Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

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Greg Stout
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Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

#1 Post by Greg Stout »

My #1 passion is my wife….(hope she reads this…)
My #2 passion is, (of course) those Damned German Cars, with the motor in BACK ?????
Coming in at #3, is vintage 50's 60's and 70's Audio gear, ESPECIALLY, if it's housed in a Walnut Cabinet. :o
My current set up is a MAC 1900 (McIntosh) Receiver, Dual 522 turntable, Yamaha NS690 speakers and /or Polk Audio RT 16's
Garage unit is a Sanyo 2050 with garbage speakers. Also have a Vector Research VR5000 (Cathy's) that can blow out windows.
also appx 100 albums from 1960-1990's (Bloodrock to Bowie…Pink Floyd to Allen Parsons)
Member # 1809 , June 1978
'60 Cab-'60 Rdstr-Envimo S:90
'60 Rdstr-'64 C Cpe-'62 Cab
Envimo S:90-'63 Cpe-'62 Cpe
above…all Sold and long gone….
current Garage Pals…
IM Roadster D
1960 T-5 Coupe (52nd one built)
1968 912 Coupe

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C J Murray
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Re: Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

#2 Post by C J Murray »

I am ashamed to say that I own, from new, Audio Research amp and pre-amp, Dahlquist speakers, and a VPI turntable that I don't listen to. I keep saying I will but somehow I just end up in the garage instead. Where is a good marketplace for that type of equipment? I really should take time to listen. It is very good for soothing the savage beast.
'57 Speedster
'59 Sunroof
'60 Devin D Porsche Race Car
'63 Cabriolet "Norm"
'67 911 S Original Owner
'03 Ferrari 575M
'09 Smart Passion

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Glen Hamner, Jr
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Re: Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

#3 Post by Glen Hamner, Jr »

Cliff,

Pipe all that great sound into the garage and have-it-all while ya work bro. I've been doing it for years, maybe that's why I'm not making more progress on the tub project. As the turntable takes too much attention, try attaching the amp to your receiver/computer and dialing in iTunes. Gotradio Celtic Crossroads is one of my favorite sites, as is FolkAlley.

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Jim Nelson
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Re: Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

#4 Post by Jim Nelson »

I put four old JBL 4410 studio monitors in the garage with an old SONY receiver and an old iTouch with a gazillion tunes on it. My view: rather have really good speakers and an adequate amp, than a really good amp and adequate speakers.

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Glen Hamner, Jr
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Re: Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

#5 Post by Glen Hamner, Jr »

Jim,

While its just keeping ya company, the mind still needs to remain focused on the tasks at hand. Its amazing what sounds now come from awfully small speakers that are weather, dust and spark proof. Then again, with a slight hearing loss in one ear, mostly the upper frequency range, my appreciation of the range of an artist is not exactly as it use to be.

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Randy Cook
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Re: Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

#6 Post by Randy Cook »

After horse-trading audio for many years, I finally got the 'perfect' all tube system. Marantz 8B and Fisher SA-100 amps, Marantz preamp and tuner. Lot of work to get it back to spec. Everything was great until I heard a Nelson Pass -designed FET amp. Suddenly, it was like the blanket was taken off the sound. Clear, crisp.
Out went the vintage tube stuff, sold for what I consider an outrageous prices into a bidding war on eBay. Built the Pass F5 amp and full range speakers. For about $700, I have the best system I have ever heard. So what happened to the profit on the tube stuff? Well, my 356 needed a new top, and carb rebuild, and....
That is why we call it a hobby.
If you like to build amps or speakers, check out dyiaudio.com
If you like weird and wonderful homebrew audio checkout:
http://www.burningamp.org/2015/06/2015-burning-amp/
Get together next this month near San Francisco will have many different types of home brew audio systems.

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Brian R Adams
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Re: Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

#7 Post by Brian R Adams »

I once had a 1959 Heathkit SA-2 High Fidelity Stereo Amplifier like this one. Got it when I was in junior high. I sold it in college for $10. I see one in shabby condition on Ebay for $300 now. It was only 14 watts but loud! I wish I still had it.
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Randy Cook
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Re: Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

#8 Post by Randy Cook »

Brian R Adams wrote:I once had a 1959 Heathkit SA-2 High Fidelity Stereo Amplifier like this one. Got it when I was in junior high. I sold it in college for $10. I see one in shabby condition on eBay for $300 now. It was only 14 watts but loud! I wish I still had it.
We are shocked by the prices of 356 anything, but percentage wise it is nothing compared to the appreciation of classic audio equipment. I would think prices have peaked, but maybe not.
Years ago, I had a stack of broken Heathkit amps that I got for free to $20. When fixed, I got $100 or so on eBay and dumped them all. Over the years, I stopped looking when Chinese buyers were bidding past the $250 mark for the average ones. Don't want to know what the prices are now. Sort of like when I figured the $35K appraisal for my 356 cab was crazy...
The classic tube Marantz and McIntosh stuff is the 'Carrera 2 of audio gear.

ray nelson
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Re: Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

#9 Post by ray nelson »

I still have a Dynaco SCA 35 amp and FM 2 tuner that I assembled in College. Both need to be worked on and I was amazed to see there is a company that sells the kits as well as upgraded parts. My active system is a Marantz 2325 with Monitor Audio speakers that I bought in the 70's. I have been thinking of selling my Dual turntable to get a new Rega so I can listen to the old vinyl records I still have.
I had some AR 4 speakers that were stolen and always lusted for a pair of AR 3's but now the Monitor speakers are plenty good for my old ears. I mostly listen to FM radio anyway so not worth throwing a lot of money into the ultra pricey stuff.
Sometimes I think the world stopped improving in the 70's and now we've entered a period of diminishing returns on steroids!

Ray

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Brian R Adams
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Re: Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

#10 Post by Brian R Adams »

Randy Cook wrote: Years ago, I had a stack of broken Heathkit amps that I got for free to $20. When fixed, I got $100 or so on eBay and dumped them all. Over the years, I stopped looking when Chinese buyers were bidding past the $250 mark for the average ones. ... The classic tube Marantz and McIntosh stuff is the 'Carrera 2 of audio gear.
Why were the Chinese buying old Heathkits? Were they ham radio amps? (I've got a HW-101 transceiver.)

I have a Marantz 2230 stereo receiver from the 1970s w/ the walnut case. Standard fare for a well-appointed college apartment back then.

http://classicreceivers.com/marantz-2230

But the audio output died. Probably needs new caps. A local TV repair guy said probably $200 to fix it. They sell for around $450 so I just might go for that. Or maybe I'll rebuild it myself:

http://irebuildmarantz.com/classic/html/2230.html

Brian
Welcome to the era of policy-based evidence-making.

Difficile est saturam non scribere (Juvenal)

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Brian R Adams
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Re: Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

#11 Post by Brian R Adams »

I just downloaded Owner's and Service manuals, plus schematic, for Marantz 2230 here (free!):

http://www.hifiengine.com/manual-library.shtml

Just create an account, and you're good to go.

Brian
Welcome to the era of policy-based evidence-making.

Difficile est saturam non scribere (Juvenal)

Jan Kolm
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Re: Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

#12 Post by Jan Kolm »

I gave away a pair of 1970s Marantz LS450 loudspeakers (consumer version of the LS45 studio monitor) in exchange for having some trees cut down on my property. The child molester I gave them to ended up in prison, so I suspect the speakers went into the dumpster when the landlord cleaned out his cabin. I still have the heavy-gauge plastic packaging and use the bags for recycling aluminum cans.
Jan Kolm
356 Registry #1066
1960 1600N Coupe

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Jack Walter
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Re: Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

#13 Post by Jack Walter »

I recently sold my restored Altec A-7 Voice of the Theater speakers - the wife said there was no way in god's green earth that I was ever going to be allowed to bring them up from the basement and put them in the living room. Something about a pair of speakers that are industrial grey, 30" wide, 24" deep and 54" tall just wasn't going to fit our decor (early yard sale). I also sold off my vintage Dynaco transistor gear as it all needed some work. I did play a little Janis Joplin one last time on the Altecs before I passed them on to the enthusiastic new owner - damn they sounded good!

I had a roomful of AR and Dynaco speakers that I picked up at yard sales for peanuts - sold off the AR's a few years ago because I had a speaker problem and moved two pair of the Dynaco A-25's for pretty good money two months ago. (I kept the best set because those little speakers just sound so good).

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Randy Cook
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Re: Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

#14 Post by Randy Cook »

Many a good horn-based speaker system died horrible death because of girlfriend/spouses! When the speaker is larger that the couch and refrigerator combined, you know you are the limit. And, why put money into a nice hardwood finish? REAL audiophiles preferred unfinished 16 layer Birch plywood with beer bottle stains anyway.
Guess it would be like collecting dirty Chyrsler 300s vs concourse ready 356s.
When I was young, the only people who could afford the true audiophile equipment had BIG houses, so AltecLansing or JBL monster horns were no problem. When pop music, plus Sony moving into transistors in a big way happened, we needed smaller speakers for the average Joe. Answered by Advent, JBL, and Dynaco. Horns nearly went away to be replaced by lumpy sounding Acoustic Suspension speakers. And, AS speakers need more power. Like an arms war, amps went from 15 watts a channel (small tubes) of very stable power to 100 watts a channel (funky NPN transistor outputs stages) that self destructed regularly.
Then the specs wars started with everyone having their own way of testing power. A little box with 500 watts? Long before VW cheated when rating diesels, audio companies cheated when rating amplifiers.

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Jack Walter
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Re: Any Vintage Audio fans out there ????

#15 Post by Jack Walter »

What wife could NOT love these? Answer - almost all of them - but they were the king of my college dorm floor... I always won the speaker wars - even with a 25 watt amp.

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