Remember your First Hi-Fi Store ??

[Blast]

My first inkling was, of all places, a drug store in about 1967 or 1968. Just inside the southeast door of the Katz Drug Store in North Kansas City, Missouri, a couple of kids, late teens I suppose, had set up a display of silver-faced Japanese electronics. I don't even remember the brand, I was not into gear at the time, having had little exposure to anything else but all-in-consoles and flip-over phono cartridges. They were playing Nothing by the Fugs, and it was quite a shock to my system.

That brings back memories! There was a Katz at 75th & Metcalf (across the street from Burstein-Applebee. It was as 'Wal-Mart' as it could have been in 1968! When did it change to Skaggs?



The building is still there and is a CVS drug store on top and a furniture store on the bottom. That fancy crap on the roof makes it look like it's 3 stories.

 

[tdst51]

First Store

Late 60s/early 70s- Jim Salzer's Music Emporium in Thousand Oaks, California. Tho if I remember right, it was more of a head shop/record store. I don't think it's there anymore, but I believe there is still one in Ventura.

 

[record_spot]

We're lucky enough to have a good few here in Edinburgh, and the first I visited is still in business, though it's gone more mainstream now (in terms of stock carried) as opposed to the wide range it used to carry. Hi Fi Corner is a small chain of around 4 shops; two in Edinburgh and one each in Falkirk and Glasgow.

Current favourites are Loud and Clear - an excellent shop carrying a wide range of some seriously good kit and Retro Reproduction, a mostly used hardware dealer, both in Edinburgh. The latter is like an Aladdin's cave - some very nice high end kit too (EAR, Cairn, Neat Acoustics) both new and used. Love going there and could easily spend hours in the place!

 

[tankdonovan]

MY first Hi-Fi store was the Navy Air Station exchange in Agana, Guam 1970. Was not set up very well but it really had the gear. Pioneer, Sansui, Sony, Teac, Kenwood, Yamaha etc. What a place! I bought my first system there.

TankDonovan

 

[richh]

That brings back memories! There was a Katz at 75th & Metcalf (across the street from Burstein-Applebee. It was as 'Wal-Mart' as it could have been in 1968! When did it change to Skaggs?

The building is still there and is a CVS drug store on top and a furniture store on the bottom. That fancy crap on the roof makes it look like it's 3 stories.

Great photo , looks like the early fifties from the parked cars.

 

[KFCrosby]

Ogden Record Shop - Baton Rouge, LA - Bon Marche Shopping Center

Mid 60's - early 70's. One could go in, grab a record out of the rack and listen to it in one of the three listening rooms. They were the McIntosh / Altec Dealers.

Then a true visionary opened up a "hi-end" audio/video shop, Art Colley's Audio Specialties. This is the place I was joined with my current ADS 1530's.

 

[JimJ[VT]]

I've really only been to one store that would qualify - Deja Vu Audio in McLean, VA. Wish there were more places like that around

There's a place in Roanoke, VA that I've heard about, but I've never been.

 

[MJSNet]

On the eastside of Detroit in the 70's The place to go was Stereoland or Pecars audio.

Ahhhh yes! :yes:

There was also Almas HiFi in Dearborn and Birmingham. I remember going in with my dad and seeing McIntosh and Klipsch everywhere and was pretty much blinded. I believe they are still in business today.

 

[elcoholic]

For me growing up in Southern California during the 70's it was first Pacific Stereo and then came the competition: Cal Stereo, Leo's Stereo, Federated. And all prior to this was Muntz Stereo ( I used to go snow skiing with Muntz's son up in the Big Bear Area with the Blizzard Ski Club circa 1967) My how times have changed.

Efa

University Stereo in the early 70s was an old house on PCH in Signal Hill (Long Beach). It was a speak-easy where you had to knock on the door and they'd look you over through a peep hole and decide if you looked cool enough to be let in. Blacked-out windows, black lights and posters and plenty of weed being consumed. Shortly thereafter they went legit and had a few stores that competed with mid-fi stores like Pacific Stereo and "Fredrated".

 

[centralflori]

Wolfman's Stereo in the Altamonte Mall IIRC was where I first noticed and bought audio gear Can't remember all the brands they carried, but if memory serves correctly they had a Pioneer SX-1010, nice Marantz receivers, and JBL L100's. I settled for a demo SX 626, Pioneer turntable and a pair of their store brand speakers. Eventually picking up a pair of HPM100's from the classifieds.

Eventually a store moved into the same mall that carried Bozak speakers, Bang & Olufson turntables and receivers. They also had many high end sources, amps, and preamps. Those huge Bozak's were the biggest speakers I had ever seen, boy I wanted a pair of those at the time.:yes:

 

[chuckworkb]

David Dean Smith Hi Fi store in New Haven CT is where I caught the bug for stereo, and a place called Audiotronics in Fairfield CT, is where I bought my first piece of gear.

 

[finnbow]

Dixie Hi-Fi in Kensington, MD. Bought my first AR Turntable, Fisher receiver and KLH speakers there. Dixie was a step in the corporate evolution of Circuit City.

 

[bluesky]

Yes, Sears, got a turntable to listen to the beatles and dave clark 5.

 

[kennyshark]

I bought my current Pioneer main system from Tokyo Shapiro when I moved to the Cleveland area from Akron in the early 80's. I grew up in the Akron area with the major audio haunts being Radio Shack, Olson Electronics, Dixie Hi-Fi, Audio Hall (Get an Earection at Audio Hall) still have that bumper sticker, and Layfayette Electronics. Olson's had a great factory outlet/warehouse store in Akron also. How I miss it.

Olson's outlet was kickass, Audio Hall too, for My Brother and I it was Audio Warehouse in Cleveland, We had a friend that worked there, He would take us into the "high end room" we would crank up pink floyd on SAE and Infinity gear, I remember listening to a pair of Infinity's that were 6,500.00 each THAT got me hooked on audio gear for life!:yes:

 

[JohnVF]

I do, actually. I bought a TT from an Amish girl at a barn/garage sale. This raises many questions..why did an Amish girl have a turntable? I don't know. Maybe she was Mennonite, they can use electricity. And why was there a Prince record under the rubber platter mat? Me thinks she was keeping some uncouth thoughts under that bonnet.

 

[Reel 2 Reel]

place in the local Mall in Saginaw ...called PLAYBACK...

My first experience with the Pioneer RT-909...and Phase Linear Amps...


Damn... the good ole days are long gone... :sigh: (heavy sigh inserted here)

 

[titanstats]

Commercial Electronics on Burrard in Vancouver. Used to go in there as a young teen and just drool. It's still there, and there's still plenty to drool over. It is cruelly just a block or two from my work.

 

[mjennens]

We had a few on the east side of Cleveland back in the '70s. Audio Warehouse in Mayfield Hieghts was my favorite. Tokyo-Shapiro in Eastlake, B&B Electronics in Wickliffe. We even had a department store simply named "Best" that had some decent gear. Those places always smelled good too; the smell of new speakers and new electronics.
In '79 I joined the Air Force and went to England and Germany. I spent hours in the PX and Audio Club just looking, listening, and lusting. I picked up a set of JBL L40's for $300, an SX780 for somewhere around $200, a Technics SA-818 for $300, a used PL600 (S-shaped tone arm) for $100, and a Sansui SC3330 cassette deck for around $200. They had so much more available, and then there were the guys who wanted to continually upgrade, so used stuff was pretty reasonable.
I live a long way from any of those places now, so I have no idea if they're still in business.
Cool stuff! :thmbsp:

 

[resqguy]

In the early 70's I used to hang out at the local Radio Shack in Berea OH. I used my paper route money to support my hobby.

In the late 70's it was Century Stereo on Winchester Blvd in San Jose CA. They carried McIntosh, ADS, B&O etc. One of their salesguys was RonC, a member here, who eventually left and went to work for McIntosh.

 

[JohnVF]

I do, actually. I bought a TT from an Amish girl at a barn/garage sale. This raises many questions..why did an Amish girl have a turntable? I don't know. Maybe she was Mennonite, they can use electricity. And why was there a Prince record under the rubber platter mat? Me thinks she was keeping some uncouth thoughts under that bonnet.

I read this as 'score', not store, and then went back and read...I guess I should read before I post. but I guess an amish barn could be a store, if you're buying cows.