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 

Vintage and LARGE Mitsubishi Dual-Mono stereo compents: DA-A15DC, DA-P20, DA-F10 & DA-M10

Gentle reader,

I have been very fortunate in my lifetime, thanks to my deciding to collect cameras back in the early 1990's set me on a fun course which also enabled me to make some money. How? eBay. I had subscribed to Shutterbug magazine as well as Popular Photography. One issue of Shutterbug, which was much larger than most magazines, I turned a page and there was a photo of an old camera in the center of the page with one word below it: eBay. At the very bottom of the page was their web address and that it was an auction site.

So, I joined eBay and began the hobby of buying things at various places, cleaning and fixing them up and selling them on eBay. As time went by I continued to do so, plowing the money from sales into buying more stuff. Enjoying it for a while then selling it and buying something else. The cycle continued for years. I was able to buy things then for small fractions of what they are selling for now, because I was an early adopter of eBay.

Without further ado, I present the rare and spectacularly large Mitsubishi Dual Audio line of Audiophile components.

Impressive, aren't they? But wait, there is far more. When I get into stuff, I buy information on them too, such as these brochures:

As a result, I learn a great amount about these objects, whatever they may be. And if people ask specifics about them, I can rattle off specs and things. I have the sales brochures for most of the cars that I once owned, for an example.

Let's start with the massive dual-mono power amplifier the DA-A15DC. Produced from 1979 to 1980, it retailed for $700. Which is $2,510 in today's money. 150 clean watts-per-channel. Being dual-mono, the two channels are completely separate so cross talk is eliminated and if one channel has a higher load, such as a lot of bass, it has it's own power supply.

The meters you see are optional. The amp itself is all black. While the meters bolt to the amp, they do not electrically couple. One runs RCA cables from the preamplifier, through the meters and to the power amplifier.

This series of photos shows how they couple together. An believe me, those handles are necessary, they combine into one seriously heavy beast!

The power amp, as I said is a free standing unit. It is massively overbuilt which is essential for the incredible specifications and clean, clear sound it provides.

Obviously, these components came to me used. Many areas are difficult to reach to clean. But then I bought them for clean sound!

Serious heat sinks abound. Next are photos of the DA-M10 power meters. Made from 1978 to 1979, they retailed for a measly $170. Which is $710 today. No longer measly.

I did not take a photo of the side of the meter, so thanks to a Google search, here is one, thanks to Classicaudio.com:

Now, for the preamplifier, of which one had a couple of choices in this series. I chose the DA-P20. Also made from 1979 to 1980, they retailed for $430. Which is $1,542 in today's money.

Owners of classic aluminum faced audio equipment quickly learn how tricky it can be to make photographs of them due to their extreme reflect-ability.

As you can see by these two side views, the preamp can be bolted directly to the power amp to make the largest and probably heaviest "integrated" amplifier of all time!

Because of the design, the rear is plain. Very clever those Mitsubishi audio engineers.

I do not have individual photos of the DA-F10 Tuner. It was made from 1977 to 1979. It retailed for $300. Which is $1,256 in today's money. Not chump change. No sir.

Mitsubishi made another set of meters called DA-M30, from 1980 to 1984. Other preamplifiers in the line are: DA-P10 and DA-P30. The former made from 1979 to 1980 and the latter from 1980 to 1984. Power amplifier choices are: DA-A07DC, DA-A10,  DA-A10DC, DA-A15 and DA-A30. I have not researched these other ones to confirm they are all in this line. But the numbers work. FIVE Tuner options included two that are Preamplifier-Tuner combinations, as well as three tuners. Besides my DA-F10, there was DA-C7 and DA-C20 which are the combo units. The other tuners are DA-F20 and DA-F30. Years of production for these five are: 1979 throught 1982. Retail prices ranged from $360 to $490 a piece.

If you saw my previous post about the tiny AIWA components which are about as opposite as they can be from these massive beasts. Here is a link to that post:
TINY Vintage AIWA Stereo Components: SA-C22U, SA-P22U, ST-R22U & SD-L22U

BONUS!

Here are photos of later and quite a bit smaller Mitsubishi components that were designed to work together: They too were labeled "DA", but I doubt they are  dual-mono. The Integrated amplifier is a DA-U41P, the stereo Tuner is DA-F41P and the stereo Cassette deck is DT-41P. There is no information in my Orion Audio Blue Book on these components. They are about 14 inches wide, if memory serves.

Here are some clearer photos of them. If you look at the amplifier, it had preset tone changes which would illuminate when one chose them on the graph below the Volume Indicator. Also, when one selected a component with the amp, each symbol would also light up.

I bought inexpensive short RCA cables and mono 1/8" (3mm) cables to connect them all. You can see with the front panel on the amp open the three preset tone settings. I'm not sure what the use of "Preset Volume" would be. 

As far as size goes, these are considered "Midi" components. Around fourteen inches wide. They were designed to have cables connecting them all together. See the "Auto Selector" below:

The photo below shows them all wired together with stereo RCA music cables and separate 1/8" or 3mm mono cables which carry the signal between components. One selects a components with the "Selector" buttons on the integrated amp at the top of the stack. That sends a signal that turns on that components as well as switching to the audio signals from that unit. Clever. Other companies have done that too, but these were the first I owned that I hooked all together.

I used them for quite a while with a nice Garrard turntable that was capable of playing 78 RPM records. Which after a time, I became un-enchanted with. I ended up re-donating theses components and all the 78s too. Below is when they were being used some years ago. I wasn't using the cassette deck, though. My, I have gone through SO many audio changes!

Mitsubishi was far from the only company that used the little mono cables to connect all the components together. It's a nice feature from before remotes and systems got sophisticated enough to enable one to switch between components without getting out of their chair.

Thanks for looking,

Scott

 

TINY Vintage AIWA Stereo Components: SA-C22U, SA-P22U, ST-R22U & SD-L22U

Gentle reader,

Where once I thought nothing about FaceBook, couldn't understand why or how anyone could possibly spend so much time looking at what OTHER people were showing what they had for lunch and their selfies and all that nonsense.

Here's the story: My wife joined FaceBook years ago to, "See what our kids are up to." And you probably already know that they, like many, many younger people put absolutely e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g they did, saw or thought about on FaceBook.

So, in time I too joined a while after she did, you know  to "See what our kids are up to." And see, I did. Well, thanks to FaceBook, I've been able to hook up, from a distance, with people I hadn't seen in years. And in the case of a girl I knew fifty-some years ago, she tracked me down. How weird it was to come home to a message on the answering machine, don't judge, we still have a landline, from a woman I had last seen in second grade in 1966!

Well, I started joining all these groups and the number of groups kept climbing. I finally decided to just join a select number of groups that are interested in stereo and audio equipment. The rest I unfollowed.

So, back to the title of this, my 192nd post: TINY Vintage AIWA Stereo Components: SA-C22U, SA-P22U, ST-R22U & SD-L22U.

I was looking through my list of posts and saw nothing about these tiny components that I spied at my barber's in his back room. That tells you how long ago it was. Not enough hair left to need a barber now!

They are nice and clean now, that barber was in his seventies then and a lifelong smoker. They were a mess! Below shows a now clean cassette deck and the rest still filthy.

They were all in this wooden case that Aiwa made for them. And the entire thing was quite heavy! They all have tiny handles on them, just like real rack-mountable equipment!

As you can see, they are, top-to-bottom: Tuner, Preamplifier, Cassette deck and Power Amplifier. All tiny.
Below is the rear view of them all still dirty. I found these "before" photos the day after writing this blog post.

Above is a closer before and after shot. 

Those little cars are Hot Wheels and their ilk. Nominally they are all 1/64th scale. In fact, they vary all around that scale. But I digress. Getting the picture? These components like 1/4th the normal size ones. 

You remember when one could actually replace their stock car stereo with an aftermarket unit? That is about the size of these things. What are referred in car audio as: DIN.
First photo above is the tuner. ST-R22U is the model number. Made from 1980 to 1985. Retail price was $200. That's $630 in today's money. For a tiny little thing! Below is the rear with standard AM antenna and terminals for external antenna plus the left/right RCA out plugs.

Next in the stack is the SA-C22U preamplifier: SA-C22U. Made from 1979 to 1983. Retailed for $140. Which is $502 in today's money.

ISN'T that such a pretty little thing? All the controls one could wish for are there. You can even hook a turntable up to it.

The rear has four pairs of RCA left/right inputs plus tape in and out and the output to the power amplifier. 

Next is the SD-L22U cassette deck. This is the only one I could not get to work. Incredibly crowded inside that case. Made from 1979 to 1982 and retailed for $260. Which is $933 in today's money. For a cassette deck!

Aside from the standard RCA left/right inputs and outputs, there are also microphone inputs.

And now, the heaviest unit, the SA-P22U power amplifier. It was made from 1979 to 1983 and retailed for $210. Which is $753 in today's money. All told, in today's money you'd be spending over $2,500 for this kit!

It puts out 30 watts-per-channel and could supply up to four speakers.

After all the cleaning up these went through, they looked spectacular! Oh, did I mention that he GAVE them to me? Yep. 

I enjoyed them for a while and then, of course decided to pass them on to a new owner. Don't recall what they went for on eBay, but they weren't cheap.

So, there you have it, AIWA decided to see if they could make tiny, yet full featured separate components. And they succeeded.

Thanks for looking!

Scott