20-25 years ago Japanese manufacturers went on some bizarre, space-age trip. They started manufacturing weird-looking, plastic endowed speakers modelled on the Star Ship Enterprise. In 2023, they're just plain hideous!
Bought these for £8.
And I literally pulled a pair of Sony midi hi-fi speakers from a dumpster. The bass drivers were shot but tweeters functioned ok.
I wanted to make something that I could set up outside for barbeques etc. Something that cost nothing. Something that I wouldn't cry about if it got wet in a shower or if burger sauce got dripped on it.
Voila!
It's far from finished but I'm shocked at how good this sounds outside. I'm having a small problem with the sub grille (rattles) but that will be cured when I can get hold of router. I also suspect the Bluetooth TPA3116D2 will object to 3ohms on the mono channel at some point.
My total cost including Bluetooth amp and laptop brick will be less than £30.
Thoughts?
Bought these for £8.
And I literally pulled a pair of Sony midi hi-fi speakers from a dumpster. The bass drivers were shot but tweeters functioned ok.
I wanted to make something that I could set up outside for barbeques etc. Something that cost nothing. Something that I wouldn't cry about if it got wet in a shower or if burger sauce got dripped on it.
Voila!
It's far from finished but I'm shocked at how good this sounds outside. I'm having a small problem with the sub grille (rattles) but that will be cured when I can get hold of router. I also suspect the Bluetooth TPA3116D2 will object to 3ohms on the mono channel at some point.
My total cost including Bluetooth amp and laptop brick will be less than £30.
Thoughts?
more - from Audiokarma
another, Sony SS-CPX22
https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/ok-im-pissed-now-these-speakers-s.633314/
another, Sony SS-CPX22
https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/ok-im-pissed-now-these-speakers-s.633314/
Last edited:
Those Sony(s) are decent ones, a friend of mine still has them, fully functional. Another such brand is Philips, usually known for good quality electronics (tfr, amp, tuner etc.) besides the speakers themselves.
https://www.subito.it/audio-video/stereo-philips-fw-326-napoli-487996439.htm
https://www.subito.it/audio-video/stereo-philips-fw-326-napoli-487996439.htm
PMPO comes straight from the 90s and doesn't really mean anything. 25W RMS is more like 10W in actual practice. These are 'mini systems', suitable for spare parts / salvage or a foundation for modifications.
If you need something for casual listening purposes, then look for the 'midi systems', maybe about 50W-100W RMS.
If you need something for casual listening purposes, then look for the 'midi systems', maybe about 50W-100W RMS.
AN 7125 /7161 Panasonic chip amps were found in those Philips sets, with weird PMPO figures, mostly minimum 20 WRMS / 8E per channel, up to 23 expected (IIRC).
Another had uPC 1238 (NEC), those were basically TDA 2030 equivalents, similar output, marked 400 W PMPO.
In my book, PMPO is 4 x WRMS / channel, but we had Sony, Panasonic, Aiwa, Akai, Pioneer and others all pulling the same whacked out stunt.
I find them for about $2 in flea markets, in working condition.
The linear supply transformer is itself $10-15 if bought new, and the component quality in those Philips sets was terrific, I use them at home and work to play mp3 files off my computer.
Sony and Philips speakers also may be found cheap, repair is also easy.
Another had uPC 1238 (NEC), those were basically TDA 2030 equivalents, similar output, marked 400 W PMPO.
In my book, PMPO is 4 x WRMS / channel, but we had Sony, Panasonic, Aiwa, Akai, Pioneer and others all pulling the same whacked out stunt.
I find them for about $2 in flea markets, in working condition.
The linear supply transformer is itself $10-15 if bought new, and the component quality in those Philips sets was terrific, I use them at home and work to play mp3 files off my computer.
Sony and Philips speakers also may be found cheap, repair is also easy.
more - from Audiokarma
another, Sony SS-CPX22
https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/ok-im-pissed-now-these-speakers-s.633314/
View attachment 1218717
I agree Sony speakers of that era are the best road-kill ever. I have a pair of CPX22s on my desktop. I believe they have Kevlar woofers.
Living in Europe at the time, I found alot of nice stuff in dumpsters as a kid. I pulled alot of TDA amp modules and decent speakers from large TV sets to make powered speakers from. Some of those TV speakers were very nice. People tossed them once the picture tube was shot, so they were fairly plentiful. I came across alot of ITT and Philips drivers, some of which were better sounding and more powerful than your average stereo speakers had in them. I remember the best drivers were in Saba, Grundig and Philips TVs, which also had pretty powerful amps in them, including the transformers and power supplies needed to run them. Old gear was a goldmine if you knew what you were dealing with. Fun times...
Those all in one music system contraptions from the plastic 90s give my a bad case of deja vu and nightmares. I used to repair them in the those days, specifically the Aiwa brand, which were infamous for jammed up CD changer trays, bad Sony KSS213 laser pickups and spindle motors. Problem was nobody wanted to spend the money on OEM laser pickups, so we had to use the cheaper generic ones that didn't last long. So glad those days are over, not having to listen to angry customers who were too cheap to pay for original parts. We ended up with alot of speakers from the units people abandoned after not wanting to have them repaired. We couldn't give them away.
There are a few decent mini systems out there. Unfortunately the speakers are usually made from plastic or very thin particle board. I used to recommend buying better speakers to anyone who had these systems. There were some decent, cheap 3 way Yamaha bookshelfs available for about $200 a pair back then and they made a massive difference. Then they started adding more amplifier channels into these systems for bi-amping the extra woofers they put in each speaker and didnt cross them over properly. They sounded so boomy and tubby, but the kids loved them because they were cheap and loud. Some even had mic inputs for karaoke and a bunch of colorful blinking lights... the demo mode was turned on by default, so most people didn't bother to disable it and set the time on them. This wasn't something a fairly educated music listener would want to buy, but it eventually became the only option for people who didn't want a rack full of separates. Sad...
Those all in one music system contraptions from the plastic 90s give my a bad case of deja vu and nightmares. I used to repair them in the those days, specifically the Aiwa brand, which were infamous for jammed up CD changer trays, bad Sony KSS213 laser pickups and spindle motors. Problem was nobody wanted to spend the money on OEM laser pickups, so we had to use the cheaper generic ones that didn't last long. So glad those days are over, not having to listen to angry customers who were too cheap to pay for original parts. We ended up with alot of speakers from the units people abandoned after not wanting to have them repaired. We couldn't give them away.
There are a few decent mini systems out there. Unfortunately the speakers are usually made from plastic or very thin particle board. I used to recommend buying better speakers to anyone who had these systems. There were some decent, cheap 3 way Yamaha bookshelfs available for about $200 a pair back then and they made a massive difference. Then they started adding more amplifier channels into these systems for bi-amping the extra woofers they put in each speaker and didnt cross them over properly. They sounded so boomy and tubby, but the kids loved them because they were cheap and loud. Some even had mic inputs for karaoke and a bunch of colorful blinking lights... the demo mode was turned on by default, so most people didn't bother to disable it and set the time on them. This wasn't something a fairly educated music listener would want to buy, but it eventually became the only option for people who didn't want a rack full of separates. Sad...
