Electrohome Apollo 711

Electrohome Record Console – Mid-Century Modern Hifi Record Consoles

These bubble-domed record consoles proved to be a lasting style icon of the 1960’s, with its futuristic sci-fi design, it could blend in your typical mid-century modern home or on the deck of a interplanetary space craft. Electrohome, was well known for having manufactured the first phonographs in Canada, and would later go on to become a television broadcaster in their country. By 1965 after a period of tremendous growth Electrohome products would be available in 23 countries around the globe, and they would become very well known for producing the Electrohome Apollo 711, named for NASA’s famed launches. During the lounge music revival of the 1990’s this striking record player from space would end up on album covers, magazine photo shoots and featured in films that wanted to reference this incredible era of style and design.

David Bowie’s Custom Brionvega Record Player

david-bowie Brionvega turntable – Mid-Century Modern Hifi Record Consoles

This custom record console, made for Mr. Stardust, was conceived as a “musical pet.” This incredible turntable was able to fetch a whopping $324,000 at a recent auction. Brionvega an Italian company that also produced other notable designs, including the “Cubo” television, which is on permanent display in the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Clairtone Project G

Clairtone Project G – Mid-Century Modern Hifi Record Consoles

One of the most unique designs from the mid-century modern era of stereo consoles is this series of players, known as Clairtone Project G. With its instantly recognizable globe shaped speakers, and space aged minimalism. This was an extremely high end console when it sold originally, with a price tag around $2000 in the mid-1960s. Clairtone, a Canadian company, became an extremely well known design of the day, even though only less than 400 units were ever made. It gained notoriety from features by celebrities like Frank Sinatra and a feature on the set of The Graduate.

PAAM Tube Turntable

PAAM TUBE TURNTABLE – Mid-Century Modern Hifi Record Consoles

Europe provided of the most interesting designs of the mid-century modern era of style, with this French design from 1968. The aeronautics-trained designer created this eye-catching cylindrical stereo turntable, with built-in speakers on both sides.

Weltron 2007

Weltron 2007 – Mid-Century Modern Hifi Record Consoles

Appropriately referred to as the “spaceship” this unit added an AM/FM radio and cassette deck built into one compact unit, it is said that the Weltron 2007 was inspired by Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece 2001: A Space Odyssey. The Weltron 2007 made it’s debut at the Consumer Electronics Show in 1975, and sold for $399, which today is equivalent to over $1,800 adjusted for inflation.

If you enjoyed this tour through some of our favorite turntables and record consoles of the space age mid-century modern era, take a look at our versions of their modern day counterparts, such as our EGB2 Record Console,  KC27 Record Console, J2B2 Record Console, and the beautiful standalone cabinet (without turntable) THE SHELL.

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670 Lounge Chair

This beautiful lounge chair is an icon of mid-century modern style, designed by Charles and Ray Eames, this shine to comfort captures both a feel of classic Americana mixed with a sleek futurism, but still functional enough to find a place in the family room of many homes in the 1960’s.

BALL CHAIR

At the opposite end of the spectrum are these space-age pods that were epitome of 1960’s futurism. The Ball Chair by Eero Aarnio looks like it could find a home on the set of a Stanley Kubrick movie just as easily as it could blend into a swinging bachelor pad, with a beautiful hifi record console playing an Esquivel record.

LC3

From time to time you’ll run across some of these chairs still in use, once a popular waiting room set, that many have knocked off into close but less than perfect copies. The low back is the trademark of these Pierre Jeanneret and Charlotte Perriand designed masterworks. What they are is a masterpiece of comfort, once you sit down in one of these, not only will you not want to get up, you will find it very challenging to go against your better instincts to ever remove your body from these mid-century modern miniature sofas.

WOMB CHAIR

The mid-century modern designers were extremely into aesthetics, but designs like this also over-delivered in the comfort department. Designer Eero Saarinen created this chair as a commission for a fellow designer Florence Knoll who wanted a chair that would give her the experience of sitting in a basket full of pillows. There’s something about this era of designers that was a lot of fun, they took chances, sometimes creating designs that were totally unlike anything that had come before.

EGG CHAIR

It’s hard to think of mid-century modern chairs without these egg chairs by Arne Jacobsen, a staple of 1960’s television and a chair your probably associate with some of your favorite shows of the era. This chair was designed to be a dramatic frame for whoever sits in it, to be a complement and a striking setting for whoever occupies them. Arne Jacobsen believed deeply that a chair should not only work as a functional piece of furniture, but also very importantly as a work of art.

If you liked these, make sure you check out our interpretation of the mid-century modern chair, we call it The Buckley Listening Chair.

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SELECT A STEREO CONSOLE

The stereo console is the centerpiece of the listening room, make no mistake it is an investment, but it’s meant to be an heirloom piece, and the hours of enjoyment that this sound system brings are priceless. Not to mention the style points that a piece like this brings to your home are off the charts! LUNO’s flagship model, EGB2, is a timely update of the classic record consoles of the 50’s and 60’s. The beautiful Mid Century inspired design, boutique minimalist turntable, pull out MiniBar and custom gold rimmed whiskey glasses effectively evoke the luxurious style and modernist design of the Mad Men era. Each EGB2 is crafted by skilled artisans and craftsmen in Los Angeles, CA using American Walnut and would undoubtedly be a conversation piece based on it’s stylish design alone.

FIND A MATCHING LISTENING CHAIR

Once you sit in a listening chair, you’ll realize why they were made, and you may not ever want to get up from it again. Our Buckley Listening Chair is the perfect companion piece for our consoles. Built with the speaker height in mind, it’s positioned for you the get the maximum listening experience, so kick back with a glass of whiskey and enjoy your favorite record! Ottoman included. No mid-century modern listening room is complete without one of these!

FIND STYLISH MID-CENTURY MODERN ACCESSORIES

Finding utility in accessories and room decor makes the piece all the more cool. This simple vinyl storage solution is made of solid walnut and solid brass. It’s perfect to sit on top of your desk or credenza and makes flipping through your collection ever so easy. Choose your favorite records and add them to your everyday rotation. When you start equipping your mid-century modern listening room you’ll recognize the value of having record storage that keeps a selection of your favorite vinyl LP’s accessible.

YOU CAN NEVER HAVE TOO MUCH RECORD STORAGE

Once your begin developing a vinyl record addiction, this storage solution and decorative piece will not only make sense, but it may save your life. This stunning modern storage unit is for the serious and stylish collector holding up to 500 records. Made from exotic Zebrawood with black lacquered legs, it’s a one of kind showstopping item that will hold a large record collection with sophistication. Custom finishes & sizes available. This is an essential item for any mid-century modern listening room!

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Dear LUNO,

I’ve been looking into purchasing a vintage mid-century modern record console from the 1960s, and some of the models I’ve considered look like they’re in excellent condition, but are selling way above what I’ve noticed the original price tags were. Are vintage vinyl console record players worth the price, and how do they stack up against just investing in a new stereo console? What should I look for in a record console beyond the basic style that I’ve been seeking? 

Thanks in advance for your response,

“Confused Console Shopper”

~~~~~~

Hi “Confused,”

Where to begin? There are so many options out there for vintage record consoles, and a wide variety of quality. Depending on the brand you’re looking at, the price for some of the rarer heirloom vintage stereo record consoles, or collectors pieces, can be astronomical.

Here’s the main issue, most vintage 1960’s consoles weren’t known for impeccable sound quality, so depending on whether you’re looking to use the piece as a decoration, or as an actual daily use working hifi stereo system, should help you decide if you should look for a brand new versus a vintage unit. Consoles like our EGB2, and other brand new mid-century modern style consoles have significantly better components than they put into their classic 1960’s predecessors.

You should also check to see if the console you’re looking into has all of its original components, or if they’ve been updated to new equipment, which in many cases will give you much greater fidelity. For the money, purchasing a new unit can give you exactly what you’re looking for, and in many cases with LUNO’s consoles, you can customize some of the features, so you find exactly what you’re looking for.

Another suggestion is to look for units that are entirely analog, many new record consoles have equipment that allows you to output to a digital signal, and other digital equipment, which compresses the full original analog signal into a digital signal, and kind of defeats the purpose of listening to a vinyl record. LUNO’s record consoles are 100% full analog from stylus to speaker, giving you the warmth and fullness that analog records are so well known for.

If you have a specific console that you have questions about drop us another line, and we’re always glad to help out!

Yours truly in interior design,

LUNO

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THREE CLUBS

This may not sound like a complement, but Three Clubs seems like a place that Leonard Cohen and Nick Cave would meet up to shoot heroin. It’s very dark, it embodies the style and comforts of another era, but it has a version of class that is almost so out of place in 2018 that it becomes a little seedy. Their jukebox is CD based, but its selection is fantastic and covers some bases that really suit their environment, and put them on the map as one of our favorite Los Angeles jukebox landmarks.

THE 101 COFFEE SHOP

There’s no better place to get the old school Los Angeles coffee shop experience, and play some incredible music, than The 101 Coffee Shop. An institution for generations of hipsters, but in this case the hipsters got it right. Hanging out here you get to touch a bygone that we all seem to long for, a simpler time that was richer in many ways, but somehow we keep pushing further away from into the complexity of technology. Great food, awesome jukebox, need we say anymore?

SWINGERS

Another great fixture of the classic Los Angeles coffee shops, Swingers is well known for having a very eclectic jukebox. Their selection over the years has included titles from artists as diverse as Bjork, The Smiths and Link Wray. After a night out at Hollywood clubs, most likely listening to some form of the current top-40 music being blasted at a volume that makes it almost impossible to realize how bad it really is, Swingers lets you unwind over some great food, conversation with your friends with a background of incredible music.

SEVEN GRAND

A whiskey bar that is as luxurious and handsomely decorated as you could possibly hope for, with the added bonus of an amazing selection of tracks on their jukebox. Some nights they have a live jazz combo, which is always a great night out too. But my favorite nights here are those when you get to pick out tracks from the albums you love, enjoy some incredible whiskey cocktails and just talk about music.

JOHNNIES PASTRAMI

Not the first place that may come to mind when you think of jukebox, but they have them, and the also have a pastrami sandwich that’s so good, it could make many vegetarians rethink their stance on eating meat. This place is caught in a time-warp, but in the best way possible. When you’re here enjoying one of the best late night food spots anywhere in the world, listening to Elvis, you start to realize what a special place Los Angeles is, and how lucky those are who explore it and discover its secrets.

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The Hidden Whiskey Bar

Let’s get started with a bang, easily our favorite feature of LUNO’s mid-century modern style record console, the discrete whiskey bar. It’s your own hidden turntable powered speakeasy, and comes with 4 beautiful gold rimmed whiskey glasses. It has the capacity to hold 4 full average sized whiskey or wine bottles, just in case you want to change it up. It really is the perfect complement to your favorite classic vinyl LP, check out the whiskey bar on one of our most popular consoles The EGB2.

Standard Marshall Salt & Pepper Grill Cloth

One of the coolest things to know about LUNO’s record consoles is that they come with the standard Marshall salt & pepper grill cloth, it doesn’t get more classic than that, Marshall amplifier grill cloth! You actually have one of the most iconic elements from the history of rock & roll music built in as part of the DNA of LUNO’s record consoles.

Apple & Airplay Compatibility

Airplay compatibility means you can connect your other Apple compatible devices and stream them on your high quality LUNO stereo console, giving you an extremely full and rich audio experience. One of the comments people frequently make is how impressed they are by the enveloping sound that comes out of our consoles. Which actually gets at another feature that we didn’t have room to include, which is high quality audio components, that are hand-wired by our in-house audio gurus.

Deceptively Large Vinyl Storage Capacity

When you slide open the cabinet doors, you will see a perfectly measured space to store your copious vinyl collection. This baby holds 150 standard size vinyl records, and believe me you’re going to need after you hear one of these record consoles in person. Every record you currently own in any other format, you will begin a mad hunt to track it down in its original pure analog format.

Line-In Other Media & Audio Sources

The thing I love most is being able to connect other older analog tape players through the built-in amp and console speakers. It makes even these old tapes sound rich and warm, and the EQ controls it gives you, allow you to adjust for some of the deficiencies and decay that can be found as tapes age. Also, if you want to have the coolest looking home theater setup known to man, this unit can act as the core of your surround sound, and then some.

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First Tip: Use A Microfiber Cloth 

No matter how durable your finish, you want to use cleaning tools that won’t scratch or mark your surface. When you’re dry dusting, a good suggestion is to always use a microfiber cloth, or at the very least a lightly damp soft cloth. Resist the urge to use a lot of force, try to use a light touch.

Tip Two: Don’t Be Shy With Those Coasters Or You’ll Get Ring Stains

If your record console has a had waxed finish, make sure you don’t place any hot or wet cups directly on the surface, or you could damage your finish. If you have a shallow spot, try rubbing it out with your finger directly on the surface, or if it’s a more substantial mark, use a few drops of household ammonia on a soft rag or microfiber cloth and rub lightly until the mark is lifted.

Tip Three: Caring For Your Wood Finish

To protect a finish like our EGB2, which is hand waxed, you can use furniture wax or a silicone-based polish on the external surface, twice a year is recommended to keep it looking great. However it’s important to note that you shouldn’t wax furniture that are finished with polyurethane varnish, the only danger here is causing a proliferation of wax buildup. If your console has an oiled finish, apply a thin layer of linseed oil once annually, rub it into the wood briskly until the oily texture absorbs into the wood.

Tip Four: Keep Your Records Clean

Luckily we make this job easy with our Groovewasher record cleaning kit, the G2 Fluid included in the kit is designed for maximum cleaning effectiveness of the delicate vinyl surface and microgroove. Anti-static action on contact, which really helps to get the record to release all of the dirt and dust on the surface to release. Also, it’s a good idea to wipe the surfaces of the record player with the included microfiber cloth after each use.

Tip Five: A Clean Record Stylus Is Important

Typically, it’s suggested to clean your record stylus or record needle as they’re more commonly called after each use. There are stylus cleaning brushes that you can use for this, or you could use a very soft paint brush. It’s important to always make sure you wipe it from back to front, if you brush it from side to side you could risk bending or breaking it.

Tip Six: Dust Is Not Your Friend 

Overtime dust, rust and other buildup in your audio equipment can lead to noise and popping sounds. Keeping the surface of your amp, turntable and speakers, especially near the connections, dust free is a great practice to limit the build up that can happen in and around your audio equipment. It’s always a good idea to use an anti-static cloth, and for getting into tight areas near the tone arm, and around cables, a can of compressed air can be used to blow away debris.

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So now that I’ve exercised my evangelical style rant, it’s important for me to point out that this one album is just a drop in the bucket of one of the greatest catalogs of music ever released. His work with the legendary Mothers Of Invention, his collaborations with other incredible artists including Captain Beefheart, Don Van Vliet (who can be heard on Hot Rats), runs a staggering gamut of styles and genres, so much that there are times when you will experience disbelief that all of this music came from the same artist.  Do yourself a favor, go out and buy a copy of Frank Zappa’s Hot Rats, play it on an a record console that will do it justice, and make today the first day of the rest of your life.

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Oakley’s Thump Sunglasses

These wearable works of art, created by Oakley were endorsed by Dog The Bounty Hunter, and sold for a whopping $495 when they were first introduced. Beyond their stellar celebrity endorsement, and style that looks like it could have hoped right off of one of Wesley Snipes enemies in Blade, they had extremely limited storage when they were first released compared to the standards of mp3 players of that time. People say they were difficult to use, however they also say you have to suffer for fashion, and inconvenience is a small price to pay to look this good.

ZUNE MP3 Player

Despite users who were so excited about the technology that it actually lead one man to get a Zune tattoo, these units couldn’t compete with the more ubiquitous Apple “Mp3” offerings. They actually had some cool features in which you could share music directly between Zunes, however there were some limitations, you could only play acquired tracks three times within three days of having shared them, among a few other drawbacks. They tried to reinvigorate interest with an updated HD version of the player, that included gaming, but it wasn’t long before the Zune became the first digital mp3 player to go the way of the 8-track.

Sony Mini Disc Players

Despite being promoted in almost every late 90s movie about hackers or futuristic crime, they never caught on as being a popular format. Not to say they didn’t have their extremely loyal cult, who still use mini discs to this day. Some extremely obscure sub-genres of music still put out albums on this format, but price and a transformation of digital downloads with the advent of Napster had already began to change the landscape of storage capacity, and how people were listening to music. From a design standpoint this was one of the most practical updates to optical format data storage, that allowed for protection of the media with a plastic covering, based on the same data access door used on computer floppy discs.

8-Track Cassette Players

8-Track players, and the associated audio equipment, were extremely cool looking, so many of the players had incredible design, however many users had various complaints about these audio players. Many would report that the unites functioning and track switching were very noisy. It was also not a very reliable format, they would frequently have issues with playback and track switching. The 8-track tape players were also most popularly installed in cars, however the tapes themselves couldn’t stand up to the extreme heat of being stored in cars, as they would warp and melt into an unplayable condition.

DataPlay Disc Players

Almost an identical clone of Sony’s mini disc technology, however there were a few twists to DataPlay’s offering that was incredibly unique. As illegal downloading began to slowly dismantle the commercial music market, the DataPlay discs and players utilized a complex digital rights management system, which almost all but prevented the illegal copying or trading of tracks. It also allowed for those who have purchased a disc to pay to unlock additional content that was already recorded to the disc itself with a secondary purchase. With limited commercial releases available on the format, fans could however get their hands on Avril Lavigne’s first record and then pay to unlock multi-media and extra content. If that doesn’t give you a picture of why we aren’t using this today, then I don’t know what will.

Take a look at some audio equipment that we are very grateful for here.

The post Audio Equipment That Should Have Never Been Invented | LUNO appeared first on Luno.

“In April 1968, the unique and very special Beatles movie „Yellow Submarine“ came into the cinemas. It was one of their most famous pieces in history. Now, fifty years later Apple Corps Ltd and Universal Music Group are reintroducing this movie, restored in 4k digital resolution. In order to offer Beatles fans of all ages the enjoyment of watching this one of a kind experience. The movie will be released across many cinemas in Northern America with remixed 5.1 stereo surround sound.”

“As big fans of the work of the Beatles, we are proud to introduce this collaboration and number five of our Beatles series. The Yellow Submarine turntable has a unique shape and is sure to attract a lot of attention from Beatles fans. By adding a glass platter to the turntable it has been made sure that this masterpiece won‘t get covered and can be enjoyed in its full glory.
The supplied cartridge comes from Ortofon. Especially for this edition, Ortofon has created a yellow Concorde cartridge, called Sonar. The S-shaped aluminum arm adds a touch of harmony to the sound. Special decoupling feet make sure that the turntable is safely standing on its ground.”

• Unique special Yellow Submarine look
• Belt-drive with synchronous motor
• Ortofon Concorde quality pickup
• Vibration absorbing feet
• Glass platter
• Rigide MDF chassis
• Highly precise and light aluminium tonearm
• Saphire-tonearm bearing
• Gold-plated contacts
• Silicon belt with optimum dampening
• Hand-made in Europe

Speed 33,45 (manual speed change)
Principle Belt drive
Speed variance 33: 0.60% 45: 0.50%
Wow & Flutter 33: 0.19% 45: 0.17%
Platter 300 mm glas with felt mat
Main bearing Brass with teflon plate
Tonearm 8.6” aluminium
Effective arm length 218.5 mm
Overhang 18.5 mm
Effective tonearm mass 6.0 g
Counterweight for mass 2 – 5.0 g
Tracking force range 0 – 25mN Power consumption 4.0 Watt max
Dimensions 500 x 120 x 400 mm (WxHxD)
Weight 4.5 kg netto

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