A black beauty or not? Sharp WQ-T252E

So i spotted this on Ebay, and i know, this post may not get much love as they are a bit ugly and completely not grails but you know what, i quite like that. Its a great sounding box with double back to back tape, line in and a spectrum analyser!

I love getting this much fun for £20 inc post. Don't worry i dont expect people to agree and am well prepared for the black turd comments

It is as ugly as hell but love the spectrum analyser and that's a lot of fun for very little money!

It's actually not all horrible....just mostly.

If id seen it i would have bought it Tre....it's not all about m90's and conions, congrats fella

An interesting box that isn't seen very often. I'd rock it. I think it should have more than 4 LEDs per spectrum band, though

I found a roadside example of that model last year. It did sound pretty good for what it was.

beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so why not?

I'd buy one at the price you paid and, now you mentioned the sound quality, I may just give this range of BB's a second look if the price is right. To me, they've always looked like the sort of box designed for heavy handed, thick fingered builders!

I like and collect boomboxes of all sorts, sizes and shapes. Some are easy to carry and some are extremely cumbersome. Some are very portable by any measure of that description and some are portable only by the most extreme preposterous interpretation of that term. Some are feature rich and some are quite plain-jane. Some are flashy and some are reserved. Some are fun and goofy while others may be classy or sophisticated. Some sound better, some sound louder, some sound more lively, but regardless of the make, model, color or style (unless I don't think it's a boombox), I never disparage one over another. Each has their own place for each situation or personality, or price-point, or desired audio fidelity desired, etc.

Bottom line, if it's a boombox, I like it and if YOU like it, then buy it, collect it, and pay no mind to naysayer haters, lol. They aren't true boombox lovers or collectors but rather, M90 lovers. Or C100 lovers. Or Lasonic lovers. Or what have you.

Superduper said:

I like and collect boomboxes of all sorts, sizes and shapes. Some are easy to carry and some are extremely cumbersome. Some are very portable by any measure of that description and some are portable only by the most extreme preposterous interpretation of that term. Some are feature rich and some are quite plain-jane. Some are flashy and some are reserved. Some are fun and goofy while others may be classy or sophisticated. Some sound better, some sound louder, some sound more lively, but regardless of the make, model, color or style (unless I don't think it's a boombox), I never disparage one over another. Each has their own place for each situation or personality, or price-point, or desired audio fidelity desired, etc.

Bottom line, if it's a boombox, I like it and if YOU like it, then buy it, collect it, and pay no mind to naysayer haters, lol. They aren't true boombox lovers or collectors but rather, M90 lovers. Or C100 lovers. Or Lasonic lovers. Or what have you.

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Amen, this pretty much sums it up for me.

These are fun and quirky with a lot in a small package.

Superduper said:

Bottom line, if it's a boombox, I like it and if YOU like it, then buy it, collect it, and pay no mind to naysayer haters, lol. They aren't true boombox lovers or collectors but rather, M90 lovers. Or C100 lovers. Or Lasonic lovers. Or what have you.

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Couldn't be better expressed, buddy.

I like it T-STER. On an enthusiast website geared towards collecting boom boxes I would think it odd for anyone to not appreciate someones vintage portable radio. I respect anyone who keeps the tradition alive. I like the spectrum analyzer front and the double cassette mechanism is interesting with one door

I agree. There's more to collecting than M90's and Conions. Due to recently acquiring a Silver C-100F I recently posted pictures of my Conions along with my M90 in the "show em if you got em" thread. As Superduper stated in his post, I have both large and smaller boxes and both have their place. I enjoy the heavy hitters and I am fortunate to own them however, I would like to add that I have many other smaller and more practical boxes as well. I use them all the time. Took my DJ-Tech to the beach and enjoyed it every day.

You collect what you want, enjoy and can afford. I've had people walk right past the M90 to look at the little GE so it just goes to show that you can have people shrug their shoulders at anything whether its a "well known" box or not and everyone has their personal preference.

Fortunately we have a respectful place where enthusiasts can gather and show what we are proud of. You are a true enthusiast at heart T-STER and I appreciate your positive comments in previous posts. I am curious how the double cassette works with one door

It cleaned up qiuite well Tre. Not seen this wq with Spectrum before..

Some of the responses on here are making me scratch my head however...

We are not all boombox loving robots and not all boomboxes are created equal. If you don’t hyperthecallly like a certain brand (for me Phillips) or style (for some 3 piercers or waffle grill or 70s boxes) then you are not any less of a collector for feeling or stating that.
Hopefully this is a forum where you can express that. I don’t think there’s anyone on here that has big enough shoes to decide who a true collector is and who isn’t.

Transistorized said:

Fortunately we have a respectful place where enthusiasts can gather and show what we are proud of. You are a true enthusiast at heart T-STER and I appreciate your positive comments in previous posts. I am curious how the double cassette works with one door

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Very kind words thanks man. You're right of course, any box that is interesting and keeps the hobby alive is worth its weight in gold.

This one is strange in that the two tapes are stacked back to back, when you close the door it first lifts up to the straight position and then slides back dead straight and the super long spindles go through both tapes. The spindles can operate each tape independently or play back to back switching between tapes/sides. Very cool. I mostly just loved the flashing lights though

I was listening to my Aiwa 880 last night (refoamed and sounds so good) and then my Sanyo 920 after but i still put this cheeky fellow on for an hour afterwards and was not disappointed.

Bloody love my DJ Tech to, that or my 920 probably tie for most used boxes, each one came from an awesome member here to so they are extra special.

I guess what im saying is i just love em all !!

Being that many of us started out with the cheapest pos money could buy back in the day I learned to love any boombox that was available to me .
as time goes by we see there's more and bigger to be had so naturally we want more lol.
As time goes by more is never enough now it must be better.
Hell I started with a pocket transistor radio and went on the own several m90s and hundred of other boomboxes but I never stopped thinking about the tiny pocket transistor radio's that fascinated me .
so I guess the moral is a humble pocket radio can put in as much work as an m90 if the pocket radio is all you have.
I think every radio has something to offer why not give em a chance .

That sharp is a ****ing stud compared to some of the **** I've seen lol

JVC Floyd said:

Hell I started with a pocket transistor radio and went on the own several m90s and hundred of other boomboxes but I never stopped thinking about the tiny pocket transistor radio's that fascinated me .
so I guess the moral is a humble pocket radio can put in as much work as an m90 if the pocket radio is all you have.
I think every radio has something to offer why not give em a chance .

That sharp is a farking stud compared to some of the shiat I've seen lol

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Superduper said:

I like and collect boomboxes of all sorts, sizes and shapes. Some are easy to carry and some are extremely cumbersome. Some are very portable by any measure of that description and some are portable only by the most extreme preposterous interpretation of that term. Some are feature rich and some are quite plain-jane. Some are flashy and some are reserved. Some are fun and goofy while others may be classy or sophisticated. Some sound better, some sound louder, some sound more lively, but regardless of the make, model, color or style (unless I don't think it's a boombox), I never disparage one over another. Each has their own place for each situation or personality, or price-point, or desired audio fidelity desired, etc.

Bottom line, if it's a boombox, I like it and if YOU like it, then buy it, collect it, and pay no mind to naysayer haters, lol. They aren't true boombox lovers or collectors but rather, M90 lovers. Or C100 lovers. Or Lasonic lovers. Or what have you.

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Forums are much like a church congregation only in the sense that we need new members coming in to grow. I realize this is not a church society so please don't misunderstand me here but members join with the intentions of growing their humble collection, to be surrounded by those who appreciate and share their interest or both. That's a good thing
Otherwise why would they be here?

The important thing is they're taking an interest in the hobby and IMO everyone should be made to feel welcome. Speaking for myself, I can honestly say I do not run into many people (outside of this website) that seem to enjoy this hobby as much as I. In my area it's a limited interest.

On here we have many people from different backgrounds and origins. While we all have an opinion of what is good and what isn't, one thing we all should have in common is respect for one another's collection. That isn't saying that we need to all fall in love with every box or embrace every idea posted however, sometimes I feel people get so caught up in their right to express their opinion that they don't stop and think if they should. In America it's your right to go up to your boss flip him the finger and tell him to go jump off a cliff. Then again. Just because you could doesn't mean you should. A forum cannot and will not grow with new members if you interject a negative atmosphere by judging someone else's idea of a good box. Now, if someone posts a picture of something on here and asks "what do you think?" then they're asking for your opinion and they should expect to get what they get. If they post something to the effect of "Look what I picked up today" and someone replies "That's a POS" or "What a turd"...that will do nothing but turn people away and/or lead them to become timid and shy about posting and generally leads to a negative experience for that person. Yes we are human but that's where you go back to what parents have been telling their children for many generations. If you don't have something nice to say....don't say it.

Now I have seen on here two people who know each other well and have been friends for years bashing one another in good humor. This can be fun to watch and I enjoy a good debate with points on both sides.

In retrospect, unfortunately the world can and is at times harsh. Certain times you have to be thick skinned enough to not let every comment or opinion made interfere with your style.

This response is my view of things and does not necessarily represent everyone who is a member to this site.

There was a classic thread on stereo2go a few years ago and I don’t recall the name of it but it was along the lines of what your most hated box is. It was all in a bit of fun and some of the posts were hilarious. Pictures of various boxes in the toilet, photoshops of boxes getting run over and such. Words like grail and disgrail were bantered around. It was a long lasting thread and a bit of tongue in cheek fun. It for me highlighted the absurdity of getting too attached to certain boxes as if you were somehow connected to the design and manufacturing process back in the day when these things were created.

Some remnants of the old S2go thread

http://www.stereo2go.com/topic/least-favourite-box.htm

I’m saying that we shouldn’t encourage name calling and such but as mostly grown ups we should be able call it as we see it .
This is after all not a church or appreciation society but a specialist forum for boomboxes.

There’s a member on here who hates M70s. Claims they’re overrated and bass shy and not very good. At almost any opportunity he’ll have a little bash at them. Is he correct? Probably not. Should he be able to express his opinions right or wrong on here or should he be censored for fear of hurting someone’s feelings? Or should we just roll our eyes? Is he not a ‘true boombox lover or collector’? Well he certainly is and has been for a long time. I’m positive there is no one on here to judge who is or isn’t a boombox lover or collector on this forum. We’re on shaky ground creditabilty wise if we start playing boombox god on here.

^ Ha ha, I remember that thread. Good times.

My philosophy is, if you didn't design and build your boombox (or car, or whatever), you shouldn't take it personally when someone criticizes it. Their opinion differs from yours, so what? Opinions aren't facts, they're just subjective constructs formed by primitive and flawed humans.

If you like heavy metal music and someone else doesn't, do you take it personally and argue with them about it? I doubt it. So why take it personally if they don't like your boombox?

Oh, and about the M70......Huge volume, sounds great outdoors, solid tape deck, looks great with an LED tuner.......But it's a bit bass-shy during low-volume indoor listening. Also the switches and sliders feel a bit cheap IMO. My point is, every box has its good points and bad points. As long as everyone recognizes that, we'll get along.

Here's another example: The Magnavox D8443 sounds like ass, and its Line Input sucks, but I own one anyway because I think it looks good, and it was cheap to buy anyway, so why not?

Here's another example: The Magnavox D8443 sounds like ass, and its Line Input sucks, but I own one anyway because I think it looks good, and it was cheap to buy anyway, so why not?[/quote]

Haha. Great example. My sentimental favorite box,but I don't mind when it gets dissed. Lol. And it doesn't even have any lights or a neat combo-deck. That little Sharp would be fun to skate around with.
Probably looks rad without the grills.