Stromberg Carlson Television

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countryford

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Nov 28, 2006
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I just picked this up yesterday. I was going to Tucson to visit family and had seen this on craigslist. The woman had got it from her father when he recently passed away and didn't want it. She had been asking a high price for it, but since the post was about a month old, I offered her quite a bit less and she accepted. So when I went down to Tucson, I met her and picked it up. At first I wasn't sure what brand it was, until I seen on the front it said Stromberg Carlson. I had never seen a SC like this before. It has the manuals for it including a dealer brochere that shows the different models you could get. All of this paperwork is in Spanish. Also all the writing on the front and back of the TV is in Spanish as well. I think this set was made and sold in Mexico. I don't know a whole lot about SC except that they started off making phones and eventually started making radios and tv sets. I thought they had died off sometime in the 50's. I'm assuming this tv is anywhere from about 58 to 62. I'm just guessing at that since I don't know. Also this set is long it is 76 inches long. Its all tube tv and radio, and the radio also has shortwave. It needs a little work the top of the tv that lifts up to show the record player, the wood on it is seperating. It needs some work,but is still a nice piece.

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The radio. On the left just above the radio it says Stromberg Carlson and on the right just above the radio it says "Sonido-Estereofonico" I'm not sure what that means, but I'm sure someone on here knows Spanish and can translate.

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The top of the unit. As I said it is 6foot 4 inches long. HUGE!!! I just got it unloaded out of the van today. I took off the back and the thing is caked in dust. Looks like it hasn't been turned on since Moses was alive. Anyways I have not yet tested it, and am going to wait until I blow the dust out of it.
Also you can notice it is in my laundry room as there is the Bendix on the end and the Lady K set and the Frigidaire behind it.

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That certainly is a sight to behold isn't it as well as a conversation piece.   Almost if not gaudy looking with all the different materials and shapes going on in the front design as well as that highly polished woodwork . Nice one.  
 
That's a very interesting piece. It may have been made in Mexico, or for the Mexican market. I'm not sure when S-C stopped making televisions and radios. In the era that this set was made, S-C was owned by General Dynamics, which had some huge military contracts.

The S-C name was also sold to a company in South America which used it (and might still be using it) for TV's, radios, DVD players, etc. I don't know when that started, but there is a chance that your set could also be South American made. Maybe you will find some information inside the console somewhere as to where it was built.

Regardless, it sure is over the top with it's knobs, buttons, trim, etc. Very space age! I'm sure it cost quite a bit of money in its day. Those early Garrard record changers are usually pretty good.
 
Wow, an awesome console find! I don't know when Stromberg Carlson left the consumer radio/television market in the US, but often companies continued to market in Central/South America after a product/product line had been discontinued in the US. This is a beautiful console, it almost looks like the high end German models. And I am assuming 'stereophonic sound'!
 
When I first seen the ad for it, I thought it was a Grundig. I know that Grundig had some stereos that were bout the same wood style. It wasn't until I zoomed in on the picture, that I realized that it was a Stromberg Carlson.
 
Tanslation

Hi Justin, congratulations on your new stereo console, it looks impressive! How big are the larger speakers? If you want I could translate from Spanish into English any part of the console's manual, or the control panel. I won't be home next week but after that I'll have plenty of time.
Emilio
 
Thor: When I clean out the back I'll find out how big the speakers are. Also I appreciate your offer on translating, but my sister speaks spanish real well and she will be able to translate for me.
 
Indeed-that console Hi-FI set reminds me of Grundig and Telefunken sets.Can we get a shot of the back-the electronics-may further help in identification of the electronics.The unit is in EXCELLENT condition visibly.Are there "aux" inputs on it so you could plug in an external audio source-like a tape deck,CD player,or TV soundtrack?Like the styling of the set-very nice!!
 
Justin, my guess is the unit has 4 x 8" speakers, judging from the shadows on the fronth cloth... Let's wait and see..
 
That is an impressive piece!  It could very well be from 1962 even though the styling would indicate closer to 1958.  Back in those days it took a while for Mexico to catch up to the latest styling trends.
 
From the looks of the movies I've seen from Mexico, they were/are very stylish people, nothing cheap looking or gaudy. That new "Sonido-Estereofonico" is over the top delightful! Happy listening!!

I have an approximately 1955 Stromberg-Carlson hi-fi with AM-FM, four speed VM changer, and Rangoon Bamboo grillwork. It's hidden from two sets of cat claws right now. It's similar looking to the "Jubilee". I also have one corner cabinet Labyrinth speaker also made by S-C. It's hooked to a '57 Fisher 500 receiver when it's in service.

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I have scanned some of the paperwork to the computer and thought I'd go ahead and post them on here as well. The first one is a brochure that shows all the different models you could pick from. It has 18 different models.

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I took the back cover off, and besides being covered in at least an inch of dust, it appeared complete. The speakers are Stromberg Carlson 8 in speakers. There are 2 on each side for a total of 4 speakerks.
The model number of the tv is SG5-1 with the serial number of 156356.
The model number of the radio is RU7-4 with the serial number of 143830

Still haven't been able to find more about it as of yet.
 
The changer probably would have info floating about. A fast Google search turns up at least a page of hits for "Garrard AT6". (Note: above "Garrard" was spelled "Gerrard." The stylized name may look like is has an "E" but it's actually an "A".)

I have no idea how common the AT6 was, but Garrard was a huge maker of changers once.
 
Translation

Hi Justin, sorry to chime in so late, I was away for a week! Here's the translation you were wishing for:

Constellation II
TV COMBINATION MODEL SG5-1/RU-7/AY5-4

Dimensions: Lenght 1.93 cm (76"), Height 87 cm (34.25"), Depth 42 cm (16.53")

RU7-4 7 band Radio Chassis, selection by toggle switches, illuminated tridimensional cuadrant, rotary antenna and power transformer (TN: Mexico was 220V at the time), stereophonic sound. 16 Watts P-P power output per channel, de luxe AT6 Garrard automatic record-changer with 45 RPM adaptor. 4 x 20 cm (7.87") double cone extended range loudspeakers. Television with 53 cm (23") "Shell Bond" alluminized and tinted 114° screen cinescope , tropicalized chassis with 20 tubes plus diodes that work as 36 (2 silicon rectifiers and 7 germanium diodes), completely hand wired, new front controls plus super cascade tuner, with louver grill. Elegant cabinet finished in imported fine woods and steel plates. Polyester finish.

Enjoy!
Emilio
 
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