I have just finished establishing my $686 stereo system. Laugh if you want, but I am enjoying my tunes on my vintage system. Audio Research D-100A amp, Audio Research SP-4A pre-amp(very cool stuff) both $50 at yard sale, Mistral CD player $84 at pawn shop, ADS L710 speakers(garage sale $10) rebuilt for $200, Luxman 110 tuner, $10 at thrift shop, Mirage PS-12-180 sub woofer $300 on Audiogon, radio shack Fusion IC $12 Ebay, and Monster Cable speaker wire $20 at Best Buy. Sounds good. Sarah Brightman, Bonnie Raitt, Sarah McLaclin all sounding good.
I find it more satisfying to build a pleasing system with the least amount of money.Than to go out and just buy something on prestige and the look what I got factor! So no laughing here!
Thanks people for your kind respones. I am on the floor weeping reading about Ncarv and sogood51 systems. In retrospect, I shouldn't have even posted looking at what can be acomplished. Anyway neophytes(like me), you can, however, have a whole lot of fun and some good tunes(Allison Krause) for not a whole bunch of money over what the local stores offer for the same price. Upside: this stuff will NEVER be worth less than what I paid. Actually may go up in value as time goes by?
YES! Someone who gets it!! This whole audio thing is all about FUN and enjoyment! How many with limitless budgets spend limitless hours agonizing over equipment. There a lot of unhappy campers who spent BIG bucks;just look thru Audigon. I prefer to spend my money very wisely, and spend my time LISTENING to music. My best buy : found an unlabeled pair of older,well made speakers at the thrift shop. Bought them, did my internet research and found out they were absolutely Dynaco A25's. Cost : SIX bucks. Sound? quite incredible. Listening to CSNY's Deja Vu was a revelation as to how wonderful the human voice can sound, along with a full,rich, yet extremely emotional overall sound. These are so good its silly....Lots of great sound.... and a smile on my face!
Atomickid: Also had a pair of Dynaco A25 speakers that I found at a garage sale for $10. What a great sounding pair of speakers for their size. Still a good following for them. Sold them for $85. Helped pay for some of my other stuff.
oh so you think you got me beat eh, I bought a $55.00 three disc with tuner and double cassette at Ames before it went out of business. Made by none other than Philips, and it even has a remote. Cody
Bottomsup: You did a GREAT job and i bet your system sounds phenomenally good for the money spent. I thought i was good at finding "killer deals", but you've got me beat by a long-shot!!! Hat's off to you, your system and the spirit of "bang for the buck" audio that everyone seems to enjoy. I've had more fun and better results building killer "budget" systems than i ever did dumping measurably more cash into this "hobby" : )
Other than that, i'm with Brent ( Brainwater ). If people around you are selling that kind of gear for those prices at garage sales, flea markets and pawn shops, i need to spend more time in your neck of the woods : ) Sean >
Well for $689.50 you could upgrade to Radio Shack magnet wire speaker cable. For $746 you could get some single driver ELF 1.0's. Don't stop now, just think how much happier you could be ;-)
Bottomsup does Sarah Brightman makes you fall in love with Her when you hear her with your$686. If you do.Then I will be the one kicking myself for buying expensive gear.Saluteto you my friend, just give me tip next time.
LOL, No but her rendition of Scarborough Fair makes a good "refference CD" to use whenever you buy a new(new?) piece of equipment. Song has a lot of nice features, bass, vocals, naturally that can be used as a standard for your system IMHO. PS: her Whiter Shades of Pale on same album works as #2.
Bravo! And I guess you did this without the benefit of magazine reviews and you sound like you are enjoying your sounds rather than looking for flaws in your system. You're my AUDIOPHILE of the YEAR.
classical1; people at local hi-end stereo laughed(laughed, that's correct) when I told them I was rebuilding some ADS L710 speakers. They told me paper woofers, etc. were garbage. I stumbled on a knowledgeable web-site that talked about speaker manufacturing and it went on to say that properly built paper woofers can't be touched by all that metal stuff. Makes me wonder how much hi-end stereo store knows or were they trying to get me to part with my money? The electronic shop guy said that when the ADS are finished, I would have to spend $1500 to equal them. Now, they do sound great, but of course I have nothing really to compare them to. They do sound nice, though.
macrojack: actually, I confess to doing a lot of web searching on each piece of equipment. After I bought it though :o) I couldn't pass up the prices. I have sold a bunch of other stereo stuff that I bought at bargain basement prices that paid for this system 3 times over. I actually have a free system + approx. $1200($686 was just what I paid for each piece I am currently using). All sorts of Pioneer, Yamaha, etc. stereos at garage sales resold for profit. For instance, my Hafler 220 cost $172, sold for $275 2 weeks later, etc. My girlfriend thinks I need to seek professional help.
Bottomsup,thats why I dont go to high end dealer now they play mind games,they make you think that, the only way you can put a good system is to spend big dollars,not always.Internet and Agon is the best that ever happen to me.If you read post here, most of the time, you will learn more than the irritable salesman at the dealer.So many optios now a day. Here at Agon just make sure give them the right information about what you like, they can help you. Of course its better if you can audition them. Keep your money,enjoy the 686.
Bottomsup,thats why I dont go to high end dealer now they play mind games,they make you think that, the only way you can put a good system is to spend big dollars,not always.Internet and Agon is the best that ever happen to me.If you read post here, most of the time, you will learn more than the irritable salesman at the dealer.So many options now a days. Here at Agon just make sure give them the right information about what you like, they can help you. Of course its better if you can audition them. Keep your money,enjoy the 686.High end dealers will not spend time, with small guys, maybe 5 minutes the most.In my fifteen years in this hobby, I have seen a lot.The worse part also,they treat you better when you park a benz.Even if you are not buying.
Bottomsup: I'm jealous, that's a great system to play around with. And as fot the wife-thing: shop around, maybe you can buy another one at the next garage sale? Or is having two women around a bit much?
Man, I used to think of myself as a tightwad, but you beated me far and long. I'm laughing with you 'cause this is really what audio is all about, having fun and enjoying.
I've spent a little over $900 so far in audio equipment and what I got is not so near first class as your gear is but no complain, just keep enjoying. Happy listening to you all.
Bottomsup, I had ADS 710's many years ago and they were wonderful. Great job and like the other's said on this thread....just enjoy the music. Audiophiles can get so caught up in splitting hairs! With the money you saved go to a few concerts. That way you don't have to worry about the deviation from live music that any audio system presents!
@bottomsup One thing to look out for on equipment that old are the filter capacitors in the power supply. You got an amazing deal- someone clearly had no idea of what they were selling.
But if a filter capacitor fails (and this stuff is old enough where that is a guarantee rather than a possibility) it can take a power transformer with it. If that happens repair might no longer be an option. And it would be a shame if something happened to that nice stereo....
One thing about replacing old filter capacitors is that the equipment will immediately sound better and perform better.
Now if you decide you don't want to spend the money and stare down the shotgun barrels instead, here's a tip: if the amp or preamp has or develops a low hum in both channels, that's a sign that a filter cap has failed and you may notice the power transformer running hotter as well. That is when you are on the bitter edge; at that point I would get it fixed without question.
Its nice to see this stuff in use by someone who can appreciate it- clearly whoever sold it didn't or they would have been asking more.
Recently cobbled together a second system with left over equipment.
Included a Pioneer PL 600 turntable (the original weighing 26 lbs and with a real suspension) collecting dust in my sister's garage. Broke the bank and bought a $475 Hana EL cartridge on it and now it sounds great!
No one laughs at having a nice stereo to jam tunes to.
My very first stereo was an 8-track player, set in a red velvet foot of the bed system, with two roll out seats on wheels. a nice velvet deep red color, would play my 4-5 8 tracks all might long while I slept. 1 every night, continuously
billy loel 42 nd st. Styx paradise theatre and grand illusion judas Priest sin after sin kiss destroyer ac/dc high voltage (USA version)
Santa brought me a Bitchin Panasonic Rx-c45 w matching sl-n25 servo turntable about 80 or 81.
First few cassettes were merciful fate, raven, venom, crossfire, Motörhead, etc.
no one laughs at anyone for their stereo!
If you enjoy the music, play it, enjoy it, “hear” it.
Bottomsup, I agree!!! You did a GREAT job, similar to but better than I started out years ago. Congrats. In regard to women....girlfriends, wives, etc. I have an attraction to (and the ability in my younger days) and for many years, with respect, been a devotee of beautiful women. I think the Bobfather shares my devotion per our conversation at CF18. Unlike audio where you can just stop, my Carver 350s are my last amp, I will buy nothing else, ever, for my primary system. (maybe a 275 for the bedroom) With women (and I, like Bob are monogamistic with that person, Bob's wife is beautiful inside and out) trust me you never stop paying! I've been with my SO (significant other) J for a long time, she did a lot of big time modeling in the 80s-90s, some of you met her at CF18. Yet looking at my monthly cc bills they continue to sometimes amaze and surprise me. While we have been together quite a while, we don't live together (she's Italian, I hope that's not racist and it's not meant to be. I really don't know anymore ) and it works for us. I've never auditioned another amp since we've committed to each other. No need to upgrade, but you still pay, and that's ok. Call it maintenance, check ups, oil changes, whatever. So it only matters what it sounds like to you and it only matters what it feels like when she kisses you. If both are what you are looking for........you'll be a happy man. If you hear what you want to hear and see and feel what you want to see and feel what more can you ask for. Life is short (trust me, I know) so enjoy the music and the love life, play it loud, play it soft. (BC)
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