Some thoughts on S2G and the young cassette revivalists headed this way...

Yeah, they were great films but you know...fans...

I bought mine from eBay for about £180. The seller said it wasn't working, but from my experience that usually just means it needs a new belt. Unfortunately, the wires had become disconnected from the 'hot line' microphone so I took into London to get it repaired and serviced. It's still cheaper than buying a working model.

 

Of course they would be if they hadn't been used by the likes of Blondie and Phil Collins. You could probably get very similar sounds from some home organ that you could pick up on Ebay for £10 - Collect only of course, and you would need a big car and a couple of mates to get it home.

In the 1980s some older people was saying that the music was all sequenced rubbish generated by pressing a button. I remember one of the 80s stars (it may have bee Phil Oakey) saying that there was much more live playing on their records than they would admit to. Sequencing was the cool future.

A couple of years ago when I said that I was going to a "Best of the 80s" concert an older colleague asked "Was there any good music in the 80s". I expect he was into the likes of Cream.

I have just been enjoying Kim Wide "Close" (which I did have on Vinyl in 1988) bought as a 50p CD at this mornings Car boot sale.

 

It sounded good though, unlike all of this modern computer generated autotune rubbish.

Good find, I like a lot of Kim Wilde's music too.

 

There has always been “crap” around and you always had to weed through the crap to find the gems. This is nothing new.

 

agreed

this needs its own thread, as this was not the threads initial intention

 

Why doesnt my walkman shuffle when I shake it? It just sounds wibbly wobbly.

 

and where can I get a decent leather case for my DD unit ;-)

 

And some new 'It's a Sony' stickers.

 

all will be revealed hopefully this weekend once Marian and Hugo provide their feedback on the cases I sent them

 

@doublecee I need to get some of those stickers...

Henry

 

Indeed you do. Im just waiting for some feedback from a member on the site who was sent a few with a case as well. If I get the thumbs up from him, we are good to go.

 

I think people could argue about the last one until the young cassette revivalists are drawing their pensions

Things that I would add to the list, which look at cassettes from a social history point of view are:

• Why were cassettes so popular (which could include versatility and availability).
• What were the alternatives (Vinyl - 8 track etc)
• Why did they become less popular in the noughties
• Pre recorded cassettes
• Home taping
• Mix Tapes
• How much was a top of the range and bottom of the range boombox compared with a typical weeks wages (the figures for different countries can be got online)
• How much was a top of the range and bottom of the range walkman compared with a typical weeks wages (the figures for different countries can be got online)

Writing this I realise that quite a lot has been covered in places like the original "Pocket Calculator" website and in some of Techmoans videos so you could link to them.

Staying on subject, people were recently commenting on the price of WM22s. I posted a contemporary Sony advert that you could now get a real Walkman for under £30. The best figure I can find for average UK wages show they have risen about 2.5 times since 1984 so people paying £75 for a WM22 are just paying the equivalent to what it would have cost them in 1984. Of course you could argue that you could buy something better for less money but the WM22 does have classic eighties looks.

 

I like this list, I could answer every comment.

 

I agree with all the suggestions posted so far. In my own experience I've done most of the learning and repairing on my own. I think it helps a lot if you are able and willing to do some basic repairs yourself. Very gratifying when you get it all working. Although not everyone will be comfortable on performing repairs themselves. I can tell you I've screwed up a few walkmans in the last few years. Been lucky they weren't in good condition so kept them for spare parts

 

Agreed, I think many S2G members have done the same. My first walkman repair was re-belting my WM-35, when I was 14. I did have the service manual which assisted with the disassembly process somewhat!

Henry