17TH Street
New Member
Hello All,
I am posting here for the first time to celebrate my new system. But first, a little about me and my audiophile journey. My father was an electrical engineer and he taught me how to wire a component system when I was 7. He used to send me recorded 8-track tapes from far flung places around the world where he would amaze me by speaking from both right and left channels separately in between Beatles songs. He used a Harmon Kardon that has a model number lost to posterity but by the time I was ten I had my own inexpensive semi-integrated system. I upgraded through my teens with hand-me-downs and then amazing my fellow students with Pink Floyd in my dorm room at Drexel.
The first system that I bought for myself was a Denon reciever used with my ancient hand-me-down cabinet speakers. I knew I could not hope to afford new speakers that would outperform them so I continued to use them until I turned 30. However, frequenting the plentiful audio stores downtown a salesman insisted on playing a tiny pair of Kef's before I walked out the door and I was mesmerized. I have never been able to find out what exactly they were despite plentiful research. They were (aprox.) 6" square and I just stood there in disbelief. I think they were $300 in 1991 or thereabouts. I have dreamed of buying a pair of Kef's ever since.
The Denon died a dishonorable death typical of stereo equipment owned by twenty-something wild kids in the city. I replaced it with a NAD 3130(?) which did honorable duty in the bar I owned from 2004 - 2011. I left it there when I sold the bar; as you do.
At this point, spending time at home which was a new experience for me, I ran to BestBuy to get something quick and cheap and brought home a Harmon Kardon AVR 146 and a pair of Klipsch Synergy B2's. The HK had respectable sound for a cheap AV reciever but the controls are exasperating! The manual volume control quit working years ago and the remote will only change the volume under certain circumstances. "Unforgivable!" I shout as I pull up Ebay to look for a replacement. I never did figure out how to adjust the balance on the damn thing. Literally, three subsets of menu's using the remote. Absolutely ridiculous considering my mis-shapen listening room. I pledged to never buy a stupid AV receiver again in my life. I'm going old-school 1970's 2-chanel solid state.
My first ebay false start.
Pink. Pink! Pink!!! And not some derived, imitative, unoriginal pink but genuine, unadulterated early 1970's pink. I didn't care how it sounded, I wanted it! Starting bid was only $30 with a buy-it-now of $50. The problem was it only worked out of the left channel. My budget for a reciever is $250 so I seriously considered buying it and getting it fixed until I called my local repair man who said that he can't even look at it. He's booked for the next five weeks. I can't wait that long.
After many days of search and research I settled on Sansui. I don't like the look of them very much but after watching a youtube video, that early 70's vintage reciever sound came flooding back. I haven't heard that sound since visiting my parents rich friends when I was a child. "Now I get it!" Now I'm going to get it. I don't care about the looks, I want a Sansui.
My listening room which doubles as my eat-in-kitchen is small. I don't need power. I want refinement and I settled on one of the many Sansui 221 available for less than $200.
Just when I was about to click "BUY" I gave one more Google look-see and found this:
Sansui 661. Circa 1971. New LED's, Fuses replaced, Pots cleaned. A little above my budget at $270 but have you ever seen a Sanui like this one? Wow. Sold! It shipped via FedEx from Portland, Oregon and I woke this morning to a message telling me it is on the truck for delivery in Philadelphia. Woohoo.
I am matching the Sansui with, not my dream Kef's but very well priced Kef Q150's ($300).
So, what do you think of my (under $600) system?
(Tidal Lossless - Schiit DAC - Sansui 661 - Kef Q150's)
Cheers, All.
Chris
I am posting here for the first time to celebrate my new system. But first, a little about me and my audiophile journey. My father was an electrical engineer and he taught me how to wire a component system when I was 7. He used to send me recorded 8-track tapes from far flung places around the world where he would amaze me by speaking from both right and left channels separately in between Beatles songs. He used a Harmon Kardon that has a model number lost to posterity but by the time I was ten I had my own inexpensive semi-integrated system. I upgraded through my teens with hand-me-downs and then amazing my fellow students with Pink Floyd in my dorm room at Drexel.
The first system that I bought for myself was a Denon reciever used with my ancient hand-me-down cabinet speakers. I knew I could not hope to afford new speakers that would outperform them so I continued to use them until I turned 30. However, frequenting the plentiful audio stores downtown a salesman insisted on playing a tiny pair of Kef's before I walked out the door and I was mesmerized. I have never been able to find out what exactly they were despite plentiful research. They were (aprox.) 6" square and I just stood there in disbelief. I think they were $300 in 1991 or thereabouts. I have dreamed of buying a pair of Kef's ever since.
The Denon died a dishonorable death typical of stereo equipment owned by twenty-something wild kids in the city. I replaced it with a NAD 3130(?) which did honorable duty in the bar I owned from 2004 - 2011. I left it there when I sold the bar; as you do.
At this point, spending time at home which was a new experience for me, I ran to BestBuy to get something quick and cheap and brought home a Harmon Kardon AVR 146 and a pair of Klipsch Synergy B2's. The HK had respectable sound for a cheap AV reciever but the controls are exasperating! The manual volume control quit working years ago and the remote will only change the volume under certain circumstances. "Unforgivable!" I shout as I pull up Ebay to look for a replacement. I never did figure out how to adjust the balance on the damn thing. Literally, three subsets of menu's using the remote. Absolutely ridiculous considering my mis-shapen listening room. I pledged to never buy a stupid AV receiver again in my life. I'm going old-school 1970's 2-chanel solid state.
My first ebay false start.
Pink. Pink! Pink!!! And not some derived, imitative, unoriginal pink but genuine, unadulterated early 1970's pink. I didn't care how it sounded, I wanted it! Starting bid was only $30 with a buy-it-now of $50. The problem was it only worked out of the left channel. My budget for a reciever is $250 so I seriously considered buying it and getting it fixed until I called my local repair man who said that he can't even look at it. He's booked for the next five weeks. I can't wait that long.
After many days of search and research I settled on Sansui. I don't like the look of them very much but after watching a youtube video, that early 70's vintage reciever sound came flooding back. I haven't heard that sound since visiting my parents rich friends when I was a child. "Now I get it!" Now I'm going to get it. I don't care about the looks, I want a Sansui.
My listening room which doubles as my eat-in-kitchen is small. I don't need power. I want refinement and I settled on one of the many Sansui 221 available for less than $200.
Just when I was about to click "BUY" I gave one more Google look-see and found this:
Sansui 661. Circa 1971. New LED's, Fuses replaced, Pots cleaned. A little above my budget at $270 but have you ever seen a Sanui like this one? Wow. Sold! It shipped via FedEx from Portland, Oregon and I woke this morning to a message telling me it is on the truck for delivery in Philadelphia. Woohoo.
I am matching the Sansui with, not my dream Kef's but very well priced Kef Q150's ($300).
So, what do you think of my (under $600) system?
(Tidal Lossless - Schiit DAC - Sansui 661 - Kef Q150's)
Cheers, All.
Chris
