Telefunken Studio M1 -- NOT A BOOMBOX

[Superduper]

Ok, just got one -- Blasterpunk sent it to me, and the box was big enough for me to use as a dining table. Be forewarned. Customs will be inspecting it for missles, things like that. Too big for normal stuff!

Initial Assessment:
Great build quality -- the best I've seen in a "normal boombox"
Sound is decent -- up to 1/4 volume on Batteries.... NEW Batteries. Beyond 1/4 volume, it sound like crap. Like there's something wrong kind of crap.
Reception is mediocre with antennas retracted. Need to extend them and then, they'll sound very good.
Antennas are stainless steel, terrific quality, like a swiss watch -- hope I never need replacements.
Only takes 8-D cells. What?!? Too big/heavy of a box for only 8 cells. I figure they'll probably last all of 20 minutes.
Runs on 220V AC. No external ability to switch to 120 a/c
You need to be Arnold Swartzenegger to swing this around. It's heavy a a cinder block. No, make that two cinder blocks.

-----------------------------
Reconfigured the M1 to run on 110v A/C instead. Must be opened up and one fuse moved, and another fuse added. I figured this out by looking at the schematic for the power supply circuit, although I could've saved myself some time had I been able to read German.

So....... Let's try this again.

AMP MUCH IMPROVED NOW. Can get it it loud enough to actually generate some bass.
Tuner is same, no improvement.

CONCLUSION:

After looking at the service manual, I figured out why it sounds like crap on batteries. The power supply has dual secondaries. 1 part is 21 volts and the other part is 52 volts! I looked and looked and looked again. No mistake. The voltage on AC is on the high side. So unless you can put like 35 D cells into the telefunken, it's not going to run at it's potential when on Batteries. OK, I've frequently said that the cheapest home audio receiver almost always sounds better than the very best boombox. In this case, the Telefunken M1 is not playing fair. With a 52v power requirement, which is what the output Darlington's require on their rails, it's essentially a home amplifier that runs, no make that limps by on 2 toes when powered with batteries @ 12volts. In fact, that is the best way to describe the sound, like when a set of batteries is on it's last legs. Of course in this case, we are talking about fresh batteries. When tethered to AC, however, it runs along fine with both feet donning Adidas. I think that any boombox on a fresh set of batteries should be able to perform at or near A/C level performance. Or else, why wouldn't it just be a home shelf system? In this case, there is no way that the Telefunken can perform to it's potential on 12 volts when it's output transistors (Darlingtons) have a rail voltage of 51.5 volts. There is just no way. In fact, while almost all boomboxes and car audio implements Audio output IC's, the Telefunken has stayed with T03 packaged transistors.

Therefore, in conclusion, it's my opinion that the Telefunken Studio M1 is a great piece of audio equipment suitable for home shelf use, and for which it's a formidable piece of gear. However, with respects to it's Boombox qualities, it's a looker but a crapper in terms of battery powered performance and even a small or mid level boombox can easily whip it's butt. On AC, it's prowess is well deserved but there are tons of battery powered boomboxes that performs well even while on batteries. Even if we set aside and ignore it's heft and weight, there is no doubt that this would NOT be a good breakdancing audio source.

IT IS NOT A BOOMBOX as it fails, in my opinion the very basic test of portability. It's probably not designed as such. My guess is that it's more of a mid-high end home audio system designed to provide limited portable sound and in Europe, space is a problem so compact is the name of the game. In our Western World, we view compact as boomboxy. In this case -- NOT. I like it -- I really do. It's just not a boombox.

Shelf system
Portable Boombox

This is a very subjective review so I can hear the M1 lovers grumbling already.

 

[redbenjoe]

about the portability --
the weight is enormous -
the LOOK is 'indoors'
and its not as strong on batteries -

BUT -- get prepared for some arguments re the sound quality-

here's mine
on batteries -- the tele sounds ' only ' wonderful
an ac power -- its awesome !!!

(imho)

 

[Superduper]

BUT -- get prepared for some arguments re the sound quality-

here's mine
on batteries -- the tele sounds ' only ' wonderful
an ac power -- its awesome !!!

(imho)

Arguments expected. Yes, it does sound wonderful. Up to 1/4 volume. From then on, it goes downhill -- fast and the distortion is not to be ignored. So, keep the levels low and it's fine. Otherwise, forget it. Break out the kaboom, M90, or W-939z, whatever. Hell, break out the M9994 and you'll get very good performance for hours on end, on the same 8-D cells.

 

[oldskool69]

I FINALLY HAVE AN ALLY!!!!!!

I have been lambasted time and timne again about how this thing can't be stopped!!! And you hit points I've mentioned elsewhere on the web regarding this beast.

YES! It's a wonderful sounding "box". NO, it is isn't worth a hoot on batteries. As a matter of fact, I noted before that the Panasonic RX-C100 I previously had (and now resides with Boom Sherpa Derpa ) would lay it out on batteries. AND I also noted, all things being equal...(Audio output levels) that there are many out there that sound nearly, if not AS GOOD as the 'Funken. Including said RX-C100.

Now granted, there ain't none built like it.

And like you Supe....I enjoy mine thouroughly, but it is what it is like many of mine...A home system with a handle.

 

[Fatdog]

So, does this mean that Frank is automatically disqualified from the sound-off next year?

I know that we had those 1Ms pushed way past 1/4 volume at the 2009 meet and distortion was only minimal (at least to my ears). The low end that can come out of those tiny woofers is unbelievable.

Norm, I so wish you could make it to the 2010 meet.

 

[redbenjoe]

Norm, I so wish you could make it to the 2010 meet.

--------------------------------------------
norm CAN make the meet

the trick is to start saving NOW---!!

and there are always some extreme low fares -
if planning ahead --

and then the entire excursion-
will cost less than a grail..........

 

[oldskool69]

So, does this mean that Frank is automatically disqualified from the sound-off next year?

I know that we had those 1Ms pushed way past 1/4 volume at the 2009 meet and distortion was only minimal (at least to my ears). The low end that can come out of those tiny woofers is unbelievable.

Norm, I so wish you could make it to the 2010 meet.

Bobby, regarding Frank we had what...six of those things there?!?!? And here is why you probably didn't hear the distortion being noted...

The majority of music being played during the listening session was digi-sampled house/techo with a lot of thump only. Now, if say we were playing Trans Siberian Orchestra or Alicia Meyers, music of that sort, you'd know what Norm is speaking of because tranisitions and vocals would certainly complicate matters. All Funken's are the same (except for the 108mhz tuner on the 1M) amp and guts, thus share the same problem.

By all measured standards it's a boombox. BUT...it's just horribly weak on portability. But that's true of my PC-55, FH-5, etc.


We'll see what happens at the meet when I bring the WF-939 and repaired GX-300H, and others. It's not about best sounding at max volume, it's about best sounding at "reasonably" loud listening levels.

 

[Superduper]

Well, perhaps there is something wrong with mine which is why I dug deeper and studied the schematics. Unless I'm misreading the circuit diagram, It all seems plausible to me. The symptoms I'm seeing on batteries point to insufficient power. But it runs great on AC. Then when you see that the power supply supplies 52 volts to the rails of the output transistors, then it all makes sense. 52 volts is 52 volts and no amount of batteries is going to supply that type of voltage. I'll take another look but all I know is mine (as arrived) sounds great when on AC. But I can't push it at all when on batteries.

 

[Fatdog]

I would totally agree about the A/C thing. Every single box in the sound-off at the meet was with A/C power. There's no way we could have had a sound-off on batteries will all those heavy hitters.

 

[redbenjoe]

wasn't skillphils panny 6400 on batteries ?

 

[Superduper]

Bobby. If you read my review in greater detail, you'll see that my primary complaint was in the great discrepency between battery and A/C operation. So egregiously poor was the Telefunken's Battery performance compared with it's A/C performance that I felt it wasn't proper to call it a boombox, one of the characteristics of which is portability -- and I don't just mean you can move it from one room to another. I mean it needs to perform on batteries too. Some degradation is to be expected. But 12 volts on batteries, and 52 volts on A/C? It simply wouldn't be fair, in my opinion to compare something like that with other boomboxes that keep true to battery operation and use power supplies that supply at or near battery voltage. I mean what other boombox do you know that has that type of discrepency? That also explains why all other boomboxes uses IC outputs. The telefunken doesn't use IC outputs because none that I know of, will handle that type of voltage except maybe kenwoods TA200W, or whatever that huge IC module is that can take a 90v rail. It's obsolete now.

Going back to the M1 -- 1/4 volume on battery power before distortion starts to set in, 80, maybe 90% volume on AC.

 

[ford93]

No arguement here I love the M1 battery powered or not.

Mine is used for the bedroom and it has a warm sound, rich sound.

Granted on batteries it sucks but let me just say back in the days when I used to walk the streets of N.Y.C. with my M-90 I had to re-load on batteries a couple of times. Batteries were pretty costly back then but no doubt any boombox would sound better than the M1 on batteries.

Ahhh the fun I had back then, if only I could turn back time man it was the best time ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[devol-toni]

GRUMBLE, GRUMBLE

 

[floyd]

my biggest gripe with the studio 1 is the speakers are too damn small for the power the unit has ,its like a t-rex has a huge body and menacing jaws but it has little tiny ass arms , i do think its an awesome piece of machinery it just has to be utilized in the manner it was designed for to obtain maximum performance but that goes for anything.

 

[monchito]

norm you have to take it apart and in the back you will see a set of fuses thats where you change it to 120volts and the studio was really ahome stereo not a carryalong boombox i think they added the battery feature for in case of an emergency that you could still here your local news if that was the only strereo you have i do not think it was meant for outside full blast enjoyment with batteries...........

 

[mellymelsr]

norm you have to take it apart and in the back you will see a set of fuses thats where you change it to 120volts and the studio was really ahome stereo not a carryalong boombox i think they added the battery feature for in case of an emergency that you could still here your local news if that was the only strereo you have i do not think it was meant for outside full blast enjoyment with batteries...........

...that makes perfect sense. Hey Norm when we gonna see some pics??

 

[Superduper]

Hmm, I could see that my original post was probably too long since the responses suggest that many of you didn't read the whole thing. Yes, it's already been converted to run on AC and it performs awesome on AC.

All I'm saying is that on AC, it performs marvelously BECAUSE it's amplifier is powered by 52 volts. That is home audio equipment level of voltage. OK, many of our more powerful home receivers do have 90 volt rails but compared to the wimpy 12 or 15 volt rails of most grail boomboxes, it's way too high for a fair comparison. There are plenty of boomboxes that perform marvelously on batteries. OK, an M90 won't last long on batteries. But when the batteries are fresh, it kicks ass. The huge Panasonic RX-A5 beats the sh**t out of the telefunken, on AC OR Batteries. On AC the M90, RX-C300, GF-800z, and many unnamed others gives the M1 a real run for it's money. Sadly, though, 15 volts just can't dole out the juice like 52volts can. However, on DC, any of these guys wipes the floor with the telefunken.

So, I'm not trashing the telefunken for what it's designed for. I'm going to have to find some shelf space for it because it's a real nice mini-shelf system. But on batteries? Get yourself a real boombox instead. Just my 2 humble opinion.

Also, when doing comparos and pow wows, I personally think the telefunken should be omitted from competition. It's battery mode is for emergencies only. If it's going to compete against real battery able boxes, then it should either compete with batteries or (if AC is required due to battery life issues) then it should be forced to compete using a DC adapter instead. Otherwise what would be the difference from using any true ac powered shelf system and retrofitting it with batteries so it could limp along: "but no, don't turn it up past 1, we need to plug it in for that level of performance!"

 

[Radio raheem]

All i can say i have had the funken on mains and the m90 my modded m90's still win or atleast draw with the funken.

Have you seen the poxy magnets on the funken speakers i think you would laugh if you saw them, non the less the funken is a great machine, i would love another, this time with a handle.

 

[oldskool69]

Norm...I agree with all your points exactly...with a slight hesitation on one. You are absolutely right in the fact that design gives the 'Funken an advantage, BUT...

I would not like to see it eliminated from competition. Here's why...

As I noted earlier, I ran my boomers up against the 'Funken. Even my Chocolate Studio 1 vs Frank's (Hemiguy) 1M. (The only wierd thing about that was that somehow the 1M "seemed" to sound better. Except for tuners, they're all same in the guts.) Second year in a row I came up second. No big deal because I knew I was running against a whole different beast component wise as it related to my other boomers aside from my Studio 1.

Prime ran his Pioneer CK-11 with the power amp setup against it and lost. I spoke with Bobby today and shard the following regarding this matter.

If the units were setup for their intended design, the Pioneer would have won. It is the design of the Pioneers speakers that are it's achilles heel in open space which the boxes were. The Pioneer must be set up properly to take advantage of the speakers design. See the ad below and notice the large vertical opening in the rear of the speaker...in open space you know where the bass goes...thus the 'Funken wins. It wasn't an issue of power.

And as I also said...the music selection did not test sound across the spectrum. Classical or music with strong natural vocals, string, or other instrument combinations should be used. It may mean that you use older music but back then it was produced more natural than the "corrected & overboosted" music of today. Now, none of the others had the AC rails of either the 'Funken or Pioneer (with power amp option) but they ran hard regardless.

That being said, let the 'Funken compete. As I also noted, listening at reasonable loevels of volume should be used, and the sound compared with music that challeges the design. None of us listen to the point of distortion. And, as a matter of fact, my Sanyo C-9 "Pitbull" (Thanks to ford93 AKA Juan, for the nickname! ) was LOUDER than the 'Funken but did not sound near as good and both were ran into distortion. Granted, I changed the speakers of the C9 ( to keep from destroying the cheesy originals) but the reciever/amp is bone stock and the impendance is higher on the new spaker setup. Regardless, the sound was improved with the change.

Even if we ran them (C9 and "Funken) at normal levels I don't think...no...I know the Sanyo won't sound as good. That being said, I believe my Sony FH-5, Sharp WF-939z & GX-300H, Pioneer CK-5F (properly setup), Sansui CP-77w/99w, and RX-DT680 will sound as good. And they all have EQ's so if properly set... maybe even my Sansui CP-7.

If nothing else, the Hi-Fi Studio 1/1M could be used as a benchmark.

 

[Superduper]

But don't forget we are talking boomboxes here and not shelf systems. Otherwise, why wouldn't we also introduce shelf systems that look like boomboxes into the competition. I wouldn't have a problem with using the M1 in comparing but we should run seperate tests. One for AC and one for DC (even if a DC adapter would be used). That way, a fair comparison could be established on both AC and DC. No other box that I know of has such a great discrepency in AC and DC rails. That's all I'm saying.