Sony also released a similar machine to Mr.Disk in the same year as Audio Technica - 1983. That they look eerily similar seems strange, but the Sony machine has several differences from Mr. Disk.
Known as the Sony PS-F5, Sony's machine also has the cool ability to play records upright due to its record clamping system, direct drive capability and linear tracking. This meant that you could actually mount the PS-F5 on a wall and play the record, which is pretty neat. Like Mister Disk, it has dual headphone sockets and runs on batteries as well as on external power supply - but I don't know if the batteries last as long as Mister Disk (12 hours for Mister Disk is pretty damn impressive). You could also buy rechargeable batteries, and a car battery cord (I'm not entirely sure what that means - I assume it's a car charger, used through the cigarette lighter).
Its cousin, the Sony PS-F9, had a few more features than the F5 (What I state from this point forward is based upon the Japanese brochures, so I don't know if the overseas releases were different in specs). In Japan, both models were sold as the "Flamingo". The PS-F9 has a quartz lock system (better speed control), a line out, and an automatic record clamp (instead of the manual clamp that the F5 has). The coolest thing about the F9 though, is that it comes standard with an internal stereo FM transmitter. That's right, it's not a receiver, but a transmitter! so you can broadcast the record over FM radio in your house! Very cool.
*If you want to know more about the specs, and some detailed information about the PS-F9, go to my blog post here, where I go into further detail.*
If you want to see a larger pic, just click the picture and it will open in a new window. It's an old Japanese brochure, basically stating all the specs:
The PS-F5 in action:
The PS-F9 in action:
If anyone knows of any other portable, battery operated vinyl players, please do share!
