German Audio Equipment (Grundig, Dual)

[Feuerstein]

Hello,

I am from Germany and new in this forum.

I would like to know how popular is/was German audio equipment of the late 70th and early 80th in the U.S.

I collect and repair tapedecks and amplifiers made by Grundig, e.g. SV 2000, SXV 6000, SCF 6000, SCF 6100, SCF 6200, MXV 100, MA 100, MCF 600, V 7200, V 7500, T 7200, T 7500, CF 7200, CF 7400, CF 7500 and Dual CV 1460, CT 1460, C 814, C 824, C 826, C 844, C 839RC etc.

Interesting German forums for this equipment are:

http://www.dual-board.de/

http://www.grundig-heiler.de/index.html

and

http://www.gr-forum.de/

(this forum is run by a friend of mine)

Is there anybody at AudioKarma who is also interested in German audio equipment made by Grundig and Dual?

Best regards

Feuerstein

[Sandy G]

I have a big Grundig 2066 AM/FM/SW radio from about 1960 that I like very much..Had a Suburban that I installed a Blaupunkt Berlin into...

[luvvinvinyl]

Welcome to AK, Feuerstein. I used a Dual turntable for many years, to my great satisfaction. I was deeply unhappy when it met a traumatic end, at the bottom of a flight of stairs, when I was moving my system.

There are many fans of Dual turntables, here, on AK.

[krimney]

I have a pair of DUAL speakers, CL 720 I think is the model. A compact 3 way that uses Philips drivers. They sound very nice, whish I could find some bigger models.

[cosmicdust]

...

[Sandy G]

Oh yeah, Feuerstein..Wilkommen en der AK...Shit, I hope I didn't just call him an old sausage or something...

[Brian]

Outside of changers/turntables only a few companies exported much to the US except in small quantities. By that time, the market was concentrating on specification, packaging and layouts that the German makers and much of Europe and the U.K. was not. Braun was probably the most successful exporter outside of Dual during the period with its line of speakers, receivers, tape deck, etc.

That is not to say what the German makers had was 2nd rate, it surely was every bit as good on the whole but not what the market was willing to buy. I have a small Grundig receiver, probably about the same power as a Sony STR6015 and soundwise as almost equal to my 6045 in toneality. The looks and need for using the DIN connectors would have made me walk past it quickly when new.

I do see a ready but not plentiful supply of Telefunken receivers and to a lesser amont their tuners and amps so suspect that either they may have been in a restricted market area such as NYC or perhaps in the PX. Here in Canada there seems to be a larger suppy availability of both Telefunken and Grundig. Many do not have the CSA stickers so suspect they were brought over with immigrants who make up a goodly portion of Canadian society and a higher % of total population than in the US (talking about 1st generation immigrants).

[Nakdoc]

Dual and to some extent Elac turntables were common in the US, but Grundig and telefunken tape decks seem only to be found in consoles I have a Telefunken M205 scrapper from a console. I am not old enough to know whether the consoles were imported or just brought back from Europe by their owners. Grundig table radios are far more popular, going back to tube days.

[bully]

Out here on the Great Plains, German audio gear is as plentiful as hen's teeth.

[rickon66]

I have got a pair of Braun/ADS L1030 speakers on the way. Welcome aboard!!

[aw11sd]

I wish I had a Braun system, Deiter Rams is my personal style hero.

[GuyNoir]

Welcome!

I have a slew of German table radios...a Saba, Lowe Opta, Grundig, Nordmende, Emud, Schaub-Lorenz, and Metz. Dad brought one back from the Old Country, and I remember my childhood fascination with the faraway places written on the S/W dial, the lights, and the green eye tube. Great fodder for a kid's imagination! Most of these have fantastic fidelity.

[Scorpion8]

Originally Posted by Feuerstein

Hello,
I am from Germany and new in this forum.
I would like to know how popular is/was German audio equipment of the late 70th and early 80th in the U.S.

Welcome! To answer from one point of view: I was born in (W) Germany (at the time) while my Dad was stationed there with the US Army. Later we went back in the '67- '68 timeframe, and I know we came back with a lot of German electronics. We had a big Grundig console stereo that we used for years, and my Dad had a Dual turntable. I knew once I grew up that Dual was the only brand for me, so I owned two, and still have a Dual CS-714Q. I still use it, and it still sings!

Welcome and enjoy!

[2DualsNotEnough]

Well,from my name you might guess.I love Duals,and have owned several of their turntables.My favorite was a 701 that had hum problems that I could never quite solve.Ive heard good things about Elac tables,too.
Jimmy

[Feuerstein]

Hello,

thank you for your interesting and friendly replies.

I also have several Dual CS 731Q turntables. The first of them I bought new in 1978. It still works without any problem.
But my other 731Q have problems with the motor (hum and unsteady turning). I had to learn that these problems cannot be solved and new motors are not available. (but they still look very good).

The old Dual Tapedecks often have problems with belts and idlers. In most cases it is no problem to get new (yet not original) belts, but the idlers are a problem.
I also own a working Dual C 839RC - an auto reverse tapedeck with optional remote control. This tapedeck is very complicated and many members of the German Dual-forum have not been able to repair their C 839RC. But if it works it is a fascinating device.
In Italy there is a group of Grundig fans with a `guru` who claims to have found out the secret why the old Grundig amplifiers and speakers sound better than the rest. It sounds a bit esoteric. There is also an English version:

http://motxam.interfree.it/

Best regards

Feuerstein