Retro Technologies that Still Work Fine

 No Need to Buy New Tech when These Old Tech Meet Your Needs

Once upon a time, I paid over $3000 for a 486 computer. I also paid $900 for a stereo. I'm not alone. Lots of people have jumped on the technology bandwagon only to see their purchases eclipsed by ever changing and improving technologies. We don't need to discuss the advance of television and film content on beta tapes, then VHS tapes, then laser discs, then DVDs, and now Blu-Ray discs. Once you've been burned a few times, you become a little more reluctant to part with your cold hard cash.
After awhile, many people simply realize that there is no reason to be an early adopter or even an adopter of the latest technologies. At least, not just for the sake of being able to claim the latest and greatest. Ultimately, it's the ideas that make it into the documents you create, the content of the movie you watch, the beauty of the photograph you take, and the message and melodies in the music you hear that counts. The technology is just an infrastructure platform for delivering or creating content. Before you adopt a new technology, you should consider whether you would really benefit from the new capabilities of that new gadget. You should also consider whether your old gadgets still meet your needs.

With that in mind, here are three retro technologies that still work just fine:

1. The Phonograph. While the compact disc and MP3 file have lured many listeners away with convenience and portability, many audiophiles and music enthusiasts have returned to the vinyl record. They believe that music is best captured through analog media instead of being converted to a series of ones and zeroes and being recorded digitally. They also refuse to give up sound quality for the file compression that saves drive space. Plus, they like the art on full-sized album covers. Thomas Edison's invention has been around since 1877 and it's not going away any time soon. Amazon.com features hundreds of turntables.

2. The Revolver. The essentials of modern firearms and ammunition have been the stable for at least one hundred years. While the 1911 Colt .45 is still the standard by which semi-automatic pistols are judged, the revolver designs they replaced are still going strong. When you are in an adrenaline-charged, life threatening, situation, the simplicity of a revolver can't be beat. When the chips are down, you don't need a safety, a laser, an accessory rail, an on-board computer, or a polymer frame, you need a firearm that will go bang when you pull the trigger and allow you to hit a human-sized target that is probably less than thirty feet away. Revolvers have real advantages in reliability and ease of use. If you want simple target shooting and home defense, you can't go wrong with a Smith & Wesson Model 10 or Taurus Model 82.

3. The Sail. In this era of sustainability, you can't beat the sail for propulsion at sea. The wind is still and has always been free. If you want to go on an adventure and cross an ocean, you'll need to hoist a sail and leave the power boaters at the docks with their gold chains, cigars, and trophy wives. If Joshua Slocum could circle the globe, so can you. But, you must respect the sea. You'll want a stout, full-keel, sail boat of at least thirty feet in length before sailing the ocean blue. Something like the Pacific Seacraft 40 would be perfect.

When it comes to technology, see beyond the trends and consider what works best for you.

An Old School Laptop - the Hermes Baby Typewriter

Today, we are accustomed to Apple being the dominant company in terms of industrial design. Products like the iPod, iPhone, and iPad are sleek and nearly perfect in terms of design simplicity and ergonomics. But, great design and portability have been shown by other companies in other eras. 

In my closet, I have a typewriter that looks like an Apple product.  It's a Swiss-made Hermes Baby typewriter.  It's a product of the 1940s with a sleek, low profile, design and perfect portability.

Hermes Baby typewriter

 The Hermes Baby was the lightest typewriter of its era.  According to the "History of Hermes Typewriters" on vintagetypewriterjewelry.com It was reputed to be the preferred typewriter of great writers like Ernest Hemingway and John Steinbeck.  Even today, some modern writers prefer to use this typewriter.

The keys in this Hermes Baby typewriter look like spectators around an arena.

I enjoy the lightweight and precision look of my Hermes typewriter.  It's just plain cool and easy to type on.  Of course, in this era of computers and whisper quiet printers, a typewriter is just a tad loud.  Even though the era of the typewriter has passed, this timeless design lives on.

Up Close with the Hermes

If you need a typewriter ribbon for an Hermes typewriter, this one should work:

Introducing my Dirt Cheap Audio Blog

As my interests in various retro technologies evolve, I've found myself writing more and more about old stereo stuff than other retro stuff on this blog. I like to keep this blog eclectic, but sometimes I have to follow my passions. Thus, I've created a new blog called Dirt Cheap Audio Blog.

This new blog will be entirely dedicated to inexpensive audio equipment like vintage stereos, compact stereos, radios, and the like. It will be a mix of thrift store finds, ebay finds, and good deals in consumer electronics. In the new blog, I'll focus more on the evolution of a 2 channel stereo than anything else.

The new blog will free up this blog to re-focus back on a mix of retro goodness!

Expanding and Improving Your Dirt Cheap Stereo

Completing a dirt cheap retro stereo isn't the end of a project.  It's actually the beginning of a platform that can grow and expand to meet your household's music needs.  Once I put my stereo together, I started thinking more deeply about how the components were working and what additions and improvements I would like to make.

Retro Stereo - Vintage Technics + New Insignia CD Changer

If you are building your own dirt cheap stereo, here are some thoughts about how you can improve it:


One sensible addition, might be a modern CD changer. It can protect your valued CD collection from scratches and breakage in a stubborn old CD player.


Since vinyl has been making a strong comeback and vintage turntables are getting expensive, you may just want to buy a new turntable.


As for me, I ended up buying a sensibly priced new CD changer and playing with different inexpensive thrift store speaker combinations.

Building the Retro Stereo

When I first graduated from college, got a job, and moved out into the world, one of my first purchases was a component stereo system.  In the early 90s, I built a system with all Technics components and I worked my way up from bookshelf speakers to DCM Timeframe Speakers.  It was a slick stereo system.  However, after a seven or eight years, I donated it to charity prior because we were moving around a bit.  Lately I've been missing that old stereo.


 

Fortunately, I've been able to rebuild much of my old system on the cheap.  But, 20 years later, my stereo is even cooler because it is retro!  Here is a picture of my "new" retro system:

Technics & Sony Thrift Store Stereo

  Over a few thrift store runs, I was able to get these components at these prices:
Technics Stereo Amplifier  SU-V76                                    $12.91
Technics Quartz Synthesizer Stereo Tuner ST-S76         $8.98 
Sharp 40W Stereo Speakers                                                  $6.96 
Sony CDP-C235 5 Disc CD Changer                                     $25.91
Technics RS-T16 Stereo Double Cassette Deck               $15.91
                                                                                                  -------------
Total                                                                                            $70.61

My initial purchases to get going were less than $40.

How I Built a Component Stereo for $40 

I'm running it with some old Bose speakers that have been in a closet for about 10 years and they sound great.  Free is also a great price for Bose speakers.

Of course, a thrifty stereo is not without problems.  The Sony CD player is a little clunky and has skipped on a few CDs.  Of course, it was made in 1993 and is twenty years old!  Twenty years old and still running!  However, I may have to get a new one just to protect our CD collection from scratches and other issues. I also need to get some more stereo wires to get everything running at once. 

Right now, I'm just glad to have a sweet sounding base stereo system that I can expand an build on!  It's cool to bring music back to our home with a good receiver and good speakers.

How to Connect Your Tablet, Computer, or MP3 Player to An Old Stereo

Over the past few years, many wonderful old stereo systems have been discarded in favor of more personal music players.  The Smart Phone and the MP3 Player have largely supplanted entire stereo systems.  People didn't think that old stereos and new technology could work together.  But, they can and it's not complicated at all!



Here's how you can connect your Tablet, Computer, or MP3 Player to an old stereo system:

How to Stream Music Through an Old Stereo System

But, you don't really have to read my article.  For most old stereos, all you need is a cable with a mini 3.5mm Stereo Male plug to an RCA Male plug.  You plug the mini stereo plug into the headphone jack of your device and the RCA male plugs into your stereo system.  It's super easy.  Click here to order the cable you need:

Retro Technologies Work Just Fine

Who says you have to have the latest and greatest?  Marketers and advertisers that who!  If your old-fangled technologies work well for you, there is no reason to adopt expensive new technologies just to keep up with the neighbors.  In fact, old technologies often work just as well and more economically than some of the latest gadgets.

For example, how retro is the canoe?


Here are some more good examples:

Retro Technologies that Still Work Fine