Hi, I've just purchased one of these good lookers. I'd like to know how I should expect it to sound before it arrives, to avoid disappointment. Does anyone know how this model model sounds (bass, treble) compared to the models listed below?

Hitachi TRK-8080
Hitachi TRK-8200
Hitachi TRK-8290
Hitachi TRK-8600
Sharp GF-575
Sharp GF-9090
Sharp GF-9000

Nothing extraordinary....

It has an Okay sound but not as good as the other Sharps you have listed (I cannot tell you how it sounds compared to the other Bboxes you listed... (I do not have any of those)

just did a test, now i have my bboxes in one place. I would say on par with the 9090, but the 8989 is much nicer to look at imho

quote:

but the 8989 is much nicer to look at imho

HUMMMMMMM...... Yeah, I guess. I like the 9090 more.... That is me.

Oh, I have ordered the 2 styli from the link you sent me Geoff... Be using the VZ in a few weeks, 'cos I also just bought a LP!

Its a great looking box but don't get too excited about the sound. It is very average sounding.
A well built box tho and it cranks up pretty well.

Thanks for all your opinions.

If it's on a par with the GF-9090, it may just be passable. I like the sound of my '9090, but wish it had more bass.

quote:

Originally posted by geoffhartwell:
just did a test, now i have my bboxes in one place. I would say on par with the 9090, but the 8989 is much nicer to look at imho

Is the '8989 bigger than the '9090, Geoff? It looks taller, and I hope it is...

I just did a search on the 8989 and found this thread...

Link.

Transamguy, in the thread you said the 8989 sounds incredibly rich. In this thread you said it sounds very average. I'll tell you all what I thought of the sound when it arrives, and I'll have the '9090 on hand for a comparison...

I think the 9090 is a fairly nice box but I've never seen or heard an 8989 in person. I guess that raises my curiousity about the 8989.

Thanks alot, like I don't have interest in enough boxes already.

quote:

Originally posted by MasterBlaster84:
I've never seen or heard an 8989 in person.

Here's an 8989. Absolutely gorgeous...

Retro, there's no denying the 8989 is a nice looking box.

It is nice looking... the other 2 that would be basically identical would be the 8787 and 8989 MkII.

The 8989 has the grey color speaker grills, the 8787 and 8989 MkII have the black grills.

Retro....

I tried copying the pics (not that they are the best), but could not... So here is the link to one of the old post showing some of mine. Scrole down and you will see the 8787, 8989 and 8989 MkII:

http://stereo2go.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/1696027254/m/6891051304

Speaking of speakers, the only 8989 I have with light gray covers is the 8989H. My 8989C, 8989Z, and 8989II all have dark speaker covers. The brown 8989HB has... you guessed it!... brown ones!

Maybe this photo of the 8989HB, 8989H, and 8989II will help.

It's basically a nice sounding box, where Sharp have cut corners on the tweeters, and put full range drivers in.. however, listen to it through headphones and you will be impressed, also, taping on it is very good. It will go very loud without distortion, clear amp.

Replace the speakers and you'll be very happy indeed with it.

Meljak

Thanks for all your pictures. I like the looks of the 8989II best. That bronze (or brown) one is nice looking too.

My 8989 is finally home. I've been attempting to cure a persistent problem with the left speaker ever since it arrived. On tape mode, both speakers work perfectly and unit sounds very good. On radio mode however, the left speaker is at a very low level. When the function selector is switched from tape to radio, the sound comes out at a reasonable level for a second, then gradually loses volume until I have to put my ear right up to the grille to hear any noise. As described above, both speakers work fine on tape, so the speaker isn't blown. The problem seems to be with the power (or function) selector. I've had the unit open, the tape deck unplugged and removed from the PCB, and the whole of the circuitry removed from the case for greater access for me to undertake cleaning. The unit was full of sawdust when I first opened it, the mankiest I've ever seen in fact. It must have been used for music in a place where they work with wood. I cleaned it all out and sprayed the best part of quarter of a can of contact cleaner into all of the switches on the unit and gave them some 'good exercise'. I put the unit back together again and let the insides dry off. Still the speaker problem remains. Could the problem be the selector? I really need the insides of another 8989 to put straight into my case. I've already become an expert at taking one apart since the start of the 'project'. It must be the easiest box I've ever worked on. Can anyone help me with some replacement 'guts' so I can sort this thing once and for all? Is anyone parting out a fully working one due to a badly damaged case, for example? I don't need the deck or power supply, or speakers. Thanks for reading, and hopefully someone can help.