The Sony-Boy collection is a thread where I can show off my passion for Sony products currently residing in my collection. I have been an enthusiast of Sony products since my school days when teacher came into the classroom carrying a 405 line portable video recording system. This consisted of the camera, the recorder, black & white monitor, accessories and a folded colour brochure. The idea was for selected pupils to stand up and talk to camera about what they want to be when grown up! I had a chance to look through the brochure and was hooked. The items pictured just grabbed my attention and I knew at that time I wanted some of this action. The period from that encounter to buying my first Sony product was quite exciting as I came across various Sony items over the years leading up to the point I had my own money and could buy something with the SONY brand name on it. This first Sony product with the first wage packet after leaving school was a pair DR-9 stereo headphones. My second purchase was a portable 11 inch screen black & white portable television, the KV-110UK, later adding the matching AN-55B parabolic dish aeriel, all three items are still with me...the collection had started! SONY-BOY (Sadly the picture host I would now use is temporarily of-line so will add pictures later or as soon as!)...pictures now added so to see them in full view, just click on the image.
Old picture found. I just come across this picture in a folder of landscape pictures dated 1995. It shows a couple of items clearly from my collection. At least one standard cassette deck on top of an Elcassette deck and I think my CDP-101 I don't normally take group pictures and this may have been for another collector.
All along my intention was to do a book detailing my collection and what you see here is an example of a 'Listing' page and I would not normally post this on any social media but now that I have limited spare time a book is not likey to appear, so you guys can have the benfit of the information. Some of the later lists do include pictures but the example here of my Playstation collection does not, but you all know what Playstation looks like!!
Welcome to S2G SONY-BOY . Many people collecting Sony products but rarely there is a dedicated collector of the brand only , with his interests expanding to the playstation brunch. The iconic Elcassette deck and the CDP-101 are so great to be in a collection , I'll never forget the first impression I had when I got my CDP-101 of how heavy it was. Being a playstation collector too I do appreciate the detailed listing and the effort behind it , never thought to do that but maybe I should. Noticed that there are no Ps3's or Ps4's , is that a choice or just not in this list . Keep up the good work and pictures coming !
Hi Machaneus. I have a couple of PS 3's which just did not get on the listing along with some other items so the list just needs updating. PS 4 came out after my forced decision to stop buying Sony equipment...I just did not have any more practical space left. Apart from the toilet-bathroom, Sony items were in every room of the Bungalow I live in, an indoor storage erea, an indoor shed, stored in two spare cars on the drive and stored in three rooms at my Father's property. Here some picture of mixed items that made up a short slide show.
I first started as a toddler messing around with my parents Sony TV-500U. It was a really small portable TV, we even had the battery pack that took a bunch of D-cells. It was built like a Tektronics Scope, descrete components packed in every space. The Sony Logo/Name was prominent on the box and the equipment and it was such a good looking stately logo similar to RCA when they had some credibility. One of the features that I loved was the industrial quality handle and stand with heavy-duty clicking detents. There was nothing flimsy about it and the fact that it was so small put it in a different catagory than the 18" televisions most people had.
To build such an impressive collection certainly took decades , I reckon we are at the same side of age so I'm in a similar spot , we can talk for hours about collection management and every time coming in the same conclusion that space and time is only mathematics and there are not many workarounds this. Respect to see also Sony branded batteries in the pictures above , a have a self made collection too (not throwing them away) , when you see them altogether they have their own entity. I'll be watching this thread with great interest !
Thank you. Here is another of my listings which does include pictures this time of some unusual items.
I will collect anything and have piles of magazine and newspaper cuttings featuring equipment adverts, tests and reviews etc. Here are some more unusual items.
Most impressive and the details in the descriptions equally so. Actually a historic archiving of Sony products even of those that usually are under the scope of common collectors. The arrangement and the designation at the bottom "page 5 , 6" make them look like they are extracted from a physical book that I seriously believe should consider to make. I'm lucky to have some sealed betamax cassettes but I admire your dedication to detail that this one is the even rarer edition from the time when Sony was manufacturing them in USA. Congrats and... Happy New Year to everyone !
Lets have a break from the lists and small stuff. Here is something special, the 1981, PSX-600 'Biotracer' turntable. A fabulous piece of electro-mechanical engineering. This will play allmost any record you throw at it no matter how off-centre the spindle hole is and most warped records thanks to the sensors and computer control.
Something 'Classic', the 1976 HMK-70 Music Centre. This is the catalogue illustration, I don't have my own example pictured and its too big to have indoors with me so is in storage in a shed! It was on one of these units I had my first experience of Surround sound when listening to Jeff Waynes War of the Worlds, the proud owner flicked a switch and the allready decent stero sound stage opened up and filled the room with something I can only decsribe as goose bump inducing sound! From that moment onwards I always wanted to get this music centre so I am very pleased I have one in the collection.
Another 'Classic', Sony's first front loading HI-FI stero cassette deck, the TC-203SD. When I found this my heart started pumping at the prospect I had found a previousely unrecorded cassette deck. Research (this was many years before computers and the internet!) confirmed this as the first front load unit and I suspect it uses the chassis from one of their car tape player units. TC =Tape Cassette. 203 = model number. SD = Stereo and Dolby. When my collection is sold off, this deck remains with me as I love it so much!
When discussing the TC-203SD I can never ignore including the TC-204SD, a more traditional front load design. If awards were being handed out to 'Classic' HI-FI components, this will take the top award for design, features and performace. This used to be my main deck for all my home recordings and mixing duties because of the traditional left and right line inputs on the rear, it also has twin quarter inch mic jacks and an additional stereo line in jack on the front. This is like a Rolls-Royce and only lacked a soft eject mechanism which was inroduced on decks just after this one. Like the TC-203SD, this will be staying with me also because it holds so many memories for me.
I can't tell what that slot is under the front tape load on the TC-203SD or is it a big stop button, it looks like a MiniDisc slot. I wonder what they werre thinking with that configuration
The big stop button and 3 transport buttons directly below it reminds me looks quite similar with the Sony TC-165, though this one is a top loader. They do seem to be from about the same era.
The TC-165 was available from 1971 to 1973, while the TC-203SD was available from 1974 so they are pretty close in production. For completeness the TC-204SD came out in 1975.
I was quite sad when I narrowly missed getting one of those TC-203SD for a cheap price. It was my first time seeing that model, and I was very intrigued.
