The Southern Ontario/WNY Radio-TV Forum / New "Retro Record Players" Combine Best Of Old With Best Of New

**Posted by RadioActive** January 29, 2025 12:27 pm

It's unknown if these will ever be available in Canada, but a reviewer flips his lid at what looks like old style tech record players and headphones, that both feature very modern day capabilities. Lots of pics at the link below.

I saw Philips' new retro record players and headphones to celebrate its 100 years in audio, and I found them immensely charming

**Posted by Chrisphen** January 29, 2025 12:31 pm

Hopefully better quality than the sub-$200 'Crosley'-branded plastic junk they sling at the mall.

**Posted by darcyh** January 29, 2025 12:36 pm

From what I could see in the photos the turntables do not appear to be much better than the "Crosley" ones. I would be surprised if Philips is the actual manufacturer.

**Posted by Chrisphen** January 29, 2025 12:41 pm

I'm still grumpy about record prices these days. I am not paying $60+ for that new Cure record. Sorry Bob.

**Posted by mace** January 29, 2025 2:20 pm

My Dual 504 turntable is 46 years old and still works fine. My first set of headphones were the Sennheiser HD-414's. They sat on your ears so easily with that yellow foam rubber. Sadly, the replacement foam has been out of production for many years.

**Posted by Easily Amused** January 29, 2025 2:23 pm

Chrisphen wrote:
Hopefully better quality than the sub-$200 'Crosley'-branded plastic junk they sling at the mall.

Mall? Those still exist? 🤔

Must be Hart stores, and those cut rate furniture joints. The ones that peddle ceramic dog statues. 🤨

**Posted by Hansa** January 29, 2025 3:04 pm

Chrisphen wrote:
Hopefully better quality than the sub-$200 'Crosley'-branded plastic junk they sling at the mall.

One was given to us as a gift and after trying it once and almost damaging the record we played on it we went to Bay Bloor Radio and got a decent mid-range turntable for about $500.

The only thing I might use a Crosley turntable for is old shellac 78s that are basically indestructible - if I had any (and I'd first have to get a 78 cartridge).

**Posted by Paul Jeffries** January 29, 2025 8:29 pm

Many of these retro-style record players are for aesthetics mostly and tend to compromise on actual quality and performance. The biggest reason is because they employ cheap ceramic cartridges to rely on reproducing sound, and many of them track as heavy as 6 grams, which can be damaging to your records in the long run.

In order to get good quality sound, you need a magnetic cartridge turntable which can reproduce sound more faithfully. Plus, they generally track records somewhere in the range of 1.5 - 3 grams, which is much better for record life.

Also, be wary when buying new vinyl records. Many, like their CD brethren in the late '80s/early '90s have been "rush-released" by the record labels to cash in on the craze of the new technology (or in the case of vinyl, the old technology). In some cases, the label hasn't taken the time to use the original master recording or hasn't mixed the album properly for the best quality sound. It's recommended to read reviews of new vinyl releases before you end up blowing $40 on a record album that doesn't sound anywhere near as good as it's decades-old counterpart.

PJ

**Posted by paterson1** January 29, 2025 9:42 pm

CWD in Niagara Falls ON manufacture Electrohome vintage record players, speakers and radios.
https://www.electrohome.com/record-players

**Posted by Shorty Wave** January 30, 2025 8:52 am

RadioActive wrote:
It's unknown if these will ever be available in Canada, but a reviewer flips his lid at what looks like old style tech record players and headphones, that both feature very modern day capabilities. Lots of pics at the link below.

I saw Philips' new retro record players and headphones to celebrate its 100 years in audio, and I found them immensely charming

These turntables look fairly cool! One model, “The Tina “, has a built-in 120W speaker and I wonder how loud it can be turned up before the stylus skips. Still, I wouldn’t mind one as long as the price is right! Thanks for sharing RadioActive!

**Posted by Fitz** January 31, 2025 3:27 pm

I am more or less happy with this vintage Connoisseur table. Has a unusual way to change the speed. The lever on the top left side which is driven by a belt.. and for a total retro experience I sometimes use a Dynaco Quadapter which some say is better than modern surround sound for multi-channel.

**Posted by Shorty Wave** January 31, 2025 5:08 pm

Holy crap, that’s cool!

**Posted by darcyh** February 1, 2025 12:16 pm

paterson1 wrote:
CWD in Niagara Falls ON manufacture Electrohome vintage record players, speakers and radios.
https://www.electrohome.com/record-players

In 1973 my first job was working as a cleaner at the Electrohome plant on Wellington St. in Kitchener. To me it was a impressive large factory where colour tv's were built. They also made video monitors.

Electrohome was a sizable employer in Kitchener-Waterloo with a few plants producing furniture (Dealcraft), fans, dehumidifiers and other devices. A couple of my aunts worked at Electrohome.

The company fell on hard times with more off shore and cheaper products I don't think they were able to compete.

Anyway, kind of sad to see the name acquired and used on low cost electronics.

**Posted by Radiowiz** February 1, 2025 12:28 pm

RadioActive wrote:
It's unknown if these will ever be available in Canada, but a reviewer flips his lid at what looks like old style tech record players and headphones, that both feature very modern day capabilities. Lots of pics at the link below.

I saw Philips' new retro record players and headphones to celebrate its 100 years in audio, and I found them immensely charming

I was just wondering if this is a Bay Bloor radio thing, or more of a Sonic Boom thing?
I don't doubt that Sonic Boom would gladly bend over backwards to import & charge a lot of money for it.

**Posted by Chrisphen** February 1, 2025 12:51 pm

darcyh wrote:
The company fell on hard times with more off shore and cheaper products I don't think they were able to compete.

Anyway, kind of sad to see the name acquired and used on low cost electronics.

Yeah - its become the fate of many vintage American electronics brands. RCA and Westinghouse come to mind as trademarks slapped on plastic junk made by a Guangdong sweatshop whose owner had the lowest bid.

**Posted by The Weed** February 1, 2025 1:30 pm

darcyh wrote:
...with a few plants producing furniture (Dealcraft)

I worked at CKKW in 85-86, when Electrohome still owned it and CFCA. There was a 10% discount for Dealcraft Furniture. My girlfriend bought 4 pieces and we still have them.

**Posted by paterson1** February 1, 2025 2:26 pm

Here is a commercial from 1985 for Electrohome Blue Optic colour TV's. The company stopped producing colour TV's in 1987. They did have good years though in electronics. For around 10 years they had a good slice of the colour tv market in Canada, and exported a lot of product both stereos and TV.

I had a 19 inch Electrohome colour portable that lasted around 17 years. The set had great colour but soon gave up the ghost after being dropped during a move to a new apartment.

https://www.google.com/search?q=electrohome+blue+optic+tv&rlz=1C1GGRV_enCA751CA751&oq=electrohome+blue+optic+tv&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIHCAEQIRigATIHCAIQIRigAdIBCDY2ODVqMGo3qAIAsAIA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:99aeeec0,vid:X1hMt38UQZg,st:0