Your First System, Circa...

[tom_L]

Mid to late 60s:
Not much of a system but I had:

1. An Ampex cassette deck with a built in amp and separate speakers (gift from parents). It had a tasteful wood finish.
2. A dual speaker table radio (don't recall the brand).


Not too long after that I built a Knight kit receiver. Relied on the family's system for playing records until I eventually picked up a turntable.

 

[kconnor]

Mid '70s

Marantz 2230

BIC 960 with Shure V15III

Infinity Monitor Jr. speakers

Advent 201A Cassette Deck

I’ll never forget the Infinity Monitor Jr. It was a great speaker for the price. It had exceptional bass that was equal or better than any speaker of its size I'd heard that was available at the time.

 

[rcspkramp]

1968, a complete Realistic System, tiny little amp and tuner, a set of 8" two way speakers and a BSR changer. But only a year later that became

A Dynaco SCA-35
A pair of Dynaco A-25s
A Benjamin Miracord 50H with a Stanton 500ee.

 

[FauxHall]

A Marantz 1030 integrated amp, EPI 150 speakers, an AR turntable, with a used, little Zenith/Sony receiver serving as FM source.

All mounted on cinder blocks and particle board shelves in married student housing circa 1973.

 

[Badco67]

This was my first system circa 1968 or 1969.

 

[ofajen]

Circa 1975:

HK 330B
Philips GA-427 TT
Sennheiser HD 400s
Cheap speakers of a brand I can't recall exactly, like, Audio Linear, maybe? They were $50 for the pair at York Electronics. 2-way, sealed, phenolic ring tweeter and 8" woofer, IIRC.

The speakers didn't thrill me, but the rest of the stuff I still have. The 330B is still in regular use. Could stand some TLC.

Cheers,

Otto

 

[the_nines]

Circa 1965.

Some photos already posted in similar thread I started some months ago about my first real system.

I was 24, had my first real job after the military, and was learning about the wonder of credit cards.

These pictures are priceless!

Good for you for keeping them.

:thmbsp::thmbsp::thmbsp:

 

[the_nines]

Great freakin' title to your OP!

My earliest recollections to decent sounding sound was when my dad bought this console. Circa 1967 ! The wood furniture on the unit was top-notch. The sound was a notch better. Can't remember what he had (but you have given me a mission), he still has it, I'll make a point of finding out.

On a personal level, the very first items I bought (1974/75):

Thorens TD125 MK2
Marantz 2245
Acoustic Research: AR2ax


The rest is history.

Glad to be part of it.

 

[uplander]

Sony Walkman, through high school.

First real system, circa July of 1989, purchased at the PX at Camp Butler, Okinawa, Japan:

(I think these are the correct models numbers, but it's been almost 20 years since I sold it all.)

Polk SDA 2B Speakers
Nakamichi PA-5 Amplifier
Nakamichi CA-5 Preamp
Kenwood KT-5020 Tuner
Denon DCD-1520 CD player
Teac V-970x Cassette Deck

Traded up the Nak PA-5 plus some cash before leaving the rock to a buddy for a PA-7.

Sold the whole set up 5 years later to pay rent during my last semester in college. Geez I loved that system, and I'd still have it today if things had been different. I've actually thought about trying to re-create it just for the memories.

 

[oblomov]

Circa 1975:

Cheap speakers of a brand I can't recall exactly, like, Audio Linear, maybe? They were $50 for the pair at York Electronics. 2-way, sealed, phenolic ring

Ultralinear?

My brother had a pair of 3-ways in the late 70s. They were actually very good, at least at the time. He may still have them...

 

[opa1]

First system around 1967-68. Got it for Christmas. Am/Fm, 8 track with phono on top. Two speakers. Dont remember the brand.(JC Pennys or Sears?) Played that thing forever. Still have Lp's I bought at the time. Wasn't bad for a 10 yr. old.
Cool thread Musichal!

MK

 

[Wigwam Jones]

First real system, circa July of 1989, purchased at the PX at Camp Butler, Okinawa, Japan:

Semper Fi, bro. I bought most of mine while I was in Okinawa in 1983, but I didn't buy any of it at the PX. I bought some at the annual audio show they held at the Field House (I lived right in front of the Field House at the Provost Marshal's Office barracks) and I bought some in various audio shops in Naha. I was also stationed at Camp Butler/Foster.

 

[rajoo]

1974; Marantz 2270, Dual 1228, Bose 501 and a Teac 4xxx reel to reel.

 

[RandyFloyd76]

After a year of stereo envy my freshman year in college in 1977, I mail ordered from Illinois Audio:

Sansui 9090
Sansui SC-2000 Cassette Deck
Sansui SP-5500x Speakers

I then bought a Dual 1249 turntable from Fred's Sound of Music in Portland, Oregon to complete the system.

 

[WarmNotFuzzy]

Fall 1975

Harmon Kardon 330B receiver
Garrard 440 turntable
Marantz 4 speakers (Imperial?--too small in any case)

That's all I could afford as a college freshman. It was from Warehouse Sound in Southern CA. I still have that receiver and my next two sets of speakers: Electro-Voice EVS16B's and HPM 100's bought in 1976 and 1977.

 

[uplander]

Semper Fi, bro. I bought most of mine while I was in Okinawa in 1983, but I didn't buy any of it at the PX. I bought some at the annual audio show they held at the Field House (I lived right in front of the Field House at the Provost Marshal's Office barracks) and I bought some in various audio shops in Naha. I was also stationed at Camp Butler/Foster.

Semper Fi. I almost bought some Denon mono blocks at a shop just outside of Kadena. I've often wished I could go back there and retrace some of my steps with hair on my head and the wisdom gained in the last 20 years.

 

[Coastsider]

These pictures are priceless!

Good for you for keeping them.

I kept the turntable too, a Fairchild 412-1B with a Shure/SME 3009 tonearm. It had been stored for about 35 years until last June when I cleaned it up and put it back in service.

1965

2012