In praise of older hi-fi

This was sparked off by a comment from Mick Parry a little while back and my response to it.

My No. 2 system lives down in what the Swiss call the Bastelraum (“hobby roomâ€Â) under the house, a room about 5M square, 2.5M high and solid concrete covered with rendering (vinyl for the floor)). It has three sound sources:

Linn LP12/Ekos/Klyde MC (second-hand) supported on its own rubber feet, playing through a Creek OBH-9SE phono stage

Meridian 588 CD player (ex Ian “Sideshowbobâ€Â)

Sony cassette deck TC-K615S

Now comes the ancient part

Amplifiers:

Quad 33/303 (1981 vintage, with Net Audio modifications)
Quad 44/405-2 (unknown vintage but excellent condition, bought on E-Bay for about £360 the lot)

each connectable via a switching box to the same speakers, namely

Rogers LS3/5A (1981 vintage)
Klang+Ton “Cheap Trick†active transmission line subwoofer - see

https://www.audio-forums.com/as-rediect/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15

Everything can play through the 44/405-2 and the CD player can play through either amplifier (they sound so alike that I have to look at the position of the switches on the switching box to see which one's playing). Interconnects (DIN plugs) by courtesy of good ol' David Laine of Flashback Sales (how did I ever live without him?).

The 33/303 and LS3/5As were bought new, but are readily available second-hand (although people often ask for silly money for LS3/5As).

The point is that this set-up sounds very good indeed. A very subjective statement, I know; I'm not saying that it's the greatest, or that it can't be bettered, but it makes great music for my overwhelmingly classical tastes (I have rock, but it's largely confined to ornamental bits in the garden, and I don't feel the need accurately to reproduce minor nuclear explosions). With two very large daughters and a Swiss mortgage, I don't have a lot of money to spend on hi-fi, but the point is that I don't have to, and I have no particular desire to compare with anyone else's. So, impoverished music lovers, take heart! You actually don't need all the latest gizmos or spend a fortune to have good sound. OK, it'll never make the Audiophile Club of Athens's list of high end systems, but who cares?

 

it'll never make the Audiophile Club of Athens's list of high end systems

LOL! I think that might not be such a bad thing! Has amplifier technology really moved on very much in the past twenty years?

 

Can I shamelessly point out that I'm selling some Quads on the buy and sell page..............listen to what the great man says and act

 

Pictures, please!

 

Nothing available at the moment but one's 21 and the other's 18 (this very day). I feel old.

 

Truly ancient artifacts, Tones, but valuable ones. Don't depart with them


regards

 

Say happy birthday to her from me Tones - just make sure she doesn't mix her drinks and then go near your Linn

Oh, and if either of them DO become available <cheeky grin>... Just don't let them see that "Who's got the biggest" thread - he he he!!!

 

Tones,

It would appear from your post that you purchased a brand new set of esoteric and expensive Quad Amps whilst your good lady wife was pregnent with your first child.

Never before has the irresponsible attitude of the average hifi lover been so clearly illustrated. Shame on you sir

 

T'is true, how very observant of you, Merlin, and I hang my head in shame.:shame: However, the amp was bought in Belfast at a bargain price and the speakers in Tottenham Court Road and exported back to Oz, where we would have paid a lot more for them. And, as the value of investments can only be assessed over a period of time, I'd say that our investments paid off handsomely, would you not?

 

So to clarify once again Tones, not only did you spend valuable funds on frivolous items of hifi whilst your wife was expecting your first born at any time, but you blooming well travelled half way round the world to do so, leaving her behind to fend for herself in the harsh antipodean climate

You are only digging yourself in deeper sir

 

That's ancient? I wonder if you'd get an even better sound if you moved to older gear, say the Leak or Quad glass stuff.

Love those LS3/5As. How well do they integrate with the sub?

 

Well, actually, she was with me. The pregnancy was not that far advanced at that stage (the now-not-so-little-dear duly arrived in 1982), so there was no problem. We travelled all round Europe by train, with Mrs. Tones only losing her breakfast a few times on the very wiggly bits. And as a reasonably competent pianist and music lover, she approved.

 

Old, who's old, I have 6 kids, 3 girls, the oldest is 28 and has two kids of her own... :JPS:

That reminds me, for sure I am the one with more kids in here... :cowboy:

 

Re: Re: In praise of older hi-fi

Well, comparatively ancient, compared to the stuff that most folk run!

Integration? Pretty good, I find. The sub doesn't go particularly deep (about 50Hz) but it adds a nice bottom end. Indeed, it sometimes has to be throttled back from its normal volume position.

The LS3/5As are simply amazing. There are people who detest them, but I think they're great. I once had a big old pair of speakers, made from a kit, with Peerless drivers. When I got them home, I plonked the little Rogers on top and wired them up. my hi-fi enthusiast of a father-in-law came across to listen and after a while said, "Very nice, now let's hear the little 'uns", only to be greeted with the inevitable line... He was flabbergasted. (I confess, so was I). I recently had the chance to acquire cheaply, some B&W bookshelf speakers. The Rogers wiped the floor with them, so that the B&Ws are now in the attic, while the Rogers reign in their normal place.

 

Ancientness must go with the name, Antonio!

 

Thanks for putting my mind at rest there Tones. I guess I should have realised you were simply doing the Europe thing (understandable to me given the tremendous lack of natural beauty and culture to be found in Australasia)

Nice system by the way, to my ears most modern amplifiers merely sound different, not neccessarily better. don't you get a warm glow from listening to something like that, even though you could sign spend a fortune on new kit. I suspect it's like putting on an old pair of shoes.

 

I wouldn't agree with "lack" of natural beauty - Oz is different, that's all. I find much of the bush flat and boring, but many find great beauty there. However, the sea- and skyscapes of Oz are magnificent. And swimming among the coral and the fishies on the Outer Great Barrier Reef is Something Else Again.

Culture? Well, it's not as prevalent in Europe, but it's there. And the locals are so wonderfully laid-back! I married one. Best thing I ever did.

 

IIRC the LS3/5A is a high impedance job and Quad power amps give up very easily into low impedances. So a good match all round.

FWIW my Aktiv crossover was born on June 21 1988, so it's well into that stroppy period.

Paul

 

Re: Re: In praise of older hi-fi

Found one; she was younger then...

Nope didn't work. How do you put photos in these things?