I want an instrumental song to sound like a vintage (50s-60s) TV theme.  I have been using high and low pass filters on the master bus to roll off the top and bottom and leave the midrange and it sounds pretty cool.  I would like to make this authentic, however.  Does anyone know what shelving frequencies I should use and about how much I should cut on the top and bottom to make this sound authentic, like you were watching a TV in 1958?
 
 

You might try iZotope's Vinyl plugin - it has a dial which "dates" music. And it actually sounds pretty authentic. You don't have to use the vinyl simulator (dust, scratches, warp, mechanical noise etc).  It's 32-bit, but I've never had any problems with it. 

Oh and just to clarify - it's free!

If iZotope Vinyl was 32bit only, the DirectX version would not load in 64bit SONAR. The plug-in is 32bit/64bit DX/VST.

scook
If iZotope Vinyl was 32bit only, the DirectX version would not load in 64bit SONAR. The plug-in is 32bit/64bit DX/VST.

Well that's weird. Nowhere on the website does it say there is a 64-bit version. In fact it says:

• Vinyl is a 32-bit plug-in, which means you will need to load it in a 32-bit host. Most plug-in hosts can run in 32-bit mode, however keep in mind that Pro Tools 11 and Logic Pro X are 64-bit only, and as such these hosts are not compatible with Vinyl."

But running my installer again I see that it asks for directories to install both 32 and 64-bit versions. How odd!
 
One thing which puzzles me is that I'm 100% sure that when I first installed it ages ago, the Direct X version would allow me to access the warp controls (which the VST version disables). But now, I can't access them in the Direct X version either. Odd odd odd. 

The Warp Model is still available for automation in the DX version.

 
Keep in mind that whatever we heard back then was coming out of a small really crappy speaker.
 
I seem to remember that on our set, the speaker was also on the side of the box.
 
Memories of the little bright dot that would slowly fade away after turning the set off... 

I'm not sure what Vinyl would do. The sound for TV sound was not on vinyl or stereo. In fact with good speakers and a good signal the sound was very good. Broadcasters had a lot of bandwidth to work with. I would place the sound quality somewhere between AM radio and FM radio.  
 
Above Paul is right though in stating most TVs were equipped with small speakers with little care given to their sound. But if you listen to an old show on good speakers today you maybe surprised by the sound.  

Play it through your computer speakers (or other small, low-fi speaker) and record that.
Try the Telephone preset in the Sonitus EQ, if you have it.

John
I'm not sure what Vinyl would do. The sound for TV sound was not on vinyl or stereo. In fact with good speakers and a good signal the sound was very good. Broadcasters had a lot of bandwidth to work with. I would place the sound quality somewhere between AM radio and FM radio.  
 
Above Paul is right though in stating most TVs were equipped with small speakers with little care given to their sound. But if you listen to an old show on good speakers today you maybe surprised by the sound.  

You don't have to use the vinyl effect features of Vinyl. You can turn all of those off and just use the decade dial. It has settings for 1950, 1960, 1970, 1980 etc. Setting it to 1950 or 60 seems to give a pretty authentic lo-fi effect.