Not a Boombox (UPDATED)

Two minutes in and delighted by the absolutely perfect use of puppet. (Hahaha, and the "are you okay there?")

It’s slightly weird that the entire device interface is oriented so the user has to face the speakers, rather than use it from behind the device as a DJ or busker or as a public address system might do.

*Glances down* Oh my God, I'm wearing the same shirt as Matt.

When you opted to connect it to the camera for a direct example of the audio, why didnt you use the microphone to speak into instead of having what you were saying sound far away ?

Are we accepting. bets on how long it'll be until a legit, popular musician samples your DJ patter at ~11 minutes for a dance track? (I get double the payout if the title is actually "DAD GET OFF THE MIC YOU'RE EMBARRASSING ME IN FRONT OF EVERRRY-BODY")

There should be a sticker on that thing that says "If you hired me to do the music for your wedding reception, your marriage is already on very shaky ground. VERY"

Very nice video; liked the humour and the “extra bit” dialogue. Edited together well. 10/10. Regards

I'm also curious now about the MIDI In: has it a full General MIDI compatible sound module in there?

Well as the Technics Keyboards back in the day were part of Matshushita its not suprising they did this!

You have a voltmeter, you could check voltages on the boards...that would give you an more accurate guess...short connection wires would be a pain...maybe test the main power board first with everything else disconnected? I assume it is a multi voltage power supply, and one rail might be dead...you might be able to swap in your other power supply (I doubt this is the failure...but you don't know till you check.

I would swear I have heard that first 'chord progression' audio on a TV welcome screen in a London hotel.

Was too busy the last day or so to watch this one, but it's worth the wait. That looks like a fun toy to play around with. Excellent Repair Video, even if it wasn't working in the end, it's still possible you will get it working and at least you narrowed down the list of problems it has. My question is where, why, how did you run across this thing? I've never heard of anything like it (no surprise there since in years past I was anything but scurious about current audio gear). But I wonder if this was a thing you've known about since they came out, was it something you just stumbled upon while scrolling through eBay, did Grace post it on Potpourri or...??

tHe CaPACitoRS aRe PrOBAblY Bad! Lol. The only real suggestion I might have was checking the *other* end of the woofer's connection as well. You may well have done that, of course, and I missed it. I was actually surprised at the multiple circuit boards in there. I wonder if maybe Panasonic cobbled this together from other components they had in the parts bin? Not "up my street" at all but I do enjoy watching you explore this type of thing.

I you like things like the Rhythm Section in this there were dozens of devices designed to allow DJs who didn't know black keys from white keys to throw out "beats and choons". Check out the Roland D2 and Yamaha DJX (which comes in both non keyboard and keyboard variants).

This is (these are) a great device, thanks for sharing this discovery!

I want to hire you for my 26th wedding anniversary!

Ooh I didn't know about that continuity test for whether a speaker is dead or not; thanks! I've got an old keyboard with a speaker that I suspect has died; now I can test it =P I wonder if that rhythm machine was ever released on its own...

This was a great video. It's a good thing I didn't know this existed at the time, because I would have blown my minimum wage on it, love it for a week, then never touch it again. It reminded me of a Yahama keyboard I used to have, which had the same feature where the rhythms could gracefully come to an end like that.

i noticed that the backlight of the 'CD' panel was also failed on the second unit, but must be a blown light bulb etc. I wondered if the physical wiring was broken on the speaker connector to the plug connector, or dry soldered.? It looks a lot to get around too. Thanks Mat - I was just 'plucking' out a few things there. (i don't play guitar either)

Those midi "rhythms" are so cool! Both the musical arrangement and the sounds for the instruments are really tastefully done! If I had this device I would hook it up to my computer and try to play midi files through it using a usb to midi adapter.

My old JVC DC7L was a very large BoomBox. Wooden detachable speakers with karaoke function but with a fragile liner tracking turntable. Loved it wish I still had it. Great content Mr T.

Ha ! can't believe you did the battery 😀

I've bashed on the head twice now. Are you planning any more changes or do I have to suffer yet again when the camera falls over? Should I put on a hard hat?

A odd device with way too many features, a cringe worthy attempt at DJing (as if dead man inside karaoke was not enough), a pun that brought back the annoying puppet, a camera disaster and a failed repair job... This must be one of your unexpected masterpieces! Thanks for the laugh :)

Boy the piano chord layout is a beautiful display of sensible UI. And the songs are fantastic with variation and chord progression. Wow.

Also, is it just me, or is that a good implementation of MIDI? It sounded so much better than any other MIDI I've heard. I can see why you like it - I would too.

Phew, I'm glad the speaker issue has been firmly put to bed. Nicely done 😃.

So it's definitely not a speaker issue, i guess It might be more of a corroded trace on one of the boards... Anyway, i loved this video, and the updated one as well

I can see John Shuttleworth using one of those.

So..... Old PC games that had MIDI out (Doom?), you could hook up to this and use this as a midi sound module!? That might be a bit wild actually!

looking at the writing on the control panel it seems strange that the speakers face towards the user, wouldn't it be better if you stand in front of it with speakers facing away from you to the audience.

That was great, thanks. My whole house is filled with best intentions. I don’t recommend anyone get into 1970s reel to reel machines, for example.

Wow. Very tempted to get one of those. Although where the heck I'd put it is another thing.

Now I know what ChatGPT is good for. (Pity it can’t diagnose circuit diagrams.).

Did you consider trying the power board from the no woofer unit in the no CD unit? Just wondering if the non working woofer could have been another part of the circuitry, although I've seen the other mentions about it possibly being a blown speaker, just wondering which would be easier to check/swap. If the CD and woofer worked in a particular variation of parts, which case would be best to mount it all in?

This is a very nice video, as I can see how much you enjoy exploring its features, really fun to watch 😃

Fun video always enjoy retro tech. Man your lavilier mic is good picking up the music at start of video. I've got an old twin dj cd deck I use for parties. One deck doesn't work the other works when it wants but plugging in a pc with virtual dj, the sound is still good and does the job.

Perhaps a little contact cleaner on the CD door-closed detect switch? And if you dismantle it again, check for continuity/open-circuit when actuated.

The Librarian Girl at 2:37 by Mat Jackson killed me! 🤣 You're a natural-born DJ. 👍

Great video 😊 I really like these. There look like inside-out flight cases, obviously with the good bits on the outside.

One quick tip I used to do - you can use a aa battery to test a speaker. Wire - to speaker - and then shortly touch + to speaker + it gets it to crackle if the driver itself works. Of course now the video is done but maybe useful in the future... Of course disconected from the amp so you don't feed power the wrong way.

The centre speaker has most likely blown on the 1st one, just swap the centre speakers and it'll likely work. You can test speakers by just simply putting a continuity meter across the terminals and it'll beep if it's a good speaker, as all a speaker is is a coil and it'll be open circuit if its blown.

I can imagine you serenading the missus with that system. I legitimately laughed out loud when the camera took a fall and your reaction.

Sounds like something typical Japanese, karaoke-style 😅. BTW: did you check if the woofer on that first device isn't simply broken? Can also happen if you put too much "juice" into it...

• Rolling with laughter within the first five minutes of the video is a good sign. • The woofer, the very soul of the boom, 😰 has left only a broken box behind. • When you bring out the handheld microphone, an entertaining time will be had by all. I'm not fretting, either. 🎸 • I really like the midi variation at 12:29. One could spend hours creating unique 'songs' on this thing. • Let's see if the mystical 'Techmoan Effect' does, in fact, exist. 😏 • 'Do Not Remove Screws' is a blatant and obscene invitation. 😈 • 21:36 "Oops, oh there you go," he says, in a mildly concerned tone. Me: "Woowee! Oh shoot am I falling out the door?" • Although I am certain you may have already tried and didn't show it - are you able to record the midi music (with mandatory bass) into your linear PCM recorder? To use at your heart's content? • I thought of additional diagnostic steps that could be done - which you've probably already done - therefore I'm done. • I'm still waiting for the debut of your custom-pressed self-titled LP. 🫤 This is an extremely entertaining video, one of your more amusing and endearing editions this year. On a random note, I found another of your doppelgangers yesterday. They always seem to catch my eye, oddly enough. 😶 Take care. 🤍

Move over, John Shuttleworth. Oof!

Puppet!! Curta!!! (Any possibility the actual woofer in the first one failed rather than the amplifier board?)

We sold a similar model in the early 2000's in the UK through Panasonic centres badged as Panasonic's RAMSA professional brand

Sweet child o mine, that's big bugger!

We're being treated here on the Boombox front! Really enjoyed the last one

Rejoice! A Techmoan video to round off the day.

A box with boom* is a sure fire way to light up the (virtual) room Nice work (as ever) *Still not a Boombox