2020 Hindsight: 50 Years of Quadishness

[Quad Linda]

And you even bought the Marantz wood cases!

Sal, do you recall if you had the SQA-1 (front/back logic) or the SQA-2 (full logic)? I started w/1 and upgraded to 2B. Did you get the RC-4 remote?

Great stuff!

What turntable is that, Sal?

All it was missing was SQ records from Val's Halla (RIP Val), Korvettes (RIP), and/or Rolling Stone.

 

[marpow]

1970, hard to fucking remember, Freshman in high school, still using my record player with fold out speakers, haven't even graduated to cassette yet. FM radio, KSAN with Voco and Dusty Street was starting to fly, KMPX uhh, can't remember, except all the DJ's talked real quiet and cool man.
Woodstock record came out that year, and as my Dad walked down the hallway, bitching loudly while Hendrix played the Star Spangled Banner that in a few years we won't even know the song anymore, as much as he bitched he could still tell it was the Star Spangled Banner.
14 years old and taking LSD almost every weekend, going to Speedway Meadows in Golden Gate Park for free concerts, I saw everybody, San Francisco groups, JA, Dead, Quicksilver, Big Brother, but we really focused on all the Hippies, acting all stoned and wanting to just have a lot of sex.. I have lots of story's but not appropriate for the internet.
There are tons of music of 1970, but if I can remember correctly I think Ten Years After, Fleetwood Mac and Jeff Beck where my favorites.
1970 was the first year of The Stoners, that was us. Hippies where concerned with the War, Government, stuff like that, we where too young to care about that. What we did care about was getting high and listening to music, fact.
1970 - 1973 was a mind blown. Now they say children's brains are not fully developed until 25, there goes me.

 

[edisonbaggins]

Some cool parallels for me here. Like Linda, I do my fair bit of electronics work, because, like Jon, I've held a military electronics MOS (military occupational specialty). Army though, not a "swabbie"... (love ya, @JonUrban ).
In '70 I wasn't even a twinkle in my father's eye. He was 19. Old enough to be a father in my family, by a few years even, but he wouldn't produce my older (little) brother until the ripe old age of 22.

When did the quad bug hit me? Probably not until 2015 or so! But man, did it! Friends' rips, AF, now D-V?! Come on, Wizard! We're not getting any younger! Unleash the next round of quad rescues!!!

Which reminds me...

 

[sjcorne]

When did the quad bug hit me? Probably not until 2015 or so! But man, did it! Friends' rips, AF, now D-V?! Come on, Wizard! We're not getting any younger! Unleash the next round of quad rescues!!!

Amen to that! First time I heard quad was in 2011 or 2012. We were cleaning out the attic and my Dad seized the opportunity to pull out all his old gear that had probably been languishing up there since the mid '80s! He let me go through his records to see if I recognized anything - I pulled out the Doobies' The Captain & Me (I knew "China Grove" from one of those Guitar Hero or RockBand video games) and he put it on. I thought it was the coolest thing when the backing vocals hit the rears.

 

[edisonbaggins]

Amen to that! First time I heard quad was in 2011 or 2012. We were cleaning out the attic and my Dad seized the opportunity to pull out all his old gear that had probably been languishing up there since the mid '80s! He let me go through his records to see if I recognized anything - I pulled out the Doobies' The Captain & Me (I knew "China Grove" from one of those Guitar Hero or RockBand video games) and he put it on. I thought it was the coolest thing when the backing vocals hit the rears.

OMFC, Jonathan! China Grove is pretty much the only DB track I can think of off the top of my head (pre-MacDonald, right???), and yet I'm 100% in for the Doobies Quadio!!! Bring it ON!!!!!!

 

[4-earredwonder]

While many of the younger QQers were on their 'embryonic journeys' I started to collect Audio equipment while a junior at College ... typing [actually re~writing/typing] term papers on erasable bond for $1 per page, giving blood [for $10 a pint...hey I WAS BROKE] and working summer jobs for the County of Westchester first of all starting off at $1.25 per hour [taxable] so I'd work 96 hours and get a check every two weeks for $96!!!!! TEAC had their first EAST COAST showroom/repair center near my college in Plainview, NY so with that hard earned cash I managed to buy a 2 channel TEAC for a great price, brand new and 2 KLH speakers. Since I was concurrently into shooting 8mm auteur movies [write, direct, photograph, edit, etc.] I also managed to scrape enough cash to buy one of the first Kodak Sound on Film projectors and started recording original music with my TEAC and EV microphones.

I also experimented with Dynaquad ........ sending out of phase info from the fronts to the rears via zip cord and buying a few of those Vanguard Dynaquad samplers but was truthfully disappointed with the results. I was using a Garrard turntable at the time and it wasn't the best and to be honest, wasn't properly set up.

After serving 2 years in the military and a year in 'embalming' school in Syracuse, NY, I moved back home and since my older sister got married, I was able to take over her room. Since there was an ornate marble fireplace in the middle, speaker set up was 'awkward' at best.

My first foray into QUAD was a Dokorder 4 channel Open Reel Tape Recorder* [the pits, IMO] and an equally no name brand 4 channel receiver with QS/SQ. A technics CD~4 decoder came later. A robbery [actually in hindsight, fortuitous] depleted me of my dokorder 4 channel Open Reel/crappy receiver, etc. so with the insurance money, I stepped up to a Teac 4 channel open reel recorder and a better [name escapes me] 4 channel receiver. QUAD Open Reel, in those days and IMO, was the way to go. The SQ/QS decoding as we all know was somewhat of a joke and QUAD REELS were usually under $15 delivered....even though the selection was limited. Since we didn't have internet in those days and audio rags were opposed to surround, I had NO idea of Japanese QUAD Open Reels being released in Japan or other countries.

But I did continue to add a large selection of SQ/QS and CD~4 vinyl to my collection, courtesy of our local E.J. Korvettes [usually under $5 at the time and on sale even cheaper]. Luckily, I befriended one of the salespeople at Korvettes and he allowed me to exchange faulty discs with no fanfare .... those Angel SQ discs, IMO, were very poorly pressed.

I didn't start buying higher end equipment until DTS Entertainment started to produce their [at the time] extraordinary DTS CDs and went even higher end, equipment wise, when the majors started releasing lossless DVD~A/SACD 5.1 discs. Then the real fun began.

Since I bought a Meridian 800 DVD~A player and Meridian pre/pro, I started concentrating mainly on DVD~A but in hindsight, wish I had bought up ALL those multichannel SACDs [as I did with DVD~A discs]. I didn't go the SACD route until I purchased my first OPPO and Meridian created an interface so I could utilize it via HDMI with their pre/pro.

When this COVID~19 Pandemic hit, I was in the process of redoing my entire sound system and all that exotic equipment sitting in huge crates freshly delivered from the UK a few months ago is waiting to be set up. I also invested in a SONY 3D Laser Projector and a new Stewart 120" diagonal screen.
When it's finally installed, I will post pics.

And thanks to QQ forum, I would never have achieved this goal and with new surround discs being released every year ....... our dreams are finally reaching fruition!

*DOKORDER 7140 VINTAGE QUADRAPHONIC 4 CHANNEL - 3 MOTOR - 3 HEAD REEL TO REEL | eBay

 

[Sal1950]

And you even bought the Marantz wood cases!

Sal, do you recall if you had the SQA-1 (front/back logic) or the SQA-2 (full logic)? I started w/1 and upgraded to 2B. Did you get the RC-4 remote?

Great stuff!

What turntable is that, Sal?

All it was missing was SQ records from Val's Halla (RIP Val), Korvettes (RIP), and/or Rolling Stone.

Oh heck ya, I had to have the walnut cases, I loved that stuff. Still do, sad that very few do that sort of thing any more.

To be honest I don't remember much of the details of the add-ons I had for the 2440, repercussions of a youth mis-spent I guess. I know I never had the remote.

The TT is a AR-XB, with most likely at that time a Stanton 681EEE cartridge.

I wish I had a dollar for every time I walked thru the doorway of Val's, I lived about 5 minutes from there, good times and good people. I was sad when I heard we had lost Val, one of the nicest people you could ever meet.

 

[Clement]

Wow, Quad Linda. No one does it better. I wanna be you when I grow up. If ever I do.

At the start of 1970, I was 8 years old. On 4 December 1969, it was reported that Fred Hampton had been killed in a shootout with the Chicago police. As a precocious kid, I followed the coverage throughout 1970 (and beyond). It became very clear to me--and it was later proved--that Hampton was assassinated by the government. My nascent confidence in the power structure had already been shaken by the Vietnam War and other political assassinations; by the end of 1970, it would be destroyed . . . the murders on 4 May at Kent State and 15 May at Jackson State were further proof that something was very, very wrong.

Despite the way poly-tricks messed with my mind, I still had baseball. The previous year, my beloved Chicago Cubs had collapsed in September. I had high hopes for 1970. Yes, Ernie Banks hit his 500th homer on 12 May; yes, Billy Williams had one of the best years of his career; yes, Fergie Jenkins had another season with over 20 victories--but the Cubs finished in 2nd place behind the Pittsburg Pirates.

But most important: in 1970, I received my very first LP. I had purchased singles, but I never owned a long player. My best friend had an older sister who was prolly as hip as Quad Linda. She schooled me and her brother, turning us on to Chicago, Bridge Over Troubled Waters, All Things Must Pass, Abraxas, Tea For The Tillerman, Sweet Baby James, American Woman, Grand Funk, . . . and when I found out she wanted to buy Jesus Christ Superstar, well, I convinced my parents to get it for me, hoping she might come over to listen! Turns out she scored a copy of her own, but I had my very first album, and it was almost as sexy as Lisa. I spent hours pouring over the libretto and soaking in the sound on my parents' stereo system in the basement, where I could really crank it up!

I have no idea what happened to Lisa, but I still have that original copy of Jesus Christ Superstar in my basement (I wore it out, but I never threw it away). Music. My first true love.

Thanks, Quad Linda, for starting this thread. You are beautiful. Stay Surrounded, Comrades!

 

[gvl_guy]

I'm not sure of the year, but I know I was in high school, so probably around 1975. I had a compact stereo. Some crappy Elgin model with an 8 track and mini turntable built in. I wanted an upgrade and, since I had a job, I saved up and bought a compact Panasonic that was on sale. It turned out to be quad, with a Q8 and separate turntable with built in CD-4 demodulator. As far as I knew, it was just a cool stereo with 4 speakers that I got a great deal on. (Quad was likely on it's way down at that point. Lol)

I got it home, set it up and started reading all about it. Quad was something more than just 4 speakers! Cool. So I bought some Q8 tapes. Wow. Then I went hunting for a quad record. I ended up buying some Enoch Light album in Radio Shack. (Don't tell my friends I listened to something like that!) But I could not for the life of me understand why the little quad light on the turntable wouldn't light up. I assumed the record was garbage from RS. I bought a couple more albums and they happened to be Quadradiscs. I joined a record club that offered quad albums. I was a happy camper.

Eventually, I figured out that there were two quad systems, discreet and matrix. Obviously, discreet was much better since it made the little light turn on. ☺ I never had any demodulator issues with that turntable.

Several years later, after working hard, saving money, figuring out what exactly quad was and BUGGING the guys in a particular audio store to no end, I did my research and ordered a Pioneer QX-949A, Technics SL-1700 turntable, Shure M24H cartridge, Technics cassette deck (I dumped the 8 tracks) and 4 small Jenson speakers. I couldn't afford the Bose 301's that I wanted and the Jenson's sounded damn good. Since most of the matrix albums were SQ, the 949A had pro logic, the best available at the time, I decided it was a good choice. Audio life was amazing after that.

My junior year, I went away to college. I did not take my system. No way was I bringing something that cost more than my car to my dorm. But after college, I dragged that thing to every place I lived. Eventually, the speakers died with crispy foam and the receiver started crackling when I turned the knobs, a couple of the knobs bent during moves and, well, with quad all but dead and CDs replacing cassettes, I tossed it. I kept the turntable and cartridge and put them in storage. I kept my albums for many years, too. I had about 2000 records, 98% stereo, and dragged them everywhere. (I was in radio and got LOTS of promo copies.)

Before our last move 4 years ago, my other half said, "you're not dragging those to the new house." Honestly, he was right. I never played them. They stayed in boxes for some 20 years. I kept one boxful of my favorites, saved most of the quads, and sold the rest. I also kept the turntable and cartridge.

Well, about a year ago, with a new "mancave" in our new house, I dragged out the turntable, hooked it up to the TV sound bar and ....it all began again.

I decided to get myself for Christmas a vintage receiver. There's a repair place in town that was a former Sansui dealer and has TONS of vintage stuff from all brands sitting around. I stopped in and the guy told me that he had about 5 old quads sitting in the back. So I picked the best of the bunch, a Sansui QRX-7001 and off I went. A replacement stylus for my Shure, a new-old-stock JVC quad cartridge and stylus off eBay (just in case,) and 4 small Polk speakers. (I can't fit 4 big speakers in the room.) So, I'm back to quad. Thank God for eBay and Discogs. I'm up to 87 quad albums and enjoy my stereo ones using the superb synthesizer built in to the Sansui, something the Pioneer just didn't do that great. Wings Venus and Mars sounds awesome! Some of my stereo albums sound like they were made for quad.

That's my story. Thanks for letting me tell it.

 

[Wurly1]

The closest i got from a quad system in the seventies was around 1973-74. A cousin got a quad sound system as a wedding present. I was mesmerized by the square target display with a red dot and small joystick audio pan control. Unfortunately all 4 speakers were in front just under the receiver and he didn't had any quad content to play. I guess he didn't even understood the basic stereo concept. lol Sadly a year later he got rid of it. So besides 5.1, 6.1, 7.1 digital surround systems, the first time i could finally listen to true discrete quad was just 2 weeks ago as i bought my first Q8 tapes and i'm about to listen to my first CD-4 records this week as i received my shibata stylus for EPC-451c SC cartridge.

 

[Sal1950]

I guess he didn't even understood the basic stereo concept.

Most outside of the audio hobby really do. How many setups have you seen with one speaker pushed in a corner and the other being used as an endtable next to a chair? I don't remember ever visiting anyone outside of our "clan" that had speakers in a position to create any sort of image at a listening position.

 

[Quad Linda]

Great memories of Quad and 1970.

Some cool Quad gear, gvl_guy ! I remember it all. Sold but never owned Sansui Quads until recently. A GF's Dad died. I inherited his Sansui QRX 5500 & 6500 (w/CD-4). Not top of the line, but the price was irrestible: free.

Sold Pioneer Quad receivers, 747, 949a and the older 4000 and 8000's. We bought a ton of 4000/8000's from Pioneer when they were discontinued. For $299, you could get a 4000. For $499, you could get an 8000, or a turntable, 2 house brand speakers & 4000. Great price points, but not cheap, even in '73/'74 $$.

Does your better half approve and is he conversant with operating all this old-fangled gear?

In '74, I remember AT giving out buttons at Summer CES, "Show us your Shibata tip" We also had a rack of nothing but CBS SQ LP's and a sign made for us by Columbia. 20 new release titles at a sale price.

Clement, I'm also a Cub fan. I skipped school a couple times in favor of Wrigley. I was a straight A student and on total independent study. I got lots of latitude. I was studying baseball and beer, among other things. LOL!! My favorite saying before 2016: "Anybody can have a bad century." I miss baseball!

Sal, I bought most of my Quads from Korvettes. I bought few Quads from Val (RIP). I do remember a trip to Val's Halla in early '74. I bought 3 of my all-time fave albums: SQ's of Oregon & 11th House and a 2 ch Randy California Kapt. Kopter. Rose, Korvettes, Lafayette and my own store were my usual Quad places. Myron, record dept. mgr. at Korvettes in Arlington Heights was a friend of mine. Bob, the HiFi mgr. of Korvettes in North Riverside was my boss later in the Hi-Fi business.

I may have hooked up a 3rd speaker prior to doing the Quad FM simulcast demo. Don't recall the exact chronology. I loved the 3rd speaker. Still, "discrete" Quad was a revelation. I did keep the 3rd speaker until I went to full blown Quad. I remember a hi-fi mag recommending Lee Michaels s/t 3rd album, especially Heighty-Hi being a great track to synthesize. I don't recall their other recommendations...

This thread has brought out so many spectacular stories. Now, you can see why it made better sense for me to simply shelve this thread originally. It seemed like it would easily become a mess or an unwelcome time suck during the conversion. The conversion went unbelievably, so it wasn't necessary to delay it. And I have a personal life that takes precedence.

Keep up the great posts of Quad memories!

Five months for you to create and organize your thoughts and now we need to put those (very) old brain cells to use after all these years of dormancy. OK, I'll take the challenge but I must admit, I'll need the web to help refresh my memory of that specific year. For some reason, the early 70's are all mixed together as one great music time in my head.

 

[gvl_guy]

Great memories of Quad and 1970.

Some cool Quad gear, gvl_guy ! I remember it all. Sold but never owned Sansui Quads until recently. A GF's Dad died. I inherited his Sansui QRX 5500 & 6500 (w/CD-4). Not top of the line, but the price was irrestible: free.

Sold Pioneer Quad receivers, 747, 949a and the older 4000 and 8000's. We bought a ton of 4000/8000's from Pioneer when they were discontinued. For $299, you could get a 4000. For $499, you could get an 8000, or a turntable, 2 house brand speakers & 4000. Great price points, but not cheap, even in '73/'74 $$.

Does your better half approve and is he conversant with operating all this old-fangled gear?

He has no idea how to operate it and no interest. His idea of music is to out on a set of headphones and listen to Spotify. We have very different tastes in music.

 

[Quad Linda]

Mine understands some things better than I do. He listened to compacts and inexpensive rack sytems all his life. It has been a 7 year education.

If it has to do with video & computers, he is better at those things. And I was the one in those businesses! It's about being conversant with the software.

He did go to a lot of concerts, as did I. We continue that tradition. He also has a great DVD/BD & CD collection. So, we have a few things in common.

Initially, he had trouble differentiating what software I had on my want list. There are so many versions these days!

He mostly understands how to use the gear and differentiate between the software versions. Regular, Ultra regular, Expanded, Irregular, Remastered, SACD, Deeeluxe and Schmucks Deluxe versions.

 

[gvl_guy]

Mine understands some things better than I do. He listened to compacts and inexpensive rack sytems all his life. It has been a 7 year education.

If it has to do with video & computers, he is better at those things. And I was the one in those businesses! It's about being conversant with the software.

He did go to a lot of concerts, as did I. We continue that tradition. He also has a great DVD/BD & CD collection. So, we have a few things in common.

Initially, he had trouble differentiating what software I had on my want list. There are so many versions these days!

He mostly understands how to use the gear and differentiate between the software versions. Regular, Ultra regular, Expanded, Irregular, Remastered, SACD, Deeeluxe and Schmucks Deluxe versions.

I've decided not to get into SACDs, DVDa's and the like. Just sticking with the "old school" stuff. I've even started a Facebook group for that.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/475618800025161/
I barely get all the matrix, discreet, etc. No less spending money on more equipment and CDs. So I'm keeping it old and "relatively" simple. Lol

 

[Sonik Wiz]

Mine understands some things better than I do. He listened to compacts and inexpensive rack sytems all his life. It has been a 7 year education.

If it has to do with video & computers, he is better at those things. And I was the one in those businesses! It's about being conversant with the software.

He did go to a lot of concerts, as did I. We continue that tradition. He also has a great DVD/BD & CD collection. So, we have a few things in common.

Initially, he had trouble differentiating what software I had on my want list. There are so many versions these days!

He mostly understands how to use the gear and differentiate between the software versions. Regular, Ultra regular, Expanded, Irregular, Remastered, SACD, Deeeluxe and Schmucks Deluxe versions.

Oh your bringing back the memories...
In '70 there was a lot of parties, sex, drugs, rock 'n roll. At a party a typical convo between myself a newly introduced girl might go like this:

She: "I hear from Randy you really like stereo stuff & music!"
Me:"Yes I do. What kind of music do you like?"
She:" Oh I like it all just as long as it has a good beat I can dance to!"
Me: "Pfffftt."

When I learned to be not so dismissive I eventuality met my wife in '75. The most I remember from that year is good Bob Dylan & Roxy Music. Fast forward today & all she knows about my audio set up is they "are just boxes with knobs." After 40 years later, 2 daughters, 4 granddaughters things have worked out great. And her approach makes it extremely easy to upgrade/ switch out components with no questions asked. Those boxes all look alike to her.

 

[Sonik Wiz]

I've decided not to get into SACDs, DVDa's and the like. Just sticking with the "old school" stuff. I've even started a Facebook group for that.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/475618800025161/
I barely get all the matrix, discreet, etc. No less spending money on more equipment and CDs. So I'm keeping it old and "relatively" simple. Lol

Some time back in the 80's there was a little publication called The Eight Track Mind. It's premise was that it's time to stop accepting & paying for the newest latest greatest so that you have a complete turn around in equipment every five years. It celebrated all the audio/video/ham radio gear prior to that point. I am not quite of that attitude but I feel I've got a good set up that will keep me happy the rest of my life. Until Involve comes out with something new.

I tried looking at your Facebook group but I don't do that & it was asking me log in. Could you change it to public status so others could check it out?

 

[gvl_guy]

Some time back in the 80's there was a little publication called The Eight Track Mind. It's premise was that it's time to stop accepting & paying for the newest latest greatest so that you have a complete turn around in equipment every five years. It celebrated all the audio/video/ham radio gear prior to that point. I am not quite of that attitude but I feel I've got a good set up that will keep me happy the rest of my life. Until Involve comes out with something new.

I tried looking at your Facebook group but I don't do that & it was asking me log in. Could you change it to public status so others could check it out?

Strange. It should be public status already. You have a Facebook account I assume?

 

[Sonik Wiz]

Strange. It should be public status already. You have a Facebook account I assume?

No facebook no twitter no insta. I'm all about minimizing my internet foot print.

 

[par4ken]

Back in 1970, life for me was still Mono. AM radio was mono, TV was mono 45 RPM records were mono. Although our HiFi console was Stereophonic all our records were mono. As I recall in the sixties stereo records cost a dollar more than their mono counterparts, explaining why we had none. We had no local FM at the time although occasionally one or two stations would come in but we didn't have the necessary multiplex adapter to listen in stereo. By 1971 45's were being released in stereo and also I started buying a few albums starting off with the pre K-Tel "24 (Something) Hits" albums. After joining The Record Club of Canada my LP buying spree began in earnest. I was given a Sears consolette stereo, although it's solid state sound was noticeably inferior to that of the larger tube based unit it at least had detachable speakers and a headphone jack. With that stereo in the basement we enjoyed many hours of stereo LP listening. During this time there was a radio feature on CKRC Winnipeg titled "In Touch With Today", originating at sister station CKOC Hamilton with host Nevin Grant. In this feature Nevin reported that record companies were set to soon start releasing compatible 4-channel records, I don't recall if the term Quadraphonic was used or not. It was sated that the records would play like regular stereo records or if a special decoder or adapter was used and two more speakers added you could experience four channel sound. After that I started scanning every new release covers and labels for any sign of Quad encoding. Unfortunately I never found any, I had expected that all new release would be in Quad but it din't happen that way, an opportunity lost in my opinion! Sadly Nevin died recently. Nevin Grant Obituary - Oshawa, ON | The Hamilton Spectator
It wasn't long that I built my first set of speakers, from an article in a 1964 electronics magazine. It was a base reflex cabinet for an eight inch speaker. The speakers that I used were paper coned with a wizzer cone (to extend high frequency response) and had a 40oz ceramic magnet they were made by Marsland. The sound was amazing for the time, I didn't even bother to tune the cabinet! The addition of a Dynaco style Quadraphonic adapter with my two new and two original speakers was my first (sort of Quad) setup, I was hooked ever-after.