markshan
Sir Thrift a Lot
It's all you guys fault.
I went to Goodwill today and looked in a console stereo that was sitting there. I have looked for old stereo gear at thrifts for probably five years now, but until I found AK (IIRC I found this place Googling for info on one of my scores) I never would have looked in the direction on a console. They were geeky old things that grandparents used. But once I read here that somebody looked in an old console and it was loaded with McIntosh gear. So now I look in old consoles.
Up until now I have never found anything that has dissuaded me from my initial notion. Today, I saw one and opened the lid. On the inside of the lid was a badge that says "Copley 203". I look down and see an HH Scott receiver and a Dual 1019 turntable. I close the lid again to look at the tag. $10. So I turn it on.
The first thing I notice is that the table is stuck in the "start" position. No biggie I suspect. The Dual sled thingy is also missing (probably it and the cart were stolen as this sat on the floor of the thrift is my guess based on the pristine condition of the cabinet). The next thing I notice is only one channel is making sound. So I try the balance control and it is completely frozen. Then I get a radio station on the one channel and start to turn it up. Once the volume hits a certain level it starts a loud, low frequency hum that drowns out any other sound. At this point I'm starting to think it is more effort than it is worth.
So I begin debating in my mind if I want another project and I decide to pull it away from the wall and check the back for more info. The speaker sections are sealed boxes, so no help there. The panel behind the receiver is open and reveals tubes. Okay, $10 for an HH Scott tube model is worth the ten spot and the project time. So I take the tag up front and pay for it. As the cashier and I walk back to put the "sold" sign on it, she walks right past it. I tell her it's that thing with the bungees around the front doors. She says she thought it was a dresser. We both then wonder what is behind those doors. So I open it up and it is a Sony reel to reel, at a glance apparently never used and still wrapped with cellophane around the controls and the heads. Yes, this was worth $10.
I was in my work car and had to leave it there. Now I have to get it home and figure out how to proceed.
I went to Goodwill today and looked in a console stereo that was sitting there. I have looked for old stereo gear at thrifts for probably five years now, but until I found AK (IIRC I found this place Googling for info on one of my scores) I never would have looked in the direction on a console. They were geeky old things that grandparents used. But once I read here that somebody looked in an old console and it was loaded with McIntosh gear. So now I look in old consoles.
Up until now I have never found anything that has dissuaded me from my initial notion. Today, I saw one and opened the lid. On the inside of the lid was a badge that says "Copley 203". I look down and see an HH Scott receiver and a Dual 1019 turntable. I close the lid again to look at the tag. $10. So I turn it on.
The first thing I notice is that the table is stuck in the "start" position. No biggie I suspect. The Dual sled thingy is also missing (probably it and the cart were stolen as this sat on the floor of the thrift is my guess based on the pristine condition of the cabinet). The next thing I notice is only one channel is making sound. So I try the balance control and it is completely frozen. Then I get a radio station on the one channel and start to turn it up. Once the volume hits a certain level it starts a loud, low frequency hum that drowns out any other sound. At this point I'm starting to think it is more effort than it is worth.
So I begin debating in my mind if I want another project and I decide to pull it away from the wall and check the back for more info. The speaker sections are sealed boxes, so no help there. The panel behind the receiver is open and reveals tubes. Okay, $10 for an HH Scott tube model is worth the ten spot and the project time. So I take the tag up front and pay for it. As the cashier and I walk back to put the "sold" sign on it, she walks right past it. I tell her it's that thing with the bungees around the front doors. She says she thought it was a dresser. We both then wonder what is behind those doors. So I open it up and it is a Sony reel to reel, at a glance apparently never used and still wrapped with cellophane around the controls and the heads. Yes, this was worth $10.
I was in my work car and had to leave it there. Now I have to get it home and figure out how to proceed.
