Favourite items of test equipment through the years?

[the record spot]

The magazine must have gone through oodles of tasty hifi gear of all shapes and sizes over the years, are there any favourites for the various reviewers and contributors (old and new!) that stick out? Not necessarily high end either, but just something that made it stand out from the rest of the pack.

 

[SouthaK]

I remember in the bad/good old days (delete as appropriate) a review in the old ten-to-end section at the back of the magazine of a portable LP player. The player used to "clamp" around the LP.

I can't even conceive of a situation where someone could convince themselves it would have been commercially viable, and to this day I am sure it was a bad joke!

 

[Andrew Everard]

It was real - the Audio-Technica SoundBurger

 

[John Duncan]

That's kind of cool. Shows almost Apple-like prescience as well (except for the colour).

 

[Andrew Everard]

JohnDuncan:That's kind of cool.

Whereas this...

 

[John Duncan]

A van that does to records what vanman does to plasmas.

 

[Andrew Everard]

Indeed - originally invented by a member of Sony's staff who was not only very senior in the development of CD and SACD, but also ran the Japanese VW Microbus enthusiasts' club.

He's now retired and a freelance journalist for a Japanese luxury goods magazine, and was recently in the UK to visit the company where my wife works, much to their mutual surprise.

 

[John Duncan]

In the hope that all the world's vinyl would be ruined, and we'd convert to SACD, no doubt.

 

[Andrew Everard]

I think it long predates SACD. AFAIK it actually predates CD, too, having been launched sometime in the 1970s IIRC.

But if you have any records you still want to wreck, there are some replica versions now being made - this gold one is particularly blingtastic

 

[Thaiman]

Favourite reviews? Ultimate guide 2004...."Sugden - Ear - ProAc" system which sound just like the ink said, very accurate indeed.

 

[John Duncan]

Actually my favourite ever review was on Pebble Mill in about 1981, when they smeared jam all over a CD and put it in the player. I strongly suspect the resultant music would now attract the attention of Ofcom.

 

[fr0g]

JohnDuncan:Actually my favourite ever review was on Pebble Mill in about 1981, when they smeared jam all over a CD and put it in the player. I strongly suspect the resultant music would now attract the attention of Ofcom.

Wasn't that Tomorrows world?

 

[John Duncan]

They might have done it as well, but the Pebble Mill one stuck in my mind - can't remember the name of the bloke who used to present it (looked like Archie McPherson but wasn't).

Edit - Donny MacLeod (Archie McPherson was close) was the one with the jam.

 

[fr0g]

Anyway my favourite was probably the Sennheiser Orpheus headphones. (I think it was WHF).

A definite buy with a lottery win in my case (and would be plugged into a laptop!!!)