Not sure about the facts, but I'm sure nostalgic when I see all those
beautiful photos of receivers and high end kit.

https://www.audioholics.com/editorials/70s-stereo-gear
Stereo Gear in the 1970’s Was it The Audiophile Golden Age?

There are times when circumstances and conditions come together in a
once-in-a-lifetime manner, right? You know what I mean—perhaps it is a
sports team, when just the right collection of players are on the team
together, their personalities and chemistry mesh perfectly and they’re
all having great seasons at the same time. Or it could be a job, when
market conditions are ideal for your company’s offerings and you have
just the exact personnel in place that can do the job. Maybe it’s a
social situation, when the setting is just right, your feelings are
right, you know exactly what to say—not too nervy and not too forward,
but sufficiently confident and chance-taking—such that you make that
all-important connection that will alter your life.

For the market of high-fidelity electronics and speakers, that time was
the 1970’s. Things came together in such a way that the market
flourished and grew like never before. It was a singularly great time
for the industry, with all the historic, demographic and technological
conditions and advances coming together in a way that will never be
repeated.

Let’s take a closer look at the significant factors that made the
1970’s so special for audio and how and why those factors affected the
stereo industry in the ‘70’s.
--

On Thu, 11 Nov 2021 08:40:04 -0500, Retrograde
<fungus@amongus.com.invalid> wrote:

>Not sure about the facts

Author glossed over....and seemed to think direct drive turntable was
better. He suggested Cassette Tape players were good, but purists
never went this route; commerically, for sales, they were hot items.

I had one of these, and other high dollar equipment back then.

1968 Introduction of the TD125 electronically-controlled (Wien
Bridge Oscillator) turntable equipped with the TP25 tonearm. The
TD125, like the TD150, is belt driven and suspended via a 3 point
suspension. Like it's little brother, the TD150, it also is a
"purists" model with all manual controls.

https://www.theanalogdept.com/thorens_history.htm

On 11/11/2021 8:58, JAB wrote:
> He suggested Cassette Tape players were good, but purists
> never went this route; commerically, for sales, they were hot items.

My (second to) most recent vehicle acquisition is a 1968 Ford Galaxie.
It has an aftermarket Radio Shack AM/FM with 8-track installed... I took
an hour and a half drive to then from my father's house the other
weekend, and dug out a bag of 8-tracks from the cellar to listen to...
heh. Some didn't age well, Led Zeppelin sounded terrible and kept
cutting out. John Denver came in loud and clear.

https://postimg.cc/YjCrqT6P

On 2021-11-11, Michael Trew <michael.trew@att.net> wrote:
> On 11/11/2021 8:58, JAB wrote:
>> He suggested Cassette Tape players were good, but purists
>> never went this route; commerically, for sales, they were hot items.
>
> My (second to) most recent vehicle acquisition is a 1968 Ford Galaxie.
> It has an aftermarket Radio Shack AM/FM with 8-track installed... I
> took an hour and a half drive to then from my father's house the other
> weekend, and dug out a bag of 8-tracks from the cellar to listen to...
> heh. Some didn't age well, Led Zeppelin sounded terrible and kept
> cutting out. John Denver came in loud and clear.
>
> https://postimg.cc/YjCrqT6P

The storage in the cellar might have been the problem.

Or maybe John Denver had seen fewer uses back in the day.

There's lots of nostalgia for old LPs and to a lesser degree, high-end
cassette equipment. You never see much nostalgia for 8-tracks though. In
the car I guess they were OK, but not at home.

On Fri, 12 Nov 2021 15:18:06 -0000 (UTC), Retrograde
<fungus@amongus.com.invalid> wrote:

>There's lots of nostalgia for old LPs and to a lesser degree, high-end
>cassette equipment.

Reel to Reels, like Revox A77, are still fetching high dollars

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRO38xq6-eQ

<https://reverb.com/item/43954385-revox-a77-mk2-1970s-black-silver-wood>

I had this back then, which has a asking price of what it cost in
1970.

https://reverb.com/item/39725353-revox-a-77-1969

On 11/12/2021 10:18, Retrograde wrote:
> On 2021-11-11, Michael Trew<michael.trew@att.net> wrote:
>> On 11/11/2021 8:58, JAB wrote:
>>> He suggested Cassette Tape players were good, but purists
>>> never went this route; commerically, for sales, they were hot items.
>>
>> My (second to) most recent vehicle acquisition is a 1968 Ford Galaxie.
>> It has an aftermarket Radio Shack AM/FM with 8-track installed... I
>> took an hour and a half drive to then from my father's house the other
>> weekend, and dug out a bag of 8-tracks from the cellar to listen to...
>> heh. Some didn't age well, Led Zeppelin sounded terrible and kept
>> cutting out. John Denver came in loud and clear.
>>
>> https://postimg.cc/YjCrqT6P
>
> The storage in the cellar might have been the problem.
>
> Or maybe John Denver had seen fewer uses back in the day.

Likely a combination.

> There's lots of nostalgia for old LPs and to a lesser degree, high-end
> cassette equipment. You never see much nostalgia for 8-tracks though. In
> the car I guess they were OK, but not at home.

Bulky and poor audio quality, not surprising. I found it highly amusing
that the car still had a player installed, so I figured I'd try to get
some use out of the tapes, which will likely eventually end up a
dumpster some day anyway. Might make someone chuckle if I sell the car
and throw them in as a package deal.