hey guys- i now have a panasonic rx 5250 and a sharp gf8989.
the sound of the 8989 is brilliant.but ive now given the panasonic a true session too-and man can this box kick!
i sat it on the bed next to me, about a foot away-volume on only number two, loudness on, full bass and half treble-and my leg was vibrating with the bass the speaker was kicking out!!!!!!and the machine was taking it easy, with a lovely clear sound and quality output.to my ears its not a million miles away from the sound my rx5600 used to make.
its a pity,because the 8989 is mint compared to the 5250-the panasonic sounds awesome (as does the 8989) but its been abused before i got it (cosmetically wise) and is a wonder it still works at all!!!!!!!!!
so to me its a close call between them.
can anyone do a quick review with pictures of the 2 models, and give their verdicts?

I'll provide the pics, but isn't it your job to write the review, since you have both boxes to hand?

Panasonic RX-5250


Sharp GF-8989

jesus christ Andy you are a lazy bugger, do your own review for the people.

its not that likely that many other people on here have those 2 boxes to do comparisons on. ive only ever seen an 8989 in the past never owned one. never even seen the pan before.


PS: get a camera!

I would sure HOPE the Panny puts out more bass than the 8989, cuz the 8989 is pretty weak in that department.

Agreed, the 8989 bass is fairly concentrated in the higher freq more 'boxy' bass and therefore doesn't have that nice deep 'boom'. It's a clear and bright sounding machine though and goes fairly loud without losing the plot. Can't speak for the Panny though, but sounds like a nice machine from the rep it's got among members on here.

quote:

Originally posted by billy the binman:
jesus christ Andy you are a lazy bugger

Classic!

ok then chaps-heres my take on the 8989 v 5250:
well start with the 8989.
well this blaster looks the biz.it has all the classic looks that a true vintage boombox should have-silver cabinet, big chromed speakers,seperate bass and treble controls and led lights.
during operation, all the switch gear feels sturdy enough and i would imagine on a par with other sharp models from the time.the led meters do their job,however like many led meters, particularly with sharp, arent that accurate to the sound output,and i think if the 8989 had been offered with a needle vu it would have made it look even better (on a personal note i preferr the look of needle vu's anyway, despite most of my machines having led equipped vu's.)
the all important aspect of sound:
well,if im totally honest it isnt the bassiest machine on the planet,but i can say i was far from dissapointed with the sound.i was woefully dissapointed with the sound of the vz2k,and the 8989 is leagues ahead of that.but from what ive seen of the early 80s sharp models -525/vz2000/4646 to name some of mine ive had/still have i seem to notice that sharp werent that hot with sound back then,with obvious exceptions of the big 777/767 and the like.
the handle seems strong and sturdy,and well made,and in general, as per sharp products the whole thing is well screwed together.
verdict
looks 9/10
sound 7/10
quality and build 10/10
so now, onto the panny:
heres a machine that was made to rock.this is a great machine to look at, maybee not total eye candy but no ugly duckling either.unlike the 8989 i cant imagine this having needle vus as the leds actually look good on this-and give it that more appeal.
the sound:
all i can say is this thing can take it-it has masses of bass and with the ambience option it really has what it takes to be one of the best.
all the switchgear feels solid and the toggle switches actually clunk into place-another sign of quality.but having owned a big 5600 and now i have this and a 5104,i am under the impression that panasonic always knew what they were doing,in the sound department, however sharp may have had the edge with the looks.
verdict
looks: 8/10
sound 9.5/10
quality and build 8/10
overall winner:
statistically its the panasonic,and so it should be, the plusses it has, but ive always been a sharp fan, and have learnt to live with the wishy-washy sound of some of its models.
and the 8989 has the looks for the street scene.the panasonic a bit more in house.
so my winner- but not a great margin-
its the sharp.

The 8989 is so let down by its full range speakers and piezo tweeters, replace them and the box sings. I know its morally wrong to come away from original, but one of my speakers quit so I had no option. Listen to the sharp through headphones and you will be able to tell what it can do.

The LED on the 8989 is better than the one on my 5500, because it has more variety of movement. On the 5500 all 7 of the LED segments light up and stay that way during heavy music.

yeah reli thats the same with the 5250

Awesome review Andy!! I really enjoyed reading that , thanks for the time and effort spent on it!

cheers R.A-thanks for the pics too mate

Totally agree that the Panasonic RX-5250 rocks! It may be the best kept secret .... shh! Large dome tweeters instead of virtually useless piezos makes so much difference in the sound -- most folks don't realize this small detail can make a world of a difference. The Sharp GF-8989 has rotary controls which is great but the pesky sliders on the GF-9494, 9696, etc. are very prone to failure, just like on the JVC's RC-838 and M70 models.

I'm quite suprised that you didn't like the sound on the VZ2000. I have 2 examples and both sound terrific. Bass is deep and full on the VZ's and they really rock. Perhaps pound/pound, it might be a bit disappointing since it's a real beast but overall sound quality is hard to beat and I think sounds better than the GF-777, which I also have 2 examples.

cheers stormin,
the 5250 is a brilliant unit-just wish mine was in better nick!it really is a close call with this and the 8989,but my money is still on the sharp.the 5250 is more of a home unit whereas the 8989 is a proper street machine.
the vz2000 to my ear sounded lousy-unless the one i had wasnt working right?no matter what i tried i couldnt get the bass to sound remotely deep on it, let alone decent sounding.as for it sounding better than a 777 mate i cant answer you there as ive not been blessed with aquiring one yet.but i live in hope.

Andy. The bass of either of my VZ2000 is much deeper and fuller than either of my GF-777's. If I had both sitting side/side on my shelf and I wanted to listen to quality music, I would unquestionably turn on the VZ instead of the 777. However, if I'm going to be blasting loud and the quality is not as important, I may turn on the Sharp. The first time I turned on a VZ, I was very pleasantly suprised by the sound. It can get loud but that's not what impresses me -- it's the sound quality. If you own a Panasonic RX-7700, you'll know what I'm talking about. It doesn't sound like a small boombox and well it shouldn't since that monster sharp is like 40+ pounds. That being said, those pesky plastic sliders are not the best of quality and maybe your bass sliders are worn beyond repair or maybe yours has a problem.

As for the RX-5250, I have 2 and both look like beaters. One has a whole HOLE in the back corner and while it rocks, I'll always know that the hole is there even though it's not visible from the front. While your opinion is that the panny is more of a home box, I'd say that the average condition of most RX-5250's suggests otherwise and that they are put to heavy use but I'd agree that this could be due to the looks. The silver classic looks of the GF can psycologically impart a sublimal "be-careful" into the minds of handler while the panny doesn't have that look, rather it's more like a "use-me-hard" type of look. Anyway, great boxes and wish you luck in aquiring a GF-777 which is a real looker of a box.

great words mate!from the state of my 5250 i think its spent its life in the kitchen of a cheep restaurant, because try as i may i cant get the nicotine/chip fat residue/etc out of the back of the case.the front has cleaned up real nice-all i need now is a complete tuner display,and a complete new door assembly.but the 5250 is a nice sound.mine is also battered,dented and bruised, a beater, like you say-but ill be holding onto it, for sure