The fad of big stereos in the 1970s (collection, buy, cheap)

[robertpasa]

I remember in the 1970s when it was popular for people (mostly younger men) to have really elaborate, big home stereos. B&O was a company that made sleek, ultramodern turntables. They also had a thing called Discwasher which you'd use to clean your records. It had a really nice wood handle.

There was also Stereo Review magazine, which still exists. Audiophiles also claimed reel-to-reel tapes were the way to go. Really expensive Bose headphones.

Do you see this as a fad? Maybe it's just me.

[Trekker99]

The 'hobby' of audio systems still exists. There are dedicated forums to audio/music with memberships in the thousands.

I'm not sure Stereo Review still exists - but there are several audio-centric periodicals, like Stereophile (among others) that are currently active.

It's a thriving industry, so, imo, more than a fad...for now.

[Pitt Chick]

Not a fad, a passion for some people.

Originally Posted by robertpasa

There was also Stereo Review magazine, which still exists.

It has been gone quite a while now.

[jetgraphics]

Ditto, for tube amplifiers. See Tenoctaveaudio.com

[Upminster-1]

Fads come and go, but passions tend to endure a bit.

I still have two huge Utah speakers from my college days ( mid-60s ) now used as end tables. By my former wife got all the vinyl in the divorce.

Since them I have gone through three phases, accumulation of CDs and mega-CD players hooked up to "real" stereo systems.

And then, ripping all those CDs to lossless FLAC and using a high-end audio board in my gaming computer to feed the same "real" stereo system.

And now that I have fiber optics internet, I download music to my hard drive so I can edit it ( using Sound Forge 15 ), back it up, and organize it the way I like ( using Media Monkey ). Streaming does not work for me.

My passion for music continues, but my focus varies a bit between genres. And my speakers now are much better than the premium speakers of the 70s. But absent the turntable, still a big stereo system ( not to mention the 130,000 music tracks in my library ).

[robertpasa]

My bad, Stereo Review was absorbed into High Fidelity magazine in 1989.

I may be confusing my fond memories of accessories that seem silly today, with the whole idea of audiophilia.

They made vertical turntables. Yes, and they would save space.

There were turntables that would sense the little blank areas between each song! Also the 8-track players that looked like dynamite detonators.

I read that vinyl is now outselling CDs. I can't understand that, except that they may be cheaper. But you can't play vinyl in a car or computer.

[Parnassia]

If it's a "fad" it's a very long-lived one. My engineer father was an audiophile back in the day (classical, jazz, big band). He assembled elaborate multi-component stereo systems (state of the art of the time of course) for the family homes starting in the early 60s. Other than large stand alone speakers most of the components lived in a heavy, ornately carved wooden chest of drawers. The drawer fronts, top, and sides were modified to allow a user to access all the controls and the turntable. When it wasn't being used it closed up into an ornately carved chest again. Over the decades, individual components came and went, but he continued to use the overall system until shortly before he passed in 2014.

I stumbled into a nice multi-component system decades ago. I happened to win a drawing held by a local Hi Fi specialty shop. I knew basically nothing about current day electronics but had gone in hoping to find a stylus for a beat up, big box store generic turntable. Ended up winning that year's NAD receiver and choice of 2 speakers among brands the shop carried. Manager told me to bring in a few recordings (I also prefer classical instrumental, virtuoso soloist, bluegrass, traditional folk) I cared the most about sounding perfect and we'd audition various sets. I remember finding myself in tears when we hit the "right" combination. It was day and night. It is such a personal distinction. That stereo moved with me all over the USA. I don't have space for it in my current house and recently bought a compact "bookshelf" system through Crutchfield. Just can't play the turntable. All my big pre-digital components were functional and the speakers lovely, so I tried to find it a decent home. It ended up being "adopted" by the music teacher for a small AK school system. The district happened to have a large collection of vintage classical, traditional, and educational vinyl and tapes they hadn't been able to use. The teacher drove several hundred miles to pick everything up in person. Kind of a nice ending IMHO.

[robertpasa]

If you go to a BestBuy today, you won't see that many FM receivers. Maybe only two. No tape decks, maybe one turntable.
Lots of speakers, but those are also used for TV. Maybe two boomboxes. One or two CD players.

Maybe one headphones that covered your ears.

Lots of car stereos, I'm sure.

[Trekker99]

Brick and mortar stores, like Best Buy, for audio related equipment, have definitely declined over the years.

But the same could be said of many consumer stores. The market has moved on-line, thanks to the ease of the internet.

Crutchfield, Audio Advisor, Music Direct, etc offer expansive on-line catalogs for many audio manufacturers. Not to mention simply buying direct.

So many choices are still out there.

[tnff]

Originally Posted by robertpasa

My bad, Stereo Review was absorbed into High Fidelity magazine in 1989.

I may be confusing my fond memories of accessories that seem silly today, with the whole idea of audiophilia.

They made vertical turntables. Yes, and they would save space.

There were turntables that would sense the little blank areas between each song! Also the 8-track players that looked like dynamite detonators.

I read that vinyl is now outselling CDs. I can't understand that, except that they may be cheaper. But you can't play vinyl in a car or computer.

Not a fad. Plus, you're mixing two different, but related things. Back in the 70s/80s, stereo equipment was big because much still relied on vacuum tubes. It just took space. And bigger speakers reproduce better sound, esp lower notes.

Then combine that with the related item of CD vs vinyl sales. Really two different markets. CDs are feeding the digital market and have been heavily replaced by various digital delivery formats such as itunes, Pandora, and others. Many of which are streaming.

Vinyl on the other had feeds the market for pure sound. People who buy vinyl aren't looking to play it in their car or while running around on tiny earbuds. Sound is an analog wave. Vinyl records and plays back in analog format. CDs and the various digital formats are digital reproductions, and the more compression involved the more loss of pure sound. In fact, there is a market among audiophiles for vacuum tube systems because they believe the vacuum tube's different technology softens the harsh edges of digital sound and helps replicate the most pure sound possible.

You have one market, the popular mass market you see in places like Best Buy that just wants lots of music in the smallest package possible and has less of an interest in sound quality vs a audiophile that wants to as closely as possible experience the sound in its natural form.