Retro Bites

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Record Equalisation Explained

If you don’t know your NABs from your RIAAs or your Microgroove from your Orthacoustic, don’t panic as Janine Elliot is here to explain the history and the science behind vinyl equalisation. 

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Philips Motional Feedback Speakers

Talk of powered speakers and the chances are you will think instantly of Bang and Olufsen or Meridian, or perhaps PMC and ATC. I was pleased to get hold of the Meridian’s M2 in the 1990’s, though had seen them in KJ LeisureCentre in Watford in the late 70’s and craved for them then. But […]

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Leak Trough-Line Tuner

  When talking about iconic tuners two or three words often come to mind; ‘Leak’ and ‘Trough-Line’. Only a few other tuners, the Quad FM3 and Marantz Model 2110 with built in oscilloscope get me excited.

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The Revox A77 Reel-to-Reel Recorder

Things are afoot in the world of reel 2 reels. Not only are there now at least 4 major companies producing reel to reel copies of famous master tapes, but very importantly after a long gap the Swiss tape recorder manufacturer Revox are bringing back the medium with a player based on the A700.

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The RCA Tape Cartridge

Hifi is an odd bod. We get great ideas, and then go backwards in sound quality before going forwards again. I mean, look at the resurgence of the LP, or the backwards philosophy of MP3. Most will say the CD was a bit of a white elephant. Of course we all remember the cassette tape, […]

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Turntable Designs That Could Have Taken Off Part 2

Last month I looked at a turntable design from Garrard that if it had taken off might have meant no need for CDs at all, allowing as it did the possibility of up to 5 hours playing from an LP. Alas its lifetime was little more than my interest in MiniDiscs. This time round I […]

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Turntable Designs That Could Have Taken Off. Part 1

In the first of her series of articles looking at turntable designs that could have taken off, Janine Elliot looks at a clever doodad from the days of 78s from Garrard called The World Record, created by Noel Pemberton-Billing, the chap that set up Supermarine Aircraft Company which made the iconic Spitfire of World War […]

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Sennheiser Orpheus

Janine Elliot continues her series of articles for Hifi Pig highlighting classic hifi from yesteryear. This month, given that Sennheiser have recently announced a new $55 000 Orpheus, she turns her attention to the original Sennheiser Orpheus, first released in 1991. 

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Stax

Janine Elliot takes us on a brief tour of the history of Japanes company Stax, who many readers will know for their “ear speakers”.

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Retro Bites – Philips DCC900

Philips DCC900 The Hillman Imp was an amazing invention for 1963. This was the answer to the Mini, doing everything that Alec Issigonis’s baby could do, but adding some extra features that were revolutionary for the time; preceding hatchbacks this car had an opening back window to put in your shopping on the rear seat […]