Quote:
Originally Posted by wa2ise
I think Jeff is comenting that the TV collector community, VK and others, are too small compared to the general public who don't have the knowledge and skills to fix and the desire to preserve sets like this.
HDTV consoles, anyone?
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Exactly. The average TV owner doesn't have the foggiest idea how a TV set works or the value of vintage TVs, which is why we are finding so many of these oldies on eBay and/or CL with the notation that the set can be converted to an aquarium, fish tank, etc. rather than being repaired and restored.
I honestly don't think we'll be seeing flat panel HDTV consoles any time soon, if ever. As I mentioned in my last post on this subject, the trend is leaning more toward separate components housed in entertainment center cabinets or stands; the day of the 3-way console, unfortunately, is over and probably never coming back. Console cabinets also take up a lot of room, which is another reason no one wants those huge 3-way b&w or color sets these days. Consider also the fact that many of these large consoles appear on the auction sites because their owners are downsizing for a move from a house to an apartment, and will use at least some of the money from the sale to finance the move, to purchase new furniture for the new place, etc. In this case, the large console will likely be replaced by a HD flat screen, possibly with a 5.1-channel surround sound system, all housed in a reasonably-sized entertainment center cabinet or, in the case of very small apartments, one of the smaller stands capable of supporting a flat TV, AV receiver with DVD player (or a separate DVD player), with space left over for DVD/CD storage. The possibilities are just about endless and are limited only by one's imagination. I converted a Sauder utility cart to an entertainment unit shortly after moving here; the setup, if I do say so myself, looks every bit as good as any other commercially-built entertainment system, and it cost me a fraction of what I would have paid for a full-size one. My flat screen TV cost more in 2011 than the entire utility cart cost in the late '80s-early 90s.