Archive for the ‘Vintage Audio’ Category
How sweet it is, vinyl is making a comeback. It’s music to my ears, literally. I just bought Will Hoge’s latest album “The Wreckage” on vinyl and it included a free MP3 download of the entire album. The best part is that it’s available a month before the CD. I can start building my vinyl collection again and get the digital album. Best of both worlds, with the free download I don’t need to “rip” vinyl which takes too long compared to ripping a CD. Good times, I guess I need to find a new stylus for my Beogram turntable.
Bang and Olufsen Beogram 1602 (Denmark)This is a great turntable for those that want good vibration damping without custom work.
Everything about this turntable works; it’s simplicity at its finest. The single, multi feature button takes some getting used to but in the end it’s simple too. If your budget won’t afford you that Thorens you always wanted then be sure to look at Bang and Olufsen Beogram turntables. EBay usually has a few auctions going. Try to get one with a good cartridge and needle or you may push yourself out of the price range you were looking for.
DBX 119
This is an awesome device. I used this as a compressor and expander back in my metal tape days. It got the most use extending the range on my vinyl LPs though. I’m still in the market to replace the one I sold in the 80s.
DBX II Model 128 Dynamic Range Enhancer and Noise Reduction System
I like this device but it has more features than I need. I prefer the simplicity of the 117, 118, and 119 models. The added buttons and noise reduction don’t really do anything for me. Like the other models I referenced the 128 can do the same expansion I like on my vinyl records as well as the compression to tape and then expansion from tape. You big tape heads might prefer the extras on the 128 but I like the small boxes. The best news is, you can usually pick up a model 128 for less than a DBX 119.
Pioneer SX-780 Stereo Review
A great stereo receiver that never gets old. What a workhorse. When I was a teenager I sold an old 1969 Grand Prix to the junkyard just to get up the cash to buy this stereo. I wasn’t sorry. It was underrated for power at only 45 watts per channel. I used it to drive some big 15 inch AAL (American Acoustic Labs) speakers that were soon replaced by Infinity RSA speakers and eventually some Infinity RSB stereo speakers.
After about 5 years of use I was able to replace the old Pioneer with some sweet Phase Linear Series II stereo equipment. 25 years after I first owned the Pioneer SX-780 I purchased one on eBay. I now use it as my home-office stereo along with a pair of Infinity RSA speakers I also picked up on eBay. You just can’t beat the sound per dollar of the vintage Pioneer SX-780 stereo reciever (intentionally spelled wrong so we don’t discriminate).
