Lafayette 855-AM (c. 1971)
Very little is recorded about the Lafayette 855-AM beyond a handful of magazine reviews from late 1971, and even those survive only as fragmentary scans. What comes through clearly is that the 855-AM was an FM component with built-in 4-channel (quadraphonic) capability. HiFi/Stereo Review (October 1971, p.111) noted the built-in 4-channel feature. Edward Tatnall Canby touched on it in his "Latter-Day Gadgetry" column and treated it as a quality combination component (Audio, November 1971, p.30).
Audio's lab report measured the amplifier at 50 watts with both channels driven at a 0.5% THD reference, and the reviewer found the response of one circuit — shown in the report's Figure 7 — a bit confusing (Audio, October 1971, p.30). High Fidelity also carried a report that month (October 1971, p.113), though little of its text remains legible in the archive copy.
Known specs:
- FM stereo component with built-in 4-channel capability
- 50 W output, both channels driven, 0.5% THD reference
Everything else is undocumented in the sources available: production years, original price, full specifications, inputs and outputs. If a period catalog page or manual ever surfaces, this page can grow.
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