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1988 RCA Dimensia TV

olePigeon

Well-known member
Got this for free off Craigslist.  Weighs a ton with its 3" solid oak frame + 27" CRT.  However, it is pure 1980s nostalgia. :lol:  I'm gonna recap it just in case, but it's gonna be a great TV.  All I need is one of those plaid sofa beds that everyone seemed to have as well, and my living room will be complete. :p

Top loader VCR will accentuate the TV perfectly.

 

MJ313

Well-known member
Did you get the digital command center universal remote too?

And how's your back? 3" Solid oakkkk :O

 

olePigeon

Well-known member
@MJ313 No remote, unfortunately, but they appear to be a dime a dozen on eBay.  So I shouldn't have any issues getting one.

I did pull my left arm, though.  It's really sore, even though we used a hand truck.  Had to take it down a flight of stairs which is probably why the person had it as free.  It was quite a bit of work especially since the stairs had a 90 degree turn.

People want crazy prices for VCRs.  When did those become so expensive?  Betas are cheap as dirt, though.

 

CC_333

Well-known member
People want crazy prices for VCRs.  When did those become so expensive? 
Really? Wow! I remember when new VCRs -- NEW ones -- were $20 back around 2002-2003, just as they were beginning to die out as a mainstream medium. I noticed that one could still get blank tapes for them as recently as 2016, though, so there's apparently still a decent number of people who use them. Maybe it's the demand that's driving prices up?

Kinda makes me glad we have kept most of our old ones, many of which still work.

c

 

EvieSigma

Young ThinkPad Apprentice
@MJ313 No remote, unfortunately, but they appear to be a dime a dozen on eBay.  So I shouldn't have any issues getting one.

I did pull my left arm, though.  It's really sore, even though we used a hand truck.  Had to take it down a flight of stairs which is probably why the person had it as free.  It was quite a bit of work especially since the stairs had a 90 degree turn.

People want crazy prices for VCRs.  When did those become so expensive?  Betas are cheap as dirt, though.
That's why I have a small collection of working 80s VCRs. They aren't particularly impressive (monophonic but at least they have composite jacks) but finding 80s VCRs in nice condition is pretty hard nowadays. I still want a working top-loader but the last one I had wouldn't work and I gave up on it.

 

MOS8_030

Well-known member
I have too many VCR's and I've been buying more lately.

Just last week I picked up a perfectly good Magnetbox VCR/DVD combo unit and a really nice LG DVD recording combo unit with DV-in and HDMI and optical.

Both for less than $20 from Goodwill.

I got a Sony combo unit for $8 a month or so ago and gave it to a friend who still has a vast VHS collection.

I have a high-end JVC I bought new about 10 years ago I use for digitizing VHS.

Also still have my Sony SLV-595HF I bought in 1992.

Also, most any Beta deck is worth something to someone.

I figure if vinyl made a comeback can tapes be far behind? :D

 

EvieSigma

Young ThinkPad Apprentice
Are there coveted make/models? Never paid much attention as long as they played (and didn't eat) the tapes. :)
I wish, I just have a Zenith and Mitsubishi (branded as MGA) VCR. The Zenith is actually made by JVC so it's a tank. I also have a much newer JVC Super-VHS VCR which is for when I care more about video quality than nostalgia.

I actually have a mid-80s SuperBeta deck but right now it has a tape stuck in it that I can't get out.

 

Unknown_K

Well-known member
Thrift stores (when I used to frequent them years ago) had tons of VHS movies for next to nothing.

As far as VCRs go I ditched my shitty Emerson early 80's model (purchased new) a few years ago but still have a nice JVC VHS I used in the 90's when I rented movies plus a last generation JVC S-VHS I purchased new when they were being closed out (both stereo).

I also have a nice pro rackmountable  JVC SVHS players/recorder with level meters I use with my video editing gear.

 

Unknown_K

Well-known member
Solid oak TVs were pretty much a 60's and 70's thing from what I remember (same with the stereo systems built like furniture).

This is an 80's TV I ditched on freecycle a long time ago:

100_1201.jpg

 

Rick Dangerous

Well-known member
I have two VCR's hooked up in my house and pick up NOS tapes all the time, or ones in good shape.

They still look okay on smaller screen, and some movies never made it to DVD or just seem a good fit for analog.   Craigslist is a good place to find VCR's for reasonable prices in one owner condition. 

I also have two laserdisc players and a stack of those.  Glad to see i'm not the only one who appreciates this stuff :D  

 
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olePigeon

Well-known member
@travistouchdown  I have some laserdiscs and VHSes for the same reason.  I admit that I got a laserdisc for the same reason a lot of other people did, and that was for Star Wars.  However, I also discovered that I needed it for THX 1138 as well, as Lucas has been trying to kill off all non-special edition versions.  As a meta joke, I have Hackers on Laserdisc as well. :D   I also have TRON, which I just love watching on Laserdisc as that would have been the state-of-the-art tech for both in-movie and in real life at the time. :)

As for VHS, I've been trying to track down a bunch of 1980s horror flicks.  1980s were the best year for straight-to-video horror, action, and sword & sorcery flicks (and even a few that somehow graced theatres in a limited fashion.)  A ton of them just never made it to DVD.  Shout Factory has been doing a fantastic job at getting a few of the more esoteric movies onto DVD and Blu-Ray, but there're a bunch of them still out there.  I thoroughly enjoy watching RedLetterMedia's Best of the Worst.

 

olePigeon

Well-known member
I forgot to mention that I tried out the TV and it works great.  Unfortunately it needs a degaussing, the top and right sides have a green and blue tint.  Maybe had some speakers too close to the TV.

Anyone use one of those cheap $15 degaussing wands?  I've never seen a wand used before, only the circles.  I guess I don't understand how a want would work without distorting other areas.

 

Mighty Jabba

Well-known member
I'm thinking that the term dementia was not commonly known at this point or I can't believe that any company would name their product Dimensia. Then again, there is a mechanical keyboard called Dierya, so what do I know?

 

Unknown_K

Well-known member
Do you guys collect a ton of movies on those old formats?

I was never one for collecting movies since I would probably watch a good one a few times a decade and it was just easier to rent as needed (or stream these days).

My only VHS tapes were the first star wars boxed set. My DVD collections consists of just a handful of movies (The Thing, Lawrence of Arabia widescreen, a fee misc movies I got for free and the boxed set of Farscape plus Peacekeeper wars movie).

 
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