Your First System

1964 - College freshman in-dorm audio special:

(1.) Single box all tube record player/pre-amp/10w mono amp/2" woofer (FR: 200Hz - maybe 800Hz).

(2.) Rolling Stones first album ("12 x 5"?).

(3.) Ample supply of model airplane glue.

1975-ish (before that, I used my dad's system, which was basically all Philips)

Sansui Something integrated amp
Pioneer Something turntable with Shure Something cart
Technics Something cassette deck
LSA (Laboratoires des Sciences Acoustiques) Something bookshelf speakers

(no sarcasm, just don't recall the model designations)

I got my first "rig" in 1972 for Christmas. I honestly can't remember the brand. Dad must have purchased it at a department store (sears?). It was a receiver with built-in 8-track! It had a separate turntable (the platter was smaller than an LP). Speakers were way cheap (about 15 inches high). The tone controls were the "slider" style. My big "upgrade" was to replace the turntable with a BSR McDonald-310 (I needed to get a cheap external preamp from radio shack). My next upgrade was a pair of Ambassador speakers (bookshelf) that were actually acoustic suspension. I had to be clipping that thing every time I played it. I don’t think I ever backed the volume off full blast! It was all about rock & roll in those days; played a lot of air guitar back then! Man, my poor mom & dad were pretty cool about it; the house was too small to filter out the “noise.” No worries back then….those were fun times! (Thanks dad).

When I was 17 a retired friend of ours had a stereo that he had assembled and mouted in a pine box. Rather ugly. However, Once I paid $150 to him I found that he had an EICO HF85 preamp, an HF 90FM tuner with a multplex decoder all that he hand assembled, and a Pilot SA232 amp. The turntable was a top of the line early 60s Garrard which listed for over $200 in 1960. I snagged a couple of JBLs which ran me another $100 and a new Empire cartridge for $50 and I was ready to go. I never knew how fortunate I was to have all that collectable tube gear and a $300 system that I would envy today. I have been searching for that sound ever since. Go figure. By the way I purchased this in 1972 along with my first car, a 1967 Pontiac GTO. They were both sold in 1974 for what I paid for them. I hope someone still has both of them today. Anyhow I was a lucky teenager. I just did not know how lucky.

Mine must have been in the mid '60's. It was the first boom box I guess. I remember it was a textured grey suitcase looking thing with a handle on top. On the sides were the speakers, they hinged out and detached for better sound-staging! In the middle was a turntable that folded out of the "suitcase" housing and it was even nicely suspended. After a year or two it required a penny taped to the tonearm to keep it tracking!

My dad was a true influence on my requiring good equipment, NOT! I think he found it next to the camouflage waders at the corner five and dime.

Thanks for the thread, I have not thought of that thing for years.

jd