I've spent a week with my Lasonic TRC-931 and it's really changed my opinion of the JVC RC-838. It's been a revelation. Although I didn't pay very much for either of them, the price disparity between a 931 or 838 might lead people to think the 838 is the king. I'll give my *opinion* here on both of them and how they compare.
BUILD QUALITY & COMPONENTS:
JVC RC-838
The 838 has that big chunky, well-built JVC look and feel, and it has a great weight. Inside, the capacitors are all very high-quality locally sourced Japanese caps by Rubycon and others. I replaced a couple and tested them on my ESR meter, and they are still perfectly in spec even after 41 years of service. That's where my praise ends though. The input board is only connected to the tuner PCB by directly soldered connections for example, which is a bit of a crazy design compared to just using a ribbon cable. It's kind of a mess to work on, and was not designed for easy maintenance, although the service manual walks you through everything.
The thin speakers (6.5" 3.2ohm 6W) are hot trash, and it's so tight inside that you'll have trouble fitting replacements. Although it can (and probably should) be done if you don't mind non-OEM parts. They sound like more like cheap guitar combo amp speakers than boombox fodder. The VU meter in its default setting is pretty much useless, as it only reacts at a very high volume. And with no way to light the box up without holding down the battery test, much of the active styling kind of disappears. Apparently you can adjust the VU meter sensitivity via a potentiometer on the amp board (VR104), which I intend to do. The transformer is pretty lightweight too, but I guess it didn't need to be very big for such a low watt configuration.
Lasonic TRC-931
The 931 feels light compared to its large size, due to its thin brittle shell. That said, if it had the same weight per square inch as the 838, it would be a cinder block. Inside, the capacitors are cheap garbage by Jongder & Chhsi, and several tested out of spec. A full recap is probably overkill, but I performed the service anyways. Besides the caps though, it's quite nice. It is laid out well and is a joy to work on compared to the 838. A chunky transformer is smartly mounted to the rear cover, and to Lasonic's credit, they did use several higher-voltage rated caps here and there.
The speakers (8" 4ohm 35W) are very decent and, even without much of a magnet, manage to pound out the tight bass. The over-the-top styling is pretty incredible to behold in person. The LED array has its own PCB inside and accentuates music without going too far, and the intensity of the effect is based on the input volume.
BUILD QUALITY VERDICT:
Even its nice capacitors can't save it, the Lasonic 931 wins for its nice speakers alone. Speakers are really the heart of any box after all, and the high quality caps of the 838 are great but contribute nothing to in real world audio quality terms. Maybe the 838 is more solid, but in any other context I'd call the 931 pretty solid too. It just feels a bit cheaper, but in every way that matters in practical terms, the 931 trounces the poor 838.
SOUND:
JVC RC-838
The 838 just sounds bad by today's standards. The input is hot and overdriven, and you'll have to set your output device to 25% of its normal volume to avoid clipping if you use the line-in. I'm going to be documenting a simple solution to this though. The 838 essentially has no real low-end whatsoever, and its decent, punchy mids are overpowered by brittle highs. It's just a bad sounding boombox for most styles of music. It might be suitable to listen to late '70s, early '80s hip-hip to hear it the way a select group of rich boombox owners did, but it's pretty joyless. And, forget about the "Expanded" and "Biphonic" settings, they trash the source. The fact that it bears the Biphonic namesake speaks volumes really.
Lasonic TRC-931
The 931 has deep, pumping bass and punchy mids, with crystal clear highs that don't break up as you push it. At low volumes the loudness setting actually comes in handy, although I really like its sound with just a flat EQ right across the center and occassionally bumping up the low end for certain music styles. For hip hop, rap, and jazz, it sounds incredible. I've enjoyed classical on it too, although it's not a hi-fi experience, it sounds great to my ears.
SOUND VERDICT:
Lasonic wins by a landslide, there is no competition whatsoever. The Lasonic fills your room with beautiful sounding music, where the JVC just sits there and looks so much better than it sounds. Maybe the 838 is like my old DeLorean in that sense, beautiful styling, a great suspension, but zero performance where it really matters. The Lasonic in this sense is like a jet black sleeper that seems to deliver far beyond its price point. I have a cheap pair of Roland MA-12C studio speakers that eat the 838 for breakfast.
It may be unfair to compare a 1979 boombox with 6.5" speakers to an 8" beast, but that's the point of this post after all. I would say that for the price, the 931 is a steal, and the 838 should really only be bought for shelf-queening. It doesn't deliver what the incredible styling seems to promise.
BUILD QUALITY & COMPONENTS:
JVC RC-838
The 838 has that big chunky, well-built JVC look and feel, and it has a great weight. Inside, the capacitors are all very high-quality locally sourced Japanese caps by Rubycon and others. I replaced a couple and tested them on my ESR meter, and they are still perfectly in spec even after 41 years of service. That's where my praise ends though. The input board is only connected to the tuner PCB by directly soldered connections for example, which is a bit of a crazy design compared to just using a ribbon cable. It's kind of a mess to work on, and was not designed for easy maintenance, although the service manual walks you through everything.
The thin speakers (6.5" 3.2ohm 6W) are hot trash, and it's so tight inside that you'll have trouble fitting replacements. Although it can (and probably should) be done if you don't mind non-OEM parts. They sound like more like cheap guitar combo amp speakers than boombox fodder. The VU meter in its default setting is pretty much useless, as it only reacts at a very high volume. And with no way to light the box up without holding down the battery test, much of the active styling kind of disappears. Apparently you can adjust the VU meter sensitivity via a potentiometer on the amp board (VR104), which I intend to do. The transformer is pretty lightweight too, but I guess it didn't need to be very big for such a low watt configuration.
Lasonic TRC-931
The 931 feels light compared to its large size, due to its thin brittle shell. That said, if it had the same weight per square inch as the 838, it would be a cinder block. Inside, the capacitors are cheap garbage by Jongder & Chhsi, and several tested out of spec. A full recap is probably overkill, but I performed the service anyways. Besides the caps though, it's quite nice. It is laid out well and is a joy to work on compared to the 838. A chunky transformer is smartly mounted to the rear cover, and to Lasonic's credit, they did use several higher-voltage rated caps here and there.
The speakers (8" 4ohm 35W) are very decent and, even without much of a magnet, manage to pound out the tight bass. The over-the-top styling is pretty incredible to behold in person. The LED array has its own PCB inside and accentuates music without going too far, and the intensity of the effect is based on the input volume.
BUILD QUALITY VERDICT:
Even its nice capacitors can't save it, the Lasonic 931 wins for its nice speakers alone. Speakers are really the heart of any box after all, and the high quality caps of the 838 are great but contribute nothing to in real world audio quality terms. Maybe the 838 is more solid, but in any other context I'd call the 931 pretty solid too. It just feels a bit cheaper, but in every way that matters in practical terms, the 931 trounces the poor 838.
SOUND:
JVC RC-838
The 838 just sounds bad by today's standards. The input is hot and overdriven, and you'll have to set your output device to 25% of its normal volume to avoid clipping if you use the line-in. I'm going to be documenting a simple solution to this though. The 838 essentially has no real low-end whatsoever, and its decent, punchy mids are overpowered by brittle highs. It's just a bad sounding boombox for most styles of music. It might be suitable to listen to late '70s, early '80s hip-hip to hear it the way a select group of rich boombox owners did, but it's pretty joyless. And, forget about the "Expanded" and "Biphonic" settings, they trash the source. The fact that it bears the Biphonic namesake speaks volumes really.
Lasonic TRC-931
The 931 has deep, pumping bass and punchy mids, with crystal clear highs that don't break up as you push it. At low volumes the loudness setting actually comes in handy, although I really like its sound with just a flat EQ right across the center and occassionally bumping up the low end for certain music styles. For hip hop, rap, and jazz, it sounds incredible. I've enjoyed classical on it too, although it's not a hi-fi experience, it sounds great to my ears.
SOUND VERDICT:
Lasonic wins by a landslide, there is no competition whatsoever. The Lasonic fills your room with beautiful sounding music, where the JVC just sits there and looks so much better than it sounds. Maybe the 838 is like my old DeLorean in that sense, beautiful styling, a great suspension, but zero performance where it really matters. The Lasonic in this sense is like a jet black sleeper that seems to deliver far beyond its price point. I have a cheap pair of Roland MA-12C studio speakers that eat the 838 for breakfast.
It may be unfair to compare a 1979 boombox with 6.5" speakers to an 8" beast, but that's the point of this post after all. I would say that for the price, the 931 is a steal, and the 838 should really only be bought for shelf-queening. It doesn't deliver what the incredible styling seems to promise.
