2. amps-preamps
  3. 126015-86553

Finally stepping into the hobby after 30 years of watching from the sidelines

Ok, so I hope you are all ok with a longwinded post from a first time user of the forum.  I have been obsessed with vinyl and tubes since my dad played records for me as a 5 year old.  My wife and I are finally in a place that we can take the leap into the scene.  We want to grow our system over time and may even create 2-3 systems along the way as we have a bed and breakfast where we want to make analog part of the theme. 

We have made up our mind that our first speakers will be Vandersteen 2CE sigs.  That is about as far as we have gotten.  We definitely want to power them with tubes and have very little idea of where to start.  Obviously the mainstream option would be a Mcintosh mc275 and our local HiFi salesman would LOVE to sell us a pair of those.  However, we know that there are several cheeper/better options out there and would love some input from the board.  We'd like to keep the first amp under $3,000, but we aren't locked into that.  Keep in mind that we are ok starting with a single amp and then adding a second one along the way to mono them.  Also, we would love some help with a table/arm/cartridge!  One with an integrated phono stage is fine to start with and we would again be open to upgrading and adding a stand alone phono stage later on.  

We will be doing some electrical work soon to run a 40 amp fuse to the BnBs espresso machine and would be open to setting up a dedicated line for our main system at that time so that we can have clean power.  Has any one had any experience with this?  Any ideas or recommendations that you may have would be a big help here! 

Thank you all in advance, and we are really excited to finally be part of the scene! 
128x128cottguy
oleschool's avatar
oleschool
722 posts
 
      When a rare piece comes up here and is mentioned on the forum it is gone! The forum readers say hhmmm dam i,m buying it( there are some very well off gon readers and a few g is not a big deal  to them ).I had a post on cd players someone mentioned a specific Bel Canto ,I hesitated for a day and it was gone.That  vac was a great piece and I also almost snagged it myself .This hobby will keep you constantly upgrading until you go broke( unless you are very fortunate in that case you will have 200k in your system lol) or finnally realize it's really about the music and eventually if you still have your sanity you will start to focus on your collection and the listening process. Again i strongly suggest dilligence with your search here it will pay off ,look everyday things revolve here all the time ,i would most certainly buy used gear .You will get so much more in the end if you do your homework ..
respect and good luck
..P.S you missed out on a great amp ...    : (    but there are many many more ...
gdnrbob
4,458 posts
 
There will always be another 'deal'. Patience is a virtue when buying used.
I just scored a pair of Vandy VSM's on Ebay for $200 bucks.
Things just appear sometimes and you need to grab them before the next guy.
cottguy's avatar
cottguy OP
56 posts
 
Thanks for the reassurance @oleschool and @gdnrbob. I know I’ll find what suits my needs/wants best eventually. I had a local shop turn me onto the PrimaLuna DiaLogue Premium HP. Does any one have any thoughts/experience with that amp?  @miner42 I believe you brought that unit up in an earlier post, care to weigh in on the recommendation?  
oleschool's avatar
oleschool
722 posts
 
The prima luna are nice.(pretty too) I do not want to bust on any dealer there are many good ones ,i was a salesmen for yrs at a brick and mortor back in the day.All i can give is my opinion cotton,and in this hobby of 35plus years the ole "one mans floor is anothers ceiling" could not be more true. the amount of high end gear i saw people off during my time is insane .I came home with so many trade ins and this one."do you know anyone who takes old speakers away ? these things are huge" or "its an old tube thingy!" lmao
People rotate through gear like mad, it’s an obsession to many.Just my opinion but unless ya got the bucks a slightly used tt that was 4k is yours for 2k a 6k plus amp is 2-3 k speakers same thing man. although they are just more difficult to ship ,i would search craigs daily. use tempest it will search any craiglist in america,then go listen and grab them if you like them .I personnally have had the best luck with gon members vs others like highfii shark etc..just me but be warned stay in the U.S i have been burned by customs on returns taking months!!
Your on a treasure hunt!
some of us look at alot of used gear for fun,I,m sure there are guys here that can also keep an eye out for ya erik is a great guy ,inna is way in the mix too ..good luck because your screwed lol :-)

oleschool's avatar
oleschool
722 posts
 
Make sure you occaionally check you messages buddy ...


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