For What Hi-Fi?’s Vinyl Week 2024 event, I took another look back at the very first edition of the magazine, published getting on for 50 years back in 1976. My first look – the very first Back Issues column – highlighted cassette decks, stereo amplifiers and the like, but I wondered what our inaugural issue would bring up as far as record players go. Vinyl, after all, was in its heyday in the mid-70s, with cassette its only real rival; the compact disc was still six years or so in the future.
Sure enough, there are quite a few solid turntable reviews, references and features. That is to be expected of course. What struck me most, though, was that the brands of many of the models tested and mentioned in 1976 are names that have almost been lost in the mists of time. In amongst the still familiar Linns, Technics, Rotels and Duals are names such as Garrard, Fons, Eagle, Connoisseur and Trio – brands that would have pretty much no recognition in this day and age.
There are also models made by manufacturers whose appearance as a purveyor of record decks might surprise today’s consumer, along with those that evoke memories (for me at least) of trips to Dixons and the like: JVC, Pioneer and Sansui spring out.
The first long-term test
Back in 1976 we ran a long-term test (the idea borrowed, I suspect, from our then sister title What Car?) of a Garrard Zero 100S record deck. Having used it for a couple of years, the team had gone to the trouble of sending the deck back to Garrard for a once-over; and Garrard had obliged with an MoT. Impressive stuff.
Whoever it was on What Hi-Fi? tasked with running the deck back at their home will have been at least somewhat relieved, one would think, from the report back. The conclusion starts: “This Zero 100S shows evidence of having been looked after…” Well, I should hope so.
Some solid, level-headed advice
Next comes a feature on buying the right record deck, where the team brought the reader tips and hints on which type of turntable to buy, and why. Our technical editor, Ketan Bharadia, has written a similar feature here, with guidance on setting up your deck, and getting the best possible sound from it. Plus ça change etc
Our first 50 system suggestions
In our first issue, we also provided our readers with a remarkable half-century of system suggestions. Around half of these are turntable systems, and of those 23 decks just six are from brands you can still get a turntable from today. That is symptomatic, of course, of the technological advances that were to come in the intervening 48 or so years – what with the compact disc and more recently the advent of music streaming – and the nature of the beast that is progress.
What is rather wonderful though is the fact that the turntable, far from disappearing from the world’s living rooms – as plenty of other music-playback sources have in the past half century – is enjoying ever more vibrant health.
Indeed, in the July 2024 issue of What Hi-Fi? magazine, on sale next month on 22nd May, you will see three new offerings that have recently graced our test rooms – and each one of the trio a fine product in its own right. Even more excitingly for a brand such as ours, there is a new name badge on the front of one of them. The Rekkord Audio F110 (despite what one might infer from the somewhat cheesy brand name) is a really rather good fully automatic deck that, at £400 / $450, is an excellent step-up player for those consumers who have been bitten by the vinyl bug.
You will want to keep a lookout, too, for the new models from JBL (a brand far more associated with portable speakers and headphones, of course) and Dual (one of the brands also covered in 1976) – on whathifi.com as we celebrate all things vinyl this week.
MORE:
Catch up on all our Vinyl Week 2024 features, advice and reviews
Tips on storing your vinyl records to keep them in peak condition
