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Douglas Hi-Fi Melbourne?


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4 minutes ago, Tubularbells said:

 

I used to go just for the show! Then I worked there :shocked:

The show itself is worth going there.......and what a show it was....!

I assume they are no longer in operation...?

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6 minutes ago, pulinap said:

Nothing beats Trevor Lees (Kew junction) on a Saturday morning....with two brothers duelling....

What do you mean Saturday morning! 
 

I use to drop in there as I go from job to job!   Place was small and everything everywhere!   I remember the pair of Martin Logins ESL he had there, gee they were nice!    Then he had those 6ft ribbons they got into that sound Shiite with that 180uf  wet by polar in series,  what a disaster,  of only they knew I actually bought a pair through the back door at a reduction and modified them with MKPs,  if only Trevor heard these now he’ll be remarketing them!   ?

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2 minutes ago, pulinap said:

The show itself is worth going there.......and what a show it was....!

I assume they are no longer in operation...?

Trevor's now based in Sydney with a new life and Chris is still plugging away at the online thing last I heard.

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2 minutes ago, Addicted to music said:

What do you mean Saturday morning! 
 

I use to drop in there as I go from job to job!   Place was small and everything everywhere!   I remember the pair of Martin Logins ESL he had there, gee they were nice!    Then he had those 6ft ribbons they got into that sound Shiite with that 180uf  wet by polar in series,  what a disaster,  of only they knew I actually bought a pair through the back door at a reduction and modified them with MKPs,  if only Trevor heard these now he’ll be remarketing them!   ?

 

Ohhh I got stories but alas this is a Douglas HiFi thread so i'll save for another time.

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  • 4 months later...


On 06/07/2020 at 3:55 PM, Tubularbells said:

Ohhh I got stories [of Tivoli HiFi in Melbourne] but alas this is a Douglas HiFi thread so i'll save for another time.

Maybe a thread should be created on Tivoli. 

 

I've never been to the store (except briefly once a few years ago), so haven't had any personal experience of the brothers.  But I have become aware that they were colourful characters, and certainly contributed to the Melbourne audio scene for many years.  I do enjoy hearing stories from the audio industry of past years (and the "Melbourne memories" thread here has documented a few of those stories and continued the mystique). 

 

 

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I worked at Douglas HiFi in the 80s after it was bought by Brashes but still trading as Douglas HiFi. I started in the Midcity store which was a blast. There wasn’t the corporate feel of the parent company so we were a bit more cowboy than our Brashs counterparts. Friday nights the management team would pop across the road for a few beers while the sales team did their thing. Some night a pair of Big Linear design speakers would be on the footpath outside banging away for the entertainment of the workers on their way home. Did an Anzac Day sale in Nunawading and sold a ton of gear on the day. In the 70s, they used to have a line of a,ps, speakers and turntables branded Linear Design. Not audiophile stuff but made the right noises for the money. I bought a pair of Jensen 6 speakers and and Kenwood amp from them. Fully imported Jensens from memory. They also used to import all the parts and have BJD make the cabinets. I have a pair of the BJD cab Jensens 6s now. Great fun working for Douglas but when Brashs decided to brand all the stores as Brashs stores, the corporate mentality sort of killed the vibe. Once the business was bought from the Brash family and they tried to introduce white goods, the end was nigh. A sad end to a business 120-odd years old. 

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I use to live for copies of GoSet. NM Express and Melody Maker...and scour their pages for any mention of King Crimson the ELP...and then retreat to Chris Winter's Room to Move on the ABC FM Radio every Monday night...I had my life pretty much mapped out then...

Then Douglas Hi-Fi for my first Stereo...then I discovered how weed improved the sound of my stereo instantly...then life got in the way and I was too young to say No...Yes...Maybe...and the current just dragged me away...

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  • 5 weeks later...

Used to sell base model at Douglas Perth 400 dollars, ld100 speakers, amp and turntable. It is only the LD1000 speakers dreadful 2 way 2x 8 and tweeter in large vinyl wrapped box with single capacitor for cover.

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  • 7 months later...
7 minutes ago, Sarah Barton said:

I'd like to include this image in a documentary I'm helping with.  Is it possible to get permission to use it? thanks Sarah

Which image is that, Sarah?

You will need to ask the copyright holder for the permission, do you know who that is?

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41 minutes ago, Sarah Barton said:

It's the Douglas Hi Fi exterior in Bourke Street Melbourne... Do you know where you found the image if it's not yours?

 

Slightly different photo, but this one is credited to Colin Block

 

 

 

Edited by sakabatou
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Yes Linear Design local made was the spk they wanted to sell you was not that good.

In the dem room they would interfere (1974) with other spk brands Wharfdale, Kef, etc.

To advantage what they wanted to sell you some Distributors Kef for instance caught on

and refused to supply them.

On 10/02/2020 at 9:36 PM, Wayne Elliott said:

Recall that Brand Name. Were there Speakers made under that Name as well?

 

 

Edited by Richard Tremain
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On 09/08/2021 at 6:27 PM, sakabatou said:

Slightly different photo, but this one is credited to Colin Block

 

 

 

Ahhh Memories...(they just don't make them like that any more... :( )

As a young 18yo I would literally tremble with excitement entering through those very doors... the gleam, the sparkle, the smell, the brand spanking newness of all that crammed in Hi-Fi gear on shelving... It was a whole brand new world for me to experience..Dual TTs, Sansui Amps, Sansui speakers, Shure Carts...no idea about all their specs, just that I knew I wanted, lusted badly...I could taste it!  So much hi-fi titillation from Stereo Review... I was literally amped up! The high priests of Douglas Hi-Fi would tempt me, seduce me with the promise of stereo nirvana...as a young acolyte I would only have to part with my hard earned savings from $80 a week, and it was all mine! mine!...And the thought of lovin' you is getting so exciting, Sky rockets in flight, Afternoon delight, Afternoon delight, Afternoon delight...Another world was awaiting for this young 18yo fella...music that I only appreciated...ITCOTCK...strange lyrics...Just take a pebble and cast it to the sea, then watch the ripples...strange LP cover Art...Van Der Graff Generator...My Generation...they only talked to me...I only understood...not my parents, not my workplace...only me!  Both Douglas Hi-FI and Archies and Jugheads were the holiest of holies for me...

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On 04/02/2020 at 8:59 AM, Mark Krause said:

Very true about being treated as a time waster. It's also true that sales staff shouldn't treat partners as lesser forms as well. My partner now dislikes going to our local because of the condescending nature she was treated. Brick and mortar stores don't have this luxury anymore.

Interesting that there is still a Douglas Hi-Fi in WA which has moved to bigger digs, I wonder if there is a connection to the older Melbourne shop?

That is nothing, try being a female audiophile and see how you are treated. They will try and tell you anything to get a sale ..............worst I was told was to put bookshelf speakers directly on to my tiled floor and it would "sound great"........................... I sure have been treated really badly in some of these shops - even shops like Jaycar will treat you like crap. 

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On 04/02/2020 at 9:59 AM, Mark Krause said:

Very true about being treated as a time waster. It's also true that sales staff shouldn't treat partners as lesser forms as well. My partner now dislikes going to our local because of the condescending nature she was treated. Brick and mortar stores don't have this luxury anymore...

MrsFeline has wanted me to come with her when she has been buying a new car (a few years ago now).  The sales people don't know how to react when after automatically talking to me I will respond "she's the one who's buying the car". 

 

In the 1980's recall one audio salesman's style when selling speakers was after a model was decided and the sale committed to, he would ask the purchaser's girlfriend/wife (with some humour in his voice) "and what colour do you want", resulting in some strange looks from them.  I tried to explain to him how this was outdated and inappropriate, but he didn't get it. 

 

 

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5 hours ago, April Snow said:

That is nothing, try being a female audiophile and see how you are treated. They will try and tell you anything to get a sale ..............worst I was told was to put bookshelf speakers directly on to my tiled floor and it would "sound great"........................... I sure have been treated really badly in some of these shops - even shops like Jaycar will treat you like crap. 

Difficult - but look quizzical dont say much and test the validity of what you are told by saying is that your Personal opinion is it? if it was nonsense they will shift their ground.

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Heard my first electrostat as Douglas HiFi.

Can't remember the year though.

Was a Crown hybrid.

Sounded very nice but I did not buy it.

Purchased some Gales instead.

It was a number of years later that I heard my first full range electrostat (Quad 63s) and that was a defining experience!

Bruce

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  • 2 years later...
On 6/2/2020 at 5:05 PM, Willco said:

Yeah-The Douglas Hifi Melbourne --I remember it well  Janzen Speakers ,Crown Amps( Terrible!) Cerwin Vega Speakers( Good for Parties Nix else)

Teac amps (Good) Thorens TD125 TT with RabcoSL8 Arm + Shure V15( Good) yeah pretty offhand sometimes to customers but Ben was pushing the sales 

-the Team was on the edge lot of the time--I had some staff flat with me so mixed a bit with them-- Roger, Lionel, Johnny Franklin--we used to go Waterskiing up the Endaloc(?) lakes on the Weekends and take Ben's son with us and try and drown him:S!

 

Fun times at the Eureka  Stockade/ Peanuts/etc

 

Willco

Do you ever remember seeing these Janszen Z-900 speakers?

IMG_4210.jpeg

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9 minutes ago, altecman said:

Do you ever remember seeing these Janszen Z-900 speakers?

IMG_4210.jpeg

i bought the Amcron ES212 electrostatics from Roger Price when he was at Douglas HIFI,they used the Janszen electrostatic panels and 2x 10inch RTR bass speakers,i ended up with another set and stacked the electrostatic panels was running a ME1500 into them good fun back then.

crown 001.JPG

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21 minutes ago, ray4410 said:

i bought the Amcron ES212 electrostatics from Roger Price when he was at Douglas HIFI,they used the Janszen electrostatic panels and 2x 10inch RTR bass speakers,i ended up with another set and stacked the electrostatic panels was running a ME1500 into them good fun back then.

crown 001.JPG

Those electrostatic panels were actually made by rtr using the tooling they bought from Janszen when they first sold up. You can tell the difference as the rtr panels were blue whilst the Janszens were black or dark grey. I still have a pair of Amcron ES26 which are still working perfectly. Love the stack you did, a pseudo ES224.

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