I didn't know Magnavox Micromatic record changers were actually manufactured by Collaro and rebadged. In any event, that probably explains why the Micromatic changers lasted so long, and are still in good shape today. Magnavox advertised its consoles' changers as having very low tracking force so that, as the advertisement stated, "your records could last a lifetime." I don't know if that was hype or if the Micromatic's tracking force was actually that low. Somehow I cannot imagine any 1950s-'60s record changer being that gentle on records. I do remember, however, warnings in the '80s against playing stereo records on changers or turntables using certain kinds of cartridges or styli. The warning was that certain types of styli, designed for monophonic records, could literally destroy stereo recordings. What, if anything, is the difference? I always thought any type of stylus could be used with either mono or stereo records, with no ill effects--unless, of course, one tried some kind of dumb stunt like using a sewing needle in place of a real stylus. That could and probably will ruin either type of phonograph record in no time flat. I actually did this in the early '70s with an old, beat-up one-tube record player I found in the trash. I bypassed the amplifier, put an old sewing machine needle in the cartridge (these things used cheap cartridges anyway, so I felt I wouldn't lose anything if it didn't work) and used it for the next year and a half with mostly 45-rpm records. It worked, but it wasn't high fidelity by a long shot; oh well. The record player itself was nowhere near (and I mean
nowhere near) hi-fi caliber, so again, I didn't feel I was gambling or would lose anything if the dodge didn't work. This record player was used in a short-lived 0.1-watt AM radio station I had set up in my basement; AM radio being the low-fidelity medium it was at that time (again, early 1970s), sound quality didn't matter much, if at all, since I was playing very old 1950s rock-and-roll records.
As to the popularity of BSR record changers in the '70s, I had a Zenith integrated stereo system in the early '80s which was probably made near the end of that decade, and which had a BSR changer. Never had five minutes worth of trouble with it; in fact, I had more trouble with the cassette deck and the eight-track player than I ever had with the changer. I eventually wound up patching an external cassette deck into the stereo when the built-in unit quit (as I also did with my current Aiwa 3-in-one box when the dual decks gave out after seven years), but the record changer continued to work, very well I might add, the entire time (17 years) I had the Zenith stereo.
BTW, I wonder if BSR is still in business. If so, they are probably making CD or MP3 players and changers nowadays, but I'm actually wondering if they are still making record changers.
