Space Age Turntables That Turned Living Rooms Into Mission Control

Stereo systems and record players were perfect candidates for the look. Housed in pods, globes, and glossy shells, they became the centerpiece of the room, part sound system and part sculpture.

From “stereo eggs” to full-blown spaceship consoles, The Vinyl Factory’s roundup captures just how imaginative audio design got in the 1960s and ’70s.

Here are a few standouts that still feel wonderfully futuristic:

Inspired by 2001: A Space Odyssey, this “spaceship” turntable is pure Space Age theatre. Lift the visor and you’ll find a turntable, radio, cassette deck, and built-in speakers.

Made in Canada between 1964 and 1967, with only 400 produced, this high-end console was the kind of object that signaled modern living and serious money, equivalent to about $20,000 today.

Designed by Verner Panton, this system is a crisp collision of Bauhaus logic and pop-art color, a compact cube that still looks gallery-ready.

Described as a “communications nerve centre for the future,” this prototype went beyond hi-fi. It was a circular pod connected to a wall-screen TV and even a cockpit-style chair with built-in controls.

A globe-like sphere that pivots, plus a mirrored, glittering “ballroom” light effect. It is an audio object designed to be watched as much as heard.

A modular Italian design classic, with speakers that can be stacked or spread out. It feels more like a playful furniture system than a typical stereo.

The “mothership” of the era: a rocket-like structure with TV, radio, phonograph, and an array of speakers, plus a price tag that once exceeded a year’s average wage.

What’s most charming about these designs is how unafraid they are. They do not try to disappear into the background. They make listening feel like an event, a small, everyday brush with the future.

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