They Found A Broken Stereo Console On Trash Day...Let's Fix It!!

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Published 2022-11-11
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This console is in remarkably good condition! It even came with the original owner's manual which I show you in this video. However, when I plugged it in an took a listen, it was obvious that things weren't right. In this video I diagnose and repair this iconic piece of...furniture? And bring it back to its former glory!

All Comments (21)
  • @Earcandy73
    I have worked on so many Magnavox consoles. This one looks like a 1967 model. Magnavox did indeed place resistors on their aux inputs. Another trick up their sleeve sometimes was to place a blend resistor to reduce stereo separation of the phono input. This masked the noise on some records. I always removed that blend resistor to open up the soundstage.
  • The fact that it has an auxiliary tape input makes it so useful. Now you can plug a streamer or Bluetooth BluDento into it and blow peoples minds as you send music from your phone to this thing
  • Around 1967, my parents had a Magnavox much like this, but it also had a color TV in the center. One of the first color TV's on the block. If you weren't careful and left a vinyl record on top of the sliding cover, it would land on top of the CRT. I found my sisters missing Lesley Gore album in there. It was melted/warped from the heat. All the neighborhood kids came over to watch Batman in color. 🤗
  • @maxpower1911
    Wow, my grandma had one exactly like this in her house when I was growing up. The turntable was broken by the time I encountered it, but she still used the radio every day. It was a great old device, just as classy a piece of furniture as it was a functional piece of hifi equipment. She wiped it down in lemon Pledge every other week.
  • I am glad you got to this unit, it looked like an interesting project. You assistant Sadie was a bonus.
  • @kmath50
    I remember when these were very popular. The fact that the cabinet is still in good shape is a plus, along with having the AUX inputs.  When I was a teen, component systems started to take over, and console units lost their popularity. Thank you for saving this nice piece of history from the landfill.
  • @rwj777
    My grandparents had one of these in their house. The outside cabinet was slightly fancier , but it was a Magnavox just like the one that you have here. The tuner and record player was exactly the same as this one. I have fond memories of my little cousin and I hooking up my first portable CD player to this system through the aux jack. When we were ever home alone, we would have this system turned up all the way to the max, playing hip hop music through it and must say that it got pretty loud with very punchy bass, literally shaking the pictures on the wall...lol. The neighbors weren't very happy about that tho 🤣🤣🤣 Man those were the good ole days of my childhood. 🤗
  • @mpwiedemann
    I was able to get a huge 6 1/2 foot long RCA console free about 7 years ago. It's an absolute beast in the tone department and has the tape-in/aux-in port. I've got a bluetooth receiver hooked up to it. Deep, rich sound and the thing must weigh over 300 pounds. It's the one piece of furniture I'd muscle out the door if my house ever caught fire. I love that thing.
  • @terrym1065
    I have two cats and they're more qualified to work on electronics than I am😉 Replacing the capacitors might have been a good idea, you already had the board removed and there were relatively few. A little TLC on the cabinet and this will be a nice nostalgic piece of furniture. Thanks for the video, enjoy!
  • Hard to believe people throw away nice stuff!!you do nice work and pleasent to listen to you on your repairs !!
  • @loktaiextatus
    I have THIS EXACT unit. my mother (rest in peace) bought it brand new when she was young, one of the first "new" things she bought herself. The AUX is amazingly useful... been enjoying that for many years.
  • @RogerDonahue
    Several years ago I found the exact same model from magnavox. The cabinet was in stellar condition, but electronics and turntable not so much. Instead of repairing these I dropped in another turntable and a modern day car stereo unit. So now it it has am/fm, cd, Bluetooth, turntable and remote control. It lives in my dining room and is used almost daily.
  • @bones007able
    I picked one up off the curb but it was a bigger console , A magnavox imperial astro sonic ... I call it the aircraft carrier as it is a good 6 foot long , it also had the reel 2 reel built in... I restored it and it sits proudly in the family room , works great and is loud enough to have a block party with it...these are making a comeback due to the resurgence in vinyl...
  • @tomwesley7884
    Wow, your knowledge and interest in this revival is admirable. You proved that through a small effort, this unit is still useful and can still be enjoyed.
  • Just found you Youtube Channel. It is very wonderful to see a young man today with Electronic Discoveries & Repairs Restoring. When I was 11 going on 12 I got my Dream Job after school. From 3 to 5 p.m. I worked at Lyle's Zenith TV📺&📻Sales & Repair Shop. I had been taking apart Radio's & TV's since I was 6 going on 7 years old & put'n them back together again. I was 6' tall & Lyle needed to have a young man help him in Deliveries & Pick-Up repairs if not able to repair at the home, TV's & Radio's. Always carried in the Tube Box Case & Tube Tester Case & Scope that was a Circle Tube Light Up Screen used for Testing TV Sets. House Calls were $2.50 for B/W TV's & $2.00 for Radio's. Color TV's were $3.50 & Stereo Record Players & Radio Combo's were $3,00 dollars. When the TV/RADIO/Record Players came out omg Heavy As Ever, Lyle tried to do everything he could so we would not have to bring into the Shop. Many times was a Tube needing replaced. Selling the newest Zenith B/W & Color TV's & Radio's was always great. He kept models on Display but someone wanted to buy one it was sold. He had a Color Catalog a customer could look through. Lyle & his Wife were from Ohio & he worked for GM & turned his Garage into a TV & Radio Repair Shop he did on Weekends & Nights. Lyle retired from GM & they moved to Tavares, Florida & set up Store & Shop. The back room was every TV📺& Radio📻Lyle ever took in on Trade-In's on New Sales. It was like going through a Museum of every kind of Radio📻& TV📺ever made. I was in Toy Land for a kid would loved electronics. I worked there from 3 to 5p.m. weekdays & on Saturdays 1/2 Days. Lyle taught me everything about TV's & Radio's. He would take in any TV📺or Radio📻that needed repair. From 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. I would walk around the corner to the Local Drug Store & was a Soda Jerk & helped Doc in the Pharmacy count Pills💊for Prescription Orders. Did that 5 days a week & 1/2 days on Saturdays. Nothing was open on Sunday due to Blue Laws. Did both those jobs until I was 17 years old. Some years later Enlisted into the U.S.A.F. during Viet Nam & went into Missile 🚀Electronic Specialist. My number was low but I wanted to serve my Country. I gave Lyle so much credit for all the years of Mentoring me God Bless him. Lyle passed years later & the Shop was torn down by developers. Like most of Florida what was in no more around. It was a great place to grow up in the 60's & mid 70's but would never want to go back or live there again. Figure the whole state will be under water one day & the storms will take away a good chuck of Homes & Businesses before it becomes once was a state.
  • @JohnnyJTav
    Same exact one my Mother had bought back early 60's. The Good Old Days.
  • I love old consoles, I have a Magnavox 151B I bought in the mid 90's to use as a plant stand. I took good care of it, kept it out of the sun and never let water touch it. I think it is from 1946-47, hope to get savy enough to refurbish it myself. Great video, thanks for sharing this one!
  • the fact that it has the manual with it too!?!? Amazing.
  • @CCliffGeiger
    I loved the whole thing! I'm 55 years old, but seeing that took me down memory lane! My Grandparents had something similar to what you got and I would spend hours listening to it! Please show us more, when you have the time to!
  • @kenRBoyle
    Lol...I worked for a Magnavox dealer in the 70's and delivered a boatload of these units. The units with stereo and TV were huge and heavy. Brings back memories.