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Passing the torch to the younger generation

Don't mean to be a killjoy but the op is a testament to the sad decline, no, disappearance of the highlight of our lives here. Sure it's great to see a flicker of light but that's the direction it's been going. Case in point: my son hasn't been to my house for about 4 years(we have cats and a dog and his son now 5, has been seriously allergic but is now growing out of it) but have just come over instead of us always visiting them. So he calls his son over to my Kappa 9s and say's "look" as he slowly removes the grill as if this is a museum and he's presenting the dinosaurs. I have a pair of 4645s taking up space in my bedroom til I put together my active JBL system. Not sure if I want to build cabs for 2245s or just use these instead. Anyway, one glance and he and his wife looked at each other incredulously but at least with understanding. His wife Alexandra comments, "so you have a hobby". I go "yes".
 
I'm not old (22), but I've already started helping those younger than me by passing gear onto them. I gave my brother a pair of Realistic Optimus-400s and a pair of Pioneer CS201WAIIs I picked up from thrift stores and refoamed. Mainly, they were his birthday present this year, but I would have given them to him anyway as I really had no use for them. (I also was loaning him a set of Onkyos that I wanted to sell off for some $$$.)

Superampman said:
Don't mean to be a killjoy but the op is a testament to the sad decline, no, disappearance of the highlight of our lives here. Sure it's great to see a flicker of light but that's the direction it's been going.
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I think the decline has leveled out and perhaps is even on the incline. The vinyl and vintage "fads" (I personally think they have existed beyond fad status) have opened the eyes of many to the wonders of better audio, even if they don't buy into either one. Even the home theater crowd is listening on something better than the "standard", which is either a Bluetooth speaker or cheap headphones. The "bassheads" and party people are very receptive to large speakers; they tend to drift towards pro equipment and car audio, but that's most definitely better than a Bluetooth speaker. I think on the headphone front as well, the popularity of Beats and Bose is a good thing. Just think of how bad the most popular mainstream headphones were before those came along and the "noise-cancelling" craze started.

I talked to several people at my college (all males), that had an interest in better audio. And that was just a small sampling of people that lived in my building. And these people were talking about buying (or already owned) real speakers.

I agree, the world has certainly declined in regards to audio, but *fingers crossed* the current better audio trends I have noticed in my generation will hopefully continue to grow and the "standard" will get better and better.
 
Superampman said:
...So he calls his son over to my Kappa 9s and say's "look" as he slowly removes the grill as if this is a museum and he's presenting the dinosaurs....
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That reminds me of a stage play I saw recently, put on by college students at UCSB. Most of the action took place in the mid-20th century and the dialog included multiple repetitions of the word 'phonograph'. All of the students -without exception- pronounced the word "FAWN-a-graph." No one said "PHONE-o-graph" and initially I thought this must be some sort of wacky, regional pronunciation. Then it dawned on me that most of these kids had no direct experience of vinyl records as a living medium. Not only that, but many of their teachers probably grew up in the post-vinyl, post-phonograph age. They may never have heard the word "phonograph" pronounced before.
 
It's funny, since I got into tube gear and got Dad's old B&W DM16 speakers I gave my old Denon Reciever, Sony SS-F9000 speakers (nice sounding speakers actually), Dream Accoustics down firing sub to a mate. He's now just dipping his toe into records and saving towards a better record player and phono stage. I may pass on my secondary table, a Grado cartridge and Little Bear T10 for 1/3 their value towards this purpose.

The other interesting thing is that after hearing my system Dad got a new B&O system for his main living room, the a new set of TOTL B&W floor standing speakers + Rotel reciever for his study....

The B&W's & Rotel are still in their boxes though I initially couldn't stand the sound of the B&O system. Once broken in though it sounds fantastic, though not quite as nice as his old speakers with my upgraded Yaqin amp.

He's enjoying rediscovering his old music collection on it which is great. Personally I can't imagine spending that much on a system though that's because I lack the means to do so. He on the other hand lacks the time to tinker so a package system makes sense for him.

A mate of mine at work became interested after me yammering about mine too much. He picked up some tatty B&W bookshelves so run in parallel with his old speakers which lacked detail, and picked up an old locally made turntable with a B&O arm and cartridge on it. He's very happy with the results.

Basically I've found you can't make people interested, though if you show them what they want once a system is asked about it goes a lot further.
 
I've listened to some of the 'new stuff' he plays.

He really digs it!... it's his business.

lalala .
 
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Great tale from the OP! Haven't had the chance to do the same, but the day's coming. Eldest grandson will be off to college in a year, so I'm thinking a dorm-size rig should be a good going-away present. Probably will be one of my extra Pioneers and possibly a pair of AR-4x. No TT or CD needed since his phone will be the source. And, my neighbors have been renovating an old church in a nearby town & turning it into a future house. I'm going to put together a nice "housewarming" system for them...probably another Pioneer:) and one of my pairs of DLK 1 1/2s. And, after a new belt and a little tweaking a belt-drive BSR ought to work just fine.
 
I helped out the son of a guy at work.

The young man had bought a turntable and an Eagles album at a thrift store and could not figure out how to get sound out.
I hooked the turntable up to Realistic STA-430 receiver for him.
He was very impressed, with good reason.
That little STA-430 is awesome.

I sent him home with the receiver and a set of Criterion speakers that I had recapped.
Last I heard he was enjoying them.

He is on his honor to donate $15 to a local pet rescue charity as compensation.
 
rkgren1 said:
I helped out the son of a guy at work.

The young man had bought a turntable and an Eagles album at a thrift store and could not figure out how to get sound out.
I hooked the turntable up to Realistic STA-430 receiver for him.
He was very impressed, with good reason.
That little STA-430 is awesome.

I sent him home with the receiver and a set of Criterion speakers that I had recapped.
Last I heard he was enjoying them.

He is on his honor to donate $15 to a local pet rescue charity as compensation.
Click to expand...

Great story! I love the idea of charging the kid a donation to a local charity.
 
I passed on my secondary Toshiba SR150C table, Little Bear T10" phono stage with NOS tubes, a nice Grado cartridge for about 1/6 cost to a mate as he's just getting into vinyl He's previously got my Denon reciever, Sony SS-F9000 speakers and downfiring sub for free when I moved to tubes and got dad's on B&W DM16 speakers. His system sounds really quite nice.
 
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passing-the-torch.jpg
 
Over the past five years I sent all three of my children off to college at various locations across the US. It wasn't easy, but I sent all of them off with vintage systems I put together, each with separate amps, preamps, turntables, quality speakers, and reel to reel decks. First in their dorm rooms and now in their apartments, these systems have stood the test of time and have been enjoyed at times by large groups of college students. It's been the greatest pleasure sharing this hobby with my children and their friends. I find it fascinating to see how they interact and use the old equipment and the music they each have collected and gravitate towards. My oldest son mixes music on a 4-track for the metal band he plays in, my daughter hosts a Jazz show at her college radio station and my youngest son DJs private dance parties on the side. If this is passing the torch, then count me in: I can't wait to have grandchildren!

Edit to add an interesting side note: I was shocked to learn that most of my kid's peers had never seen or even heard of a reel to reel deck before in their lives. We've got work to do folks!
 
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