Fisher TA-600

By Fisher's own advertising, the TA-600 was "the world's only stereo receiver for the discriminating audio enthusiast." The claim ran in several 1959 issues of the hi-fi press, including Audio (May 1959, p.30) and High Fidelity (April 1959, p.32). It was an all-in-one vacuum tube instrument with an AM/FM tuner, preamplifier and amplifier on a single chassis. It measured roughly 17" wide and 14½" deep.

The TA-600 used a total of 22 tubes. These included a 12AX7, 12AU7, 6BQ5, 6CA4, 6HS6 and 12AT7, with push-pull 7189 output tubes. It was the only Fisher stereo receiver with tube rectification, using a 6X4 for the tuner section and a 5AR4 for the amplifier section. Dual eye tubes indicated signal strength and center-of-channel for both AM and FM. A selenium rectifier handled DC for the preamplifier filaments. The tuner covered FM from 88-108 MHz and MW from 530-1600 kHz, with five inputs and two outputs.

The record is conflicting on power output. Sources cite either 30 watts per channel or 45 watts total, and period documentation never settled it. The original price, production years, and dimensions beyond width and depth are not documented in available sources.

The Fisher 500S, introduced in 1960, succeeded the TA-600. It was very similar in design but used solid-state diode rectification instead of tubes.