Photo courtesy of Lee Wexler
Photo courtesy of Lee Wexler
| The P780 was General Electric's first attempt at building a high-performance transistorized AM portable. Size was sacrificed for performance, and the P780 is a weighty radio that accepts 6 "D" size batteries. These batteries, however, gave a life of between 500 and 700 hours per set! This set was also built for extreme durability--the cabinet is an early use of thick ABS plastic, and the front was a thick chrome-plated metal stamping. The radio I own, shown in the photo to the right, was actually recovered working, but very, very dirty, from a dumpster. |
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The plastic part of the case is ABS, and appears very sturdy. Although the radio I have shows obvious signs of abuse, there are no cracks or chips anywhere on the case. The P780 was manufactured in this reddish-brown called "Ginger". The case is pebbly to resist fingerprints (a technique adopted almost universally by other manufacturers a decade after this radio appeared). No phone or external power jacks, but a pair of terminals for connecting a long wire antenna. |
| The P780 chassis reflects the concerns of durability and performance. The circuit board is protected within a steel "girdle", and hangs upside down. The speaker is quite large, offering excellent audio quality. Use of full-size somponents helped keep cost down while increasing performance--note the large tuning capacitor at the left. The antenna ferrite is very large for extra sensitivity. |
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A view looking at the radio from the bottom. Notice the large (and taped!) IF transformers and capacitors. |
| A close-up of the tuning capacitor and some of the circuit board. Note the black transistor topped with the GE logo. Restoration of this radio was essentially cosmetic--the only electrical problem noted was noise in the volume control, cured with cleaner. |
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Shown here is the chassis from the side. The ferrite is seen to the left, and note the complex dial cord arrangement. The P780 even has a pushbutton dial light! |