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Your first system

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Onkyo TX-8511

Ran with some Pioneer twin woofer system... that was the name of the set... "Twin woofer system"...



Also use some Realistic Minimus 7's as rears.

This was back in the early 2000's, I had systems prior but it was gear that belonged to my dad, other smaller devices/players. But my 1st system that I had my self was ^^.

No CDP, no TT, no tape just an RCA-2 > 3.5mm Headphone jack for the iPod.

I do have to say that damn Onkyo receiver was pretty good sounding.


https://www.google.com/imgres?imgur...vhAhVLwlQKHQuwBnUQMwiFASgAMAA&iact=mrc&uact=8
 
Back in high school late 70's
had a Technics receiver about 30 - 40 watts/ch. don't remember model #
a Dual turntable, Advent cassette deck and some 3 way Audio Spectrum speakers.
 
My first 'system' was a Kenwood BPC rack system from the late 80s that was pretty much utter crap. I replaced the amp and pre with an Onkyo A5 that my dad gave me after I got better speakers. The only part of that system that I still have is the tuner.
 
Looks like a note was hit! Enjoy reading everyone's input, so thanks for the responses. I can relate to "putting a nickel on the head shell to keep the needle in the groove" experience. Thinking about my gradually evolving systems, it's easy to see the increase in quality directly related to increase in disposable income...ie: from non-brand, low-end basics (high school/college), to Realistic stuff (married with kids, but pretty good for the money), to Yamaha/Sony mid-levels (access to the Px, so good deals), to higher-end Sony receiver/Bose 901s, and finally Sony GX-10ES receiver (bought used, '89 model), Sony CDP, and a pair of '69 Klipschorns with recent full Volti upgrade. Can't say that I enjoy the listening experience that much more, but it is different! Hard to compare 50 year old memories to current perceptions...
Keep 'em coming folks!
 
Bill Ashton said:
Late 1968 or maybe '69...

Electro-Voice EV-1179 Receiver
Realistic Lab-6 Turntable
Realistic Solo - 1 Speakers

I know where the tt and speakers went, but wonder whatever happened to that little FM-only receiver?
Click to expand...
The 6"×9" and 6" driver versions of the Solos have been popping up a lot locally. I thought about grabbing the 6" version and trying some better drivers in them the cabinets are nice.
 
Shibatube said:
Back in high school late 70's
had a Technics receiver about 30 - 40 watts/ch. don't remember model #
a Dual turntable, Advent cassette deck and some 3 way Audio Spectrum speakers.
Click to expand...
Hi Shibatube - see you have a Nobosound KT-88. What's your opinion on this piece? I'm looking to add some tube power to my system, but I'm going 'round and 'round shopping for the best approach (value).
 
Northwinds said:
I never saw a Walmart back in 1972... just Nichols, Whites, Kmart, Sears etc... must not have been in upstate NY back then. I see that Walmart first opened in 1962 so it must have been primarily a southern store back then
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The Walmart store I bought my first stereo in was located in Bolivar, MO, which is probably less than 200 miles or so from Bentonville, Arkansas, where Walmart's HQ is.
 
My first 'real' stereo system was prompted by my interest in vinyl. We had some Emerson tabletop all-in-one stereos with BSR record eaters on top, but I quickly realized they were crap, and began researching real stereo systems in the only source I knew: Radio Shack catalogs. I asked my parents to get me a stereo receiver for Christmas, and instead of the low-end Optimus STA-20 I expected, they stepped up and got me the next model up from it, the STA-300. :biggrin: Here's a picture of a STA-300 similar to it:
optimus_sta-300_am-fm_stereo_receiver.jpg

After Christmas, my father and I visited a local Radio Shack store, and we picked out a set of Optimus XTS-23 bookshelf speakers to go with it. He then handed me down the Garrard 730m record changer and Sony TC-127 cassette deck which had been part of his own stereo system in the '70s. This combination worked better than the Emersons, though the STA-300 had the nasty tendency to forget its presets and reset to 98.1MHz at the drop of a hat. :no: Several trips to Radio Shack's warranty repair center didn't solve the problem, but I was soon handed down a Sony STR-VX5 receiver by another relative, along with a BSR EQ-3000 equalizer, and the Sony never forgot its presets even several years later.
-Adam
 
Sedge said:
Looks like a note was hit! Enjoy reading everyone's input, so thanks for the responses. I can relate to "putting a nickel on the head shell to keep the needle in the groove" experience. Thinking about my gradually evolving systems, it's easy to see the increase in quality directly related to increase in disposable income...ie: from non-brand, low-end basics (high school/college), to Realistic stuff (married with kids, but pretty good for the money), to Yamaha/Sony mid-levels (access to the Px, so good deals), to higher-end Sony receiver/Bose 901s, and finally Sony GX-10ES receiver (bought used, '89 model), Sony CDP, and a pair of '69 Klipschorns with recent full Volti upgrade. Can't say that I enjoy the listening experience that much more, but it is different! Hard to compare 50 year old memories to current perceptions...
Keep 'em coming folks!
Click to expand...

Eh, this has been done before, we just like showing pics of our gear lol.
 
I really wish I could answer this properly; I had a hand-me-down system from my dad back in the early '90's. I know the TT was a Realistic Radio Shack semi-auto from sometime in the '80's, and I had an early (1992-ish) Sony single-CD player. But I'm fairly certain the receiver was a really nice one; I THINK it was a late-70's Sansui, based on my fuzzy recollection of my preteen years and pictures of old Sansuis I've seen around. Silver face, green lights, big as hell and in a wood case.

No earthly idea what the speakers were, though.
 
My first stereo, when I was 15, was a little Dokorder compact system. Bought it at the PX in Baumholder Germany. Fifty years later, I still have it. It the oldest thing I own. (It's buried in the garage somewhere, or I'd show a pic.)
 

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My first purchase was a factory built Dynaco SCA-35 integrated amp. It was hooked up to an 8-track tape player....I still have the mint SCA-35 amp in original form, and it still sounds great.

My first full system purchase was a Pioneer SX727 receiver, a Pioneer PL-12d turntable and a pair of Jensen 3-way speakers. I loved that system and want to find an SX7x7 receiver.
 
Late 1960s. First system...... a nice little stand alone VM record changer a friend had given me. A small Lafayette stereo amp my parents bought for me, and my dad's Lafayette AM/FM tuner. (Cannot remember what mish mash of speakers I was using but can guarantee it wasn't a matching pair)

Still have all three of the above mentioned pieces and they're all functional !
 
My very first system was a Juliette 8-track with builtin amp and the speakers that came with it. Afterwards, I used a receiver that my dad ordered that was designed for a console stereo of some unknown make. He built a really bad box out of wood for the receiver and later installed it in a base cabinet at his office for background music. I used a Technics SL-235 with it ('78) and added a Pioneer CT-F750 cassette deck the next year. The following year, I replaced that weird receiver with a Pioneer SX-750. I worked that summer mowing yards and added that to birthday gift cash and replaced the Juliette speakers with first gen Bose 301's. That was sometime before the Pioneer receiver. All in all, it was a decent system for a 14 year old (in '80).
I still have the Pioneer receiver and cassette deck. I traded the 301's for a pair of CS-99a's (still have these too), and my ex- has/had the 301's. I gave the Technics turntable to a friend around '88, and I think he may still have it. I've still got a bunch of TDK SA cassettes from that period. They lived in my car for years and still play. I need to replace a belt in the cassette deck and check out the receiver; I know the deck needs a belt, and I haven't touched the receiver in probably a decade. Both are in near perfect cosmetic shape, so they will definitely be good candidates for a bit of refurbing.
 
Awwwritght! All good stuff. Best part was the music. I may be old, but I got to see all the great bands! I gave away my 400 album vinyl collection once I realized CDs were here to stay. Still know the guy, but he won't give 'em back ;-(
 
My first "my" system, at age 17, was a Rek-O-Kut belt-drive TT with ROK arm and Pickering cartridge (no idea which). Amp was an all-tube integrated Harman Kardon kit I built in my bedroom. Speaker was a 12" dual concentric, maybe EV. I could only afford one, so no stereo. All cables were state-of-the-art at the time: they were wire.

Records were the only source. Mine ranged from Chuck Berry and Jerry Lee Lewis to Bach and Bartok. The Pop was all 45rpm 7" singles. The ROK was 33.3rpm only. To play them, I found a rubber washer at the hardware store that fit over the pulley and fattened it. Speed was exact... within ±20%. I sanded the rubber away while it spun until it sounded "right", probably between 31 and 35 rpm.
 
I built a Knight Kit KM-15 when I was 12. Used it with a scavenged TT with a ceramic cartridge and an 8" full range whizzer cone speaker.
 
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