Here's my 1969 Sony Trinitron model KV-1210U CRT TV. It was one of Sony's first ever Trinitron sets they made. I found this in my local Kijiji Toronto classifieds for $30.00 February 2014. It still works and looks like new ! The picture quality is simply amazing !
Made in Japan.
MSRP was $319.95 in 1969


Video: http://youtu.be/6KVEIk__A9M

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2821/13247138084_3680baffe0_b.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7232/13247461664_aeb6551059_b.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7097/13247396685_9f5661be5f_b.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7244/13247362025_45e09d01b7_b.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7360/13247617764_bf38a35be2_b.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7169/13247235065_404cee9d04_b.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7002/13247545434_e887733ef3_b.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7437/13247508504_8f96fe024f_b.jpg
http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3679/13247079115_3c724c053d_b.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7213/13247184444_a49fb06bc4_b.jpg
http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2831/13247386354_903fce4924_b.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7239/13247014863_dff710a5e7_b.jpg
http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3739/13247289654_2e1651e0ce_b.jpg
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7088/13247340024_8b2c2355a4_b.jpg
http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3755/13247822194_2da4257c9f_b.jpg

Neat ! Is the cabinet real wood ? Seem to remember in the early ones, it was.

Neat ! Is the cabinet real wood ? Seem to remember in the early ones, it was.

Yes.

IIRC that set is technically a hybrid as it uses a 3A3(?) tube for HV rectification.....
That's one of the few 'SS' sets I actually want to find an example of.

IIRC that set is technically a hybrid as it uses a 3A3(?) tube for HV rectification.....


Nope, it's all solid state. The only tube is the CRT,

The combination of three-in-one electron gun and the replacement of the shadow mask with the aperture grille resulted in a unique and easily patentable product. Officially introduced by Ikuba in April 1968, the original 12 inch Trinitron had a display quality that easily surpassed any commercial set in terms of brightness, color fidelity, and simplicity of operation. The vertical wires in the aperture grille meant that the tube had to be nearly flat vertically; this gave it a unique and appealing look. It was also all solid state, with the exception of the picture tube itself, which allowed it to be much more compact and cool running than designs like GE's Porta-color. Some larger models such as the KV-1320UB for the United Kingdom market were initially fitted with 3AT2 valves for the extra high tension (high voltage) circuitry, before being redesigned as solid state in the early 70s.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinitron#Trinitron

I have the plastic case version. Congrats on finding the wood one. :) my set has a hv rectifier tube in it behind a metal cover, are you sure it don't have one?

The 1210 does indeed use a HV rectifier tube. You might notice a slight delay between turn on and when you feel the HV hit the screen because of the warm up time of the tube.

Was that the model that used the "Blue Sky" fine tuning indicator.
IIRC, when you were using the fine tuner, that top of the screen would turn blue and increase in size when it was properly fine tuned.

WOW ! Very nice tv ! I got a 1205 made in 1975, I don't have the nice red/orange id tags yours has, My stuff is molded into the plastic, My color knobs are vertical below the tuner knobs, and the tuner knobs have the channel indicators in that lit up shadow display common of those sets for many years. I also have a light called EconoQuicks I think, I know this set has a constant heater voltage on the picture tube, When I got it I use to unplug it when I was not using it..... I quit using it because it has some intermittent dimming of the screen. I have not turned it on in over 15 years, Now I got some tools, so one winter I'll have to fix it... She has a very nice picture, with nice color..... My cabinet is black textured plastic on the sides and top, standard black plastic back....

Interesting, I didn't know that Trinitrons ever had any tubes aside from the CRT.

That's pretty boss for a small set. I would like to have the largest early table-top Trinitron available.

A little 'dirty' secret of the TV industry is that many early 'SS' sets had tube HV rectifiers in them. Tubes were cheaper, and some of the early SS HV diodes were quite failure prone...IIRC some SS sets into the early 80's still had HV rect tubes in them.

IIRC the early Quasars and the RCA 2000 had issues with the SS HV rectifiers, and Quasar actually switched back to tubes for a while to deal with it.

I should open it up and snap some pics !

I just wish I could get my KV-7010U back from that dude in Ohio.. For those of you who weren't around in the late Sixties/early Seventies, you don't understand how BIG the Trinitron was..The biggest thing in TVs was the switch from Roundies to rectangular sets in '65... Here on VK, we typically "Tweak" sets to optimum performance, but back then, they often WEREN'T, & picture quality ranged from good to awful...Trinitrons were RAZOR sharp, had INCREDIBLE brightness & contrast, & were just overall, a superior product..

Yah, all this 3a3 talk makes me wanna pull out my set and take a look...... Maybe that is even the source of the trouble with my Sony.....

E.M. has a point on those early SS sets with a HV rect. tube..... Makes those sets kinda special......

So Rob, that Sony has rounded corners on the plastic around the screen, I forgot to look close at mine, Does it scan into a sharp corner like newer Sony's or is the part of the screen that lights up also a soft rounded corner....?

I think mine is a little softer round than the sharp corners of later Sony's.

I believe Sony was the first Company to win an Emmy for their contribution to Television.

Nothing came close back then but Sony charged dearly for the privilege.

Did GE feel any shame at all for selling the Porta-Color during the same era? :D

I believe Sony was the first Company to win an Emmy for their contribution to Television.

Nothing came close back then but Sony charged dearly for the privilege.

Did GE feel any shame at all for selling the Porta-Color during the same era? :D

I remember the emmy.... They used it in their ads......

Did GE feel any shame at all for selling the Porta-Color during the same era? :D

Now that's funny........

Did GE feel any shame at all for selling the Porta-Color during the same era? :D

:thmbsp: you got that right. I have mine running side by side, poor little PC needs some love.

Sony Emmy:
http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/CorporateInfo/History/SonyHistory/2-14.html
jr

I was wondering if a solid state rectifier stick replacement could be used in these?

I was wondering if a solid state rectifier stick replacement could be used in these?

If the reverse breakdown voltage and forward current ratings of the stick are the same or higher than that of the tube, then I see no reason why it would not work....Though the tubes are probably cheaper and more plentiful these days.

A photo of the HV tube in this model.

http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x117/etype2/72afa64b-4cc0-4e3f-ac63-4a581bab792e.jpg (http://s184.photobucket.com/user/etype2/media/72afa64b-4cc0-4e3f-ac63-4a581bab792e.jpg.html)

The corners are indeed sharp. This set is a later production model. It has the "cheese grater" style speaker grill. The original had the flat metal with round holes. Beautiful set.

saw my first sony at jimmy rea electronics about 1970.i must admit,it was awesome.revolutionary for time and to this day,those old sony s produce possibly the best color picture ever.

Thanks Robb for showing this Sony.She looks beautiful right out of the box from the store.I have that set here somewhere in my basement or in the garage .I think my set still works.I used it in old my apartment kitchen for years.




I have to say I enjoy your threads of your mint condition TV's on here and ARF forum .

By the time I get my sets.They are well used and trashed.

You could rent your collection out to Hollywood as props for old movie or TV show scenes.

You could rent your collection out to Hollywood as props for old movie or TV show scenes.

No way ! They wont come back in 1 peice ! :sigh:
Money comes and goes, but vintage things (in mint shape) arent that easy to find !

No way ! They wont come back in 1 peice ! :sigh:
Money comes and goes, but vintage things (in mint shape) arent that easy to find !

Yes I agree 100 percent.They probably trash it on the set or it will get trashed in shipping on the way there or back home.

I was wondering if a solid state rectifier stick replacement could be used in these?

They made a solid state plug-in replacement, HV rectifier.
I used them when the HV rectifier filament winding would arc through. I just cut away the winding and taped it up. Then I used a SS replacement.

That's the thing....IIRC, even in '69, you STILL had to get somebody out to yr house & "Set Up" yr new color set for you.. The Sony, you brought it home, plugged it in, hooked up an antenna or cable, & you were Good to Go...Of course, the appliance store dealer made up on the service call DOUBLE what he'd "Given back" to you on the GREAT deal he gave you when you bought the damn TV in the 1st place.. I also remember how dreadfully "Cheap & Nasty" American consumer goods were getting about this time.. Plastiwood & fibreboard cabinets, except on the very "TOTL" stuff, "Carnival grade" plastic buttons & fitments, the whole business of being built DOWN to a price, instead of "Up to a Standard". The SAD fact of the matter was, Sony had a superior product, in many respects, & the American consumer electronics industry got caught being flatfooted.... Christamighty, WE developed Television-For the most part, anyway, & UNQUESTIONABLY developed COLOR TV, & we let it get taken away from us...But we have only ourselves to blame...

I wish Sony stayed focused on their electronics products then buying out interests in the Hollywood entertainment industry.

That's the thing....IIRC, even in '69, you STILL had to get somebody out to yr house & "Set Up" yr new color set for you.. The Sony, you brought it home, plugged it in, hooked up an antenna or cable, & you were Good to Go...Of course, the appliance store dealer made up on the service call DOUBLE what he'd "Given back" to you on the GREAT deal he gave you when you bought the damn TV in the 1st place.. I also remember how dreadfully "Cheap & Nasty" American consumer goods were getting about this time.. Plastiwood & fibreboard cabinets, except on the very "TOTL" stuff, "Carnival grade" plastic buttons & fitments, the whole business of being built DOWN to a price, instead of "Up to a Standard".
I know that you prefer sets from 1950 and before, but I wouldn't say quality was *that* bad just after 1969. Even my Zenith has parts like that, but that set is by no means junk.

I know that you prefer sets from 1950 and before, but I wouldn't say quality was *that* bad just after 1969. Even my Zenith has parts like that, but that set is by no means junk.

I dunno, man.... If a 12-yr-old boy like Moi could notice the drop in PERCEIVED quality, I'm SURE the Adults who actually BOUGHT STUFF could as well...And THEY could remember when ALL our stuff was made "Ship-Shape"...

Well, who taught the Japanese about electronics and car manufacturing ?
It was the Americans.
Overtime, the Japanese just perfected what they were taught... I think.

I dunno, man.... If a 12-yr-old boy like Moi could notice the drop in PERCEIVED quality, I'm SURE the Adults who actually BOUGHT STUFF could as well...And THEY could remember when ALL our stuff was made "Ship-Shape"...
You mean made out of iron?

You mean made out of iron?

Not necessarily... Just made better overall, than stuff made today.. I have a 1935 RCA AR-60, their TOTL SW set then. It was $495 that year when $650 would buy you a Ford V-8... It was designed to last virtually FOREVER, & if something broke, it was designed to be fixed. The ONLY stuff that's made anywhere CLOSE to those standards today would be a few commercial items, & certain military goods... I seriously doubt ANY consumer goods are made today to THAT sort of standard..

There's no incentive to build quality: technology renders the new purchase obsolete soon after you finish paying for the item and the price point battle makes something that is priced above the crowd unsellable.

There's no incentive to build quality: technology renders the new purchase obsolete soon after you finish paying for the item and the price point battle makes something that is priced above the crowd unsellable.

Depends on the mentality of the buyer. Some like me would rather have a product that solidly outlives the life span that I consider it useful to most people for (which is usually a ways past obsolete) and is not the cheapest then some piece of crap that dies or becomes barely usable before you even start to see decent benefit in upgrading to the latest feature set.

I'm just frugal and like to keep things to fully amortize the price way past normal. Frankly obsolete is in the eye of the beholder as well. I am perfectly fine with old sets that make a good pic. Cheap junk that has to be replaced do to perceived obsolete things can waste a lot of money.

I see a big ol' gap coming in technical history as none of today's junk sets will be around in the decades to come. Surface mount=not repairable.
No way ! They wont come back in 1 peice ! :sigh:
Money comes and goes, but vintage things (in mint shape) arent that easy to find !
One word: implosion. If any production company wanted use of any of my sets, I would have to take it there myself and be able to keep an eye on it the whole time. Otherwise, no deal.

Those Sony sets were often purchased by folks in the old-money suburbs and rural estates.
A favorite of Doctors and other brahmin-type professionals, who totally eschewed television as entertainment.

It was usually their only set and placed on a bookshelf in a study or other room generally off-limits when entertaining (showing off).

Being surrounded by books somehow offset the cultural faux-pas that was being committed.

By the time these fine instruments came into the shop, the jugs were tired and the controls scratchy, not much else.

In 1982 plunked down $100 for a new jug in my KV-1210U, an excellent receiver of beyond-fringe analog back in the day, to use it as a monitor for the Commodore 64. Now it is simply my true go-to portable. I'm sure Ive seen similar models in a monitor configuring.

I see a big ol' gap coming in technical history as none of today's junk sets will be around in the decades to come. Surface mount=not repairable.

I agree. Flat screens with modules, however, will be repairable, albeit not at board level due to, as you mentioned, surface-mounted components. Most FS TVs only have three such modules and, of course, the LCD panel; when these sets develop problems, they can almost always be found on one of those modules, which of course can be replaced. The LCD display can be replaced easily enough, but the problem is that the cost of a new panel, plus the shop's labor charges, often (more often than not) equals or exceeds the cost of a brand new TV. I personally would not even bother having a flat screen (with a name I never heard of) repaired, for just that reason.

Any flat screen TV that lasts anywhere near ten years will be one for the record books, as these sets are simply not meant to last that long. Replacement of components such as burst electrolytic capacitors or capacitors with bulges (the main cause of total failure in flat screens) is beyond the abilities of most non-technical people, so when any flat screen goes bad after the warranty expires, the set will be put out for the trash and a new one purchased. I saw a Westinghouse 24" (approximately) flat screen in the trash behind my apartment last year; it wound up there probably due to a defective capacitor or even a broken screen. I couldn't tell the condition of the panel, since the TV was placed with the screen facing one of the trash barrels. My best guess is a component failed, probably a power supply electrolytic.

It's a shame that very large flat screens (which includes the newest 4K and UHD [ultra-HD] TVs now appearing in stores), which cost upwards of $1k (not chicken feed to most people), are junked after the warranty expires, and it is very wasteful to junk a smaller set when it eventually quits. Stores such as Best Buy do have recycling programs for old, defective flat screens, but just how many people take advantage of them is anyone's guess unless the store recycles the old sets as soon as they come in.

I agree. Flat screens with modules, however, will be repairable, albeit not at board level due to, as you mentioned, surface-mounted components. Most FS TVs only have three such modules and, of course, the LCD panel; when these sets develop problems, they can almost always be found on one of those modules, which of course can be replaced. The LCD display can be replaced easily enough, but the problem is that the cost of a new panel, plus the shop's labor charges, often (more often than not) equals or exceeds the cost of a brand new TV. I personally would not even bother having a flat screen (with a name I never heard of) repaired, for just that reason.

Any flat screen TV that lasts anywhere near ten years will be one for the record books, as these sets are simply not meant to last that long. Replacement of components such as burst electrolytic capacitors or capacitors with bulges (the main cause of total failure in flat screens) is beyond the abilities of most non-technical people, so when any flat screen goes bad after the warranty expires, the set will be put out for the trash and a new one purchased. I saw a Westinghouse 24" (approximately) flat screen in the trash behind my apartment last year; it wound up there probably due to a defective capacitor or even a broken screen. I couldn't tell the condition of the panel, since the TV was placed with the screen facing one of the trash barrels. My best guess is a component failed, probably a power supply electrolytic.
The later-model console TVs I scrapped had surface-mount resistors all over the underside of their boards. Looks like certain PCBs which are so thin they're translucent even have traces running through the board, so if one of those goes bad it's game over.

I saw a flat screen set that was about 30" out with someone's trash just a couple of days ago. The entire screen was bashed in. Whether something accidentally hit it or that was what the owner did to it post-failure I'll never know. I wouldn't have picked it up even if the screen were intact.

My 2cents worth: repairing boards with surface mount components requires a new technique and some new tools, but is *not* impossible for the average hobbyist. Fairly reasonable hot air soldering stations are available... perhaps it is time to pick up a few new tools and master a few new skills rather than draw a line excluding newer electronics components?
Soldering station: http://www.amazon.com/X-TRONIC-MODEL-4040-Soldering-MAGNIFYING/dp/B003TC8EQS/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1395437664&sr=8-4&keywords=surface+mount+soldering+kit
not affiliated,
jr

If it's not a high pin-count surface mount device I can solder it with a regular iron and a good fine point grabbing tool...Though there are VERY few devices that use those parts that I actually care enough about to even bother with.

What if you have, as James Delaney Buffet so euphemistically put it, "Island-Sized Paws", that are furthermore, pretty well "Eat Up" w/ Uncle Arthur Itis ?!?

The main circuit board that was in the last DVD player I took apart (because I forgot to eject the disc before cutting off the cord) was about 4 square inches as I recall, crazy. It wasn't until well after I bought its replacement that I learned that even the Japanese-branded stuff is now made by the chinese. That was when I finally got rid of the box. I was shocked and disgusted.

Flat panel sets can be repaired at the component level. Discrete components and ICs up to certain point can be done with a standard iron with a fine enough tip and some patience. ICs beyond that point will need a hot air rework stations, but these have gotten cheap enough now that even I bought one (haven't got the hang of it yet though). I doubt I'll get to the point where I can do large BGA ICs, but it can be done.

I repair a lot a trash find flat panels and while it can take a while to find parts for some of them my success rate is probably around the same as when I was doing CRT sets.

They are getting worse though. It seems the thinner the sets get, the worse they get. Some seem to crack if you so much as look at them wrong, so regardless of what the original fault was they rarely survive the trip to the curb.

I stated in a previous post that any flat panel TV which lasts anywhere near ten years will be one for the books. Several hours after I made that statement, I realized that someone here on VK has such a set, a "Coby" branded 15" FP HDTV that is now well over a decade old and still works. I don't remember offhand who said that. :scratch2:

I believe that the smaller an HDTV is, the longer it will last, simply because of the lower power requirements of smaller sets; also, if a FP TV is not used much, it will likely last somewhat longer than one that is on eight hours or more a day. The LCD panels on most flat panel sets are rated for 60,000 hours to half brightness, which equates to over 20 years of use; however, this does not necessarily mean the set will last that long. VK member timmy, in New York City, stated in one of his posts a few months ago that flat screens generally last between two and five years before they develop service problems, such as bulging or burst electrolytic power supply capacitors. If one knows where to look on the power supply board, replacing the defective capacitor could be very simple, involving just cutting out the bad part and soldering the new one to the leads still on the board. This, of course, only works for boards that do not have surface-mounted components; even if it is possible to remove the defective part, replacing it could be a real problem on boards having mostly or completely surface-mounted components. This is probably also why many service centers today will simply replace a defective TV with a new one, so the customer won't have to wait days, weeks, months . . . for the set to be repaired. The old set will be repaired at the factory and likely resold as a used TV.

I heard the newer LED sets can last 20+ years if they are used 3 hours per day.

I heard the newer LED sets can last 20+ years if they are used 3 hours per day.
Nevertheless, your Trinny has far outlasted that, and will probably still last a lot longer. Much better looking too, bonus.

. Much better looking too, bonus.

That would be my main grip with newer FP TV : They all look the same...nothing special. Dare I say it...? Boring!

That's one of the "Neat" things about my Porthole Zenith... They LOOKED like something, not just an ugly grey/black plastic box... Having a TV in 1949 was still Something Special, & the Zenith said it "Loud & Proud"...

That's one of the "Neat" things about my Porthole Zenith... They LOOKED like something, not just an ugly grey/black plastic box... Having a TV in 1949 was still Something Special, & the Zenith said it "Loud & Proud"...

What were you watching on that set in 1949? I remember you saying in one of your posts some time ago that your area didn't get its first TV stations until 1954. Unless you had a deep-fringe antenna on a rotor, I doubt if you were seeing anything other than snow.

BTW, did you ever find a replacement for the missing VHF channel selector knob for your Zenith roundie color set? Being Zenith, I would think that set would do well connected to a DTV converter box or cable (if Charter Cable still has analog service), since CRTs can often show better pictures than today's flat screens. One of the selling points for DTV digital-to-analog converter boxes was, and may still be, that "your old TV never looked better" when fed by one of these boxes. Given a good signal, the box doesn't care what it is connected to--they work just as well with a 1949 b&w TV or a 1999 knob-tuned color set.

That's the thing....IIRC, even in '69, you STILL had to get somebody out to yr house & "Set Up" yr new color set for you.. The Sony, you brought it home, plugged it in, hooked up an antenna or cable, & you were Good to Go...Of course, the appliance store dealer made up on the service call DOUBLE what he'd "Given back" to you on the GREAT deal he gave you when you bought the damn TV in the 1st place.. I also remember how dreadfully "Cheap & Nasty" American consumer goods were getting about this time.. Plastiwood & fibreboard cabinets, except on the very "TOTL" stuff, "Carnival grade" plastic buttons & fitments, the whole business of being built DOWN to a price, instead of "Up to a Standard". The SAD fact of the matter was, Sony had a superior product, in many respects, & the American consumer electronics industry got caught being flatfooted.... Christamighty, WE developed Television-For the most part, anyway, & UNQUESTIONABLY developed COLOR TV, & we let it get taken away from us...But we have only ourselves to blame...


Couldn't agree with you more Sandy.

What were you watching on that set in 1949? I remember you saying in one of your posts some time ago that your area didn't get its first TV stations until 1954. Unless you had a deep-fringe antenna on a rotor, I doubt if you were seeing anything other than snow.

BTW, did you ever find a replacement for the missing VHF channel selector knob for your Zenith roundie color set? Being Zenith, I would think that set would do well connected to a DTV converter box or cable (if Charter Cable still has analog service), since CRTs can often show better pictures than today's flat screens. One of the selling points for DTV digital-to-analog converter boxes was, and may still be, that "your old TV never looked better" when fed by one of these boxes. Given a good signal, the box doesn't care what it is connected to--they work just as well with a 1949 b&w TV or a 1999 knob-tuned color set.

Yep, my Porthole came from Harry Poster in NJ.. I dunno WHERE it came from before that. The guy who had my 7" Admiral, he & his buds had an antenna rigged up on top of a mountain outside of town, in the summer they'd go up & monkey w/it, & if everything was "Just So", they'd get in a little bit of a signal from WAGA or WSB in Atlanta, MAYBE WBT in Charlotte. But OTA signals were a "Catch as Catch Can" proposition til late 1953 or '54, when WJHL in the Tri-Cities came on the air. And I DO have a cable box in the "Ships' Radio Room", where the Porthole & most of my Boatanchors live.. Never have got an inner VHF knob for the '65 Zenith roundie color set.. It also needs to go see Terry, but getting it down there is problematical, to say the least...The Porthole truly ASTOUNDS visitors, ESPECIALLY kids, most of whom have either NEVER seen a largish B/W set, or ANY TV that old... May as well be Prehistory... (grin)

I have a few 10+ year old flat panels - A few LCD TVs, a Fujitsu SD plasma monitor and an NEC Computer monitor from 1999.

There have been a few that came through that I probably should have kept, but let go of for one reason or another. Such as a 22" SD Panasonic LCD that retailed for $4999 in 2002 (they can't have sold many of those), or Fujitsu plasma a generation or 2 earlier than the one I still have that (barring the screen burn on this example) had the best SD picture I've seen on any plasma or LCD.

A lot of the "better" old flat panels that come through are actually still working. They were dumped as they don't have built in digital tuners.

Perhaps I should do a "vintage" flat panel thread.

The capacitor plague has largely been solved. I still find stuff from that "era" that has bad caps (which are usually nice easy jobs), but the caps in most newer stuff are fine. I am already starting to see bad or partially bad LED backlights, so I don't believe they will last as long as CCFL backlit sets.

I DO have a cable box in the "Ships' Radio Room", where the Porthole & most of my Boatanchors live..
If it has a "porthole" and "boatanchors", then it must be on a ship. :)

If it has a "porthole" and "boatanchors", then it must be on a ship. :)

Hehehehe... Hadn't thought about it like THAT.. Unfortunately, the nearest Ocean is a good 7-8 hr ride from here-Maybe I oughta re-christen it the "CIA Listening Room"... (grin)

That would be my main grip with newer FP TV : They all look the same...nothing special. Dare I say it...? Boring!
Yup, I don't see their "styling" ever changing dramatically. The future of repurposing TVs is turning these things into picture frames. Not much cash to be had there.

For me, a TV has to look good when it's off too, which is most of the time. Actually, my interest in watching TV (pre-recorded stuff that is) has increased since I got into the older sets.
I DO have a cable box in the "Ships' Radio Room", where the Porthole & most of my Boatanchors live..
Good thing that porthole doesn't open, that's what contributed to the sinking of Britannic and the Empress of Ireland.

Good thing that porthole doesn't open, that's what contributed to the sinking of Britannic and the Empress of Ireland.[/QUOTE]

Fortunately, the Porthole sits atop my roll-top desk, far away from small, prying fingers... Bethany's son Logan is the only one I REALLY have to worry about, but he's only 9 months old now, it'll be a year or so before I really have to worry about him... He WILL get a full indoctrination of how wonderful Tube stuff is, as Bethany & her husband, Corey, and by extention, Logan, stand to inherit all my Good Junque one of these days.. Hey, Bethany's the daughter I never had, I honestly COULDN'T love her any more if she was my flesh & blood... And I thought I would lose her when she married Corey... I DIDN'T lose a "Bethany", as much as I GAINED a "Corey"...DAMN good deal, if you ask me...

...

The only flat-panel displays I'll allow in my possession are computer monitors. I'm using a 2007 LG Flatron L192WS, amazingly NOT made in china. That alone may make it a museum piece in years to come. Then there's the LCD panel that's part of my PowerBook 1400cs, which has such a lousy response time that the mouse cursor leaves trails even with that feature turned off.

As much as I HATE to admit it, the picture on my 55" Sony we got last fall is outta this world... The 36" Trinitron died a lingering death, it LIKELY coulda been fixed, but wrasslin' that 275-300 LB beast around was NOT something I wanted to attempt. We paid a little/LOT more for the Sony, but I've NEVER gone wrong w/their stuff, & I just DON'T trust a "Vizio", or some other outfit I never heard of.

As much as I HATE to admit it, the picture on my 55" Sony we got last fall is outta this world... The 36" Trinitron died a lingering death, it LIKELY coulda been fixed, but wrasslin' that 275-300 LB beast around was NOT something I wanted to attempt. We paid a little/LOT more for the Sony, but I've NEVER gone wrong w/their stuff, & I just DON'T trust a "Vizio", or some other outfit I never heard of.
Japanese electronic brand names mean nothing to me anymore as they have handed production over to the chinese. Sorta like how modern crapollas have sullied the name of a once great car. The styling of those really started to drop off after the 1984 model year IMHO.

Sorta like how modern crapollas have sullied the name of a once great car. The styling of those really started to drop off after the 1984 model year IMHO.

Actually, I like the 1993-1997 corollas. After that it was downhill.

Actually, I like the 1993-1997 corollas. After that it was downhill.
Can't argue with that really. I was thinking when I last posted that their styling was a total loss by the 1998 model year. 1984 and earlier is my preference though.

Gracious for sharing your CRT with us :)

Yeah, its distinctive screen styling certainly held on for a long time, my 1987 Trinitron uses the 19" version.

...

It's funny, but in the 80's and 90's most Korean electronics were pure junk. GoldStar (now LG) and Samsung were bottom tier brands making cheap TVs and throw away VCRs, but look at them now. They're ahead of the Japanese in most areas.
Yup, my GoldStar-built sets (1986 and 1991) were dull performers, that was one reason I had for junking them. Didn't have them long. I didn't even save any parts, I just aired the CRTs, bolted the backs back on and tossed 'em. I tried to get the knobs off the '86 but they wouldn't budge. Probably glued on at the factory.

It's funny, but in the 80's and 90's most Korean electronics were pure junk. GoldStar (now LG) and Samsung were bottom tier brands making cheap TVs and throw away VCRs, but look at them now. They're ahead of the Japanese in most areas.

Ya, just like the Japanese took over the Americans building great cars !