I don't think my previous system would be considered super hi-fi anyway, but I've sold it off and replaced it with older stuff. I realize that I may unknowingly be chasing down the sound of my grandmother's old Zenith console
:
What I had:
Carver C-1
Halfer DH120
Rotel RP-850 with a Grado Gold
Alison CD-7 speakers (I loved them!)
Denon DRM-44 cassette deck
Denon CD player (I forget which model, it probably said "resolution" or "stream" on the front).
What I've got now:
'68 Allied 399 receiver (it has the warmest gar-darnest sound ever)
Onkyo CP-1055 turntable with an AT 122LP
Home made speakers (little bookshelf jobs with a boomerang design)
Sony MXD-D3 Minidisc/CD play/rec
Pioneer PDR-509 CD recorder (It's a gem)
An Audio Control EQ (with a subsonic filter for when I'm recording LPs to either CD or MD)
I like my system now because it makes me happy to listen to it. I guess that's what matters the most.
Here's a shot or two of the homemade speakers. They were built in 1991 for use at a jukebox show we were going to (I used to work restoring jukeboxes and other coin amusement machines), but we wound up not using them after all, so I kept them. Sound pretty good, considering there's a giant boomerang hanging off the front.