poll: tackiest brand names/worst brands TV/VCR/stereo etc?
b
nasty-sounding "brand" names continually pop up on the front of 'brown'
goods like TVs,Videos and stereos. Most of the culprits appear in large
national supermarket and electrical stores. So, here are some of the
tackiest I have found so far (UK and Europe). (NB. Most of the
equipment also lived up to its tacky name by being either of low
quality or impossible to find service / & parts info.) Anyone else got
names to add to the list?
Sonitron (TV VCR)
Roadstar (TV VCR)
SoGo (TV / audio)
Kniessel (TV/vcr)
Unisef (portable audio)
shan (car audio)
Cathay (portable audio)
Mikachi (clock radio)
Artech (portable audio)
Yokan (TV)
Playsonic (TV)
Beko (TV)
Ansonic (TV)
Vistar (TV)
JRC (TV)
gran prix (portable audio)
silvano (portable audio)
MX Onda (portable audio)
Blue sky (Tv, audio)
Saivod (TV, audio)
SEG (TV/VCR/Audio)
Oskar (portable audio)
Radiotone (TV/portable audio)
Gelhard (car audio)
Schneider (TV/VCR/audio)
Shinko (vcr)
Shintom (vcr)
Sanwa (vcr)
Pershin (audio)
Basic line (TV/VCR)
Firstline (TV/vcr)
Redder (TV)
AR systems (TV/ portable audio)
Crown (audio)
Binatone (TV/audio)
Fidelity (TV/audio)
Alba (TV /VCR /Audio
Matsui (TV/VCR/Audio)
Hinari (TV VCR/ Audio)
Saisho (TV/VCR/Audio)
Proline (TV/VCR/Audio)
(Konka, Funai - from the US I presume)
-----
Looking forward to your contributions!
Ben
ivan
"b" <reveren...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1cfa6663.04072...@posting.google.com...
hand, especially when in many cases they are just a brand name that can turn
up on virtually anything?
I'm surprised you haven't included companies such as Hitachi and Toshiba in
the list, considering that some of their models use the same Vestel chassis
as Beko.
Over the years I have also found that Matsui and Saisho receivers and VCRs
could incorporate anything from Panasonic to Grundig and Orion chassis, to
name but a few of the various permutations that one is liable to encounter,
you'll also find a lot of Goodman's stuff is manufactured by Philips.
I own a fairly cheap w/s Crown TV receiver, which uses a nicely made
chassis, very similar to one found in some Grundig receivers, it also uses a
Panasonic CRT.
> Ben
Lance Dyer
"b" <reveren...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1cfa6663.04072...@posting.google.com...
LASERandDVDfan
>I am constantly amazed at what weird /unheard-of/ downright cheap 'n'
>nasty-sounding "brand" names continually pop up on the front of 'brown'
>goods
Oh, come on! You can't recognize quality from such brand names as Panaphonics,
Magnetbox, and Sorny? ;-p
>gran prix (portable audio)
That's one brand. It was also known as GPX, whose products were typically sold
at corner drug stores here in Florida.
>Shintom (vcr)
Another brand, which I think could be Japanese. Their quality is okay, for a
budget brand.
>Crown (audio)
I've seen a Crown CD player. There is also a company called Crown that makes
some of the finest professional grade amplifiers. However, the two companies
named Crown are unrelated.
>Matsui (TV/VCR/Audio)
This brand seems to be vaguely familiar.
Others:
ToteVision
Broksonic
Lasonic
Coby (talk about a cheesy name,heheheh.)
jWin
>(Konka, Funai - from the US I presume)
Konka is based in China, Hong Kong if I'm not mistaken.
Funai is another brand that I think is located in China, although I've heard
from another that they are based in South Korea. - Reinhart
LASERandDVDfan
>hand, especially when in many cases they are just a brand name that can turn
>up on virtually anything?
True, too. I've seen some cheaper model Toshiba TVs turn out with an Orion
chassis.
Also, many of the cheap companies can only afford to hire an OEM source for
their products instead of manufacturing their own stuff. - Reinhart
LASERandDVDfan
Heheh.
How about Best Buy's "Classic" or "Audiophase" brands.
Another one:
Venturer - Reinhart
Chaos Master
> I am constantly amazed at what weird /unheard-of/ downright cheap 'n'
> nasty-sounding "brand" names continually pop up on the front of 'brown'
> goods like TVs,Videos and stereos. Most of the culprits appear in large
> national supermarket and electrical stores. So, here are some of the
> tackiest I have found so far (UK and Europe). (NB. Most of the
> equipment also lived up to its tacky name by being either of low
> quality or impossible to find service / & parts info.) Anyone else got
> names to add to the list?
Note that some of those brands are OEM'ed from other manufacturers.
[]s
--
Chaos Master®, posting from Brazil. REPLY TO GROUP!
"Bring me to life..."
visit http://marreka.no-ip.com. MSN: wizard_o...@hotmail.com
David
Broke-Sonic. Would be kind of like naming a car No-Go.
David
"LASERandDVDfan" <laseran...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20040720215533...@mb-m05.aol.com...
Franc Zabkar
finger to keyboard and composed:
>I am constantly amazed at what weird /unheard-of/ downright cheap 'n'
>nasty-sounding "brand" names continually pop up on the front of 'brown'
>goods like TVs,Videos and stereos. Most of the culprits appear in large
>national supermarket and electrical stores. So, here are some of the
>tackiest I have found so far (UK and Europe). (NB. Most of the
>equipment also lived up to its tacky name by being either of low
>quality or impossible to find service / & parts info.) Anyone else got
>names to add to the list?
Lucky Goldstar
RS Components (Radiospares, suppliers of electronic components)
On an unrelated note, the funniest name I have ever encountered for
any product has to be "Kickapoo Joy Juice":
http://www.bevnet.com/reviews/kickapoo/
- Franc Zabkar
--
Please remove one 's' from my address when replying by email.
Art
their off shoots?? The more we demand 'high quality/cheap" products, the
more of these fine devices we will see. Sad, but by actually naming these
products we can become legally responsible of slander if the manufacturers
wanted to actually press the issues.IMHO!! Suppose that their monies would
be more appropriately directed to improving their products rather than
trying to support lies.
"Franc Zabkar" <fza...@optussnet.com.au> wrote in message
news:mtesf0libgicm9qgt...@4ax.com...
Franc Zabkar
finger to keyboard and composed:
>Surprised no one even mentioned the fine Goldstar branded Zenith sets, and
>their off shoots??
I don't have any problems with current products from either of the two
companies I have named. FWIW, I have a new 68cm LG TV, a new LG DVD
recorder, and a new LG DVD ROM drive. The company names *are* funny,
though. I would have thought that calling yourself "RS Components"
would be marketing suicide, but RS Components are a very successful
international group of companies. They sell high quality products, but
often at a price which is a bit too rich for me. Even so, I've been a
customer of theirs since my Uni days in Sydney (when they were called
Radiospares), and I've bought from them in Singapore as well.
>The more we demand 'high quality/cheap" products, the
>more of these fine devices we will see. Sad, but by actually naming these
>products we can become legally responsible of slander if the manufacturers
>wanted to actually press the issues.
Hopefully my clarifications are enough to deflect any potential law
suits. :-)
b
(snip)> Others:
> ToteVision
(snip)
Ha Ha! In German, Tote means 'dead' - surprisingly honest name for a
cheapo product then!
> >(Konka, Funai - from the US I presume)
> Konka is based in China, Hong Kong if I'm not mistaken.
> Funai is another brand that I think is located in China, although I've heard
> from another that they are based in South Korea. - Reinhart
Oops. I meant to say 'sold mostly in the US', as I haven't seen Konka
in Europe and Funai VCRS were mostly badged as Amstrad or Shinko. Its
a bit more common in Europe than the UK.
Found a couple more names in the local chinese store today, both
portable radio/cassettes with "100 watts" stickers on their tacky
silver 3-inch diameter speakers:
-Gaoke
-Silvan
---
regards, Ben
b
the 80s), I discovered it was a Sanyo (Fisher) clone. (in those days
Sanyo still made some respectable low to mid-price goods). However,
you can't deny that the name sounds tacky, (almost trying to evoke
Sony) and as such deserves a place on the list!
Ben
"ivan" <Ivan'H'ol...@yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message news:<2m5q1lF...@uni-berlin.de>...!
> Don't you have to be careful condemning various makes of appliances out of
> hand, especially when in many cases they are just a brand name that can turn
> up on virtually anything?
(snip)
Ken G.
b
of some of the tacky stuff I still have lying around here or in the
workshop (mostly cassette machines, stereos etc, the larger stuff has
been dumped or given away!)
look here:
www.hometown.aol.com/worldoftack
regards, Ben
ivan
> finger to keyboard and composed:
>
> >I am constantly amazed at what weird /unheard-of/ downright cheap 'n'
> >nasty-sounding "brand" names continually pop up on the front of 'brown'
> >goods like TVs,Videos and stereos. Most of the culprits appear in large
> >national supermarket and electrical stores. So, here are some of the
> >tackiest I have found so far (UK and Europe). (NB. Most of the
> >equipment also lived up to its tacky name by being either of low
> >quality or impossible to find service / & parts info.) Anyone else got
> >names to add to the list?
>
> Lucky Goldstar
> RS Components (Radiospares, suppliers of electronic components)
>
When I was an apprentice in the radio and TV trade, Radiospares were just
what their name implied, supplier's of radio (and TV components) to the
trade.
However ISTR that in the late 60s they abandoned all that, and branched out
into selling more exotic electronic components to universities, industry
etc. No doubt, as their name implies, they were probably going strong in
pre-television days.
LASERandDVDfan
Another set of names come from those wonderful people who make those greatest
high end speakers that are sold out of the back of white vans. :-p
Grafdale, ripoff of Wharfdale
Paradygm, ripoff of Paradigm
Acoustic Response, ripoff of Acoustic Research
Dahlton, Dogg Digital, and Theater Research are also other brands that are sold
in the back of vans and are utter pieces of crap.
These speakers are built with thin particle board with no bracing. There is no
internal insulation. Shoddy drivers are typically used. Small gauge wiring is
typically used. There is an underdesigned crossover circuit, if there is one
inside at all. At least they look nice, but they aren't worth $200, much less
the $1000+ these speakers are advertised for.
You have to see the frequency response curves of these things, one person
commented that it's like looking at a roller coaster ride at a Six Flags theme
park, and I am forced to agree. There have also been instances where these
speakers blow at moderate listening levels.
Even a cheap $100 amplifier could blow these speakers before it reaches
anywhere near clipping. - Reinhart
LASERandDVDfan
Which was the case with the Chevy Nova in Mexico, yes? - Reinhart
LASERandDVDfan
>any product has to be "Kickapoo Joy Juice":
> http://www.bevnet.com/reviews/kickapoo/
Oh, yeah?
http://www.engrish.com/detail.php?imagename=homosausage.jpg&category=Snack
s&date=2003-08-22
- Reinhart
Jason D.
>Samsung is far worse than all those put together
>
Samsung?
When you are authorized shop for the Samsung, gets all kinds of info
on their website (Yes, I wish it came on CDs and paper (used to) and
more training manuals especially for their monitors, TVs, DVD. etc.
Then you usually are doing ok.
So far they make so many stuff and is doing fine. Right now I got a
industrial quality samsung projector monitor (takes VGA signals) used
in the game cabient for Andamira here for repair.
What a MASSIVE dual power supplies and one humgous flyback
transformer. :-) Oh, have to turn THAT on with a tv remote. Oh yes,
pull out light box like RCA of old. :-( ) I'll take few pictures of
it.
Cheers,
Wizard
Chaos Master
> Samsung is far worse than all those put together
I don't think so. :P
William R. Walsh
> ToteVision
...is actually still around today and did sell at least one good product.
(They could have sold others, but this is the only one I've ever seen or
used with their name on it...) I have a ToteVision VCR that belonged to my
grandparents, who gave it to me when the picture lost all color. I cleaned
the heads and have replaced the rubber parts now and then and it just keeps
going. Not bad for a budget 2 head machine built in '89 by Goldstar. I've
only ever had the one complaint with it--low audio when recording, but it
has had that problem since day one. Playback is fine.
http://greyghost.dyndns.org/av/vcr1.jpg - although, that picture makes it
look worse than it does. When I actually dust things, the unit still looks
pretty well brand new.
(Oh, and did I mention that I actually found the name to be kinda cool
sounding? Implies portable TV to me, which seems to be their business
nowadays.)
William
William R. Walsh
I've found the recent string of Hitachi-LG CD/DVD drives that identify
themselves as "HL-DT-ST xxxxxxxxxxxxx" drives rather entertaining.
It's not a particularly strange name like others have mentioned, but I'd
still love to know what (if anything) it might stand for...and when you
consider that many drives have quite a descriptive ID string, it is odd.
William
ivan
> the 80s), I discovered it was a Sanyo (Fisher) clone. (in those days
> Sanyo still made some respectable low to mid-price goods). However,
> you can't deny that the name sounds tacky, (almost trying to evoke
> Sony) and as such deserves a place on the list!
> Ben
>
'Pacific' is a name I'm beginning to see more of, sold by Asda (Wal-Mart)
although I haven't had the back off one yet, but picture wise, the ones I've
seen so far, appear to have given a pretty good account of themselves.
I automatically assumed from from your original list that you were based in
the UK, however looking at the receiver fitted with the flimsy looking two
pin plug, I'm now not so sure.
Ken G.
throw it away before they pay high repair prices .
Their tv sets have some sort of wierd low quality picture and all the
buttons have slow respond times .
I worked on a number of their big screens where the seal on the tubes
failed & leaked coolant fluid all over the circuit boards down and made
puddles on the floor . Their camcorders last about 3 months then break
. try taking one of those apart .
I have had several of their new 36``? wide screen tube tv sets with
fried horizontal transistors and a fried capacitor or strange other
circuit problems .
One of my shop friends down town signed up for their warranty service ..
it took them 6 months to get around to returning his call . Last i heard
their method of repair was to send all the boards the model you are
working on to yo to have you try them till you find the bad one & return
the rest .
Their are many very cheap brands out there but at least their tv sets
have a normal picture .. samscum is the worst !
b
> 'Pacific' is a name I'm beginning to see more of, sold by Asda (Wal-Mart)
> although I haven't had the back off one yet, but picture wise, the ones I've
> seen so far, appear to have given a pretty good account of themselves.
Yeah. Picked up one of their 40 pound dvd players to leave at my
folks' place - seemed ok but then, I only used it once in the space of
a year. As for their other products - can't say.
> I automatically assumed from from your original list that you were based in
> the UK, however looking at the receiver fitted with the flimsy looking two
> pin plug, I'm now not so sure.
I live in Spain but am from the UK. And , yes, the spanish /european
plugs are terrible! In my unbiased objective humble opinion, the UK
3-pin system is the best in the world ;). And you, are you another
ex-pat from UK but living in Berlin?
regards, Ben
ivan
recently saw an angle grinder complete with two cutting discs retailing at
£7.99...12 months ago I paid £5 'each' just for the discs.
Also if one shops around, it's possible to find twin speed videos for around
the £30 mark, and only last week, my brother bought a DVD player in
Woolworth's for twenty-five quid.
I'm resident in the UK, what made you think I live in Berlin?
Mind you the way things have been going over here for the last few years,
and with my mortgage paid off, I dream about selling up (before the the
crash!) and buying something cheaper abroad and then living on the money
thats left over, unfortunately however it will have to remain a dream, as my
wife is so attached to her family that's it's a total non-starter.
> regards, Ben
b
"ivan" <Ivan'H'ol...@yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message news:<2mafj9F...@uni-berlin.de>...
b
> high end speakers that are sold out of the back of white vans. :-p
> Grafdale, ripoff of Wharfdale
> Paradygm, ripoff of Paradigm
> Acoustic Response, ripoff of Acoustic Research
I remember that affair well! One day years ago at university ,passing
through the campus after returning from the town, having placed an
order for a pair of wharfedale floorstanders at the local HiFi shop I
was approached by some dodgy characters in - wait for it - a white
van. Poor sods really picked their moment! Faces fell as I told them
where I was coming from, and tried to convince me that the ones I had
ordered "were Ok but what we got here is the real shit, know what i
mean?" they then spun me some ridiculous story - "speakers reduced in
price from 800 pounds , yours for 150 to clear them out, the boss
wants his warehouse emptied" etc. I said "no" and left them to it.
Week or two later on BBC watchdog or some similar programme, lo and
behold I saw a trading standards report on the scam, they got a pair
of these speakers from a disgruntled duped customer and ran an
analysis on them. They came to the same conclusions as you said -
pieces of crap with awful response curves, sensitivity, phasing,
soundstage, build, crossovers...you name it. In fact I 'm fairly sure
I still have a video of the programme somewhere.....
b
LASERandDVDfan
>through the campus after returning from the town, having placed an
>order for a pair of wharfedale floorstanders at the local HiFi shop I
>was approached by some dodgy characters in - wait for it - a white
>van.
Heheheh.
Although, these days, they'll drive anything that can hold product, from a
beat-up Chevrolet Astro all the way up to a pristine Lincoln Navigator.
Or, for Europe, from a beat up Ford Transit to a pristine Range Rover.
It is shocking that this appears to be a worldwide affar. Apparently, it
started here in the 1970s in the States and then spread to other countries over
the years.
There have been instances in New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, Japan, and I
think even in Germany with possibly many other countries.
And, I am also sorry to say, that this foul business will most certainly not go
away for quite some time. There are too many greedy suckers who think they
will be bagging themselves a good deal, and the business runs to the point
where the authorities can do almost nothing about it.
>Faces fell as I told them
>where I was coming from, and tried to convince me that the ones I had
>ordered "were Ok but what we got here is the real shit, know what i
>mean?" they then spun me some ridiculous story ... >I said "no" and left them
to it.
Great feeling to dodge a bullet and look good in the process, yes?
>Week or two later on BBC watchdog or some similar programme, lo and
>behold I saw a trading standards report on the scam, they got a pair
>of these speakers from a disgruntled duped customer and ran an
>analysis on them. They came to the same conclusions as you said -
>pieces of crap with awful response curves, sensitivity, phasing,
>soundstage, build, crossovers...you name it. In fact I 'm fairly sure
>I still have a video of the programme somewhere.....
I'd love to watch that, although the video would have to be sent through the
net. I'm afraid I don't have the capability to play PAL recordings.
Another thing I've heard about these white van speakers, they may not have
serial numbers tagged on the product or labeled on the packaging.
And, of course, common sense dictates that buying speakers out of a van from
real pushy people telling an ethically questionable story should be avoided at
all costs. - Reinhart
Chaos Master
> Their are many very cheap brands out there but at least their tv sets
> have a normal picture .. samscum is the worst !
I have not seen a Samsung TV here in Brazil, in the last 3 years or so.
But the last time I saw one, the image looked good.
(this is a post from someone that used a 10-year old Semp Toshiba TV, then
bought a new LG TV and is quite happy)
[]s
--
Chaos Master®, posting from Brazil. REPLY TO GROUP!
"And God said: '# apt-get install light'. And there was light".
ICQ: 126735906 MSN: wizard_o...@hotmail.com
http://marreka.no-ip.com
LASERandDVDfan
>look worse than it does.
Yep. It's a GoldStar all right. All the way down to the "HQ" logo. That
particular chassis was also distributed under the Sears, Roebuck and Company.
BTW, check the mode switch. Other problems to look out for: capstan motor and
idler assembly causing a slow rewind condition with some cassettes.
As for low audio level for recording, that was also a problem with a linear
stereo Sears machine, OEMed by GoldStar, that I have which is collecting dust.
>(Oh, and did I mention that I actually found the name to be kinda cool
>sounding? Implies portable TV to me, which seems to be their business
>nowadays.
Also true. You can tote a ToteVision anywhere, heheh.
BTW, I am sure a lot of people remember Bell & Howell. My how they have
fallen, from making some high quality film projectors all the way down to
making cheap and crappy electric shavers advertised on infomercials. -
Reinhart
Michael A. Covington
name brand. I remember around 1970 opening up a Lafayette (house brand)
cassette player and finding Pioneer parts. Other Lafayette tape recorders
were Sony's previous year model.
And some name brands (e.g., RCA) no longer correspond directly to any
manufacturing facilities -- they are just names that have been sold.
Proprclr
> >
> >I am constantly amazed at what weird /unheard-of/ downright cheap 'n'
> >nasty-sounding "brand" names continually pop up on the front of 'brown'
> >goods
>
> Magnetbox, and Sorny? ;-p
>
> >gran prix (portable audio)
>
> That's one brand. It was also known as GPX, whose products were typically sold
> at corner drug stores here in Florida.
>
> >Shintom (vcr)
>
> Another brand, which I think could be Japanese. Their quality is okay, for a
> budget brand.
>
> >Crown (audio)
>
> I've seen a Crown CD player. There is also a company called Crown that makes
> some of the finest professional grade amplifiers. However, the two companies
> named Crown are unrelated.
>
> >Matsui (TV/VCR/Audio)
>
> This brand seems to be vaguely familiar.
>
> Others:
>
> ToteVision
> Broksonic
> Lasonic
> Coby (talk about a cheesy name,heheheh.)
> jWin
>
> >(Konka, Funai - from the US I presume)
>
> Konka is based in China, Hong Kong if I'm not mistaken.
>
> Funai is another brand that I think is located in China, although I've heard
> from another that they are based in South Korea. - Reinhart
A couple others to look out for would be Shail(sp?) and Lax-Max.
I bought a pair of dollar headphones made my Shail, and when
the headseats broke (which didn't take long), I decided to use
the wires for scrap. Imagine my suprise when I stripped the wires and
found that they were insulated by a coating rather than regular insulation,
and the strands were *very* thin. ARGGGHHH! It's nearly impossible to
strip the coating off the wire strangs, so naturaly, the whole thing was
useless junk.
I've also taken apart earphones from those "torch radios" (that tune with
a singe "scan button"), you see at 99 cent stores, and not only were the
wires the same thin "painted" type, but there was only *one* (1) strand
for one of the poles! Talk about cheap!
Proprclr
> By far the worst name would have to have been: Broksonic, pronounced
> Broke-Sonic. Would be kind of like naming a car No-Go.
>
Maybe "broke" stands for "will last forever, and never break" where
the device is manufactured :)
> David
>
> "LASERandDVDfan" <laseran...@aol.com> wrote in message
> news:20040720215533...@mb-m05.aol.com...
Proprclr
> >http://greyghost.dyndns.org/av/vcr1.jpg - although, that picture makes it
> >look worse than it does.
>
> Yep. It's a GoldStar all right. All the way down to the "HQ" logo. That
> particular chassis was also distributed under the Sears, Roebuck and Company.
>
> BTW, check the mode switch. Other problems to look out for: capstan motor and
> idler assembly causing a slow rewind condition with some cassettes.
>
> As for low audio level for recording, that was also a problem with a linear
> stereo Sears machine, OEMed by GoldStar, that I have which is collecting dust.
>
> >(Oh, and did I mention that I actually found the name to be kinda cool
> >sounding? Implies portable TV to me, which seems to be their business
> >nowadays.
>
> Also true. You can tote a ToteVision anywhere, heheh.
That name, is so......1980s. (sorry, someone had to say it :)
>
> BTW, I am sure a lot of people remember Bell & Howell. My how they have
> fallen, from making some high quality film projectors
I once got a Bell and Howel "Film-o-sound" projector from school.
If I remember correctly, it was a slide projector that had a
audio tape deck built in to it (I think it also had a built in screen).
I never got the thing working, but I'm sure it was one of those
automatic projectors where the film strip advances when a unique
signal (sounds like a low fluttering chirp) is picked up on the tape.
A bit off topic, but does anyone remember this device that I used
when in elemetary school? It was a unit that looked like a really
bloated portable television set. It had slide show "cards" with a
plastic frame that you would stick into the front, right hand side of the
unit. The slide came with a 12" phonograph record with a very strange
looking groove lay out*, that you would insert in a slot above
the screen. There were a few large buttons (4, I think) directly
below the screen, and the record would play, and show a multiple
choice question or pictures, and the record would instruct you to
press the button for your answer. Depending on what button you pushed,
a different track on the record would play, indicating whether
you got the answer right or not
*the record looked like a normal phonograph record, except that there
were little "boxes" all over the surface of the record. I think that
there were sort of like switch rails, that allowed the needle to
jump to a different track, depending on what the child selected.
Scince the unit didn't have a regular tonearm, but a sort of servo and rod
set up for the needle, this would make sense.
Paul of Dayton
PoD
Chaos Master
> I remember seeing "Panasony" somewhere long ago...
Recently, I saw "TOKAY" brand (in a post on a Brazilian forum).
[]s
--
Chaos Master®, posting from Brazil. REPLY TO GROUP!
MSN: wizard_o...@hotmail.com http://marreka.no-ip.com
"When a person turns to wrong, is it a want to be, belong?
Part of things at any cost, at what price a life is lost?"
b
> I remember seeing "Panasony" somewhere long ago...
These hybrid names need a thread of their own. I have seen imitation
duracell batteries as follows: DURAKING, POWERCELL,
DURASELL,POWERKING, PANASHIBA, PANASOANIC...
and a crude playstation imitation (didnt use discs, used ram
cartridges like the old nintendo system) : POLYSTATION. It looked
similar cosmetically but what a surprise when you lifted the lid!
Ben
Chaos Master
> and a crude playstation imitation (didnt use discs, used ram
> cartridges like the old nintendo system) : POLYSTATION. It looked
> similar cosmetically but what a surprise when you lifted the lid!
> Ben
Those "POLYSTATIONS" are often sold here in Brazil. On the box (some boxes
looked rather like real PlayStation ones), there were a lot of lies about
features that it boasted.
[]s
--
Chaos Master®, posting from Brazil. REPLY TO GROUP!
MSN: wizard_o...@hotmail.com http://marreka.no-ip.com
"When a person turns to wrong, is it a want to be, belong?
Part of things at any cost, at what price a life is lost?"
Mozilla for Brazilians: http://www.mozilla.org.br
jakdedert
> Fair comment. For example the name Sonitron: Opening up such a VCR (in
> the 80s), I discovered it was a Sanyo (Fisher) clone. (in those days
> Sanyo still made some respectable low to mid-price goods). However,
> you can't deny that the name sounds tacky, (almost trying to evoke
> Sony) and as such deserves a place on the list!
> Ben
>
just as tacky if not for their reputation...like Awai (took years before I
ever found out how to pronounce that one), Akai, JVC, LG, Sanyo...actually
almost any of the oriental brands.
jak
>
> "ivan" <Ivan'H'ol...@yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message
jakdedert
> By far the worst name would have to have been: Broksonic, pronounced
> Broke-Sonic. Would be kind of like naming a car No-Go.
>
There's an auto repair chain here in Nashville called 'Budget Brakes.'
Inspires confidence, huh?
jak
USER
"PIEONEAR" No lie. I wish I had taken a picture. The deck was so cheesy
enough to claim it had 150 watts by 2 channels. The car and deck are
long since gone.
RonKZ650
Audi is one of the worst. Why they sell is beyond my comprehension. For 1/3 the
price you can get a 7000 lb 1 ton Ford truck that will last 300,000 miles. Oh
we're talking stereos here, never mind.
Laurence Taylor
I remember seeing cheap portable radios and the like on market stalls,
with a brand name of "Cheiza". Presumably it meant something sensible
in Chinese, but in English it sounded very like "scheisse", which is
German for merde.
--
rgds
LAurence
...That is Torquay. What did you want, the Taj Mahal?
b
some of the more respected brands have names which would look/sound
> just as tacky if not for their reputation...like Awai (took years before I
> ever found out how to pronounce that one), Akai, JVC, LG, Sanyo...actually
> almost any of the oriental brands.
I know what you mean. Often the name can sound cheesy yet the
equipment is good. For that reason I tried to include brands which A)
sound tacky but, more importantly B) I know produced junk, whether of
low quality or poor design....from having personally had first hand
experience of trying to repair it. To illustrate some of the worst
cases, there are some pics on the website at:
www.hometown.aol.com/worldoftack
regards, Ben
Art
William R. Walsh
> BTW, check the mode switch. Other problems to look out for: capstan motor
and
> idler assembly causing a slow rewind condition with some cassettes.
Haven't seen any capstan motor problems...well, at least no hard failures.
It did eat a tape *once* but when a VCR has been around this long you can't
really blame it for having done so. It's never done that again and I don't
know that the capstan was to blame. I found the tape stuck on a large rubber
pinch roller.
The idler assembly--been there, done that. It got so bad that the machine
couldn't rewind. At first I didn't worry much about it because there is
another VCR right on top (have you guessed that this is used for tape
duplication at times? Every now and again I need to copy a home-made video
or something like that...) that I just rewound the tapes with afterwards. I
decided later that it should be properly fixed and I did. It was one of my
first successful VCR repairs.
> As for low audio level for recording, that was also a problem with a
linear
> stereo Sears machine, OEMed by GoldStar, that I have which is collecting
dust.
What's really, really, really strange about this problem is that both tapes
recorded on it AND prerecorded tapes play just fine on it with no discerible
difference in audio level. Tapes made in other units also work fine. I can't
quite fathom what the problem is, but I'm not losing sleep over it as this
is usually the playback deck anyway.
This isn't a stereo machine either...at least not that I know of.
> Also true. You can tote a ToteVision anywhere, heheh.
Cute. I wonder if they've ever marketed anything that way? :-)
I must say however, that this VCR has some weight to it. Even as basic and
no doubt cheap as it is, it would still flatten one of today's all-plastic
machines if you were to drop it on the new unit.
> BTW, I am sure a lot of people remember Bell & Howell. My how they have
> fallen, from making some high quality film projectors all the way down to
> making cheap and crappy electric shavers advertised on infomercials. -
> Reinhart
I can't imagine what must have gone wrong there. The last I had heard from
Bell and Howell was that they had sold off their film scanner business to
Kodak. I don't know what they do now, but I do know that they like licensing
their name out for others to use.
William
El Meda
Chaos Master
<pdfkh0lamrnskk6t2...@4ax.com>, at group sci.electronics.repair,
on the date of Wed, 11 Aug 2004 10:51:05 -0500:
> "BS Audio" (Short for "Backstage") - Mexican pro audio brand.
Another one I remember now:
"CCE" - Brazilian electronics/appliances (TV, audio, microwave oven, car audio)
brand. (at least, service info/parts for this brand' devices is not hard to
find).
[]s
--
Chaos Master®, posting from Brazil. REPLY TO GROUP!
MSN: wizard_of_yendor[@]hotmail[.]com http://marreka.no-ip.com
"How many UNIX admins does it take to change a light bulb?
R: 1. Please refer to 'man mknod'"
BWL
they were thinking about....
