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You're viewing Page Two of our Boombox Birth section of the
Boombox Museum. Click here to
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From the 12" single "Get Up and Boogie" singer Freddie James
is all smiles in the photo on the back cover, probably because
he's carrying that sweet '79 Panasonic. There's no cassette
loaded and the antenna's down...he must be listening to AM.
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Aiwa claims to have manufactured the very first boombox in
1977, the TPR-810. We're not accepting nor disputing that at this
point, but the Marantz system on the previous page was pulled
from a 1976 ad. Pictured above is the TPR-801, released in 1978.
It's a sharp-looking machine, with twin meters, 3-band radio and
minimalist front. Check out those slim mode switches above the
tuner portion.
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Jay found this late '70s Sanyo at a consignment shop up in
Maine for $15. Price was right, this thing looks like it was
barely used! Simple, no-frills model from Sanyo, but unlike
today's Sanyo, this component is actually well-made and built to
last.
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Hector Amezquita in Mexico City proudly displays a "holy grail" in the boombox world,
a JVC RC-838 (this one's actually an RC-838JW, the JW is code for
an optional voltage control). Released in 1978, it was dubbed the
Biphonic system and looks remarkably ahead of its time.
It's completely packed with functions: jacks for remote, auxilary
equipment, headphones; beat match; "binaural" eqalizer, LEDs for
expand/stereo mode; 6-band radio (4 SW/AM/FM) and two antennas.
Thanks Hector!
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An artist's rendition of the "on-the-go" stereo enthusiast in
1978. No, really, they were all disco fans back then.
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Released the same year as the 801, the TPR-850 lacked some of
the functionality, but is still nice. We haven't found any
indication that Aiwa boomboxes made it to the US until 1980 or
1981.
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Even discount brands like Yorx jumped into the
"stereo-on-the-go" market early on. But at first glance, this
doesn't look very cheap, does it? Black with silver trim,
illuminated meters, LED on the tuner, balance and tone control...
this model was inexpensive by 1979 boomobx standards at $119. How
ironic that such a price tag in 2002 would be considered high for
a portable stereo.
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Paul grabbed this Aimor at a Virginia flea market for $40.
It's an oddity from the late '70s--portable stereo with
detachable speakers, multi-band radio and cassette deck. There's
an FM stereo LED, metal knobs to control tone, balance and
volume. This sucker is heavy and is a grayish green in color--a
real boat anchor as far as boomboes go. Never heard of Aimor, but
it was made in Japan and is of pretty decent quality.
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