My Old Cabinet Stereo

[countryguy]

I thought I'd post a few pics of the cabinet stereo I inherited from my mom. I remember her buying it when I was in high school (mid 70s). It is a Monteverdi by Lloyd's. It has the AM/FM stereo, turntable and recordable 8-track tape deck.

Gary

 

[countryguy]

Pic #2

 

[chuffle]

What a nice console...

...from a different time. Do you listen to it much?

I had forgotten about recordable 8-track tapes. My parents bought a Zenith Allegro stereo (it was wedge-shaped) in the mid 1970s, and it had an 8-track tape recorder. I remember recording some of my "albums" on 8-track tape, so that the lazy bum that I am wouldn't have to get up and flip the record over!

I never tire of seeing (and hearing) console stereos, there's just something about them - perhaps it is a trip down memory lane, for most folks that I knew as a kid in the 1960s had one. My parents had two, one that I vaguely recall in the early 1960s (might have been an Admiral or Motorola), then a Zenith (which went away when they bought the Allegro)

I own two, both posted on the vac site (sorry to bore you all, if you have been over there and already seen 'em). The Zenith pictured below, in my TV room, is the Zenith that I grew up with, though not the one that my parents owned. I found this one on Craig'sList Pittsburgh a number of years ago, and bought it from a guy who was getting married and who's fiance didn't care for his collection of Danish-style furniture. This particular model is called "the Mendelssohn."

The photo isn't the best, for my TV room is small and cozy.

 

[chuffle]

And then in my reception room...

I have another Zenith, another Craig'sList Pittsburgh find that I purchased last month. It is a "Molina" model, and was purchased in 1968, for $650. I have the sales receipt, the owners' manual, hang tags, and a catalog detailing all of Zenith's console stereo models...the original owner kept all documents.

The thing is massive, weighs a ton, and took three of us to move it from Pittsburgh to my house here in the country.

One thing that I did when I bought the first Zenith, was to purchase a tiny FM transmitter from CC Crane, that I hook up to my computer. I then broadcast favorite music from online (I use Live365) to both the console in the TV room upstairs, and the new one downstairs.

I hope that you enjoy yours!

Joe

 

[chuffle]

One thing that I forgot to mention...

The "beast" in my reception room is so heavy, it has heavy-duty casters hidden underneath. I wonder how many folks back then hefted the thing around in order to clean?

Joe

 

[countryguy]

Mine has casters on it also which makes it very easy to move around. I rarely listen to it. The record player does not work very well. I think that is because it was not used for so many years. The turntable needs help in order to turn - maybe a lose belt? We only recorded a few 8-tracks with it so that we could play them in my dad's car.

Gary

 

[paulg]

Monteverdi and Zenith

During my TV-repairman days I had to service LLoyds, Monteverdi, Zenith among a myriad of other brands. I remember Lloyds as being quite reliable and quite nice overall.
The Zeniths were super but we fixed a lot due to their popularity.
Is "The Molina" a touch-control Zenith? I remember those louvered-speaker stereos always being part of the very top-end units.
I remember one service call on one of those Zenith stereos. The output transistors would fail over and over. The (rather good) bench techs couldn't figure it out.
I went to the home and really tore into the unit. What happened was that the crossover in the speaker box is stapled to the interior cabinet. It fell off probably due to vibration, swung down on its wires which caused the crossover terminals to lie against the metal speaker frame intermittently shorting it out. Affixing the crossover back to the cabinet wall with screws stopped that trouble.
Not sure if your unit is designed the same, but something to check if you're bored some rainy day...

 

[paulg]

Monteverdi changer

That is an idler-drive BSR changer. You probably have grease-to-glue syndrome. It is repairable albeit tricky for those not used to record-changers. Find an old-timer in your neighborhood to do the work.

 

[chuffle]

Gary...

I know you are in Canada, but there is a place in Ohio that does turntable repair, and also sells repair parts. My one turntable works, but needs a new idler wheel. The other turntable does not work. I keep thinking of taking a road trip to Ohio and have them repair the thing - someday.

Joe

West-Tech Services - Phono Idlers, Drive Wheels & Turrets

 

[countryguy]

I don't really need the turntable to function as I have a component turntable connected to my stereo system. In fact I have been thinking about taking all the stereo guts out of the cabinet and just using it as a storage cabinet.

Gary

 

[chuffle]

The Zenith Molina...

...aka "the beast," isn't touch control. I did some internet research on this model, and if I remember correctly, the touch control came out in the early 1970s. Mine's a little more, ah, traditional.

 

[twintubdexter]

hey Joe...(chuffle)

Your Zeniths are really nice. That unit in your cozy TV room looks great but I would kill to get that one in your downstairs space. That console looks beautiful against those hardwood floors. That cabinet is very attractive too.

I passed up this Zenith that was on the San Diego Craigslist awhile back an I regret it. The cabinet style wouldn't fit in with my furniture but I've always wanted one of the Zeniths with the motorized pop-up reel to reel recorder...so very cool huh?

Joe 2

 

[chuffle]

Joe 2:

Oooohh - according to my literature, the model that you posted a picture of is "the Handel," and it sure is a beaut! It runs 68 1/8" wide, one inch wider than my console in the reception room.

If I had one extra room in my house, I'd snap that up in a heartbeat!

Thanks for sharing!

Joe 1

 

[whirlcool]

Ah, the famous Zenith "2G" tonearm! Zenith sure advertised the heck out of that. Weren't those changers made by VM?

The earlier Cobramatic changers tonearms were extremely heavy. I remember loaning a friend a few records of mine and he played them on his parents stereo that had a Cobramatic unit in it. The records came back a few days later totally worn out! The next time I was at his house, I looked at the tonearm and it had a tracking force equivalent to a desk top Western Electric telephone! The tracking force seemed to be in pounds rather than grams!

 

[chuffle]

To the best of my knowledge...

...which isn't all that great...

The turntable on "the beast" pictured above was made by Zenith, while the 2G turntables on the next tier of consoles was made for Zenith by VoM.

I could be venting hot air, but I'm "almost" sure that I read that info in a couple of places.

Joe

 

[paulg]

A bit of VM trivia

Actually fellas I don't think your Zenith changers are VM at all. I think yours are both Monarch.
Zenith engineered the 2g Microtouch tonearm and VM installed them on VM's changers for Zenith.
Along the way, one of the VM engineers defected and opened his own phonograph company, Monarch. Zenith bought some Monarch changers along the way.
The flip-up 45 RPM spindle is my signal that this is a Monarch changer.
You've got a great Zenith stereo. Not sensor-touch but be glad, those were buggers to fix. Yours will probably work forever.
I've forgotten about the pop-up open-reel unit. Although Zenith and VM were good friends, I actually think that open-reel was Wollensak (but I could be wrong about that).

 

[chuffle]

Paul...

That's an interesting twist to the info that has been in the back of my mind. I always find it fascinating, what one can learn from others here on the forum.

Thanks for your comments!

Joe

 

[twintubdexter]

don't know nothin bout no Zeniths...

...but that deck does look very Wollensak. I know that the reel recorder in my Magnavox is Panasonic. Don't cha all just love this Super forum?...everything from classic cars to Aunt Tillie's stuffed cabbage rolls...it's my favorite thing on the internet.

 

[whirlcool]

I think that was a Wollensak recorder in the photo above. I had the infamous Wollensak 5900 which you mounted on the wall and the recorder along with the two wooden speakers that came with it was about 7 feet wide.

Doesn't this look similar to the Zenith model?