A Yellow Boombox Rocks 80s Sound

yellow boombox magnavox d8300

These yellow boombox models from Magnavox and Sony have given me portable 80s sound. Now my vintage mix tape finds are so much more fun that I have proclaimed myself a yellow boombox queen.

Loving The 80s Sound

Although I am no music expert, I love the 80s sound of electronics and a big beat. It’s cool music. There were New Wave bands like the B-52s and Devo. New Order and Depeche Mode were alternative too, but different. Hip hop was crossing over to the mainstream. Who could forget M.C. Hammer’s pants? There was pop like Madonna, Michael Jackson and Wham. Also rock from Def Leppard and Loverboy to Springsteen and the Eagles. I like it all for different reasons.

The problem was my iPod and regular speakers were just missing something. They didn’t deliver up that true 80s sound.

Then in my travels I began my yellow boombox journey.

Magnavox D8300 Yellow Boombox

This Magnavox D8300, pictured at the top of this post, was the first yellow boombox I found. I couldn’t even try it out when I unearthed it. I took a chance on it though because, well, I just liked it.

When I switched it on it turned out to be the definition of a classical boombox with the “boom” emphasized. It has five speakers and at a half volume I can hear thumping on a different floor of the house.

It has all the 80s boombox extras like a dual cassette deck, equalizer, etc, and it’s trimmed in period 80s aqua. Best of all I can connnect my Ipod to it through an RCA cable. Good because I have been slowly digitizing a pretty hefty record collection. There’s a limit to how much I will drag the vintage stereo system around.

Turns out I now use my glorious yellow boombox almost every day. I can carry it around wherever I am working although not on my shoulder. Like I said, it just sounds period.

Sony Sports CFM-104 Yellow Boombox

yellow boombox vintage sony cfm-104
This Sony CFM-104 is another yellow boombox derivative I recently acquired. Although it was released in 1993, I included it as it sounds 80s appropriate and it is yellow. Hey, they were still pumping out electronic music in the early 90s. I have the Pet Shop Boys to prove it. Actually, I think it was in the 90s that the genre kind of morphed into electronica.

Sony calls this very portable boombox a “radio cassette-corder”. It has that out there Sony styling. Check out the side handle with orange trim. It’s also water resistant with rubberized connection covers so it’s good for the beach, camping or a sloppy party.

The built in microphone allows you to record onto cassettes without an external mic. Outdated tech, but new cassette tapes run about 50 cents to a dollar so you could have some fun with this.

I’m sure I’ll find other interesting vintage boomboxes in my travels. In the meantime, happy listening!