Tandy Showcase: A Private Archive of Tandy & Radio Shack History
Radio Shack Merchandise
You've Got Questions... We've Got Merchandise.
This page will feature some of the items that you'd find for sale in a Radio Shack (or other Tandy) store.
Featured in the Showcase
The Realistic ConcertMate MG-1 by Moog
This is the Realistic Concertmate MG-1 Synthesizer by Moog (RS Catalog # 42-4000). The MG-1 opened up the world of electronic synth music to the consumer market. The MG-1 was manufactured for Radio Shack by the Moog Company, based on a custom design by Tandy Systems Design Engineer Paul Schreiber, who took Moog's original concept and "right-sized" it for the Radio Shack market (making it more cost effective and consumer-friendly).
Announced in the 1982 Radio Shack Catalog (page 23), the synth provided basic waveform oscillation and a variety of effects to generate sounds that to-date had only been available on professional gear. Radio Shack enlisted none other than Elton John to feature in the catalog; however, he never used the MG-1 for any of his songs or performances.
Forty-two years later, there is still an enthusiastic following for this synth. A fully-functional MG-1 emulator is available for Windows and Mac at no charge (simple email sign-up) by Cherry Audio on their website. Click here to open their site in a new window.
