Hello, and let's try this again. Yesterday I made a profile page and did not realize that I would not be able to choose a screen name and it put my real name. Anyway hoping that the moderator deletes that page. My name is John and it's nice to meet you all, and I am interested in many types of vintage stereo gear. I have recently taken the plunge and purchased some gear that was around during my childhood, including an Akai cassette deck, two Walkman WM-6C's. I'm looking to learn as much as I can, and hopefully make a contribution or two.
Nice to have you join up, John. Is that your big Pioneer receiver featured in your avatar? What specific audio components do you enjoy in your system? Nando.
Hi Nando thanks for the welcome. Yes that's the pioneer SX–1980 recently refurbished, and just sounds great. I have quite a few vintage turntables, cassette decks, an integrated Fisher tube amp, as well as a few AM/FM tuner's, and some vintage speakers as well. I use a mix of newer and vintage gear daily.
Nice - I think we have common interests in vintage audio gear. I've owned my SX-1980 since 2014. It would be a real stretch to afford one now. Nando.
Shes a beauty Nando! That's a beautiful pioneer r2r also. Yes most vintage gear is very high priced right now, some almost insane prices.
I also have a Marantz 2385 that's in for service right now. That was not one of my better buys, and when it arrived the sound was unbalanced. Lesson learned because they're having a hard time figuring it out, wires were hooked up improperly on the front end, in the preamp section. So now it's all trial and error to try to get the sound correct.
Great equipment! I've been picking up boat anchors for 20 years and love mixing and matching audio. I've recently been able to start pulling equipment out after having to hide it for a few years. I found a 2385 and HD-880 Speakers in the middle-of-nowhere Wisconsin years ago, I always loved Marantz and that was a huge score for me.
Good for you! Nothing like the 70s receivers in my opinion, they were all on top of their game trying to outdo each other.
John: Nice to see you also have a nice Marantz receiver. When I was a young adult in the 70's, I bought a few of the stereo magazines that featured the Annual Equipment Report and Reviews and longed for the big Marantz components. I still have a few of those magazines. With the crowd I hung around with, Marantz rated at the top, followed by Sansui, then Akai. Not many of the guys had Pioneer gear, at all. I purchased a Marantz Model 500 amplifier and matching Model 3300 preamplifier from a long-time friend and past workmate. That's a story in itself. Nando.
Nando; That is some beautiful looking gear, and it was pretty much the same here where I live, and most of the manufacturers were always chasing after Marantz, Pioneer and Sansui. My friend ended up with a beautiful Marantz receiver when I was in high school, I wish I could remember the model number but I do not. Right around the same time the Yamaha receivers started to become popular after of an area stereo store started carrying them. They also had the full line of Cerwin Vega speakers which made quite the impact on me, and if you've ever heard the CV speakers you know that they're very sensitive and play very loudly. Maybe not the most accurate but they sure were loud. Anyway your Marantz gear is beautiful! I also have a newer Marantz A/V processor in my home theater room, I have always had a soft spot for the Marantz gear, and I can only hope that my technician straightens my receiver out soon.
I'm not sure if there's one already going, but it would be nice to see what everybody's running with their cassette gear.
Thank you, John. There is a thread going for home set-ups: Show us your home setup | Stereo2Go forums I would have to update my system photos as my system changes from year-to-year. Nando.
