Your First System


This should be good!!! Most of us have been in this expensive hobby for years now and have worked our way up to components we only dreamed of. I want to know what was your first system of separate components going back as far as you can remember. My first consisted of a Pioneer SX-680 receiver, a Technics SLD-1 turntable (I think that's the right model #), a Sharp tapedeck, and KLH floorstanding speakers. I was 16 at the time and thought I was the biggest badass on the block. Now, 20+ years later I have a ML 334, Meridian 507 CD, CJ PV10A, Canton Ergo 900 speakers, and a Transparent Power Isolator 4. I'm in the process of upgrading to a ML 390. It goes without saying the IC's and speaker cables are top notch as well. I know my system is WAAAYYYYY down the foodchain compared to what I've seen here but It would be interesting to see what everyone started out with.
pcook15
1977:

Pioneer SX-1180 Receiver
Teac Tape Deck
Techniques Turntable
Bose 601 speakers
Pioneer receiver (15WPC), turntable and cassette deck with DIY Radio Shack speakers. ( my woofers had whizzer cones :-)
1975, Technics reciever, Yamaha tape deck, Project-1 TT and Bose speakers.
That system could rock!
Cops would come visit when I played LA Woman....
It was the day after Christmas, 1974. I took my Christmas money into New York City and bought a Pioneer PL-12dII turntable with an Empire 1001 cartridge. When I got home I plugged it in, put on a record and watched it spin... which was all I could do, as the table was the only component I had. It wasn't until the big President's Day sales later in the year that I picked up the rest of the system... a Harman/Kardon 330c and a pair of Genesis Model One's... the ones with the green surrounds on the woofers and the yellow EPI-type tweeter.

To this day I've never owned a system that was used more.

Dean.
"Pcookl5":

What was my first system??? Well........ here it goes:

The year???? 1983

My age at the time??? 20 years old

And here are the components of that system:

Speaker System: Polk Monitor 4's
Stereo Receiver: JVC R-30 (30 Watts Per Channel)
Cassette Deck #1: Luxman K-220 (purchased in 1984)
Cassette Deck #2: Nakamichi BX-300 (purchased in 1987)
Compact Disc Player: NAD 5255 (purchased in 1985)
Cables: Monster Cable (don't remember the model numbers.... 1986)

For such a small system, this system rocked the shit out of my crib back in the day. Though, it doesn't hold a candle to the system that I have now (see the system listed below), but, if I say so myself, for a 20 year old college kid who had his first job back then, I don't think I did too badly back then. The system I really wanted back then was a pair of Boston Acoustics A60's, a Yamaha "Natural Sound" Stereo Receiver (don't remember the model number back then, but I believed it was also rated to deliver 30 Watts Per Channel), a Denon Direct-Drive Turntable (don't remember the model number of the turntable either) and a Sonus Phono Cartridge. But being that's when I got started at the time, money was an issue with me back then, and that's why I ended up getting the system stated above instead.

What I have now is this:

KEF Reference 102 Speaker System with KUBE Equalizer
REL Strata II 10" Powered Subwoofer (100 Watt Internal Amplifier)
Adcom GFA-545 Mk II Power Amplifier
Adcom GFP-750 Preamplifier (Active/Passive Line Stage)
Magnum Dynalab FT-101 FM Tuner
Meridian 508.24 Compact Disc Player
Denon DVD-2200 Universal Player
JVC XL-M509TN Compact Disc Player/Changer
VPI Scoutmaster Turntable w/JMW Memorial 9 Arm, SDS System and Grado Sonata Reference Phono Cartridge
Thorens TD-165 Belt-Drive Turntable (circa 1974) w/Grado Prestige Gold Phono Cartridge
Nakamichi BX-300 Cassette Deck (YEP...... I still got this baby)
MITerminator 2 and 3 Interconnects
MITerminator 2 Speaker Cables
Monster Cable HTS2500 Power Center/Conditioner

And while this system is still serving me well to this present day, I am getting that itch to upgrade again. But only this time, it's going to be even harder. Because right now, I got my sights set on a pair of Von Schweikert VR4 Jr's, paired up with some PS Audio Amplification (in my particular case...... a PS Audio GCA-200 with a GCP-200 with a Marantz SA-11S1 Two Channel SACD Player. This system sound LIKE MUSIC (!!!!!) AND....... Oh.... that bass response..... the kind of bass response I can make love to). But with a price tag of about $20K+, I believe that system is a little too rich for my blood right now

CAN YOU SAY LOVE????? OR INFATUATION?????

I'm kind of like "Flynntom" now, when am I going to hit that "Mega Millions" lottery????

--Charles--