Check out these Hi-Fi gift guides and ideas from the 1970s

In the 1970s, High Fidelity mag delivered holiday gift tips that offered suggestions for sound freaks.

Before there was Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Record Store Day, or any other retail sales event, audiophile magazines such as Stereophile and High Fidelity ran the gifting game when it came to sound systems, components, and accessories. Full page ads delivered suggestive images of speakers and decks known to arouse the interests of deep listeners. If it looks this good on the page, the ads seemed to say, imagine how it will perform in your bedroom or living room.

For those of us with an affinity for vintage machinery, the components built in the 1970s have endured because they’re sturdy, beautiful, repairable (mostly), and less expensive than new gear of equal quality. It doesn’t hurt that many of the most desirable components either had limited runs or came and went without much fanfare, resulting in a quest-driven mentality 50 years later akin to metal detectorists scouring ruins in search of gold.

Each December in the 1970s, the monthly magazine High Fidelity delivered a holiday gift guide that offered suggestions for sound freaks — accessories, components, etc. Though many of the specific products are no longer available, the overview remains rich with ideas that are still relevant to contemporary listeners.

We’d kill for that GLI 5880 Creative Controller. Adjusted for inflation, that $600 mixer would cost more than $1,700. And though the home entertainment furniture to its right is cheesy, it serves as a reminder that quality record shelving remains a concern for record nerds old and young.

In fact, Sound & Vision, In Sheep’s Clothing and dublab’s seasonal market dedicated to music, hi-fi equipment, and accessories, is showcasing the work of our favorite LA shelving builders, R/D Record Cabinets, which look a ton better than the “traditional” unit in the ad above.

At the market, we’ve teamed with vendors to sell updated versions of stuff like below, including an essential gift for every analog obsessive: a Zerostat gun to zap away the static. Though Lencolamp LL-1’s are hard to come by, systems such as the UberLight flex clamp LED turntable lamp do a better job anyway.

We copied these images from the Dec. 1977 High Fidelity gift guide, an ad-driven supplement that, while a pay-for-placement endeavor, 45 years later can still offer ideas. The Garrard turntable below retailed at $189.50. A used one will set you back about $1,000 today.

Too much to spend? Perhaps one of the monochromatic group of men below can entice you with a pair of Tandberg speakers, a receiver, or a reel-to-reel?

A dispersion base such as the Rectilinear (below left) is a brilliant idea for your family system. If you can’t find a used pair, the Wharfedale Linton stand is an excellent option. The same is true for bookshelf speakers, though maybe not the pint-sized brand below.

Those in New York should know that In Sheep’s Clothing NYC is hosting our first-ever New York Record Fair this Sunday, Dec. 3 at Port Sa’id. Though we won’t be hawking any Lenoclamps, Recilinear dispersion bases or Parametric equalizers, we will be joined by vendors and labels including Luaka Bop, Daptone, Superior Elevation, The Mixtape Club and more. In addition to vinyl, DJ’s, dips, and drinks, you can search through the crates of some of NYC’s best labels and vendors from 12-6 PM. After, ISC NYC will host a special dedicated listening session.