Apr 5th, 2012 Posted in Panasonic, SG-J500 | No Comments »
I've posted about the Panasonic SG-J555 before so I thought I'd mention the Panasonic SG-J500 here. The SG-J500 was produced in 1984 and, like the SG-J555, featured an expandable tray with a turntable. You just push the button on the front and out pops the turntable. The box was also branded as National. The main difference between the SG-J500 and the SG-J555 is that the SG-J555 has what Panasonic called "Ambience" which is essentially a sound expander. The SG-J555 also had some minor aesthetic changes but really both units are very similar. The turntable can run at both 33 and 45 speeds. It also came with an optional car adapter cable, part Panasonic RP-952, that allowed you to power the unit through your cars cigarette lighter.
The unit was powered by either 100 AC or D cell batteries. It weighs approximately 11 pounds and measures 15.5 x 10.5 x 8.5 inches. Obviously it's a little deeper then most boomboxes because of the turntable.
The Panasonic SG-J500 is a pretty popular boombox. Not just among collectors but also among retro fanatics that want a unique conversation piece. The retractable turntable gives them just that. These boxes will sell anywhere from $80.00 in below average condition all the way up to $250.00 in mint working condition.
Tags: Panasonic, Panasonic SG-J500
Oct 24th, 2011 Posted in Panasonic, SG-J555 | 3 Comments »
Panasonic made a few boomboxes that incorporated turntables in the design. This particular boombox is the Panasonic SG-J555. Panasonic called it the Ambience Stereo Music System which definitely sounds impressive though the word Ambience sounds a little passive for a boombox. In reality the Ambience feature was similar to a tone switch or Loudness boost (though it had a Loudness button as well) which would emphasize the mid range frequencies to give the music a fuller sound. This was accomplished by turning the Ambience switch on or off. The more common Panasonic SG-J500 looks very similar to the SG-J555 but does not have the Ambience switch.
The SG-J555 had a single auto-stop cassette deck player / recorder but was really known for its retractable, belt drive, two speed turntable. It could play both 33 rpm and 45 rpm records and was fully manual. It also has AM and FM.
The Panasonic SG-J555 was switchable between 22v and 110v and could also run on 8 D cell batteries. It also came in a gray version as opposed to the black version shown here and was made by the Matsushita Co. in Japan. It put out 15 watts per channel. While boomboxes that incorporate turntables are highly collectible this particular box doesn't fetch much on the auction market. Possibly because of its dull design or lower quality construction. Nonetheless a Panasonic SG-J555 in very good working condition recently sold for $122.00 (10-8-2011). The SG-J500 is more common and sells from about $40.00 up to $100.00.
Tags: Panasonic, Panasonic SG-J500, Panasonic SG-J555
Jun 6th, 2011 Posted in Panasonic, RX-5150 | 2 Comments »
Introduced in 1982 this is the Panasonic RX-5150 also known as the Disco 50. It had a fairly standard boombox design with some nice chrome trim rings around the speaker grills and weighed in at around 13 pounds so it wasn't an exceptionally large boombox. It had a list price of $249.95. It featured:
- Two 6 1/2 inch woofers and two 1 1/4 inch tweeters
- Soft Touch Controls
- Ambience Stereo
- 7 Stage LED Meter
- Rewind Auto-Play
- Tape Program Sensor (TPS)
- Dual Voltage
- Loudness
The Panasonic RX-5150 was also featured in the 1982 movie The Thing by John Carpenter. The character "Nauls" was always skating around on roller skates and listening to his RX-5150 with the volume too high. A definite influence from the urban disco era.
Tags: Disco 50, Panasonic, Panasonic RX-5150
May 17th, 2011 Posted in Panasonic, RX-5080 | 1 Comment »
This boombox is the Panasonic RX-5080. It's a mid-80's mid-sized boombox with a single cassette. It did however have a two color LED meter and what Panasonic called "Ambience Stereo Sound". It originally retailed for about $220.00
The RX-5080's dimensions are 21 x 10.5 x 7 inches and it weighs in at around 13 pounds. It has features such as Dolby noise reduction, soft-touch controls, a two way four speaker system and continuous tape control.
Recently a Panasonic RX-5080 in good working condition sold for $160.00 (5-4-2011) while another in working condition but with some wear sold for $108.00 (5-4-2011).
Tags: Panasonic, Panasonic RX-5080
