous tk-421 modification looks super great!

 

[bxd]

Hi,

My first post .... just thought I'd comment on the YouTube video.

In the early part of the video the SH-3433 is set on the 4-Channel AFD setting which is (I think) just a 4ch 'level' indicator (you can also use it for multipath detection for FM radio broadcasts). About half way through the video the display is switched to display the audio waveform from a single channel (just like a regular 'scope'.

The first of the toggle switches (that can be seen to the right of the display) are set to the down position indicating a 'matrix' source. The screen brightness seems to be set quite high (I wouldn't do that to my 3433) and later in the video the display is adjusted so that it's out of focus. I suspect that the 'gain' control is set quite high as well althought you can't see that on the video.

Brian

 

[Q8Repair]

You'd be correct. That's how mine works. (I never turn mine up that bright either.... dunno where I'd find another CRT for it)

 

[antigravitytea]

heathkit has a scope or 2 out there thats pretty cheap -im too lazy to look under my bed to see the model number - but the marantz 4400 is the swankiest receiver out there - pioneers quad stuff is not a scope - just bulbs - sansui qrx5500 is really nice with all the gauges and meters and wood and silver and its Sansui!

 

[spaceman]

sansui qrx5500 is really nice with all the gauges and meters and wood and silver and its Sansui!

Can't argue with that. I have the QRX-5500A, in very good condition, & love it. Most of the lights were out when I got it, but now that they all work, it's really cool to watch all the meters working, while listening. I'd definitely grab something with an oscilloscope though, if I found one for a good price.

 

[westgate]

stock pics of my 2 AKAI GX-630D-SSes-

 

[wilkat1]

stock pics of my 2 AKAI GX-630D-SSes-

Well Westgate, we probably need to refer to our 630's as "SHE" not much tape hiss either eh?

Steve

 

[westgate]

Well Westgate, we probably need to refer to our 630's as "SHE" not much tape hiss either eh?
Steve

i'm lucky! don't hear much hiss from them or my nakamichi cassette machines.
but i'm not sure if it cuz how good the machines are or my 56 yr old ears are going.

 

[wilkat1]

i'm lucky! don't hear much hiss from them or my nakamichi cassette machines.
but i'm not sure if it cuz how good the machines are or my 56 yr old ears are going.

Well, the Ampex quad tapes seem at least to me to have less hiss. A friend of mine who lost some hearing in Nam swears he can hardly hear it at all even at high volume levels! He also says he can hear highs better on those tapes played through the 630. I think he's just saying that to make me feel good about my system!

Steve