Download the original sales fliers for the BGW 103 and 203 hi-fi preamps:
DOWNLOAD 103:BGW_103
DOWNLOAD 203:BGW_203
BGW was best known for their range of pro-audio power amps, which sold in pretty good numbers if the quantity of still-surviving units is any indication. I had not been aware they also made hi-fi kit. Anyone?
Download the original sales flier for Yamaha’s MC-1X and MX-1S phono cartridges c. 1979:
DOWNLOAD: YamahaMC1x
As I’ve noted before on these pages, it’s pretty absurd how many types of products Yamaha has made over the years. One of my students did a project on the company a few years back and as he reported these dudes have tried it all. For example: at present moment: I have : two Yamaha pianos, a Yamaha analog monosynth, a Yamaha receiver, three pairs of Yamaha studio monitors, and a set of Yamaha electronic drums. But I had not been aware they ever made a foray into audiophile cartridges. Anyone?
Download the original 6pp catalog for the Sony TC-K88B cassette deck c. 1979:
DOWNLOAD: Sony_TC_K88B
Man this is a beautiful piece of engineering. Sony used to kill it. Get back in the game dudes!
Download the original 4pp catalog for the Cybersonics DM-2002 LP lathe:
DOWNLOAD: Cybersonics_DM_2002
At 3’x1′, and 250lbs, perhaps ‘mini’ is not a totally accurate description… Somewhere between a ‘disc recorder’ and a full-fledged Scully or Neumann Lathe and designed for ease-of-use, the DM-2002 was intended to allow recording studios to make high-fidelity ‘test records’ as well as production masters. These things apparently used an Ortofon cutterhead and were made in very small numbers. Hoe fkkn sweet would it be to have one these around. Mixtape? How about mix record?
So you bought a Lifetime Model six (or some other ancient double-button carbon mic) on eBay; how the hell do you get sound out of it? Yr prolly gonna need one of these. A carbon mic P/S. Allows a double-button Carbon mic to hook up to any mic preamp.
And for some examples of how these crazy mics can sound… check out these earlier posts: click here for acoustic gtr and here for drum kit…
Download a pile of original sales materials and period-magazine-reviews of the DeltaLab DL-2, and early stereo ‘effects processor’:
DOWNLOAD: DeltaLab_DL2
Deltalab achieved success with their later Effectron offerings; these were simpler delay-with-modulation devices that sold in high numbers. You can download a bunch of Effectron lit at this earlier post (and check the comments there for a note from DeltaLab founder Richard DeFreitas!). I used an Effectron a ton in the studio at Uni; they are really great, fun, creative units. Nothing that you can’t do with a good delay plug-in, but having those knobs to turn does impact the user-experience in a great way that software can’t. I had not been aware of this earlier DeltaLab piece. There was also a DL5 ‘Harmonicomputer’ that I have some limited materials on; if there is enough interest I will post that as well.
Download the 40pp book/advertorial “Amplification Without Distortion,” as published by the Acme Apparatus Company of Cambridge Mass in 1925:
DOWNLOAD: Acme_AWD_1925
We haven’t run anything quite so Ye Olde for a while, so I was excited to come across this odd little item at the flea mkt recently. Acme made a few transformers and other radio-part-flotsam and this book offers fundamental advice and construction information regarding RF and AF amps. I’ve included some of the more relevant Audio Amp information below; I’m not a radio guy so I can’t comment on that stuff… At left is their A-2 audio transformer, seems like a Plate-to-Grid unit based on the specs. I think I actually have one of these around somewhere…
I actually own a few of these super fkkn old homemade radios, and they are really pretty fascinating, starting with the fact that there’s basically NOTHING in them… they don’t even have wires, everything is connected via buss bars. I also picked up a circa 1922 one-tube power amp a couple years back, eventually I’ll get around to firing it up… this is real dawn-of-a-new-age stuff here, folks, all of this gear was designed to run on batteries, cos very few people had ELECTRICITY when this book was published. Dig in….
Below, schematics for the three audio amplifiers spec’d in the book:
Download the 6pp catalog for the Eumig FL-1000 cassette deck:
DOWNLOAD: EumigFL1000
Eumig was apparently primarily a film-camera/projector maker, ok, but that doesn’t explain why the FL1000 was designed to be controlled by a Commodore Pet or Apple 2. Actually, you could apparently control 3 of the goddamn things at once. I wonder if there is a single one of these things left working on the planet today.
Download the 4pp AMS ‘shortform catalog’ March 1981:
DOWNLOAD: AMS
Products covered, with text, specs, and photos, include: the AMS DMX 15-80S, DMX 15-80SB, DMX 15-80, DM 2-20, DM-DDS, and DMX 15R
I’ve never owned one of these things, and seeing as they are still pretty pricey I doubt I ever will: seems a bit of an unnecessary luxury given that a DAW can do all of these tasks just as well. But for some reason, the idea of a really nice 80’s digital effect unit has been appealing to me for some time now… might spring for a Eventide H3000 if ever have some spare scratch. I think those things have finally made it to the ‘so out it’s in’ stage.
Download just a shit-tonne of sales materials for the Orange Country Electronics line of EQs and Compressors circa ’78 – ’80:
DOWNLOAD: OrangeCountyAudio
Products covered, with text, specs, and images, include: The Orange County VS-3 Stereo Processor, CLX-S-FM, VS-1 Stressor, VS-2, CLX compressor module, PEQ, SEQ, and DEQ equalizer modules, as well as a 1978 price list.
I know little to nothing about this stuff, other than it seems to be pretty rare, and some folks online believe the designs to be based on ADR’s kit (see this previous post). They sure look like they would be fun boxes for treating submixes, though, esp. the VS-2 Stressor, which combines a limiter, compressor, expander, and there is a frequency-contouring element to the compressor as well. Drop us a line and weigh in…
