Originally Posted by Jeffhs
I wouldn't say it's all junk, although I will say the quality is not what it once was. I have an Aiwa bookshelf stereo system which still works every bit as well as when I bought it 21 years ago, except for the dual cassette decks which quit a few years ago. The CD player and AM-FM stereo tuner, however, are still working very well; since most of the music I like is available on CD these days (and I have a large collection of CDs), I am not concerned about the failure of the cassette decks, although I have an old (1979) Radio Shack cassette deck in storage as I write this. The deck works, and well, but I think there must be an intermittent connection on one of the preamplifier output jacks since one stereo channel cuts out once in a while. Since most of my music is on CDs I already have, however, as I said, the problem with the RS cassette deck doesn't bother me.
BTW, if your microwave oven is as old as the one I replaced over a month ago, and yours still works, that's great; I hope it continues to give you good service. I don't know what make your microwave is, but if it is a well-known brand such as GE, Tappan, etc. and was made two or three decades or more ago, it's not surprising it still works. In fact, if yours is one of the original Tappan Radarange microwaves, and it still works, I'd hold on to it as long as it does work. If I remember correctly, the Tappan Radarange was one of the first mass-produced microwaves in the U. S.
The problem with today's appliances is they are not built with the same quality, precision, etc. as they once were; moreover, most appliances, like almost everything else these days, are made offshore, even though they still bear American brand names. My new microwave, for example, is branded Black & Decker, although I have absolutely no idea who actually manufactured it. My best guess is it was made for B&D by some obscure offshore company no one in this country ever heard of. However, I still have a B&D toaster and a one-cup coffeemaker (same make). The toaster still works well after 21 years, but I replaced the coffeemaker several months ago when the thermostat welded shut. That B&D coffeemaker (my first one, the one in which the thermostat welded) lasted twenty years and was used daily, so I think it gave me excellent service.
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