the need for old tech

Post Reply New Topic

I'm wondering.. Can my love for old technology be related to my aspergers?

For example, I was giving my old early 80's VHS VCR deck (which runs great), and someone told me "Why the hell are you messing with that old crap? Just get a bluray player!".

I couldn't reply back to him, because I honestly didn't know what to say. I love my old VHS deck. This player was bought by my father new, in 82, before I was even born, and it still runs.. (it's one of those top loaders, you pick up the lid, put the tape in, and push it down).

I mean, sure, I'll get a bluray player one of these days, now that i have a job, but im not getting rid of my old VHS deck.

Sounds good to me that you can keep an older piece of machinery running like that.

Go with what you know.

being in the IT business, I seen 'em come, and go. I have a boatload of VCR tapes to convert to DVD, but just hain't got around to it yet.

yea.. i'd never sell it, throw it away, or replace it.. but people think im "living in the past".

btw, i said "im giving", what i meant was "im giving it a tuneup of a sorts". i seem to have forgotten to finish what i was typing..

i give it a monthly tuneup, like all my old equipment, like rust prevention, regreasing, and belt cleaners..

I have and old Nintendo NES my parents bought in 1990 because the doctor told them video games would be good for my eye-hand coordination.

I love old radios, the vacuum tube one that take a while to warm up, I use to have an old bass guitar and amp with vacuum tubes it sounded so warm compared to the solid state amps use today, heres a video of this guy in France who builds his own tubes
http://dailymotion.alice.it/video/x3wrz ... riode_tech

Five good reasons not to get a bluray player over VHS!

1. Cost
2. It may not have titles you want
3. Another system may yet replace it
4. It may not be compatible with older equipment
5. It is NOT VHS compatible!

I mean WHY would someone berate you when you already have tapes for VHS!? In a year or two, someone may call him an idiot for not replacing the bluray! According to wikipedia, as of last month, there is no cooperation between patent holders! Don't forget what that did to GIF, etc.... formats that were once ***THE*** standard became ONE of the standards only because they made compromises to reduce the loss of market share.

another complaint people have said to me, is that i should atleast upgrade to a hifi VCR..

i mean sure, it has a better frequency response range, and stereo sound, but once again, i can't let go of a VCR that's close to me, older than me, and in as good as shape as me. lol

and oh yea, my receiver for my home theater runs on 16 vacuum tubes.. :p

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v395/ ... on/ent.jpg

PS: my VCR can be seen.. it's right under the receiver, the silver thing with a half black face.. note the small clearance above it for the lid to pop up for the tape.

I totally understand the OP's love of older tech, if not just for nostalgia's sake.

But for the argument about BluRay, let me say I was *this* close to getting an HD-DVD player even though BluRay had a large share of the market cornered (they had Disney exclusively, for crying out loud). After I heard they had exclusivity with Paramount (pretty sure that's who it was), I knew it was over for HD-DVD.

Oh, and btw, HD is the way of things from here on out, so lets all get used to it.

I love old technology.

I'm probably the only one in the dorms with a real stereo setup. It's cobbled together from older stuff. I feed a circa-1989 Grundig CD-903 single-disc CD player into a heavily modified 1960s Magnavox stereo amp (tubes FTW!) which in turn feeds my early-mid 1980s Polk Audio Monitor 10s. It works nicely. Just this hacked up setup sounds infinitely better than most of the s**t that they brand "hi-fi" today.

Hmmm. Are you by chance a member on the dutchforce electronics forum? That receiver looks familiar.

Last edited by Blasty on 04 May 2008, 10:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.

You just can't get decent sound from these cd players, Its all I have right now, but I have been
checking out some of the second hand stores, looking for an old console that can play 78's

seventies and eighties hi-fi audio gear is awesome! I love messing with the old stuff, What may be "trouble and fuss" to one person, is a nice little hobby for me. I picked up an old broken Zenith console TV at a yard sale when I was in high school, got it working, and still watch it today, and it's got a great picture on it! I enjoy tinkering with stuff like that, especially if it's got vacuum tubes in it. Do you ever take the cover off your old VHS deck and look at all the stuff going on inside it? The tape threads through all sorts of rollers and guides and wraps around the spinning pickup head. They are mechanical marvels for sure! Bluray decks are hardly as animated inside!

There's nothing wrong with old equipment. Hang on to that old VHS deck as long as you can, but you might want to think about buying some spare parts for it now, like the rubber pinch roller, a head drum, and some belts for it. With VCR's becoming scarse, I imagine the parts suppliers will be cutting their VCR parts out pretty soon!

(shameless plug) MCM electronics is one I've bought all sorts of VCR parts from over the years: www.mcmelectronics.com

I have all sorts of old media devices, even 8mm movie projectors. People always bring me stuff to transfer to DVD or CD. It was something I just sort of picked up as a hobby because I enjoyed repairing the old equipment, and I integrated it into a trade!

Those people making fun of you will be the last ones laughing at you years from now, when you make a little side money transferring old VHS tapes to disc or whatever medium the future may hold!

I'm not into electronics, but since the title said tech, I'll mention that they haven't built an airplane that has any appeal since World War Two. Those old birds though, they were beautiful.

I don't like the throw away mindset either.

yes i am actually.. i also go by the name of evildragon or blackevilweredragon..

I actually did this when giving it a recent tune up.. I got it from studiosoundelectronics.com.. been getting VCR parts from them a long time.

I knew I needed to give it the major tuneup when it wouldn't rewind or fast forward, and wouldn't take up the tape when I stopped, thus eating the tape. Got 2 belts (capstan and tape guides), pinch roller, and a new idler (main fault).

Man, it's a pain on these old VCRs, gotta remove the bottom PCB which is held on with like, EVERTHING, and then gotta get a screwdriver to release the old belts.