Have only had the Technics microsystem myself many years ago but the Japanese companies like Hitachi, Akai, Aiwa also made versions. The Technics was decent enough sounding and looked very pretty. If I ever see a local set at a reasonable price I may pick it up again. I like that they are almost futuristic in a 1982 way, if that makes any sense.
Anyone have experience with early 80s micro systems?
- Thread starter MikeO
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Do you mean something like this?
Yes, that is the integrated amp vs the pre/power separates.
I had two of those, yes. Solid, neat, little things, a joy to use. Not the best sounding tables but I wish I'd kept one. I used to just carry it around the house and use it in different systems wherever I'd be. I used them with a OM-30p and the 310mc LOMC cart that originally came with them. They had a head-amp built in!
I’ve used them. Very good, if perhaps not fantastic sound. Some of the components stand out though- the CD players as transports frequently can be good choices, and ditto the tape, DVD and Minidisc components. I’ve opened plenty of full size CD and tape players to find lots of empty real estate in them- consolidating them to smaller packages doesn’t seem an outrageous challenge.
Some of the speakers are pretty nice quality on these too. And some get creative with novelty features like wood coned drivers and other flair- which despite the unique materials I’m convinced we’re partially chosen for aesthetic reasons still perform quite admirably.
Some of the speakers are pretty nice quality on these too. And some get creative with novelty features like wood coned drivers and other flair- which despite the unique materials I’m convinced we’re partially chosen for aesthetic reasons still perform quite admirably.
The store i worked at in the 70’s was a Mitsubishi dealer and this was their Micro system. The tuner was an amazingly good sounding tuner, due to the use of a linear-phase LC filter rather than ceramic filters in the front end. Mitsubishi M-F01 tuner
[SIDENOTE: Many FM tuner aficionados believe linear-phase LC filter tuners sound better than ceramic filter tuners. The Marantz 125/150 tuners and the McIntosh MR74 tuner use linear-phase LC tuners and these three tuners are considered by many as exceptionally good sounding tuners.]
These M series components did not sell well due to their small size (audiophile’s in the 70’s wanted full-size components) and rather high. MSRP but having sold them I can personally attest to exceptional sound quality (but the Dolby B cassette deck was merely average). The 60 WPC power amp had meters, the preamp had usable tone controls, and this was a surprisingly good sounding preamp/power amp combo. WhIle pricey, the quality of their construction was much better than the construction of their full-size components.
Because of their poor initial sales they rarely show up on AudioGon, CraigsList, eBay, and USAudioMart.
I mean... no 
... but I did have one of these for a while, courtesy of the much-beloved Harvard town dump.
Technics M04 (apparently)
It was a perfectly average, but staunchly dependable, little cassette deck. Kind of the Toyota Camry of cassette decks. OK, smaller, so maybe the Yaris of...
... but I did have one of these for a while, courtesy of the much-beloved Harvard town dump.Technics M04 (apparently)
It was a perfectly average, but staunchly dependable, little cassette deck. Kind of the Toyota Camry of cassette decks. OK, smaller, so maybe the Yaris of...
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