Best looking vintage Hifi gear

I still enjoy in a second equipment a simple Sansui AU-101 and some Keesonic Kub speakers, the cheap alternative to the ls3/5a. A simply delicious set

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Au 101. My first introduction to proper hifi.

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Do you know if 47 Lab is still in business? I really liked their CD transport.

Never seen these speakers before but they look like the first generation of the hungarian Videoton Minimax (one of the most underrated speakers IMHO).

Pioneer RT-909 - a reel beauty to me😊

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Back in the day when polished chrome was all the rage I had one of these -

JVC ja s11

and one of these

JVC KD 10

The amp was the size of a small house but at 30 watts per channel it rattled the widows of my small bedroom at my parents house.

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First piece of hi-fi I ever owned. I figured I was being very clever in being an early adopter, getting in early before my tiny record collection got any bigger, notwithstanding CDs costing around £15 each (over £40 in today’s money).

I was aware that there was a fringe of audio enthusiasts that thought CD was failing to capture some key element of the music, but I figured that there are always people who are viscerally opposed to change, especially among those heavily invested in the status quo.

After a couple of years I had to admit to myself that I was having a recurring experience: looking forward to buying certain CDs, then wondering why I didn’t enjoy the music as much as I thought I would. I checked out players that were far more expensive, and they were better, but not fundamentally different. Maybe the Luddites had a point?

A quick visit to the analogue-loving Cornflake Shop in Tottenham Court Road settled it: that was the sound I was looking for. No more CDs after that, and a year later I bought my first record player. 30+ years later I have over 3,000 LPs and (maybe) 40 CDs.

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The site seems to exist

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Whatever happened to toggle switches? :upside_down_face:

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Yes. AFAIK, they still trade.

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Here is the A60 I’ve been banging on about- looks the part with the green led and sounds super. Very pleased!

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I had that set! (Might still be in the basement, actually. I don’t recall ever getting rid of it.) I fed it it with one of these:

image

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All owned at various times.

One of my first turntables was the Transcriptor Saturn.
(no, not the Reference).

Not a very good turntable but the object of more untutored admiration than subsequent Thorens and Linn models.

image

Lovely and lovely.

Retro (and lovely) before retro was a thing.

Compact and remarkable.

Decent, ingenious and gorgeous.

15 Likes

While not the best-looking CD player I’ve ever seen, I always thought the Planet was a top VFM choice - I would take one now in a heartbeat.

The Gales are a classic. I’d have a set in a heartbeat.

Anyone got a picture of a Vantage Vault turntable? As a kid that was the most expensive thing listed in the back of What HiFi (late 1980’s). Never got to see an image of one.

My vintage Walkman collection (aka drunk Ebay-ing)

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I have a Transcriptor (thick double base model) - I got in contact with them when it needed repairing and he said it a prototype and one of 2 ever made. Sounds very good too!

I was amazed, as I bought it cheap with a little bit of work needed.

Thought I’d get in early. :grin:

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Fabulous :+1:

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