Dynaco, the Legendary American Audio equipment company.

Gentle reader,

Despite the dramatic title, this is not going to be a history of the Dynaco company and it's products. But rather, a look back at my own history with it's products and the later products produced by the Panor Corporation in the 1990s.

The brand has been repurchased and products will be released. For more information, see this link:

World Premiere! Hands-On Review Of The Dynaco ST-70 And ST-1 -- HIGH END 2016 Munich Audiophile Show Report 

I joined a number of FaceBook vintage stereo groups and have been enjoying sharing my stuff and seeing others. I recently wrote about my original stereo that I first began assembling, (literally, from kits) in 1975. It can be seen here:

BACK to: My First Stereo 1976 Dynaco PAT-5 SWTPC Tiger 01  

I do not currently own any vintage Dynaco equipment. I keep bidding on A-25 speakers, but they go for more than I want to spend. Plus, since I found the Klipsch Kg4 speakers (for $10!) I doubt even the legendary A-25s could compare. The link about the Klipsch speakers, which is rapidly approaching the most-read post, see here:

32 Year-Old Klipsch KG4 speakers found for $9.99!

Above, admittedly not a real clear photo, from 2001 or so, is when I had finally bought THE legendary Dynaco Stereo 400 power amplifier. 200 clean watts-per-channel. I was so happy.  The Dynaco PAT-5 preamplifier is the very one I built way back in 1975. Note the aluminum face is not gold nor are the top and bottom edges beveled. Above it is a Dynaco FM-5 tuner. 

I built that cabinet from white walnut wood (the kind of walnut tree the edible walnuts grow on) that I purchased from my girlfriend's father. He helped me learn woodworking such as jointing and planing. Aside from the MDF pieces that the two uprights and the six (3 not shown) shelves are made of with solid walnut faces, the entire cabinet is solid walnut. When I made it, it had no metal in it at all. But over time, the top has come loose, so I added angle brackets to secure it.

This is a scan of a 4 by 6 film photograph made with my very first 35mm SLR in April, 1995. In it shows one of my A-25 speakers. The PAT-5 then drove the power amp portion of that large integrated amp. Not sure why I put the turntable underneath like that. I'd designed the cabinet to house stereo equipment on the six shelves and LPs on the bottom shelf. I never dreamed I would (now) own over 2000 LPs when I built the shelf.

These two photos clearly show the difference in the PAT-5's faceplate verses the FM-5 and Stereo 400.

I created this small shelf to allow a turntable to sit atop the Dynaco stack. Admittedly, it was probably not very level or square. But it served the purpose.

Here is another iteration. I have bought, used and sold SO many components over the decades and made so many changes, it can make my head spin. My wife just laughs when I tell her that I'm finished and completely happy with the system.

As you can see from this photo, it was before one of the kid's bedrooms became the den and later the listening room. The A-25s which I bought from Dixie HiFi in Richmond, Virginia as floor models are looking shabby. They sit atop what I later found out were speakers from the infamous "white van" fly-by-night speaker sellers.

For quite a while, the stereo was in the living room. I bought this rack and shelves to hold everything. As you can see, the only Dynaco left is the Stereo 400. Later, this rack rolled into the room I'm now sitting in.

At one point I bought this highly modified Stereo 120 power amplifier which had been converted to dual-mono status as can be better seen below. He added badly needed handles on each end because this thing was super heavy!

I also bought a Stereo 150. It was cosmetically a mess. I made a new front panel for it and mounted Radio Shack APM-100 meters to it. Not Kosher, but they added something to the plain front. I do not have photos of it.

Which brings me to the more recent PANOR Corporation components. While not made in America, they were designed here. When I heard about them, I asked for brochures and they sent me these:

When I saw the prices, I realized all that I would likely be able to afford was the Series II QD 1 which was a modern take on the classic Dynaquad passive surround sound device. Updated to add a center channel. They made several revisions, the last with proper three-way binding/banana terminals.

Not the neatest job, but I did convert it to three-way binding/banana terminals because I hate spring speaker terminals.

I was delighted when I came across on eBay a PANOR-era Stereo 200 power amplifier which I still use today and will keep forever. I even saw on eBay the Series II Stereo 400 for less than $200 but did not buy it because this 200 is more versatile.

These three photos are from a previous post when I first bought the ST-200. Showing the differences between it and the Kenwood THX power amp I was using then.

What I have been doing lately, when I see a PANOR-era component on eBay, is saving the seller's photos to a file. What I am hoping to achieve is a photographic record of all the PANOR-era components that I can find. I can't afford to buy them, but can at least see what they look like. Below are all the photos I currently have. I know these images were made by others and if you created the image(s) please let me know so that I can credit the photo(s) to you.

Obviously, this is a PANOR-era component ad/brochure photo. The man was selling his PAS-4 tube preamplifier.

Above and below is a seller's PAS-1 Series II.  

Nice complement of RCA in and out terminals, including a set for an external processor or equalizer such as the original PAT-5 has.

This tube Stereo-80 power amplifier is currently for sale on eBay by an owner in Greece. Here is the link, should you wish to see it or even better for you AND the seller, purchase it:

DYNACO STEREO 80 VAVUUM TUBE POWER AMPLIFIER FROM A LEGENDARY MANUFACTURE | eBay 

That is it for now, I may start saving photos from Google searches. I have seen PANOR-era PAT-6 tuner-preamplifiers on eBay, but they don't have enough inputs. My brochures showed a PAT-5 Series II, but I have never seen one for sale.

I once owned an odd A/V Dynaco branded integrated Amplifier. Here it is:

 As you can see, the logo is correct, but the number doesn't jive.

In my research, I discovered a PROTON amplifier with the same number, but in all black. I researched PROTON and learned a lot. They, as well as NAD were all made by the same company. I briefly had a Dynaco branded equalizer, of poor quality that hailed from the same place.

Finally, what I learned about PROTON made me decide to purchase some of their products. Their "Dynamic Power On Demand" circuitry works as advertised. To learn more, go here:

Details on the remarkable PROTON D540 Integrated amp's huge 530 watt power output. 

And to see one of their preamplifiers that I am now using with the Dynaco ST-200 power amp, go here: Scored a PROTON 1100 stereo preamplifier at last!

Thanks so much for looking at my humble blog.

Scott