Altec 305A (circa 1956)
Not much information on the Altec 305A survives. What the record shows comes from a handful of period magazine advertisements and a brief product mention. The 305A was an AM-only broadcast tuner. Altec pitched it as a high-fidelity option for listeners in areas without FM service.
High-Fidelity (April 1956, p.17) listed the 305A at $99.00, offered in a mahogany or blond hardwood cabinet. The same source described it as delivering “highest fidelity AM reception” with exceptional stability and outstanding sensitivity — typical selling points for Altec’s tuner line, which the company marketed alongside their 304A AM-FM model as products of “outstanding engineering design and precision craftsmanship” (High-Fidelity 1956, p.87). The 305A appears to have been a straightforward, no-frills component: no FM section, just a dedicated AM tuner built to a professional standard.
Past those promotional mentions, almost nothing is documented. No service manual, no independent lab test and no production run details have turned up in the usual archives. It is unclear how long the 305A stayed in production or how many units were sold.
Known details:
- Type: AM broadcast tuner (no FM)
- Original price: $99.00 (1956)
- Cabinet options: mahogany or blond hardwood
- Claimed qualities: highest fidelity AM reception, exceptional stability, outstanding sensitivity
- Period of known availability: circa 1956
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