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Thread: Radio

  1. #1
    Forum Member S. Cane's Avatar
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    Radio

    I wanted to give myself a COVID recovery treat. Nothing fancy, but something music related that would be practical and not necessarily hi fi.

    Being a vinyl and classic radio enthusiast, I've been looking forward to buying a Philetta 254, just to own one, and also to put together a music room with a nice Marantz hi fi set.

    It happens, though, that Philettas aren't very easy to come across here. Besides, all AM stations are dead by now, FM is going digital pretty soon too. So a 50s Philetta will be just a venerable piece of wood and tubes very soon. Also, although I own some great vinyl records, both vintage and 180 gram, I got married recently and moved in an apartment with my wife and stepdaughter, so we don't really have space for a music room that accomodates my guitars, gear and a hi fi set, right now.

    Anyway, living in a constant rush due to work and everything, I really thought I could use something better than an iphone to listen to music (I end up not touching my LPs and listening to everything on Apple Music), and found out that Philips had made an hommage to the Philetta 254, a pretty cool wood encased radio unit which features FM radio, DAB and bluetooth, with pretty nice 20 watt amplifying for the size.



    Pulled the trigger, Amazon will deliver it in a couple of days.
    Last edited by S. Cane; 08-23-2021 at 08:40 PM.

  2. #2
    Forum Member phantomman's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    Sorta retro.

    Reminds me of something that Grundig or Telefünken would build in the late '40s or early '50s.

    Very cool!
    "When injustice becomes law then rebellion becomes duty."

  3. #3
    Forum Member ch willie's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    Me girlie has one similar, and it's a fantastic thing for what it is.

    Yours looks great. You can sit in chair, listen to Glenn Miller, and pretend to go back in time to days before TV.
    If we'd known we were going to be the Beatles, we'd have tried harder.--George Harrison

  4. #4
    Forum Member S. Cane's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    Quote Originally Posted by phantomman View Post
    Sorta retro.

    Reminds me of something that Grundig or Telefünken would build in the late '40s or early '50s.

    Very cool!
    Quote Originally Posted by ch willie View Post
    Me girlie has one similar, and it's a fantastic thing for what it is.

    Yours looks great. You can sit in chair, listen to Glenn Miller, and pretend to go back in time to days before TV.

    Yes, Philips made a tribute to the Philetta 254.

    And the advantage of playing streamed lossless (high quality) audio, it'll suit my needs while I don't put together my dream Marantz set. And also, even when I have my vintage set, streaming is here to stay and the quality is becoming better and better, there's no reason not to stream via Apple and other sources.

    Especially considering that I love to listen to all kinds of different music, old and new, and I couldn't possibly storage everything I listen to if I bought it in vinyl records.
    Last edited by S. Cane; 08-23-2021 at 06:00 PM.

  5. #5
    Forum Member phantomman's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    You can archive three or four hundred LP's on a single thumb-drive......
    "When injustice becomes law then rebellion becomes duty."

  6. #6
    Forum Member S. Cane's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    Quote Originally Posted by phantomman View Post
    You can archive three or four hundred LP's on a single thumb-drive......





    Btw, you probably own a cool vintage set, judging by your amps! What kind of gear do you have to listen to music?

  7. #7
    Forum Member phantomman's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    For the living room, a variety of gear from various eras: A Pioneer VSX5000 receiver with 100 watts per channel and built-in dBX, a BSR graphic equalizer, an RCA carousel CD changer, a JVC carousel DVD player, a Samsung blue-ray DVD player, a pair of JBL L-100A 3-way speaker systems, and a Cerwin-Vega 15-inch powered sub-woofer with 100 watts per side.

    It's adequate for the task.

    The system in the music room is similar though without the video-playback equipment: A Sony STR950 receiver, a Technics graphic equalizer, a Sony CD player, and a pair of Audio-Centron 3-way PA speakers.

    Most of this gear I inherited from my Dad upon his passing.

    My hobby room has a small ensemble: an old Pioneer SX750 receiver, a matching Pioneer graphic equalizer and a dBX expander, a Toshiba VHS/DVD/CD combo player, and a pair of Bose 301 speakers.

    Garage-sale stuff but it works well for my purpose.
    "When injustice becomes law then rebellion becomes duty."

  8. #8
    Forum Member DanTheBluesMan's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    I note that you have a graphic equalizer in all your systems, just wondering why? Tuning to the room or the media?
    "Live and learn and flip the burns"

  9. #9
    Forum Member phantomman's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    Both, plus the fatigue factor of my now seven decades-old ears.

    A quality EQ unit is much more versatile than an amp's standard tone controls.
    "When injustice becomes law then rebellion becomes duty."

  10. #10
    Forum Member DanTheBluesMan's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    do you prefer to boost the treble so you can hear it better, or boost the bass so you don't have to play as loud?
    "Live and learn and flip the burns"

  11. #11
    Forum Member S. Cane's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    Here it is. New radio day.



    This little thing also reminds me that my grandfather’s radio was a wooden cabinet Phillips too

  12. #12
    Forum Member phantomman's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    Looks like it also features a 12/24 hour clock......nice touch!

    I just picked up a CD containing songs featured in Humphrey Bogart films -- "Casablanca", "To Have And Have Not", "Key Largo", etc. I bet some Dooley Wilson, Hoagy Carmichael, or Johnny Mercer would sound great through that thing.
    "When injustice becomes law then rebellion becomes duty."

  13. #13
    Forum Member S. Cane's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    Quote Originally Posted by phantomman View Post
    Looks like it also features a 12/24 hour clock......nice touch!

    I just picked up a CD containing songs featured in Humphrey Bogart films -- "Casablanca", "To Have And Have Not", "Key Largo", etc. I bet some Dooley Wilson, Hoagy Carmichael, or Johnny Mercer would sound great through that thing.

    It does. To be honest, I’d prefer just the dials and light. But since this isn’t supposed to be a vintage replica, being more like a tribute… it’s all right.

    What I like best about it is that I can receive FM or listen to whatever I want via Bluetooth.

    I’ll definitely listen to your recommendations. Been streaming a lot of good jazz into it

  14. #14
    Forum Member phantomman's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    I make no recommendations. I just happen to be a big fan of Bogart/Bacall films and the songs that added so much to them.

    A century from now, no one will even remember how to spell John Mayer's name but you'll still hear "As Time Goes By" on the easy-listening stations.

    "When injustice becomes law then rebellion becomes duty."

  15. #15
    Forum Member S. Cane's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    Benny Goodman and Elvis are also pretty cool to listen on this thing.

    Now, leaving out the looks and the feel, the sound of this little box is surprisingly pleasant. I can listen to most anything without any noticeable losses.

    Hats off, Philips.

  16. #16
    Forum Member phantomman's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    There's a lot of nice-sounding compact sets out there. On my nightstand I've got a clock-radio with AM/FM stereo made by C.Crane that has surprisingly great tone. It's got a docking port for an iPod whenever I tire of the available live programming and even came with a remote control.
    "When injustice becomes law then rebellion becomes duty."

  17. #17
    Forum Member S. Cane's Avatar
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    Re: Radio

    Btw I found a very nice classic rock station, I’m listening to it all the time and strongly recommend it: KZFX 93.7, from Ridgecraff California.

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