Tuesday, January 16, 2018

Vintage Hi-Fi Sighting: Philco Console Hi Fi

I recently spotted this vintage Philco Hi Fi at one of my local thrift stores.  It was made by Philco and offers AM-FM radio and a turntable for vinyl records.


I don't know much about these consoles. When you pull down the door for the record player, hidden pulleys and strings present the record player for easy access.



These vintage hi fi sets use tubes rather than transistors.  I'm sure that this one would be an interesting project for a collector.  This was probably made in the 1940s or 1950s.  I would imagine lots of wiring would have to be replace and the circuitry would need to be cleaned.  Perhaps some of the tubes would need to be replaced as well.


Notice that this Hi-Fi unit sends its signal to one large forward facing speaker in the bottom.  You might also note that the AM band is labeled "Standard Broadcast."  FM radio became popular in the late 1950s and 1960s.


The final historic touch to this old Hi Fi is the dusty Joan Baez album on the turntable.  Overall, I'm sure that in the right hands, this old Hi Fi unit will be a great project and provide fun for years.
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