I had this JVC!!!!

A parts unit recently sold on eBay for $99, Units that are workable go for around $300. Excellent examples may go for $500 . Youngsters your favorite Bluetooth speaker will not fetch those high prices 40 years from now

Very interesting boombox by JVC nice design - build quality and sound :-)

The boom box was very heavy . I once took it with my family vacation to Greece and the airport security thought it was a bomb and took it and took it apart. They didn't believe a cassettes radio was so big 😂. I got it back. It was heavier than my luggage btw

Very nice! Never heard one of these in person but I do have the JVC RC-M70 and M90. Also have the RX-7000 series National/Panasonic and a few Conion C100F models. They are my all time favorite icons. One day, I hope to hear and see an 838 in person. Great job!

Best radio cassette player

A lovely video of these beautiful machines that gave us endless moments of pleasure in the analogue era. There was a joy in removing the tape from its box and slipping it into the machine. And then reading the sleeve notes as the music started. There was a one-to-one connect between man and machine. In the analogue era you could hold the music in your hand - a sense of touching the melody you love. It went beyond mere listening.

This is the exact boom box I had. I also had the shoulder strap that you plugged in the top ends like a seat belt. I took that thing EVERYWHERE! I remember all the damn D cell batteries I was buying. I’d go to radio shack and get their cheap realistic batteries cause I couldn’t afford Duracell’s. Thanks for throwback!

I loved and remembered those ghetto blasters, the most famous was the JVC RC M-70, which I think was their top model of that era. The model that you have is extremely nice, good catch here.

Nice video! I have the same boombox and I love it! The sound of this thing is very very good! That was quality back in the days. In fact, JVC built the best boomboxes back in the 70s and early 80s. The stereo biphonic sounds awesome too! I really love that boombox. Kind regards 👍

Thanks, now I’ve got a boom box itch that needs scratching bad! That Gerry Franke album is funky as hell too, thanks for the introduction.

I wish I had this video 40 years ago lol I didn't know how to use all the features or that you can connect a turntable or speakers 😅

I Have A Sharp GF-777z Suitcase Looking 2 Cassette 6 Speakers Boombox and Still Works Awesome Till This Day

Hello my Friend! @08:30 you did not mention that the Binding posts for the external speaker allow to connect them Externals in 2 different ways! First Connection is, to ADD the external speakers to the internals, and the second way (by turning the Plug for 180°) is, that you plug in the external Speakers-and the internal Speakers are shut off! It just depends on how you plug the Cables in. The Flat Contact is always the middle Contact. and the small round Contact is the "switching" Contact, that tells the Boombox whether the internals run with, or are shut off. Just turn the plugs for 180° and so it switches or not... With the internals running, it seems to create a stronger "Center Image", And this Idea was pretty cool for the late 1970ies (lol... MY Time when I began to be an audiophile first). Bytheway: You had big luck with your journey to Japan! If you had waited too long, you wouldn`t be allowed to travel, due to the Virus that we don`t dare to speak out its name!

Memories,my dad had one and we use to Record shows ,send Recorded tapes of my Family saying hi to my other family in another Country,this thing would produce tapes like Crazy, but I could never pump it all the way ,Very Loud

I love you baby JVC, i crazy about you.💥💖

I bought my Sanyo M9994K same year 1979. Same size and similar features except i have separate RCA connectors for Phono, Line In & Line Out.The cassette needs new belts.But apart from that these things these units just go and go BABY!

Very nice and informative video! Great job! While JVC surely made some heavy hitters, their competitors certainly weren't far behind. I guess it comes down to personal taste which manufacturer you prefer. Sanyo made some really unique and high-quality boomboxes as well. And let's not forget about the iconic Sharp GF series with the GF-777 being the flagship. I have been collecting vintage boomboxes for over 10 years now and have most of the bigger JVC models here including the 838 which is one of my favorites because it really paved the way for all the models that came after it. The RC-M90 is probably the indisputable king by JVC but I believe the RC-M70 is the better choice if you want something that you can actually use daily. It is one of the only models that usually still has all the original belts intact and the mechanical deck is built like a tank. Unfortunately it is becoming harder and harder each day to find these vintage machines in working condition. They usually need a full service and there's more to it than just changing the belts and applying some contact cleaner. A problem that is occurring more and more recently is the little metal brushes inside the potentiometers that break off. Sometimes the switched ne to be desoldered and taken apart to properly clean them because contact cleaner just won't do the trick anymore. Anyway, I hope people will keep these beautiful machines running for as long as possible! I will certainly do my best to preserve the ones I have. :)

Thank you for this video. It was awesome, and very informative

Nice see the JVC-838 in your video. I had it in that time period and it was really nice as you said and showed. It was my first really nice boombox. A couple of years later I had the Sony CFS-D7, at about $400.00 back then. I recently obtained a really nice and refurbished Panasonic RX-5250 which is from about 1983, has Metal Tape IV, and Dolby B with solenoid controls. I have that photo of LL Cool J with the JVC-838 in the Boombox book from about 10 years ago. Thanks.

I have 2: my dads and my uncles. My dads i have used on and off since 1978.

thats a a very clean example.. grats on a awesome score..

Thanks for this video, excellent like others. I bought this model of JVC a few years ago. Its FM radio sounds great, but the cassette mechanism is damaged by all the years of old. In Argentina is very difficult to find a good technician. When I was sixteen I had a Crown Jumbo Sound 747 and it sounded great, but it didn t reach the quality of JVC sound. Thanks again.

Your new video intro is amazing! It's my favorite intro so far on all of KZfaq!

Very good explanation. I just hate to see thumbs down.

I was trying to find this model for my mom as she had one until our house burnt down but holy shit they're worth over a $1,000 ! Well there goes that gift idea lol

My love,, JVC ❤❤❤

I have a very heavy and thin danish Bang & olufsem Boombox with strong bass. From Mexico

I have a Toshiba Bombeat 16 and a Bombeat 18, and they have a great look (looking for Bombeat 40 now...). But today I bought a JVC RC-838JW and I was impressed when it arrived, it is very sturdy and masculine!, you could imagine yourself walking down the Bronx with it in the 70's haha. Thanks for yours videos! Greetings from Buenos Aires Daniel Schiavo PS: I would be great to have the Shoulder Strip, and original external Speakers...

Love the look of it

Its a great unit. JVC also build a more conservative looking near identical all silver unit (branded as either a continental-edison RC-5090 or normende rk-4186). The silver unit ran off 15 volts (ten batteries) which increased the output power slightly. It also had a 6 button fm station memory feature. Other than that its the same unit inside and out.

Pretty cool. I had a smaller AIWA in the "80s with a nice tape section, took all three tapes; one, two and Type four. Ah, the nostalgia. Still have that. Amp and radio work, tape player/recorder need belts. JVCs were certainly coveted back then.

So dope!

An authentic piece of jewelry !! Regards from Perú !

Love it

Brilliant, I have something quite similar which I think is a little earlier than yours, it's the RC-828LB

I've got a GE 3-5254A Boombox from 1982. It doesn't have as many features as your JVC, but a little more portable. I use it daily, mostly for FM radio and it gets great reception. I had to change the belts on the tape deck a couple years ago, it plays tapes about as good as you would expect from a boombox of the time, and yes it plays in stereo unlike the modern reproductions.

i have a toshiba rt-70s machine in my living room it's on all day for background radio not a powerfull maching but it's been running all the time since the 80s tape works fine in it too.

Prettt in-depth vid👍 I was wondering why the radio without using the antennae? (Then you finally raised them😁)

Excellent review, have had it since new,the tape opens slowly which is normal as it is a dampered opening, they were designed to open slowly one of the strange quirks this particular model had since new.This radio is very heavy for its size.

I wish I knew where I can buy a radio like that. It looks amazing and very cool.. 💯💯

No Boombox can match the sound quality of "JVC RC-M90" Boombox. This JVC Model came out 1981. I was very lucky to own this Model. The quality of the sound was superb, no other Boombox can match the crystal clear sound quality of JVC RC M90 and its soft touch buttons was amazing. It also had another great feature, which was that if you want to skip or you want to listen again to the song just listen, you can easily do that and up five songs. This JVC RC-M90 was amazing, it can match the sound quality of the best Hi-Fi. I will really appreciate if you can Review that Model, thanks. Tanzeem

I came across this model and I bought it immediately after I saw this video. Even I'm kind of fan of sharp gf series I find myself using this one on daily basis. The sound is great I would compare it to gf 9595 although 9595 has loudness the bass on jvc feels deeper. The mechanical part feels robust and a little bit quieter when autostop kicks in. My only disappointment is that the VU metters are volume dependent and don't show the actual tape recording level and they are not illuminated - definitely a mod worth doing about that. Overall this model exceeded my expectations and I'm very glad I got it. Thank you for sharing your opinion on this one!

What a great piece of kit. Not seen that one before. Great to have an inbuilt phono stage and a switch between auto and manual record level adjustment. I see the VU meters did not move with the clean feed. Do they function as power level meters perhaps, i.e. playback volume via built in speakers only?

The DIN receptacle is not confusing at all. It's clearly marked "REC" for record, and "PB" for playback. So, yes, it's for recording and playback, or "input and output."

Great video, thanks. I have two pieces of this modell (L and JW are different) but not in excellent condition, like this one. Why did you change the position of the volumen potmeter?

I have a 90s Panasonic Dubble Deck that I power up every now & then to ease the belts . The 80s are far better built than these black ones ,. Finding any 80s getto ? some one has one stuffed behind a pile they forgot they had , they could say : take it with you , we are having a clear-out , WOW !

For "Expand" and "Biphonic" to work you need to have the Level switch next to it set to OFF, otherwise it just muffles the sound. Also your volume knob is on upside down.

I got this boombox but the rubber band for the tape is broken and need to replace it but I dont know the size.

Beside the RC-838, the JVC RC-M90 is the best and coolest boombox ever made!

I have this one. And i need to know size of belt for fix it.

Hi! I have one of these rc but it’s actually not working. It turns on ok but then it doesn’t work. Antenas are broken and I would like to know if I can connect an auxiliar cable to connect my phone to it? Thanks!

Nice boom box golden era of the boom box mid 70S n 80s they use to make good boombox radio especially from Japan they are collecting now n day JVC panasonic Sharp was some of my best boombox I ever own n still got them as for my little collection very loud today boom box is crazy cheap n they don't sound loud at all fake light that don't go with the music garbage 2021 magnebox boom box was garbage when they get old they make a noise very back my favorite is the sharp 909 boom box sound loud n bad ass radio boom box got two of them got to put new belt

Un radio qué para restaurar lleva trabajo...pero vale la pena.

It's a bit sad when a boombox is your friend but wherever I don't judge

Do you know how to connect External Speakers to it? I find the schematic on page 17 of RC-838L Service Manual but it is not clear if they are complementary or if they disconnect the internal ones. It would be great to put a pair of nice side speakers to this top of the line Boombox!! 😎 Thanks Greetings from Buenos Aires Dany

I just picked one up today at a thrift store for $300, but mine is Model JVC RC-838JWII. Can you tell me what is the difference between your and mine? Also on the side, above mic L and R is says "Push", can you tell me what that is for? Thanks!

I leaned 2 words in this video. Probably more, but they were tooning and prodoose.

Amazing video, as always, quando un video anche in italiano? Solo per motivi patriottici devo dire, parli un inglese così fluente che seguirti è comunque un piacere.

I was just given this by my boss. Haven't plugged it in yet. Want to clean it up first. What do I do how do I restore this thing. I need to replace capacitors? Was in an attic for decades

Was that Jovanotti for a second when you were radio station surfing 😂

Nice video... Is there an equivalent with CD player? Really tickling our nostalgia!

WHIT how much money I can sale one like yours in very good condition? Thanks 😊

Who can i send mine out to to be repaired? It seems like the sliders aren't working correctly. Everything works, just sliders are funny. Id really like to get it restored. The cassette works and opens.

vorrei comprarne uno ma ho poche cassette, potrei in caso collegare il telefono/computer?e se si come? gran video comunque :)

I am curious: when you visited Japan did you think the Corona Virus will spread like that in Italy?

In case you don't know, "earth" is where you would put your ground or grounding wire. Never heard it referred to as "earth." Not everyone knows how grounding really works.

Do you live in Italy?!

GPO ?

Ciaooo!!!

I mis a internal microphone test.

hi my bro had one like that duel decks it was very very big still not as good as a akai 3 head reel to reel i had cell eater i call them

Very similar to the Crown CSC-850 L 👍👍👍👍 Crown is better 😎😎😎

You can't be serious.

very agressive,ugly look,but the sound! the sound is fantastic!

This guy. 😂 ‘this is the woofer’ …. No, that’s a standard mid range which will handle the lows and midrange, it’s not a woofer though. ‘This is the tweeter that takes care of midrange and highs’ ….. No, a tweeter only does the highs. ‘I can tell its metal from the feel’ ….. no, mostly plastic with some knobs that might have a thin metal skin. REC/PB. … This clearly stands for RECORD / PLAY BACK so both ways however if it’s anything like the RC M70, it doesn’t work exactly like an RCA IN/OUT as you need the Tape to be recording to hear the INPUT (however it’s simple to get around this) . The BEAT CUT is for MW and not SW as you stated. JVC didn’t licence the Dolby system and most people who play Dolby tapes tend to turn it off so it’s not a big issue, I believe some JVC models used their own noise reduction that was comparable with Dolby B (I may be wrong though) . For the tape, 40-13Khz is actually good enough for most people’s ears especially adults, and is actually far better than the rubbish they produce today. This is a very nice clean example, very nice 👍.