03-10-2011, 03:20 PM
Looks like another Philco afficienado has picked up a Magnavox. It's me. There has been a prewar Maggie Belvedere on Cragslist for a month or more. It looked good in they guy's pictures, and the ad stayed for possibly a month. I wanted to call about it, but the Buick wagon has been on the mend for all of that time. Finally, I called, and it hadn't been sold, so I went over to see it. As I knew, it's a prewar Belvedere. Grille cloth is missing from both speakers (?). Cabinet is very nice, and the original changer is in it. Phono isn't working, but no problem. I was surprised that the changer is a Garrard; possibly an RC-60. It has the big arm to hold the records, and is a pusher platform changer. Now, I'm wondering if my Regency of the same vintage might have had that changer too, instead of the Webster 3 poster that Magnavox, Stromberg, Zenith, and even Philco used. The pickup has been messed around with, but I'm sure I can handle that.
Once the chassis is re-capped, it'll be an incredible performer. It has the big glass 6L6's, which might even be original. I'm going to have to look at John Okolowicz' grills cloth patterns to see what will look right in that cabinet. It might have been the same pattern that's in my Regency.
Maybe this is another Deja-vu for me. The elementary school that I attended, had just replaced a little RCA phono combination with a Maggie Belvedere, in the auditorium, around 1942. I was passing the auditorium doors, in the hall, when I heard that Belvedere playing Allen Jones' "Donkey Serenade. I was sort of hypnotized at hearing it. The sound was fabulous. I have that record, so maybe I can remember that moment now.
Magnavox traditionally used the same chassis on both the Regency and the Belvedere. Those were their top models, below the Windsor. So, if you'd get a postwar Belvedere, you'd ge the receiver chassis, and the amplifier with the P-P parallel 6V6's, like Ron has.
So, now, I'll have the Philco 37-650XP, and that Maggie to play with.
Once the chassis is re-capped, it'll be an incredible performer. It has the big glass 6L6's, which might even be original. I'm going to have to look at John Okolowicz' grills cloth patterns to see what will look right in that cabinet. It might have been the same pattern that's in my Regency.
Maybe this is another Deja-vu for me. The elementary school that I attended, had just replaced a little RCA phono combination with a Maggie Belvedere, in the auditorium, around 1942. I was passing the auditorium doors, in the hall, when I heard that Belvedere playing Allen Jones' "Donkey Serenade. I was sort of hypnotized at hearing it. The sound was fabulous. I have that record, so maybe I can remember that moment now.
Magnavox traditionally used the same chassis on both the Regency and the Belvedere. Those were their top models, below the Windsor. So, if you'd get a postwar Belvedere, you'd ge the receiver chassis, and the amplifier with the P-P parallel 6V6's, like Ron has.
So, now, I'll have the Philco 37-650XP, and that Maggie to play with.
