Technics

What a find! I bought it in a secondhand store for peanuts because it was in a very bad shape, the front was dirty, the inside was covered in dust, four inches accumulated in three decades (the old man who sold it to me told me he had it 15 years stored in his cellar!). I ran a first test, I connected everything and turned the speakers on...Nothing happened, no sound, no noise, the VU-meters didn't move nor did they light up. I opened it up and, as I wrote above, it was full of dust (I had never seen so much in one place). Two hours later I could see more clearly inside, but there was still no sound. The first reason was the relay didn't work. To cut a long story short, the relay serves as buffer switch: When powered on, the power supply sends electricity to the filtering condensers, their role can be assimilated to an energy reserve in order to feed the power stages continuously when lots of power is demanded. The relay becomes useful right when it allows current to flow as soon as the filter capacitors have taken in enough current. A brief checkup with a multimeter allowed me to verify the good health of the Technics. (I must note that the number of components is staggering). Since the relay didn't work, I didn't even bother to test it...But after a short while I realized I had forgotten it and discovered it was actually fine: Engaging it manually made sound come out one of the speakers. This made me start from zero again, with an added problem. Namely, no sound on one channel and an issue with one or more components. Given the electrical complexity of the amp, the technical diagrams were quite useful. I immediately thought about the four transistors in charge of controlling the relay and protecting the speakers, so I had to isolate the broken transistor, which wasn't easy to test. They all seemed okay, but, logically, the problem couldn't be rooted anywhere else. At this point, I had been working three days on the amp and still had the hardest part ahead of me...I needed to take the entire amp apart to change the transistors properly. In other words, about 10h of work to be able to take the logic card out. I took the opportunity to change the power cord, too, which was screaming for it. A new, shielded AC cord never did any harm. Since the light bulb of the VU-meters was blown, I replaced it with a Marantz one from the same period (it provides more light with the same amperage). I then changed the heat paste between the power transistors and the heat sink, put it all back together (one more day of work) and powered it on. Three seconds later, the relay was activated. Sound came out the right channel. A quick check of the fuses and replacing one of them (which didn't seem to be blown) solved the problem. What a relief. 04h35, first test, Katie Melua - Spider’s Web. No surprises... After 15 years without electricity it had to regain its health slowly. I'd resume listening in the morning or the afternoon...and leave it powered on a moment. Okay, the time came to put it to the test. Same song. The sound is impressive, clear, the VU-meters respond well and vibrations fill the room, very good presence in the lows and an overall perfect dynamic response. It sounds vintage and the increase in power is dazzling. After a day of listening, the timbres are more refined, vocals are warmer: No noise, no unbalances. This amp provides a real listening delight. The 7700 confirms that the notion of a Watt has certainly changed after 30 years! It can handle my Avantgardes without a sweat and provides very nice "jazzy" sounds. Once again, long live vintage gear!

These and similar Technics speakers were decent affordable speakers in the 90's and even the 80's...I bought a pair that were almost identical for $99.99 in 1986 or so. I recently found another pair for 20 bucks and they still sound okay...ish. The 10" paper woofers sound weak by today's standards and the 1" mid/tweeter speakers sound washed out but not shrill. The super tweeters are good though. They are strong, loud, and clear and they don't crack up at normal volume. I use them in the garage for hard rock and metal and that's where they shine. Boomy, weak bass and strong clear highs...these sound like what they are. Cheap but effective oversized speakers. Not meant for audiophiles or pro audio but good for basic sound. The boxes are good and solid even after 20 -30 years. Good enough for me to upgrade the woofers, mids and the crossover in my set.The crossover consists of one capacitor. Cheap and effective I guess. I will put a board in and some larger mids and better woofers. Maybe I'll try them in the home theater set-up. Anyway...3 stars out of 5.

having not been impressed with cheap mixers in the past choosing and using a quality mixer is paramount. after using a technics sh-ex 1200 mixer for years being greedy i decided to buy a pioneer djm600 as this was club standard a the time and i was drawn in by the efx gimmic. due to not being impressed with the overall build or sound quality of the djm600 which is basicly a djm500 with a sampler i got rid and bought a second hand technics sh-mz1200 expecting the build and sound quality to be similar to that of the sh-ex 1200 and i wasnt wrong. this mixer is bomb proof!! the crossfader and masters can take a good smashing and eq`s are exellent providing gain as far round as the eq knobs will go. from reading the reviews of others on here regarding this mixer i question weather they have used one at all. the adjustable curve of the crossfader has 3 settings which are all precise "note other reviewers have missed this" and all the masters and crossfader can be reversed. the send/return for using an external efx unit are perfect. i used this mixer with a pioneer efx 1000, 2x pioneer cdj 1000 mk3`s and 2x technics 1210 mk2`s. basicly this mixer is idiot proof!!! the vu meter tells you the exact left and right output of the unit and the cue level is just as exact determined by your master/cue and how you use the trims. if you have any idea how to use a mixer then you shouldnt be having to look at fairy lights anyway. you can also use front and rear amplifiers and split the 2 so you have the front area playing 1 tune and the rear playing another not really needed but nice. if you want a mixer which has sound and build quality that you can literally kick the shit out of then no messing this is the one to have..

I brought these heaphones beacuse I was tired of using sub-par consumer headphones (UGGHHHH!!!!) Theses headphones are great at canceling out unwanted sounds due to the cushion of the inner (nonleather) & outter (leather) padding. The sound is amazing. From 30 kHz to 5Hz is the range for the 50MM drivers. Precise highs, excellent mids and very low bottom, pretty much you can her everything, especially if you use these as studio monitors. The price I cannot argue, for a quality pair of headphones, you cannot beat it. If i was to do it all over again I would DEFINITELY buy another pair of theses...which would be a few years from now, very durable headphones.

88 keys, very good weighted keyboard 3 sounds (and not 2 as Appoggiator thinks!!): - perfect piano. - excellent electric piano, - and a mysterious sound that replaces the electric piano when you switch on the keyboard and press the highest note. This mysterious sound corresponds to a Rhodes extra (think Ray Charles). Reverb Midi, audio out, sustain and headphones connectors. UTILIZATION The keyboard is excellent Very easy overall setup MIDI channel selection is easy, but not very practical. Which is normal, it's a piano. But it can also be used as a master keyboard, if you have the time and patience to turn the piano off and on over and over again to change channels! SOUNDS The sounds are perfect for me. The mysterious sound (I seem to recall it's not even mentioned in the manual!) is awesome: You only need to turn it on and you are in the mood for Ray Charles! The Reverb effect was only conceived to play quietly at home. On stage you need to play clean piano and use professional effects. Perfect expression OVERALL OPINION It's a great piano, it's nice and has very good sounds. I bought it new six years ago and I still play it with the same delight.

It's a digital piano with 88 weighted keys The samples are from a Steinway and it is easily recognizable and appreciated by the ear. Forget about the other sounds. UTILIZATION It has some very useful controls, like brilliance, reverb, the weight of the keyboard (light/mid/hard), and transposition (to work with one or more vocals). You can obviously use it as a master keyboard. SOUNDS This piano has been my faithful companion for 11 years. Sounds are very realistic, they have shocked more than one. If you want to make yourself an idea, go to http://www.dogmazic.net/denisb With hindsight, I am now able to understand where the defects of the sound lie. Sometimes it sounds a bit tight in the mids. But, to be honest, when I hear people say "the sound of the piano is not up to par"....Go play a $5000 upright piano, or a $13000 old Pleyel grand piano and then come back to the P50. The verdict won't surprise me. I'd understand that if you have $50,000 to buy a Yamaha C7 + the money to have it tuned twice a year + a room to go with it. Otherwise, it's only nitpicking! The P50 dwarfs lots of modern pianos and the only limit will be you and what you can do. The rest is called marketing or uneducated ears that have always played a piano on a synth. The "playability" of the P50 is excellent. I have tried to play it with VST piano sounds that are supposed to be marvelous, and there is simply no point of comparison. It's like a video game, it most be playable, and the P50 won't disappoint anybody at that: Velocity/sound/dynamics, keyboard...it's an excellent compromise, given its price. OVERALL OPINION I bought it in Los Angeles in 2001. It was the only one in the whole store that seduced my ear. I liked its slim design and accepted the fact that it had to be amplified. I played with headphones five years (worn-down Sennheiser HDP 25 that are 20 years old). I use it right now with active monitor speakers (Fostex PM), and it's very, very good. What I miss the most is not being able to play synths, electric pianos and organs with decent sounds. That's the reason I changed it for a Nord (which is much more expensive). Even if at the end of the day many of us always come back to the grand piano sound, I think it's always positive to play alternatively piano and other instruments. One last point: After ten years, it has no sign of fatigue, no feeble keys...no planned obsolescence??? Instead of selling it, I'll keep it!!

from 1981 or so... 4 octaves, full size keys RCA out, DC in, AC in polysection, 8 sounds monosection, 6 sounds, analogue synthesis (filter cutoff and lfo speed potentiometers moddable-friendly) rhythm/chord section pretty interesting, hi-hats are analogue, others are samples nice function is the auto fill-in. when you open the keyboard , and observe the circuit a bit, this keyboard begs to be modded! there's a hidden synth inside there, well not a full synth, but! UTILIZATION its a simple 1981 home keyboard very nice design and high quality build OVERALL OPINION the solo section (monophonic) sounds realy sweet, warm. maybe because its analogue. especially played with the cutoff potentiometer added. poly section sounds are also very nice and 80's sounding, and the effects are pretty nice too. a very unique sounding instrument!

There are 7 octaves and has 3 pedals. Key: 88 keys. Key cover: Sliding plastic, simulated woodgrain. Touch sense: yes. Polyphony: 32 notes. Sounds: 180 instrumental sounds. 84 rhythm patterns. 21 demo songs on it. Pedal:3 (room, stage, hall - adjustable.) Brilliance: yes. Transpose: yes G-C-F#. Sequencer. yes, 16 tracks. MIDI: Full Midi capabilities. Mode set: piano tuning, pitch adjustment. Others:2 headphone jacks, MIDI. Misc: LCD Displays. Output: 50w + 2. Speakers. 16cm +2, 6.5cm +2. monitor speakers +2. Weight. 149.9 lbs. Year, 1995 - current. UTILIZATION yes it`s simple to set up with everything. the manual is clear too. SOUNDS The sounds on the Technics PR-305 Digital Piano are the truest sounds, the touch and after touch are really good, and the digital effects are wonderful, I like all the sounds on the Technics PR-305 Digital Piano. OVERALL OPINION What I like most about the Technics PR-305 Digital Piano, is that I can make it sound like a five manual organ by pressing the pipe organ 1 and the brass button, then the sound button, then sound setting then key shift minus 12 or 24 making it 8 cycles per second or 16 cycles per second,making it more fun to play on and making it sound like a big Cathedral Organ, A specially if you hook up a Behringer K3000FX 300 watt amp to it, then pressing the set 1 or so button to store that setting, it`s on the right side right next to the disk drive. You can also master tune the the Technics PR-305 Digital Piano to a song on the radio or television that`s either too sharp or flat to play along with, with the tune and touch button, it`s under the sliding cover in the upper left, right by the disk drive, you press the tune and touch button until you see the master tune press that and you can vary the pitch of the entire Technics PR-305 Digital Piano. The price was pretty good and the sound too. I tried other models and spent a lot of time with them, but liked the Technics PR-305 Digital Piano the best. The digital effects are wonderful. You can look up www.manualslib.com/ then Technics PR-305, on how to use it. I would make the same choice buying the Technics PR-305 Digital Piano. Also if the Technics Piano has a distortion, open up the back of the piano, if you see foam lying on the bottom under the speaker, disconnect the speaker cord from the top of the piano right away to avoid damage to the amplifier and power supply, it`s under the Te in Technics on the back of the Technics Piano. You will get the monitor speakers which won`t sound very good, but better, until you put in Clavinova Speakers, which is easy to repair. This is a must have Digital Piano.

7-octave piano, 14 instrument ensembles (piano; organ; strings etc...), each with around a dozen variations. It also features a drum machine, which is still pretty decent, given its age. It has MIDI connections, 2 headphone outs, 2 INPUTS and 2 OUTPUTS The effects are limited, but that's not the main role of such a piano (Digital effect - Chorus - Digital Reverb, all of which can be edited) UTILIZATION For me, the keyboard of the piano is excellent. If you make use of it in a "traditional" manner, the overall setup is very easy and the manual relatively clear from the moment you know what you want to do. I haven't used MIDI much. SOUNDS Most of the sounds are very good. It recreates a true piano thanks to its dynamic keyboard. I have no favorite sounds. OVERALL OPINION I bought it in 1997 and I play it almost every day. Sometimes it's just a couple of minutes, but some other times it's a couple dozen minutes :) I like and use a lot the 16-track sequencer. The only snag is the instrument distortion when you layer 2 or 3 tracks with very specific instruments (strings). I didn't try any other models when I bought it. At this price point, it is an excellent value for money.

7octaves. It's an arranger piano But it's more of a piano Audio and MIDI connections It's a small apartment furniture With two pedals UTILIZATION The keyboard is more than perfect It resembles a real piano Very easy setup SOUNDS The arranger is average But the sound of the piano is exceptional The expression, velocity and aftertouch are perfect OVERALL OPINION I've been using it for five years It is not expensive secondhand It's better than a Yamaha Clavinova at the same price point

Well... What do I say about the Technics sx-KN1500? It was for sure the keyboard that I kept for most time on my set until now. I got mine in January/2000 - and I wonder if I could still have it. The onboard sounds were OK, but since it was also a synthesizer, I could edit them the way I wanted and save on the user presets (from 201 to 240, if my mind is right). The styles were nicely elaborated, making the keyboard self sufficient - and yes, I could create my very own ones. I can't say much about the internal sequencer since I didn't used it too much - I actually don't remember ever using it, since I preferred using Cakewalk Pro Audio for that at the time. Talking about MIDI, the connectivity was simply the best I ever had - I think no current mid-level keyboard can do what the old KN1500 could do in terms of doing music through software sequencers. Did I told that it has a built-in ring modulator? Yep. One of the most complex synthesis features - present in a mid-level arranger instrument. Is there any other keyboard on this category with that specific built-in effect included? I don't know. I confess that I had some difficulties to learn working with the KN1500 at the beginning, considering that I was just a 17-year old student. But the user manual clarified everything, and in the end of 2003, it was like I was doing magic with that keyboard (!!!) Unhappely, some accident damaged it in December/2004 and there was no service that could fix what happened. Since Technics stopped to manufacture keyboards in 2003 (I still don't know why...), the repair chances were very little and the components were being way too much expensive. I ended up getting a new keyboard, but there was a lack of some features that only the KN1500 had before. If there's a keyboard that I really miss and that I'd like to still have today, that keyboard is the KN1500.

Digital piano 10+ octaves, 88 keys Weighted keys, Touch Response technology -> double- scapement action simulation 32-note polyphony (16 in stereo) Instruments: 6 (grand piano, upright piano, electric piano, harpsichord, organ, strings) Connections: MIDI IN/OUT, AUX Phono IN (L, R), 2x headphones, pedal Functions: volume, demos, +/- 0.8% tuning, transposition, piano feel, digital reverb, midi channel selection, local control, 2x pedals Loudspeakers: 2 x 15 W 12cm x 2 Other: 70W, 86 lbs., 138.7x98.3x43.5cm, music stand, AC cord, around $1500 in 2001, new. UTILIZATION The keyboard is fabulous! From all the digital pianos I have been able to test (a dozen from different brands), this one is indisputably the best. It replicates all tactile sensations of a real piano. The keys are not only weighted, but the different resistance degrees, depending on the force with which you press the key and the attack, reproduce the exact sensation of the double escapement mechanism of a real piano. Moreover, the ballasting is spread across four zones along the piano: The key touch on the bass cleft is heavy and it gets lighter as you move to the treble. (see the official brochure for more details) The functions are rather basic but effective. Besides the keys, there are only two additional buttons, which gives the piano a sober look, not packed with thingamajigs. All functions are carried out with the keyboard, by pressing the Mode or Sound button and, sometimes, the pedal. Transposing the piano is done in a matter of seconds: You simply have to press Mode and the key corresponding to the key required. It is also possible to fine tune in 0.8 hundredth of a Hz, to play with other, not tempered instruments! Midi channel selection is done in the exact same way (Mode+key marked 1 to 16). Also adjustable are the keyboard itself (heavy, normal and light) and the digital reverb (On/Off). The same principle is applied to switch from one instrument to the other. And you can also select two instruments simultaneously. And you can obviously adjust the volume with a wheel. To sum it up, it has a nice selection of well-implemented functions. SOUNDS The sound of the grand piano is magnificent. The reverb transports you to a concert hall next to Rachmaninoff. Every section of the piano is impeccably polished, both in terms of feel and sound, which are very realistic from highs to lows. I am as fond of it as I am of the Yamaha baby grand on which I learned to play. The other instruments are of very good quality. The electric piano is great. It replicates exactly the one used by Ray Charles, where the sounds changes depending on the pressure you apply. Yeah-Yeah Baby. Instruments are multi-sampled with the Dynamic Acoustics PCM sampling system. The only sound that is a bit crappy are the violins, but I have never found one that pleases me. The only defect, rooted in the amp, is an almost imperceptible background noise, which does not vary with the sound level. (oh, yes, I had to find a defect!). I noticed it only two years after having bought it, in the middle of the night, when everything is really silent. So it's not really a defect. OVERALL OPINION I am really satisfied with it after 3 years of use. It's excellent at what it is supposed to do: Replace a real piano. I would buy it again without hesitation, especially given its price. My sister, who tried dozens of pianos in many stores, ended up buying it, too (in 2002). The SX-PC25 is an ideal instrument for an apartment. You sill certainly not find lots of features, but the ones implemented are very effective. I have recently completed it with a Midi controller and my notebook. If you don't need hundreds of features, but rather a "true" piano, the SX-PC25 is the best!! Pros: Perfect feel, fabulous grand piano (and E-piano), adjustable fine tuning, incredible value for money. Cons: Not many features nor instruments Link to the official brochure: http://www.technics.com/pdf/pc25.pdf