Toshiba SZ-1000

X-rare electret condenser cartridge equalizer from Toshiba, Aurex in Japan.

It may be an interesting separate, it may not be... But I wanted to bring this online for the sake of that one-off ad and its elaborate picture.
At 30,000¥, the SZ-1000 couldn't be anywhere near high-end but the designer (and photographer) surely had their way this time !

The SZ-1000 was made to be amplify the C-400 cartridge which cost 25,000¥. 30,000+25,000... we're getting a bit closer to high-end :)
The SZ-1000 measures 26 x 6 x 17cm, was exported to Germany, briefly, under the Toshiba name, and made it to the cover of the november 1976 Radio Technology japanese magazine..


Thanks to Roman for the following update :
"The C-400 is not an MM Cartridge, it's an Electret Condenser Cartridge. This type of cartridge is unusual, not many manufacturers made cartridges of that type.
The C-400 needs power to operate. The power is provided from the SZ-1000, through the R- Line.. The german brochure said, that the C-400 needs 6 to 9 Volts DC."