Darn, I wish I would have known this a year ago. I could have given you my old Infinity Qa speakers instead of giving them to Goodwill.
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Any audiophiles out there?
- Thread starter blackdeuce
- Start date
Here's a photo of the Dynaco mk iiis I mentioned. I don't know that they sound better than solid state (and with my hearing, I couldn't judge), but they were made in my birth year (1958), and are still going strong, thanks to Will Vincent in Idaho who did the restoration work. They provide some nice heat during the winter months. 
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I used to subscribe to Esquire and Rolling Stone in the 70s. You got a lot of stereo info from both. Around '78? I bought a new Sansui 8080 (Not the Dolby), $500, a pair of AR12s $500, an AR XB turntable. Turns out to be one of the best decisions I ever made. The stuff is worth more today than then and the listening is absolutely wonderful. Funny, in those days Marantz was a so,so brand and Japanese speakers were poison. It takes a person who is willing to power up a speaker with a pure acoustical watt just to get the ARs going, but you don't miss a thing. The FM tuners in the Sansui were so high quality that they were pure pure. After all of the Japanese companies started all solid state and made in India the beautiful high powered amps were gone forever. The upper range Sansuis weighed 50+lbs. CDs selectively remove a portion of all music and the new downloaded music is really bad.
OP
I never thought streaming would be very good. I remember how awful mp3s sounded.
Today, I have a dedicated streamer and use a streaming service called Qobuz. Streaming sounds as good, sometimes better, than my fairly high end turntable and cd player. I have high speed Google Fiber for internet. I find a lot of new music when streaming. If I really like something, I'll buy it on cd or vinyl.
A couple of decades ago when I started looking into hi-fi equipment, I kept hearing about how the new amp X from Sony, say, would last about five years, or that their cooling fans would give out. Cooling fans? A veteran audio guy explained that when gas was cheap, pre-1975 roughly, the big Japanese audio companies could afford to put real heat-sinks in their equipment, and that's one of the reasons for their longevity. They kept it up for another decade or so, but then it became economically prohibitive, due in part to transport costs. That 700m power amp (pictured above, with two meters) weighs in at 55 lbs. Audio Research still makes great stuff if you're wealthy, as does Accuphase, which is where a lot of the Kenwood techs went when Kenwood cut back on their high end stuff. Marantz made great stuff in their golden age. Their early, low power tube amps, produced in the late 50s and 60s (I think I've got the dates right) now fetch incredible sums.
DWalt
Member
I’ve owned a fairly high-end audio system for many years. Problem is that I seldom to rarely use it, just lost interest in playing music anymore. Plus my hearing is nowhere near what it once was. My truck radio gets far more use than my home stereo.
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VERY nice
Terry G
Member
.50 Caliber, I'm lucky if I can hear myself think.
OP
Beautiful.
coneologist
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I`ve been in the Hi-Fi industry for over 50 years. I have a retail business that specializes in 2 channel audio, not surround sound. Being the only Klipsch Heritage dealer in Oklahoma I sell used speakers from as low as $75 a pair to the Klipschorn at $17,500 a pair. And I sell every piece of 70`s gear that I can find. My hearing hit the point this year to require hearing aids, not for the music, but for my wife`s voice! 50 plus years of shooting everything from a .22 to a .308 hasn`t helped, or playing in 9 piece r&b bands and 42 years of playing a high powered DJ system didn`t help. I`m not an audiophile, I`m a degreed musician that just appreciates all kinds of music.
Been into music and stereo gear since the early 70's.
Being in the Army made buying good gear a bonus.
Lots of stuff has passed through my hands.
Main system now is a restored Pioneer SX 1250 receiver , Teac X 1000 RTR , Nakamichi BX 300 cassette deck , Project turntable and AR 9 speakers.
Not high end but makes me smile.
And when I listen at pleasing levels my neighbors get to enjoy the music as well , so far no complaints .
Being in the Army made buying good gear a bonus.
Lots of stuff has passed through my hands.
Main system now is a restored Pioneer SX 1250 receiver , Teac X 1000 RTR , Nakamichi BX 300 cassette deck , Project turntable and AR 9 speakers.
Not high end but makes me smile.
And when I listen at pleasing levels my neighbors get to enjoy the music as well , so far no complaints .
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OP
What part of Oklahoma? I spent most of my youth in Owasso.
My system is a two channel system with components added for home theatre that are not in the playback chain when listening to stereo.
Funny you mention the army. The guy I bought my Kenwood 600s was a vet, and at some point in the mid-70s, while still in the armed services, bought them new overseas, and brought them back to the states with him. They were high dollar items when new. Anyway, they never left his stereo cabinet for 40 years until he was urged to sell them by his wife, whose voice he could evidently still hear ; ). Anyway, I had the amp recapped, but otherwise they're in original, pristine condition. Seems like a lot of service guys were either buying Rolex Submariners or stereo equipment in the 70s, sometimes both.Been into music and stereo gear since the early 70's.
Being in the Army made buying good gear a bonus.
Lots of stuff has passed through my hands.
Main system now is a restored Pioneer SX 1250 receiver , Teac X 1000 RTR , Nakamichi BX 300 cassette deck , Project turntable and AR 9 speakers.
Not high end but makes me smile.
And when I listen at pleasing levels my neighbors get to enjoy the music as well , so far no complaints .
I got hit with the tube stereo bug decades ago.
Fun hobby.
Collected many,had many restored.
Collected vacuum tubes and table top radios and solid state.
Many speakers.
Most of it was sold to get rid of bulk. Donated alot to the Cal Historical Radio Society..
Only kept an HH Scott 380 and a Harmon Kardon Chorale plus nice floor speakers and some bookshelves.
I did keep a solid state monster receiver.. probably forgetting stuff here..
Fun hobby.
Collected many,had many restored.
Collected vacuum tubes and table top radios and solid state.
Many speakers.
Most of it was sold to get rid of bulk. Donated alot to the Cal Historical Radio Society..
Only kept an HH Scott 380 and a Harmon Kardon Chorale plus nice floor speakers and some bookshelves.
I did keep a solid state monster receiver.. probably forgetting stuff here..
