You might be familiar with Panasonics LP jacket size turntables. The bottom of the range SL-N5 was sometimes paired with their 3 piece boomboxes. http://stereo2go.com/forums/threads/panasonic-rx-c52l-extras.414/ As the turntable incorporates a phono pre-amp it would work with any box with line-in Another item it was designed to match was their SG-14L Casseiver (which does incorporate a phono pre-amp). The Casseiver is the same footprint as the turntable, and the height of a cassette case. To achieve the low height it uses a drawer loading cassette mechanism. I think it was designed to be one step up, and one size smaller than Panasonics popular music centres like the SG-X10. The "7 segment" Font on the Analogue tuner is amusing Having acquired both in a Charities Ebay auction last year I thought I should get around to repairing it, before starting on my Sharp VZ2500. As sold the cassette mechanism was jammed open. Inside part of the mechanism was bent. I was surprised to find that the drawer opening and closing mechanism is (apart from an extra switch) all mechanical and belt driven off the cassette decks motor, although most of it dis-engages when not operating the drawer. I suspect that the belt went slack and then someone tried to force the drawer in making matters worse. Having re-belted to unit, straightened out the connecting rod (taking a few attempts to get the correct length) and added a screw at the pivot point to replace a broken plastic clip, I got it all working. Electrically everything in the unit worked fine as received. I found the mechanism so fascinating I decided to make a video of it before fitting the lid back on. Typical Japanese ingenuity. How they designed such mechanisms before Computer Aided Design I don't know. It must have taken ages to design, and lots of money to produce the tooling, but the additional cost of parts per unit was probably pence. p.s. I have seen the SG-14L in red paired with a Red SL-N15 Linear Tracking turntable. However, that was on Ebay.De (German) and the postage alone was more than i paid for these two.
That's a nice little set-up and I'm sure it's happy to be working again. I've only seen one front loading cassette deck, an 80's Marantz at the thrifts years ago. You guys may have more over there but some reason they're pretty rare here. That front panel screams Technics, I bet there's another version of it.
I guess that due to smaller houses people in the UK appreciate miniaturised equipment more. Since before the SG-14L was released, one of the most popular speaker models in the UK has been the diminutive Wharfedale Diamond https://www.whathifi.com/features/was-then-wharfedale-diamond-review for more history on Wharfedale worthy of "HiFi Archaeology this is an interesting read https://www.audioaffair.co.uk/blog/history-wharfedale-loudspeakers/ I think Panasonic and Technics are like Toyota and Lexus - all designed in the same drawing office. The next Casseiver up in the 305mm width range was a Technics. https://www.reddit.com/r/vintageaud...chnics_sak5_with_the_turntable_addon_sl5_the/ Someones Dad was a lucky teenager. I have also read that the Pamasonic SL-N15 turntable was almost identical to the Technics SL3, with just the repeat function missing. https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/panasonic-sl-n15.357425/
I think the Panasonic/Technics Cross-overs were more European, they kept the brands very separate over here. I kind of think the design units were in different buildings, you can see some of the Technics Design Cues, like the rotary dials, headphone jacks and small square buttons, that are Technics calling cards. Even the size matches a bunch of Technics 80's Components. It looks like there was a National Version of that TT as well. One of my micro stereos is branded Panasonic but I always thought it might be more Technics. I popped it open one day and all of the chips were labeled Technics, even though they probably all came off the same machine used for Quasar, Panasonic or Technics. My stereo is extremely rare and was expensive, most people wouldn't spend over $1000 USD for a Panasonic Stereo, but might for a Technics. If the unit had larger production I'm sure the chips would have matched the branding.
