Pyrox Magictape ST1

The 1953 Pyrox Magictape ST1 was manufactured in Australia under license from the Armour Research Foundation of USA. This was one of the first commercially available recorders in Australia and was also sold under the AWA brand name. It was a single speed 7.5 ips half-track mono recorder with a 5 watt output and an internal 9 x 6 inch elliptical speaker. A simple, single control was provided for forward, rewind and fast forward. Time scales were printed on the base plate beneath both reels to indicate tape usage. The Magictape continued in production until the late 1950s, undergoing only minor cosmetic changes. The first models had no fast forward, only rewind. Fast forward was effected by turning the reels over and using rewind, then reversing the spools again to play. The tone control was operative on playback only. Price when new (in 1953) was 135 AUD 8s 4d.