Where did you buy your first audio gear?

First set of separates. Radio Shack. Receiver TT and speakers, walked back and forth three times to get it all home. No car as I was 14 or 15 years old. 
First step up. Proton amp and preamp, mission speakers, Phillips CD from The Speaker Shop in North Lima Ohio. Nick was the best, taught me all I know about audio. He and his wife were the best. Genuine, warm, fun music loving people I can honestly call my friends. Ended up working for them in perhaps the best collage job I ever had. Magical times.

@bgross

Left with JBL, 4311s, Crown PL2 and SL2 power & pre, SAE 180 EQ and a Denon, DP35F w/Micro Acoustics 3002 cart. I dropped everything I came home with in that one shot, lol - I was 22yo. Been on the wheel ever since

what a great thread, and what fun to harken back to those times

at tech hifi circa 1980 that was the top tier we had to sell - crown and sae gear in particular...

... and i loved that microacoustics 2002e cart on my micro seiki tt, went through numerous styli  ... electret condenser model with that loooong cantilever, super light, fast tactile sound

so many weekend mornings started with al jarreau, tower of power, michael franks, the crusaders spinning ...

Audio Warehouse. Sharonville, OH . Harmon Kardon 50w receiver, Sanyo tape deck, RtR bookshelf's, Dual Turntable, not sure of the cartridge, 1980. 

I first audio serious audio was purchased off my boss when I was working in Iron Mountain, MI.  I was there to build the new County Replacement Hospital, Dickenson County Memorial.  I bought his Harmon & Kardon integrated, and a pair of DCS bookshelf speakers.  I next bought a Sony CD player from Crutchfield.  I traded that all in, and bought a stack of NAD, which I thought was the greatest stuff.  Hey, when you're 24, and just getting into it, it was!  Hah.  Those were the good old days.  I should have stopped there.  My mania has spread, or rather gotten worse - DOH!  🤣

Pioneer SX-750 receiver, BIC turntable, and Bose 301 Series II bookshelf speakers. Purchased at Pacific Stereo, Pomona, California, February 1980. Receiver was nothing but problems and BIC turntable was crummy. Replaced them three months later with a McIntosh MA600 integrated amplifier and a McIntosh MR74 AM/FM tuner, and also a Dual turntable. What a difference! I still have the tuner to this day. I gave away my Pacific Stereo purchases. They were junk...you do get what you pay for.