Armed Polite Society

Main Forums => The Roundtable => Topic started by: Perd Hapley on October 18, 2008, 11:57:17 AM

Title: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: Perd Hapley on October 18, 2008, 11:57:17 AM
I'm gonna go hang out at the library, or at the Book & Brew, for the next few hours.  And I'm bringing my clunky old Sony Discman with me.  You whippersnappers won't know what that is. 

(https://armedpolitesociety.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fixya.com%2FBrands%2FImages%2FS%2FSony%2F118x100%2F40183.JPG&hash=cf1a296cab692803b0bf17bf7242e78ba22a5178)

I can't wait for the puzzled look on the faces of college freshmen, when they see such a curious relic of the old days.
Title: Re: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: ramis on October 18, 2008, 01:00:03 PM
Hey at least it's not one of these.  =D

(https://armedpolitesociety.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi398.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fpp69%2Framis_ks%2FBIG_SonyWalkmanWM-4Red.jpg&hash=d2341ff2d701da6c813e929721ff9cbc60c2e060)

I had one of those when I was a kid.
Title: Re: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: Perd Hapley on October 18, 2008, 03:02:05 PM
I wished I had one of those when I was a kid.   =)

Actually, I think Dad got one and we all used it at times.  I believe it is currently clipped onto a hole in the headliner of Dad's 1955 Chevy flat-bed.   :laugh:
Title: Re: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: Manedwolf on October 18, 2008, 03:07:04 PM
The only cassette I recall was an Olympus microcassette I had in college for lectures, it had a voice-sensitive mike. It could play back at doublespeed, which was useful.

I also had an early MP3 player that had a calculator-style LCD, held like 32MB max, and had absolutely atrocious software. Wow, was that awful.
Title: Re: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: Gewehr98 on October 18, 2008, 04:58:06 PM
My stepsons had to ask me how to use the turntable and records from my big vinyl collection the other evening.  They were showing off the living room entertainment system to a friend, and got the tube amp fired up, but were at a loss with the half-speed mastered copy of Dark Side of the Moon.   =D
Title: Re: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: roo_ster on October 18, 2008, 10:54:18 PM
My stepsons had to ask me how to use the turntable and records from my big vinyl collection the other evening.  They were showing off the living room entertainment system to a friend, and got the tube amp fired up, but were at a loss with the half-speed mastered copy of Dark Side of the Moon.   =D

It has been a long while since I listened to DSotM.


Title: Re: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: Manedwolf on October 18, 2008, 10:58:09 PM
Well, there's one very old piece of equipment I'd found, it seems to be a full radio with headset and all, dated 1941, and marked Navy Bureau of Ships. Even if I could figure out how to get it powered up (wierd connectors with large pins), I suspect it'd be breaking a law to do so?
Title: Re: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: never_retreat on October 18, 2008, 11:03:33 PM
Well, there's one very old piece of equipment I'd found, it seems to be a full radio with headset and all, dated 1941, and marked Navy Bureau of Ships. Even if I could figure out how to get it powered up (wierd connectors with large pins), I suspect it'd be breaking a law to do so?
Be sure to wrap your junk in tin foil before you fire that thing up.
Title: Re: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: Gewehr98 on October 18, 2008, 11:16:27 PM
Could be just a receiver.  No laws will be broken in firing one of those up.

I've got several of them, including this former CIA listening post Hammarlund SP-600-JX-17 set:

(https://armedpolitesociety.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fmauser98.com%2Flab4.jpg&hash=53ec378551489361027cd774094892a6c1afa8ae)


You can even fire up a transmitter to check the tubes, etc.  As long as you don't key the microphone or output a signal that's on a restricted or license-required frequency...

 
Title: Re: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: RaspberrySurprise on October 19, 2008, 01:41:45 AM
Be sure to wrap your junk in tin foil before you fire that thing up.

Tinfoil? I'd be using lead.
Title: Re: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: Zardozimo Oprah Bannedalas on October 19, 2008, 02:21:36 AM
Quote
I can't wait for the puzzled look on the faces of college freshmen, when they see such a curious relic of the old days.
'Old days' to me would be an eight-track player. Or at least a walkman... and I'm only 22. We were big on cassettes.

Matter of fact, we've never had an easily portable CD player. Just went from walkman to Ipod.
Title: Re: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: Perd Hapley on October 19, 2008, 10:15:22 AM
Yeah, cassettes.  My wife was wondering if there were people that collected tapes, like some people collect records.  I haven't run across any, so far. 

Well, here are some.
http://www.designboom.com/contemporary/cassettes.html
Title: Re: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: freedom lover on October 19, 2008, 01:50:55 PM
Quote
My stepsons had to ask me how to use the turntable

Turntable! Ha! My dad has a phonograph that needs to be wound up. Plays 78 rpm records. I don't think he has any records that were made after he was born.

I may have never seen an eight-track. I think my mom had a walkman.
 
The only old audio tech not yet mentioned here are those little plastic things from around 1999 that looked like thick camera memory cards. They would have a picture of the pop group and come with cheap earbuds. They only played one or two songs. I think they were meant to be cheap, disposable gimmicks.
Title: Re: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: freedom lover on October 19, 2008, 02:10:39 PM
Turns out they're called hit clips and they came with various little portable players. I guess they were just a fad. No wonder I barely remember them.


(https://armedpolitesociety.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bivingsreport.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2008%2F05%2Fhitclips.jpg&hash=810161b50310c747e4b4b6f37c2e73a449f8df02)

Title: Re: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: Perd Hapley on October 19, 2008, 02:33:03 PM
Hit clips?  That's funny, I've never seen those.  1999 (right after my tour in Bosnia) I had money for the first time in my life.  In addition to buying my first couple of guns, I went on a CD buying spree.  I guess they didn't carry those at the PX.   =)
Title: Re: I'm goin' steam-punk
Post by: Manedwolf on October 20, 2008, 02:52:09 AM
Hit clips?  That's funny, I've never seen those.  1999 (right after my tour in Bosnia) I had money for the first time in my life.  In addition to buying my first couple of guns, I went on a CD buying spree.  I guess they didn't carry those at the PX.   =)

It was meant for kids. Disney keeps trying a new version every year, and they end up at $1 on the end aisle of Target every year.