Little Orphan Optimus: A Lone Bookshelf Speaker

This just in from the land of orphaned speakers.  Here is a much vaunted Optimus bookshelf speaker from Radio Shack.  It sits all alone on a thrift store shelf.

I looked desperately for its matching speaker.  It would have been perfect for the little mini amp project that I was working on.

When you remove the front cover, the speakers themselves are immaculate.  They are simply beautiful.

Since these little bookshelf speakers are only rated for 40 watts, they might be a great match for a mini amp.  But, with only one speaker, they just don't make any sense.

Technics Thrift Store Stereo System

Over the Memorial Day weekend, I saw an interesting looking Technics stereo set up at a local thrift store.  The system was like my current main system (Technics SU-V76 amplifier and Technics ST-S76 AM/FM radio tuner) with the addition of a Technics multi-CD player. 

For speakers, the thrift store had hooked up some venerable Realistic Optimus-2B speakers.  These speakers were made in the 1975 timeframe.  You can read more at Seventies Stereo about the Optimus-2B.

I didn't have a chance to stop and give these a listen, but it's really cool that this particular Goodwill store takes the time to set up working stereo systems.

The HOMCOM Media Cabinet with 4 Tiers (Amazon photo)

To set a retro stereo system up like this Technics stereo and really go retro this HOMCOM Media cabinet can really play the retro part. It's available in woodgrain, white, or black laminates. As of November 2025, you can find it here on Amazon.