I've been collecting and upgrading stereo systems since the 60's. If I had stuck with what I originally wanted once it became used and affordable, I'd been infinitely better off. Now vintage McIntosh separate components bring serious money in excellent condition.
So I went in other directions. Wanted an Empire turntable in the worst way and watched them become almost unobtainable as well. But I had a good Thorens TT from the early 70's and had it tweaked...that was one of the better decisions. You can spend a hundred thousand on a TT, but I can't hear any difference past $5,000 and that includes a stellar cartridge.
The reality is that I've always been a receiver guy and was seduced by the higher-end ones that claimed they were as good as separates. They're not, but they come close. I presently have a Onkyo TX-8500 that's a great receiver, but it needs a recap and fully restored if I am to continue with it. Which begs the question; why put money into it instead of towards McIntosh? Then there's the elusive Pioneer SX-1980 receiver which when restored properly will fetch upwards of $5,000....monster..... incredible receiver in every way.
Which again begs the question; why put that much money toward a receiver when you can put it against McItosh separates? Keep coming full circle to the M stuff. There are audio snobs that have convinced themselves that there are better amps and preamps out there than McIntosh. You can certainly pay more, but I can't hear the difference in A/B/X double blind tests. The build quality of the right models and their provenance in the stereo community is beyond reproach.
And then the heart of your system; the speakers. If you tweak the crossovers, replace the tweeters and rebuild the woofer surrounds, a Double Advent system is hard to beat just for a listening experience. But you're in 4ohm territory and you better have the muscle to drive those Advents or you'll be clipping your amp....ask me how I know. Eventually, I wound up with Boston Acoustics T1000's.
There are about ten thousand choice directions in stereo speakers....you could fuss and labor forever over them. And everything changes with the home theater/surround sound systems. Speakers more than anything else, determine the actual sound along with room acoustics. It's well worth the time to labor over the choices...except don't wait so long for the 'ultimate' speaker that you're not enjoying the music.
I have four top-end Tandberg R2R's and I swear they are made with Norwegian voodoo. Always heralded as the best sounding pro-summer decks even into the 80's. On a good day, I'll have two working 100%. Their build quality is anything but robust...how they make the sound they do....well again, its voodoo. I have two top Nakamichi cassette decks that really are amazing for what they do, but I think we're down to about six tech people in NA who are reputable enough to repair them.
Would be difficult to write a book on the elusive 'perfect vintage system'......but quite easy to write a book on all the pitfalls to get there and what NOT to do....lol.
Here's a quick pic of what isn't in a closet or downstairs. You can't see it, but there's another Tandberg R2R behind the top two....inaccessible for now.
Kevin
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