When playing a 78rpm record, you will have to change the needle/stylus to a 78 needle, using the 45rpm needle is not recommended. Great video as usual.
+Gerry K yeah i know, i figured for the sake of the video it probably wouldnt be so bad though. it looks like ill be going back to my old record player that actually works pretty well.
I know this is an old comment on an old video, but I just wanted to point out that using a micro groove stylus (for 45’s and lp’s) on a wide-groove (78) record won’t actually hurt anything, it just won’t sound as good.
My brother and I had a similar one as a kid and we used it for the cassette and stereo amplifier functions, but I don't recall us using the turntable/record changer, or if that worked at all during our lifetime.
That was about as nice as "compact tabletop" stereos got in the late 1970s. The BIC changer is of higher quality than the typical plastic-platter BSRs of that era. If you can find a replacement for the clip that keeps the platter on, the automatic spindle will probably work (it should point toward the stand at the left-rear). This machine is worth preserving.
i was kinda disappointed with this record player since it only has 33 and 45rpm. i'm thinking maybe i can replace the motor upgrade it to do all 4 speeds so i can listen to my records. and maybe modify it to do more things too. like maybe make a wood lid for it to replace that plastic cover thats all broken up.
Great Video Rinoa... I did the same thing with my first record player when i was younger.. Those early 78rpm records where intended to be played with a steel needle. You need to find your self a nice early acoustic phonograph and you will find your early 78's will sound much clearer.. Not to mention the fun Time travailing experience of listening to recorded music with out the aid of electricity.. :)
The record player may be stuck on. Some of these old stereos did turn on by starting the record changer but you had the answer later on in the video. Thank you for sharing.
Wow, I thought I recognized the music from the sting 8 track you played. I haven't seen the movie so I knew it wasn't from that. Turns out it's the loading screen from Bioshock Infinite. That game series is awesome. Old music like that always reminds me of Rapture and Columbia.
A coworker of mine had one of these in 1980's. $10 for that is a STEAL. Unlike any other integrated system I've seen, it is NOT junk! It's a high-quality system. Too bad the speakers didn't come with it.
If you are going to play 78 rpm records you should probably get a proper needle for them. The grooves are different and the current needle will probably damage the records over time.
One other difference is Edison records move the needle in one plane and RCA Victor are in the perpendicular plane. I think Edison grooves move the stylus horizontally and Victrola were vertical. This can be a problem with extra noise using modern electronic reproduction.
I had this 1979 Zenith Allegro stereo. it was great, had great sound. And you could record LPs onto cassette. I had it for many years ad it for many years.
I wanted to get an old looking system like that but modify the internals to DAB, Bluetooth and internet radio but all function with the old controls. Would be pretty cool.
I've put Bluetooth in these. It's not hard to do. For DAB and/or Internet radio, I just use a smart phone or tablet via the Bluetooth - it's really not worth the hassle of building those directly in.
Get an electronic circuit like a variable speed drive and speed up the motor electronically. Also use a 0.3 mm stylus and set it up with a mono switch for your 78 RPM payback. It will reduce the record scratch noise in mono and the larger radius stylus will stay on the sound portion of the record groove.
a lot of the more modern(80s?) ones dont have 16 and 78, cause there was no need for higher rpm with new records. and i have never come across a 16 record
You're not alone, I'm 54 and only saw my SECOND 16 rpm record just last year. The first one was when I was a kid, my grandmother had a Jimmy Swaggart (yes, the televangelist) record that was 16 rpm. I've since taken an interest in 16 rpm records; I have several now, plus a 1960s Magnavox stereo to play them on. Virtually all manufacturers removed 16 rpm settings by the mid-1970s. The only new equipment that still had it was special 'talking book' record players for the blind. The 78 setting began vanishing from modern players in the early 1970s. A few manufactures kept it throughout, but most did away with the 78 setting because there was so little interest in it. I actually have an early 1970s BSR that's 33/45 only. The resurgence of records in recent years has sparked interest in the old 78s, so most modern stuff has the settings for them again.
That stereo is probably from 1979/1980. Alot of them got rid of 78 speeds. You could probably replace it with another bsr record changer with a 3 or 4 speed. But that needle on that stereo was made for only 33s n 45s as 78s had a wider needle for the wider grooves.
I'd preserve it the way it is. Systems with BSR changers are a dime-a-dozen and the BIC changers, despite having only 2 speeds, were better performers.
I'm slightly old-school so this brings back a few memories! One thing I can think of to do (if you want) is to take the tape off the motor side and put it on the platter side. That way, you still get the desired affect but you can also put your parts back (for that sense of completion). Of course, the ratio/thickness would probably be different. Great vid! ;D
Nice my family had almost the same model. Instead of the cassette player. It had a 8 tracks storage bay and I think it could play 33,45&78s RPM records. Nice to see at least 1 had survived the 1970's!
This is a nice stereo. It is not unusual to find units with four media sources in one unit, however, I do have to agree that some of the record changers in some stereos do not have all the speeds. I have three turntables myself. One only plays 33 and 45 records. Another one plays 33, 45 and 78rpm; although the 78rpms aren't sounding quite right. The brand is a 1byone modern turntable with pitch control, anti-skate and counter weight adjustments. I think the needle is the issue for 78rpms. It plays 33s and 45s super well. When I contacted 1byone they said that the needle was made to play both LPs and 78s with no issue so not sure what the challenge is. Its not a huge issue because my third turntable is my mom and dad's Magnavox stereo console which I had repaired two years ago. It plays all speeds including 16rpm. In case you wondered what 16rpm was used for; there were radio transcribed records for broadcasts. Talking books for the blind and visually impaired were on 16rpm records and the coolest application is the Seeburg Music Library. With those records you can have up to almost 5 hours with just 7 records. Most were destroyed when they were used in businesses but fortunately some of the records were saved and are now collectables. There's even a Seeburg Music radio station on the internet known as Seeburg 1000. It's amazing.
This one is from BIC (originally British Industries Corp.), a Long Island importer of Garrard, LEAK and Warfdale that introduced their own line of equipment when those brands fell out of favor. Their changers were designed by Voice Of Music and built by Maestro.
I have 2 record players, one is the same one but the cover is broken while the other one is absolutely fine. Idk how the other one is in mint condition
Watching this video stressed me out! Put the tone arm down (on the holder,) and back up slowly. OMG, please give this to a good home and to someone who knows what they are doing lol! Sorry, but it’s stressful for us particular finicky vintage audiophiles to watch you handle that unit so haphazardly! It’s only a cheap old all in one unit, but still it looks to be in fairly good condition for 40+ years old! It just needs some TLC. Cool until though!
Actually it wasn't very cheap (about $500 in 1979), had lots of nice features, covered most bases for people by playing four different formats and when paired with the Allegro speakers, produced pretty respectable sound. Even the turntable was head and shoulders above most all-in-ones back then compared with the rim drive/ceramic cartridge BSR changers. This one has the guts of a BIC turntable and a Shure M74C magnetic cartridge that tracks at 3 grams. Audio snobs may dismiss something like this, but it was well built, full featured and good sounding. I did a full restoration last year on this model (Zenith IS 4081) and it's performance (even the 8-track!) is excellent. Hell the old analog tuner pulls in stations my Sony ES receiver can barely pick up. The cassette deck, though lacking noise reduction, when properly aligned and calibrated to your tapes, records beautifully.
78s too? Man we share a lot of interests haha. The only bad thing about them is the disappointment you feel in yourself when you break one, or at least a rare/well known song. But you can get 78s that were made as late as the early 70s! South Africa were still releasing tracks on 78 till I believe 1971, the updated 33rpm and 45rpm hadn't quite made its way over to them. Also, possibly a fun project, try dissolving broken 78s in acetone, it turns to a syrup like consistency and makes a great wood stain, sort of a deep Amber colour (the fumes are pretty bad though, whilst dissolving) nevertheless, great video as usual and can't wait to see more!
on a Patreon video i recently broke one of my favorite shellac records, and i've been trying to bond it back together using acetone but i cant get acetone to melt the record. have had chunks of a record in acetone for a week now and all its doing is breaking down into a powder on the bottom leaving the acetone clear. i may try other solvents. i was thinking i could do the same thing that i do with acetone and ABS to make ABS glue for broken 3d prints. no clue why it wont dissolve.
Initially I assumed these devices made so much sense. They save space, maybe saves watts, and everything is within reach and efficient. And just employs one power cord. But these kinda thingys are roundly panned by audiophiles. Isn't there a unit that's respected by them? Perhaps not?
It would be reasonably easy to re-purpose an old servo motor to run off an Arduino motor shield and get any speed you want out of that record player. Then you could even match the weird early speeds of 60-130RPM along with 8 1/3 and 16 2/3 which was often used for voice recordings.
+kuhrd yeah im thinking about doing something similar. although this has some issues that i didnt show, like i have to tape 7 quarters to the back of the arm to keep it from grinding the head into the record and squeekung really loud. i may just try to sell it at my antique store booth
This is probably a long shot considering this video is 3 years old... but what are you using to wipe down the record player towards the end? I'm trying to refurbish and clean up my friend's record play for christmas and yours is the only video of this Zenith model.
Nálunk Videotonok, Orionok voltak mind rádióban, magnóban, később a 80-as években hifi berendezésekben. Voltak persze orsós szalagos magnók is, BRG az Magyar gyártmányú volt, Tesla az Csehszlovák, Unitra pedig Lengyel
I just got one nothing works. Even changed belts I'd like to keep and use it... anyone repair in Marietta ga? I'll trade. I'm broke right now looking for a job currently.
YOU, CAN PICK UP A, TURN TABLE, WITH THE CORRECT SPEEDS,.A FLIP, CARTRIDGE FOR, 78S/AND 45,33,S,,AND DROP IT IN, REAPLACE THE ORIGINAL,,,.. FOR THE, EQUALIZER, WICH IS TO GO, BETWEEN THE PREA, AMP AND AMP, WOULD NEED A MUTING SWITCH, SO THE, ZENITH PREA, AMP CAN, BE BYPASSED AND SUB, THE E
EQUALIZER IN, YOU CAN, HOOK THE, TURN, TABLE WITH, 78/,,AND 45,33,SPEEDS,,,AND FLIP, CARTRIDGE AND THEN THE EQUALIZER, INTO THE, PREA, AMP TO AMP UNIT,, TO, GET POP AND HISS ON, SOME,VERY OLD ALBUMS, OUT AND THEN USE YOUR, JUGMENT ON, OTHER, SETTING S,,,, YOU,,, NEED,,, A,,, PROPER, TURN, TABLE AND CARTRIDGE AT, LEAST, TO START ON THE RIGHT, FOOT,,,,
No, This is NOT useless. It's designed for an era post-78s where the makers, Zenith('e' is short, not long, as in "Ten") recognised that 78s were no longer being made, and that 16rpm was also not in common use, so these speeds were redundant. The turntable was thus designed only to play modern 33 & 45 rpm microgroove records. Having the two tape formats, the superior(if it weren't invented by Philips, that is) cassette and the inferior 8-track format(over-complication renders the format inferior) plus FM-stereo and AM-Mono radio covers all the bases of what was available in the early 1970s, music entertainment-wise.
That Zenith player is only no good for you as you're a 78s collector. For anyone else it'd be fine. And it is a short 'e', Zenith, rhyming with Tenith if spoken with a lisp.
@@neilforbes416 I remember commercials from the 1970s, pronouncing 'Zenith' with a long e. Though a short 'e' does sound like it might be a British pronunciation....
@@xaenon It may well be a British brand marketed in America, thus Zenith with short 'e' will be the correct pronunciation, but even if it were american, Zenith with short 'e' is still the correct pronunciation.
Riona’s Auspicious Travails I hope you will reply to this even though it sounds silly you’re wearing cat eye glasses huh??????!!!……I have cat eye glasses mine are silver with rhinestones
No these are more of horn-rimmed glasses. Like what a 1960s engineer would wear. I never could find a pair of cat eyes that fit my face well. I eventually went to classical looking circle frames.
I have a ELECTRO BRAND Stereo Receiver with turntable and 8 track player I fixed but now I’m having problems getting audio out of the speakers, just faint audio. Any advice. Speakers work fine on other system. MODEL NO: 6575
what are you doingyou are destroying a perfectly good turntable to use the wrong speed records you are not doing this machine any good by destroying the way it was meant to be used you are ruining this machine you might as well blow it up . if you want 78 use a machine with that speed do not ruin a good turntable by making it into something it was not suppose to be .what a shame but the video was good
Can you please let me know what is the model of this receiver? I want to find one for my dad as a gift since he used to have one back in the 80's when I was born but it got stolen, he still keeps the Allegro 3000 speakers that came with it
cool find, I wouldn't upgrade, I would just restore it to original condition, the turntable can probably be 100% repaired, usually starting issues are old shit ass gummed up grease, get it all out relube it with partshouse wheel bearing grease and get the idler swapped if its dry and I bet it will run like day 1
Thanks for the video. Just a suggestion, get a bigger motor, rpm reader and a 10k pot to adjust the speed. You could make interesting sound by changing the speeds. This way you could leave the original parts in for, except for the new motor. Have a day
16 rpm vanished from consumer equipment right around 1973 (though it did stick around a while longer in some specialty players). There weren't a lot of 16 rpm records made for the general public; and most of them were 'talking book' and 'lecture' recordings. Some music, but not a lot, and the sound quality was usually mediocre at best. Seriously, when it vanished, few noticed... or cared. 78 rpm support was hit and miss in the 1970s and 1980s. It was considered a 'dead' format. It wasn't until the 'vinyl revival' that the speed became more common again. Most of the changers that still sported it were based on 1960s designs that the manufacturers never bothered to update, other than to dress them up with different trim.
Do you per chance know what stylus/cartridge this player uses? I have the exact same Zenith but I can’t figure out what stylus it uses because mine doesn’t have one.
Most cheap new record players have all three speeds their sound quality is debatable but mine plays 78's with no problem so long as they aren't too scratched to shit
I think that this is the very same unit that Jim Lindenas worked on, why don't you get a new dual turntable, as the turntable is not Linear Tracking it is not going to get the very best out of the LPs.
no thanks, this is my excuse to buy or build a lathe. haha i'll probably try building one so i appreciate how complicated it is, throw away my failed attempt and buy a low quality one. :p
BSR, Colaro and Garrard were all British-made turntables, which, in their day were the undisputed LEADERS in phono turntable manufacture and NEITHER incorporated pitch control as they were intended for domestic use in radiograms or portable record players, and were fitted with mono or stereo cartridges accordingly. They were far and away superior to American product, and several US radiogram and portable record player makers, RCA included, chose to use Garrards, Colaros and BSRs over American-made turntables.
