What is the preferred vintage radio?

[glemon]

I agree the Becker's are nice looking units, factory correct vintage radios have gotten hot the last few years, used to be able to pick them up for next to nothing. I have taken a compromise approach between period correct and modern performance, some vary nice AM/FM cassettes from the early 80s, from Pioneer, Jensen, Sony, and yes, Blaupunkt, still pushbutton analog tune. If you shop around you can still find them on Ebay, sometimes new in box. Not period correct, but certainly of the type that would have been fit when they were still used cars back in the day.

[Conserv]

My '74 has a Becker Europa II stereo with the external amplifier mounted in the top of the glove box compartment. My car originally was bought at Hyde Park Motors in LA in January of 1975 and I have no reason to believe it is not the radio that came with the car. The lines on the face plate have worn off around the knobs.

With the Behr console, the radio is a very tight fit. The Becker has a socket in the back that will accept a din cord with a mini RCA jack so you can plug in your phone or other outside device. I bought a cord from Becker but was unable to plug it in due to the radio being jammed in the console with no room behind it.

When I try to tune the radio, the dial control slips when I turn the knob, making it very difficult to tune. I plan on sending the radio back to Becker USA to correct the problem and also connect an out side jack. Also, when I finally do tune in a station, it will shortly fade out and have to be re-tuned. Hard to live with but I would never replace it with a modern radio..

The Europa II Stereo was introduced during 1972 and only utilized a separate amp unit for a year or so (every separate-amp version of the Europa II I've seen was dated either '72 ["H"] or '73 ["J"]). After the initial "separate-amp period," a revised Europa II Stereo eliminated the separate amp and simultaneously downsized the head unit, somewhat. Both of these earlier versions had 5 pushbuttons. The 5-button Europa II Stereo continued through 1976, at which time a new 6-button version was introduced. But if you want to confirm the date of your Becker, look for the paper identification label on the side. The prefix for the serial number reveals the year of manufacture. 1965 begins with "A," "I" gets skipped because it looks too similar to "1." Thus:

A = 1965

B = 1966

C = 1967

D = 1968

E = 1969

F = 1970

G = 1971

H = 1972

J = 1973

K = 1974

L = 1975

M = 1976

N = 1977

P = 1978

Regards,

Steve

EDIT 11-6-13: There is a scruffy example of one of these first-version Europa II Stereos (separate amp, 5 pushbuttons) currently on eBay. It has an H (1972) prefix for the serial number.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/161142720863?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

Edited June 6, 2015 by Conserv

[Jace]

i have this Eurovox cassette player (one of those hooley dooley ones that you can play both A and B side without flipping the tape!) 

no radio station presets but there's only one station worth listening to here anyway. 

 

two Pioneer speakers under the dash out of sight, and the two in the parcel shelf that almost look period correct.

 

 

[adawil2002]

I'm a fan of the Blaupunkt Frankfurt. Have one in both cars.

 

 

[hchueh]

The Europa II Stereo was introduced in 1972 and only utilized a separate amp unit for a year, or so (no one seems to know precisely). After the initial "separate amp" period, a revised Europa II Stereo eliminated the separate amp and simultaneously downsized the head unit, somewhat. Both of these earlier versions had 5 pushbuttons. The 5-button Europa II Stereo continued through 1976, at which time it became a 6-button unit. But if you want to confirm the date of your Becker, look for the paper identification label on the side. The prefix for the serial number reveals the year of manufacture. 1965 begins with "A," "I" gets skipped because it looks too similar to "1." Thus:

A = 1965

B = 1966

C = 1967

D = 1968

E = 1969

F = 1970

G = 1971

H = 1972

J = 1973

K = 1974

L = 1975

M = 1976

Regards,

Steve

Great info, Steve! I always wondered why many of the pictures of a Europa II floating around have 6 buttons!

The Becker Europa II in my '72 tii indeed has 5 pushbuttons, does not have a separate amp, and seems to fit just fine in the console. The car was delivered somewhere around the end of 1972 so that jibes with your data.

[Conserv]

I'm a fan of the Blaupunkt Frankfurt. Have one in both cars.

Radio.jpg

Athena Radio.JPG

Thanks, Andrew,

If you ever have reason to pull off a console side panel, or remove either of these radios, I'd love to see photos of the faceplates alongside the identification labels, posted here or -- even better -- in an active thread entitled "Dating 2002-Era Blaupunkt Radios." I believe, but cannot yet confirm, that the models having black pushbuttons with white AM/FM lettering are pre-'74-ish and and models having black pushbuttons with paper white-and-black AM/FM labels are post-'73-ish.

Thanks for posting.

Regards,

Steve

Edited November 6, 2013 by Conserv

[Conserv]

Don't think I've ever seen a California Becker.  So simple yet so elegant.

+1

Steve

[Conserv]

i have this Eurovox cassette player (one of those hooley dooley ones that you can play both A and B side without flipping the tape!) 

no radio station presets but there's only one station worth listening to here anyway. 

 

two Pioneer speakers under the dash out of sight, and the two in the parcel shelf that almost look period correct.

Very interesting, jace!

Your Eurovox looks suspiciously like my Blaupunkt CR4096. Attached is a photo of mine. Below also find a link to a Pelican Parts thread about the CR4096, with an excellent photograph.

The unit I have dates to 1978 or 1979. It's my 2nd (or 3rd) of this particular model. My first example went into my car in late '76 after my original Becker Europa II Stereo was stolen. Thus, I would say this Blaupunkt model -- there were several similar models -- was offered from '76-ish until the late '70's. They were Japanese built and not given the respect of German-built Blaupunkts or Beckers. But my examples gave me good service back in the day.

What market did they fit? My market. One of these units, AM/FM with auto-reverse cassette, cost $200 at a time when the Becker Mexico AM/FM cassette unit cost $600. My original Becker AM/FM Europa II Stereo cost nearly $300. When it was stolen, I decided I needed a cassette player (for my Earth, Wind and Fire tapes, of course) but couldn't afford the Becker Mexico unit. Becker sold a separate under-dash cassette player, but a 2002 didn't really have a good spot for the under-dash unit.

So perhaps Blaupunkt only marketed the CR4096 under the Blaupunkt nameplate in the U.S.? Thoughts?

Steve

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-used-parts-sale-wanted/413618-wtb-blaupunkt-cr4096.html

[ClayW]

Ok, sooo. I have also been trying to decide whether to go vintage or modern. I have a hole where the radio is suppose to go. Reading faq, am I correct in assuming that if I go vintage, it will look good, but reception will be poor, plus the vintage are expensive to buy. I can go modern and get good reception, but will not be period correct. My car already has speakers in the back, so does it really make that much difference about period correct?

 

I've been wanting one of these for a long time......just haven't scraped together the dough. Modern electronics with a classic look.

 

 

http://www.retrosoundusa.com/products/details/id/236

[02fanatic]

I have an original old Blaupunkt in my vintage stock Atlantik '73tii and it's great for "the look"...but horrible if you like listening to the radio on a trip! :-(    I had the push button thingie repaired once many years ago, but the fix didn't last long, so I have to tune with the knob now.  I like the look better than the ones I've seen above....has the wide flat rubber knobs and chrome face....I'll get a pic if you like, 

 

As for the stock plastic surround with speaker you can buy them from Walloth & Nesch....check out their website!

 

John

[Conserv]

I like mine, a Sanyo TachRad AM/FM (looks like a tach) from the early 70s. I made the custom console backmount for it and a 3 1/2 speaker. Its a long cylinder shape behind there. Unfortuantely my car had no stock antenna or radio so the under-dash antenna only gets a couple stations doh!

The antennas weren't factory installed. They're still around and not a lot of work to install (but drill carefully if you have a sunroof; there's a drain hose in that A pillar).

Steve

[Conserv]

I have an original old Blaupunkt in my vintage stock Atlantik '73tii and it's great for "the look"...but horrible if you like listening to the radio on a trip! :-(    I had the push button thingie repaired once many years ago, but the fix didn't last long, so I have to tune with the knob now.  I like the look better than the ones I've seen above....has the wide flat rubber knobs and chrome face....I'll get a pic if you like, 

 

As for the stock plastic surround with speaker you can buy them from Walloth & Nesch....check out their website!

 

John

Photo please! The 2002-style knobs -- which are pretty darned hard to find these days -- matched the dash knobs, if you were lucky!

Thanks,

Steve

[hchueh]

I find this a really interesting thread because it gets to the heart of why we bother with a vintage car at all, and what aspect of doing this appeals to us -- differently. I think it is personal preference and everyone should go with what they love. Kind of like relationships --  go with your heart not your brain. Learning what you like is half the fun, since you can (usually) change it later, though it may cost you. Kind of like dating before committing? ; )

 

That all said, I've noticed that many folks on this board fall into a few groups, and I think they are all great because everyone is so passionate:

 

Purist -- want to preserve the vintage experience as accurately as possible. For this group, you'd put in a period radio, period speakers in the period location, and experience it as if you were back in the 70s.

 

Custom -- want a post-vintage experience that is a completely personal experience. For this group, pick whatever radio you like and and mix and match period and modern as needed.

 

Practical -- want a vintage experience but also daily practicality for the things that matter to you personally. For this group, you may use modern electronics with a vintage shell, use a vintage radio but use modern add-ons to enhance the area of importance to you (powered antenna for signal, sound processor/amps for clean volume, lots of speakers for full sound, etc).

[Conserv]

I've had horrible experiences with Becker head units from the early - late 80s. The FM tuner sections had trouble capturing stations, and we have numerous strong stations in the DC area. They may look great, but functionality is wanting.

John,

My experience with '60s and '70s Beckers is better than that. Reception is pretty good, even by modern standards. But....the mechanical components of the pushbuttons, over time, slowly grind to a (virtual) halt. It's nothing that can't be fixed by a good Becker repairman, but unlike modern electronic radios, periodic tune-ups are needed (perhaps every 10-15 years).

I believe anyone buying a 2002-era Blaupunkt or Becker should assume that, at minimum, the radio will need to be tuned up by a professional. Few of the radios on the market have ever been serviced. And many of them have been sitting in a box in the garage or basement for 30 years! Expect $100 to $250 for this: Becker Autosound (Saddle Brook) for Beckers, Ray's Auto Stereo (Sacramento) for Blaupunkts. In both cases, patience is a virtue.

Regards,

Steve

Edited November 6, 2013 by Conserv

[02fanatic]

Photo please! The 2002-style knobs -- which are pretty darned hard to find these days -- matched the dash knobs, if you were lucky!

Thanks,

Steve

 

 

Here ya go...best pic I have at the moment...