What was your very first piece of audio equipment

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  • Stew
    Stew Posts: 645
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    Moved up to one of these a couple of years later:

    qasb5wwchip6.jpg
    SDA 2B-TL (Sonicap/Solen/Mills, Erse Super Q, Rings, Spikes, No-Rez)
    1000VA Dreadnought
    Dared SL-2000a (Siemens & Halske TM 12AT7WA's, Brimar 5Z4G)
    Jolida JD-100a (Sylvania BP TM Gold Brand 5751's), NAD C275BEE, Blue Jeans

    RTiA3, Onkyo TX-SR605
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  • Irrenhaus
    Irrenhaus Posts: 1,082
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    I had one of this. I could afford the ones from Sony at the time.

    From Sears
    07juo1a5flne.jpg
    HTAVR-Pioneer SC99XPA-DR3 Differential Reference AmpPolk R-700Rear- RT150Side- RT150Center-CSi5Sub-Rythmik audio F25Player- Panasonic DP-UB9000Projector- Optoma CinemaX P2Screen- Silver Ticket Products STR Series 6 120"Audio Room 2ch rig.Cary AE-3, Onkyo M-504, Marantz SA8005, Azur 851NWharfedale - Linton, SVS SB12-NSDMinis Forum PC (streamer) and Panamax MX5105Headphone rig;Schiit JOTUNHEIM and different headphones.Samsung 42" flat screen TV.
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  • Emlyn
    Emlyn Posts: 4,373
    edited June 2017
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    Mine was an Aiwa HS-JO2 portable cassette player/recorder/tuner. Also known as the "Cassette Boy" because it was not a Sony "Walkman". Got it at a Base Exchange in Germany in the early 1980s.

    That had inputs for a stereo microphone, AM/FM tuner with antenna, and I also remember buying a set of amplified portable speakers to use with it. That could get surprisingly loud and sounded good. I must have had that thing around for 15 years until the motor wore out.

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1983/01/07/walkman-and-pals-hit-full-stride/bbe79f54-7abf-4692-b6c6-40ff909914ac/?utm_term=.2a3ddd3bf5c0
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  • PSOVLSK
    PSOVLSK Posts: 5,065
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    Irrenhaus wrote: »
    I had one of this. I could afford the ones from Sony at the time.

    From Sears
    07juo1a5flne.jpg

    I had that same stereo. I had forgotten all about it. I guess this was my first also.
    Things work out best for those who make the best of the way things work out.-John Wooden
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  • Stew
    Stew Posts: 645
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    Rick88 wrote: »
    On a slightly embarrassing note, some of the 8-track tapes I had included Barry Manilow, Abba, and the Carpenters... :o:)

    Lol, I had an eclectic collection that included everything from Black Sabbath to the Bee Gees. We saw Barry live at our elementary school auditorium - several years in a row.
    SDA 2B-TL (Sonicap/Solen/Mills, Erse Super Q, Rings, Spikes, No-Rez)
    1000VA Dreadnought
    Dared SL-2000a (Siemens & Halske TM 12AT7WA's, Brimar 5Z4G)
    Jolida JD-100a (Sylvania BP TM Gold Brand 5751's), NAD C275BEE, Blue Jeans

    RTiA3, Onkyo TX-SR605
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  • Jaybeez
    Jaybeez Posts: 748
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    fr6w7krn0c41.jpg

    Bought at Pacific Stereo in San Diego on or about my 15th Birthday
    2 Channel "Polk" Room:

    Marantz PM8004 Integrated
    Marantz SA8004 SACD Player
    Music Hall mmf 7.3 TT with Ortofon Bronze
    WiiM Mini
    Schiit Bifrost with Multibit Upgrade
    Polk 7B with RDO198s
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  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,103
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    Rick88 wrote: »

    On a slightly embarrassing note, some of the 8-track tapes I had included Barry Manilow, Abba, and the Carpenters... :o:)

    sljt800thwb8.jpg

    Can't be more embarrassing than having brand new 180g copies of them on vinyl like I do. B)
    The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD

    “When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”— Thomas Jefferson
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  • steveinaz
    steveinaz Posts: 19,522
    edited June 2017
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    My first "real" audio system I put together in 1977-78 which consisted of a Pioneer SX-780 receiver, Pioneer CT-F500 cassette deck, Pioneer PL-512 turntable, and Pioneer HPM-40 speakers. I was in audio-heaven.
    Source: Bluesound Node 2i - Preamp/DAC: Benchmark DAC2 DX - Amp: Parasound Halo A21 - Speakers: MartinLogan Motion 60XTi - Shop Rig: Yamaha A-S501 Integrated - Shop Spkrs: Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2
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  • muncybob
    muncybob Posts: 2,973
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    1st 'real' system was a Pioneer SX-450, Gerrard Zero-100 tt, Kloss cans and a pair of Sonic speakers which were def the weakest link....kept me happy for awhile though.
    Yep, my name really is Bob.
    Parasound HCA1500A(indoor sound) and HCA1000(outdoor sound), Dynaco PAS4, Denon DP1200 w/Shure V15 Type V and Jico SAS stylus, Marantz UD7007, Polk L600, Rythmik L12 sub.
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  • 55LS70
    55LS70 Posts: 184
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    My purchased my first stereo in about 1976 and it consisted of a Marantz 1060 integrated amp, a Thorens TD165 turntable with a Pickering cartridge, and a pair of Pioneer HPM-60 speakers. A couple of months later I added a Rotel tuner. My cousin now has that amp and I believe it still operates. They were tanks.
    Decware CSP3 Preamp, RCA 6DJ8, 2 X Rocket 6N1P-EV's, Cary SLA70B Signature V2 Amplifier: 2 X Mullard GZ32's, 2 X RCA/GE 5691's, 4 X Tung-Sol 6550's

    Cambridge Audio 640C V2 CD Player & Dacmagic DAC

    Rega Planar 3: Deep Groove Subplatter, P3 Motor
    upgrade, Dynavector 10x5, JA Michell counterwieght, Cardas tonearm wiring and Mapleshade stand

    Parks Audio Budgie Hybrid Phonostage with BEL 6922 tubes, Polk Audio LS70's

    H.H. Scott 330D AM/FM Tuner with H.H. Scott 335 Multiplex adaptor.
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  • codycatalist
    codycatalist Posts: 2,662
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    The first I purchased was a JBL home theater with a Sony receiver from a Pawn shop for like $150. It was nice for the price and got me through with good bass. First buy after I knew some about audio was Monitor 5s off local Craigslist for $30 and a Marantz PM225 at Goodwill for $12 with a matching EQ (I have now since stopped using EQs)

    First audio anything I can remember...my grandma's hand me down Sony Walkman and some of these bad boys


    igvcei2nsm0s.jpg

    Just a dude doing dude-ly things

    "Temptation is the manifestation of desire which equals necessity." - Mikey081057
    " I have always had a champange taste with a beer budget" - Rick88
    "Just because the thread is getting views don't mean much .. I like a good train wreck doesn't mean i want to be in one..." - pitdogg2
    "Those that don't know, don't know that they don't know." - heiney9
    "Audiophiles are the male equivalent of cat ladies." - Audiokarma Member
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  • GospelTruth
    GospelTruth Posts: 403
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    PSOVLSK wrote: »
    Irrenhaus wrote: »
    I had one of this. I could afford the ones from Sony at the time.

    From Sears
    07juo1a5flne.jpg

    I had that same stereo. I had forgotten all about it. I guess this was my first also.

    esxm4rtnfz1s.jpg


    Heh. I had one very similar myself. My dad worked at Sears at the time and got his "employee discount" for this. I thought I had it made back then as a kid in the early 80s.

    Then I "upgraded" to a Kenwood rack system in high school (1987) and thought I had reached nirvana. CD player, double cassette deck - perfect for making those "mixed" tapes. Back then I thought it was best to have everything matchy matchy and couldn't understand why some friends had a yamaha receiver with a denon cassette and polk speakers. Still, it's fun to look back on those days.
    Speakers
    Energy RC-70 Mains, Energy RC-LRC Center, Energy RC-R (x4) Rear Channels, Energy RC-R (x2) Front Effects
    Polk 5jr+
    Polk SDA 2B
    Polk SDS 3.1TL
    Equipment
    Panamax 5510 Re-generator Power Conditioner
    Yamaha RX-V3800 Receiver
    Digital Sources: Sony CDP-X339ES CD Player, HHB CDR830 BurnIt Professional CD Recorder, Sony PS3, Oppo DV-983H DVD Player
    Analog Sources: Sony TC-K890ES Cassette, Nakamichi DR-1 Cassette, Technics SL-7 Turntable
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  • halo
    halo Posts: 5,616
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    GE AM/FM STEREO CASSETTE MUSIC SYSTEM:

    8397234592_4bcf04bf5a_b.jpg

    The early to mid 80's??

    Audio: Polk S15 * Polk S35 * Polk S10 * SVS SB-1000 Pro
    HT: Samsung QN90B * Marantz NR1510 * Panasonic DMP-BDT220 * Roku Ultra LT * APC H10
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  • dolbyd
    dolbyd Posts: 430
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    MY first was a GE single speaker portable cassette player.

    I then went to a Pioneer SX-1300 receiver and a pair of BOSE 2.2's
    I was in heaven back then. The 2.2s are still in my dads workshop.
    Main room- RTiA9 x4, CSiA6, in ceiling Atmos RT-70 x4, SVS PC 4000 x2, Marantz 8805A, OPPO 203, Emotiva DR3 G3, Emotiva XPA-2 G3, Emotiva XPA-5 G3, Emotiva X300, Sony 75" 940E, Panasonic Plasma VT50, PS Audio Power Port X2, PS Audio AC-5 x8, AQ Rocket 33 Biwire speaker cables, AQ King Cobra XLR IC, Furman PFi20 W/Cullen cable, SoildSteel S4-4 rack, Gik room treatments

    Office- Legend L600, in ceiling Polk RC80i, Marantz 7704, OPPO 203, Pioneer Elite PDF-59 CD, PSA Stellar 300, Sony 55" 800B, Gik room treatment

    Master BR- Signature ES60, Signature S35 Center, Signature S15 Dolby Height, LSI700 in ceiling, SVS-SB4000, Marantz 5012, Emotiva XPA5 G2, OPPO 203, Pioneer DVL-919 Laser Disc, Sony 55" OLED

    Patio- SDI Atrium8 x3, Emotiva A-100 amps x3
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  • PSOVLSK
    PSOVLSK Posts: 5,065
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    GospelTruth wrote: »
    PSOVLSK wrote: »
    Irrenhaus wrote: »
    I had one of this. I could afford the ones from Sony at the time.

    From Sears
    07juo1a5flne.jpg

    I had that same stereo. I had forgotten all about it. I guess this was my first also.

    esxm4rtnfz1s.jpg


    Heh. I had one very similar myself. My dad worked at Sears at the time and got his "employee discount" for this. I thought I had it made back then as a kid in the early 80s.

    Then I "upgraded" to a Kenwood rack system in high school (1987) and thought I had reached nirvana. CD player, double cassette deck - perfect for making those "mixed" tapes. Back then I thought it was best to have everything matchy matchy and couldn't understand why some friends had a yamaha receiver with a denon cassette and polk speakers. Still, it's fun to look back on those days.

    I also went from this system to a Kenwood system. I can't remember if I still have the same Kenwood AVR or if I upgraded somewhere along the line, but I still have the 5 disc cd player and dual cassette deck. Sold the Kenwood speakers long ago. I'd say I've gotten my money's worth out of this system. Couldn't agree more that it's fun to look back on those days. It was very cool to see the picture that Irrenhaus posted as I had completely forgotten about that stereo. Sad, because I was so excited to get it somewhere about Christmas 1984.
    Things work out best for those who make the best of the way things work out.-John Wooden
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  • sgtmick63
    sgtmick63 Posts: 166
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    My first real system consisted of a Kenwood KR-5600, A BIC 960 turntable, 2 Large Advent speakers and 2 Avid 102 speakers. This was around 1974-75.
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  • mhardy6647
    mhardy6647 Posts: 33,052
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    This thread reminded me that my real introduction to pop music was via a mid/late-1960s era RCA "bean bag" AM transistor (battery) radio.

    The design of the radio was like a 'bean bag ashtray' (for anyone who remembers those). It looked like this, with a green, blue, and black plaid bean-bag bottom. The bottom ultimately decomposed away (which seems to be the case for the one in this borrowed photo, too).

    RCA_RJG30A.jpg
    Image from http://future-forms.com/portfolio-item/rca-rjg-30a-bean-bag-am-radio/

    I listened to it at night in bed; went to sleep to the soothing tones of WCAO-AM (600 kHz) in Baltimore. WCAO was the big top-40 station in those days. It was owned, inexplicably, by a drug company (Plough Corporation). I have vivid memories of the summer of 1970 Top 40 hits because that's when I really started listening to pop music in earnest.

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  • dromunds
    dromunds Posts: 9,984
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    First system was a pair of Rectilinear IIIa HighBoy speakers, Garrard Zero 100C turntable with a Shure V15 Type III cartridge, and a Sherwood receiver. Got some of it from Pacific Warehouse I think it was in San Lois Obispo. Upgraded the receiver to a Marantz and then went to separates: Pioneer Spec Amp and S.A.E. 2900 preamp I think it was. Listened to transistor radios a lot as a kid like others here but never actually owned one.
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  • halo
    halo Posts: 5,616
    edited June 2017
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    My first "stereo system" (circa 1988/89?) consisted of an H.H. Scott RS250 receiver, a Pioneer PD-X707 CDP, a Pioneer CT-1280WR Dual Cassette Deck, and some homemade/DIY frankenspeakers using repurposed Sanyo 2-way cabinets with the original drivers thrown in the bin in favor of a set of Jensen Coaxial 6x9's mounted to a piece of wood about 1" back of the original opening in the cabinet where the OEM 6 1/2" woofer resided (we blocked off the hole where the original tweeter and front facing port were located).

    About a month after getting all of that together the 25 watt per channel H.H. Scott died (the inner LCD display kept falling inward and I believe it shorted something out or it could have been incapable of handling the 4 ohm load of the Jensen Coaxial speakers) and it was replaced with a 58 wpc Onkyo TX-830 (built like a tank and never faltered the entire time I owned it - not made by the same co Onkyo is today). The CDP often had tracking issues but it lasted about 10 year before it bit the dust. The Cassette Deck lasted into the 2000's before the recording deck couldn't make decent recordings anymore (sound was muted).

    The first two pics are of my actual stereo(s), the rest are better pics of the components on eBay.

    35466652061_624dbd7533_h.jpg34788120763_a92b00b3fa_h.jpg

    H.H. Scott RS250
    34788121733_69ccf96763_o.jpg

    Pioneer PDX-707
    34755699794_685b5bf1ac_o.jpg

    Pioneer CT-1280WR
    34788121343_c629b28dd5_o.jpg

    Onkyo TX-830
    s-l1600.jpg
    Audio: Polk S15 * Polk S35 * Polk S10 * SVS SB-1000 Pro
    HT: Samsung QN90B * Marantz NR1510 * Panasonic DMP-BDT220 * Roku Ultra LT * APC H10
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  • Airplay355
    Airplay355 Posts: 4,298
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    I was about to make fun of you guys for being old...then I saw some stuff I recognized.
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  • sgtmick63
    sgtmick63 Posts: 166
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    Unfortunately some of us are old in years only. I still think i'm 18.
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  • slopes1967
    slopes1967 Posts: 24
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    Rick88 wrote: »
    Then there were these:

    I owned 4 or 5 pair of Radio Shack speakers when I was starting out, and loved it when they often had buy one, get one free deals on speakers. That was all I could afford at the time, but I thought they sounded great. I finally was able to afford the mighty Mach II's when they had one of the BOGO sales around '83. My stepfather still has his pair hanging in the family room. He bought them a couple of years after I bought mine and they have seldom been used, and are in mint condition. I recently looked them over good, thinking the foam woofer surrounds would be rotted after 30 plus years, but they are not at all. I was surprised.

    Those were the days. This is a great thread, thanks to the OP for starting it... B)


    I had 4 of those Mach IIs I got in the late 80's I sold them to my brother in 96, he still has them and they still play great, no foam rot either. I loved those speakers, he won't sell them back to me! LOL

    "Looks like it's bound up, with a tight looseness... Could be worse, could have been a loose tightness..."

    Vintage Vinyl Man Cave:

    Monitor 10a
    Rotel RB-981
    Nikko Beta 30
    Nikko Gamma 30
    Nikko NP 750
    Nikko ND 850
    Technics SL-D202

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  • slopes1967
    slopes1967 Posts: 24
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    When I was 12 in 1979 I inherited an RCA combo system from my middle brother which had a turntable, 8 track and AM/FM radio. The speakers were single drivers and it sounded horrible but I thought it was great. After doing some odd jobs, and with my Dad's help I picked up this stuff about 2 years later:

    2ibrb2he4ptt.jpg
    56o10on4kg7o.jpg
    ksxuwlxay2oe.jpg
    18665z9419x2.jpg

    The LXI Stuff was brand new from Sears. The tape deck I had was the 3 head model. The BSR turntable was from a a friend who sold it to me for 30 bucks (I still have it lol) The RS Towers I saved up for a bit later and had to use the crappy speakers from my combo system for awhile. I ended up upgrading those towers to the mighty Mach IIs, 4 of them...

    22fhho45vn7g.jpg

    At that point I ended up getting a bigger receiver, Aiwa I think, all buttons and rocker switches, gone were the analog dials and knobs :/

    Time passed; new recievers, tape decks, hi-fi VCR, turntables etc. Many I've forgotten.. Nice trip down memory lane. Thanks for this thread..
    "Looks like it's bound up, with a tight looseness... Could be worse, could have been a loose tightness..."

    Vintage Vinyl Man Cave:

    Monitor 10a
    Rotel RB-981
    Nikko Beta 30
    Nikko Gamma 30
    Nikko NP 750
    Nikko ND 850
    Technics SL-D202

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  • slopes1967
    slopes1967 Posts: 24
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    Stew wrote: »
    Rick88 wrote: »
    On a slightly embarrassing note, some of the 8-track tapes I had included Barry Manilow, Abba, and the Carpenters... :o:)

    Lol, I had an eclectic collection that included everything from Black Sabbath to the Bee Gees. We saw Barry live at our elementary school auditorium - several years in a row.

    It's ok, I had and still have an eclectic collection as well. We all have our guilty pleasures :) I'm a fan of "Could It Be Magic" there, I said it... :)
    "Looks like it's bound up, with a tight looseness... Could be worse, could have been a loose tightness..."

    Vintage Vinyl Man Cave:

    Monitor 10a
    Rotel RB-981
    Nikko Beta 30
    Nikko Gamma 30
    Nikko NP 750
    Nikko ND 850
    Technics SL-D202

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  • dannylightning
    dannylightning Posts: 233
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    now i actually remember what my first piece of equipment was..

    viz1b9qkkbhs.jpg
    Cambridge Azur 651A
    Polk LSi M703
    Sonos Connect




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  • Stew
    Stew Posts: 645
    edited July 2017
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    slopes1967 wrote: »
    Stew wrote: »
    Rick88 wrote: »
    On a slightly embarrassing note, some of the 8-track tapes I had included Barry Manilow, Abba, and the Carpenters... :o:)

    Lol, I had an eclectic collection that included everything from Black Sabbath to the Bee Gees. We saw Barry live at our elementary school auditorium - several years in a row.

    It's ok, I had and still have an eclectic collection as well. We all have our guilty pleasures :) I'm a fan of "Could It Be Magic" there, I said it... :)

    Mine's still eclectic too. It was in the mid to late 1970''s when he played at our elementary school. I just Google'd him out of curiosity and holy crap, he just finished his last tour a couple of years ago!
    SDA 2B-TL (Sonicap/Solen/Mills, Erse Super Q, Rings, Spikes, No-Rez)
    1000VA Dreadnought
    Dared SL-2000a (Siemens & Halske TM 12AT7WA's, Brimar 5Z4G)
    Jolida JD-100a (Sylvania BP TM Gold Brand 5751's), NAD C275BEE, Blue Jeans

    RTiA3, Onkyo TX-SR605
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  • spazmo
    spazmo Posts: 21
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    A Pioneer SX-220 and some Nonameo speakers. I was on top of the world! My first componets.
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  • mhardy6647
    mhardy6647 Posts: 33,052
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    Nonameo. I've had a few of their product offerings over the years.

    :)
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  • normanb
    normanb Posts: 1
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    Mine was a Pioneer SX-850 (which I still own today), KHL speakers which I don't remember the model and a Pioneer PL-12D turntable.
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  • spazmo
    spazmo Posts: 21
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    Nonameo is a subsidiary of Jizmore Corporation.
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