Review: Tim Jarman

Review: Tim Jarman, | Oct 19, 2023 | 0 comments

It may have been bulky with no fewer than ten batteries housed in its brittle case, but this portable player had an ace up its sleeve – its price. How will it shape up today?

When enthusiasts see a product from Crown it's perhaps natural to assume it has come from the American amplifier manufacturer of that same name. Yet this compact CD player from 1987, launched to bring the cost of portable players down to a more affordable level, bears the branding of another company called Crown – the Crown Radio Corporation of Japan.

Integrated Amplifiers Vintage

Luxman L-30 Amplifier

Review: Tim Jarman, | Sep 19, 2023 | 0 comments

With retro styling currently all the rage how will this integrated compare, especially considering it was the most affordable amp in Luxman's mid-'70s lineup? We find out

The L-30 was the cheapest amplifier in Luxman's 1976 range. Not that it looked anything like a budget model – rather, it had an almost intangible feel of quality and superior finish that in terms of showroom appeal put it above all but the very best offerings from the Japanese big names at the time.

Disc Players Vintage

Sony D-Z555 CD Portable

Review: Tim Jarman, | Aug 04, 2023 | 0 comments

With full-sized CD players stealing a march on portables in the late 1980s it was left to Sony to step up with a palm-sized marvel of a machine. How would it fare today?

The appearance of portable CD players in the mid 1980s presented buyers with something of a dilemma. Should they purchase a full-width model or one of the mobile machines, almost all of which could easily be connected to a full-sized system? A portable would be more versatile, but a large player would be expected to offer more facilities and better sound quality.

Disc Players Vintage

Toshiba XR-J9 CD Player

Review: Tim Jarman, | Jul 05, 2023 | 0 comments

Compact, clever and priced to entice, this quirky little late-'80s machine caught the imagination of those buying into digital for the first time. How does it shape up today?

When Toshiba unveiled its lineup of new CD players in 1986 it was clear the format had come of age. Just three years after the first machines were launched onto the European market they'd gone from being exotic and expensive to something so accessible there was little point in any keen listener not owning one.

Disc Players Integrated Amplifiers Vintage

JVC UX-1 micro system

Review: Tim Jarman, | Jun 09, 2023 | 0 comments

Offering all the functionality of full-sized components, this petite five-part '90s system took micro to the max, spawning imitations industry-wide. How does it sound today?

The first time I saw a JVC UX-1 it was pictured on the side of a bus. The image was part of an ad that carried the simple message 'All features, Great, and Small'. And this turned out to be true, for the UX-1 micro system had every function imaginable, sounded like 'proper' hi-fi and was tiny.

Turntables, Arms & Cartridges Vintage

B&O Beogram 4002 Turntable

Review: Tim Jarman, | May 19, 2023 | 0 comments

This turntable from 1975 saw the company cut its costs by replacing digital logic with a system that included a lamp, a photocell and paint. Did sound quality suffer?

It certainly says something about the enduring appeal of a turntable when the company that made it buys up examples that are over 40 years old and sells them on to a new generation of buyers. It sounds remarkable, but this is precisely what Bang & Olufsen did recently with its 'Recreated Limited Edition' Beogram 4000c. Although offered as a revival of the Beogram 4000 [HFN Jul '14], it was actually the later Beogram 4002 that formed the basis of the project.

Disc Players Vintage

Sanyo CP 08 CD player

Review: Tim Jarman, | Apr 18, 2023 | 0 comments

An unashamedly budget machine, this late '80s CD player had a mechanical trick up its sleeve that saw it take the fight to its rivals on price. But how will it shape-up today?

It has been ten years, shy of a month, since a Sanyo product last appeared in the HFN Vintage Review pages. This was the Fisher AD 800 [HFN Apr '13], the company's first ever CD player, which was marketed in the UK under the firm's specialist hi-fi and video brand.

Pre/Power Amplifiers Vintage

Bryan Mark III Model 500/700 Pre/Power Amp

Review: Tim Jarman | Mar 14, 2023 | 0 comments

From a UK manufacturer quick to take advantage of the arrival of high-power transistors comes a '60s pre/power amp combo as curious as it is rare. How does it sound today?

Hands up those who have seen a Bryan amplifier before, let alone heard one. Me neither – until I unpacked the Mark III Model 500/700 pairing seen here. The first 500 arrived when higher-power transistors were beginning to be used in quality audio, yet while the technology became universal, British brand Bryan sank without trace.

Disc Players Vintage

Philips CD380 CD player

Review: Tim Jarman, | Feb 24, 2023 | 0 comments

This late '80s player may have been built to a price using a DAC suited to portables, but it promised few compromises when it came to sheer sound. How will it shape-up today?

One of the many impressive achievements of the early CD era was the way in which the price of players remained constant, or even fell, as the technology used inside them improved. The first machines were masterpieces, beautifully constructed utilising the best materials and processes. However, it was soon realised that when it came to the basic task of playing a disc, much could be stripped away, and in the years that followed the format's release this was exactly what began to happen.

Integrated Amplifiers Vintage

Goodmans One Ten Receiver

Review: Tim Jarman, | Jan 10, 2023 | 0 comments

Handsome, affordable and boasting a top-notch tuner to boot, should this early '70s receiver top your list when it comes to securing a pre-cherished radio star? We find out

Almost all audio enthusiasts will know Goodmans for its range of loudspeakers. However, the company's other hi-fi products are less well remembered, despite the fact that more than one or two achieved considerable popularity among buyers.

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Review: Tim Jarman

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