My down-sizing pics.. Anybody else have any you want to share?

Tony M

BlueBirdMusic wrote: »

Which Craigslist do you post on by the way?

The Wilmington NC. one.

I have "more items from seller" put on the ads. I didn't put my number on these ads. If somebody is interested, they'' email me. Then, I've been checking the emails for validity. All but one seemed like guys with REAL interest. The really interested guys quickly exchanged enough info that I felt really good about a paper-trail / phone # trail / if anything should happen to me or both of us.

I don't believe a few guys lately have turned down this TV stand I offered for free since they bought speakers and stuff from me. One just built his own from a slab of exotic wood. Another, last night, said he had one that his TV's weight eventually cracked the top glass shelf. It was an older plasma. He now hangs every TV on a wall.

https://wilmington.craigslist.org/ele/d/wilmington-audio-tv-stand-reduced/7281791561.html

I have in the past typed a lot of info on my ads. People would still ask oddball questions. So this 3rd time downsizing event , I haven't even staged anything to make the speakers look like they're the only speakers in a stereo set-up. I just thought....I couldn't stage them before even if I wanted to.
I guess I'm getting old.

I have thought about staging the next ones in a presentable manner since I now have a ton of room to do it in.

Tony M

Checking things out to see if they still work;

I found out my Adcom pre-amp creates the hum when a unit is plugged into any of its RCA inputs. I put a different CD in the Adcom system and the same very slight hum is present. I switched cables and all kinds of tricks like running the CD player plug to an outlet 8' away, same little hum. Oh well, I can't hear it from the couch or 2' away.

The more I play these Fluance ES1's, the more they break in and sound better and better. I've got them listed but I just might keep these things. I dropped the price to 50.00 for the pair too. One guy inquired but only once to see if I still had them. I've now raised the price accordingly.











When I had Polk Audio LS90's beside the TV for years but sold them and put the BP30's there. The screen could come down a lot more when the LS90's were there and expose the top of screen where the black frame surrounds the screen. I will have to raise the screen's mounting enclosure about 2 or 3 inches higher. Then the whole white part will hang down far enough to have a black frame about 3" all the way around it. That shouldn't be a problem since it's already up on that shelf. It is very heavy and needs to be secured very, very well.

BlueBirdMusic

Tony, Pat yourself on the back for how organized you have everything.

Tony M

Thanks Harry.

I feel I've just completed stage two of ten.

I need to get going on covering that ceiling soon. I still can't believe I'm in a state of openness out there to even consider doing it. I started my purge last Aug. 5th.

I had JUST completed putting a ceiling up in the back room a little before that date. I guess I seriously wanted to put a ceiling up in the front room AND to be able to enjoy my stereo systems again before I'm called to the other side.

I also knew my wife and step daughter don't give 2 cents about anything out there and they'd just give it away. I thought I might as well be the person giving things away. If I can't sell it in a short time....donations or gift giving to friends or acquaintances will transpire.

I passed up another possible great stereo system that was on Facebook marketplace.

Milito

Great results Tony, congrats on all of your efforts.

I hope I do as well as we are going to be moving the last part of April and I have a lot of stuff to clean out.

mrloren

Good job on cleaning it up. To me it looks like a lot more to do. Still looks a lot better.

I tried cleaning up the garage yesterday. A full load to goodwill and trash can. Wife came out and asked what have I done. You know there was just too much junk piled up when she didn't see things missing.

Tony M

mrloren wrote: »

Good job on cleaning it up. To me it looks like a lot more to do. Still looks a lot better.

I tried cleaning up the garage yesterday. A full load to goodwill and trash can. Wife came out and asked what have I done. You know there was just too much junk piled up when she didn't see things missing.

Sounds like my first few days.

When I cleaned off the book case shelves and the Right wall shelves of A LOT of books, the shelves looked cleaner BUT there was still NO floor space cleared.

I've taken a small breather partly because there were a lot of rainy days and I did little things and took it easy. Yes, I can still see "stuff" that has to be dealt with too.

I advertised some more speakers last night, hoping to attract some more interest.


Good luck on YOUR progress too. Maybe your wife will some day soon say "WOW, it looks great now!" like mine eventually did about a week or two ago.

I didn't think my wife would've ever said that about my outbuilding's front room. She has NEVER said, in 15+ years, that the front room looked "great".

Tony M

Milito wrote: »

Great results Tony, congrats on all of your efforts.

I hope I do as well as we are going to be moving the last part of April and I have a lot of stuff to clean out.

Thanks Milito

I hope your move goes smoothly.

Moving is the biggest event people have to go through as far as physical effort goes. Unless a moving company is called in or the people moving are minimalists.

I would have to call in the National Guard if we were going to move.

Milito

Thanks, I have a bad back so a moving company will do the heavier items. I'm not supposed to left over 40 to 50 lbs.

The home we are moving to is only 5 minutes from our current house.

Tony M

I'm really sorry to hear about your back being bad. I hear that bad backs stay with you forever most of the time.

But I am glad to hear movers are going to help you. 5 min. away huh... that's a great thing! Again, I hope the move goes smooth.

Tony M

This afternoon my wife and I moved these end-tables out to the cottage. I bought them from a expensive furniture store employee that had them at their yard-sale. She got them at a huge discount for some reason or another. These things weigh about 80lbs. each. I think I paid 120.00 for the pair.

We never used them in our house as end-tables in over 10+ years or more. We used them as a kind-of buffet under a double window. We always had a cat bed set up on one so our cat could watch the birds at our feeders 10' away from that window.

Anyway, I wanted to put some big bookies up on stands and using these came to mind. They're bigger than I remembered them being but they'll do for now.

I put my repaired ADS L800's on them and man was I in for a treat! Amazing speakers! I see why people want 700.00 + for great cond. pairs. The sound was great with no added tone control correction.

I'll probably keep these too. They need a very light sanding on their tops and the grills need replacing I think. Well I enjoyed another listening session sitting on the couch and standing behind the couch about equal time. I have about 5 sets of big bookies to audition properly. I'll post some pics of each pr. I put on the tables as I do it.










I definitely wanted them to be mobile and I hoped 2 dollies just sitting around from selling the speakers that were on them, would fit under them. THEY DID. Perfectly too. The tables are elevated off the floor a little and roll around with a little effort.




I had this chess set in the living room for about 2 years or more. I took it out to the cottage too. Now I have a chess set on the coffee table.













Good night.

Milito

Nice Chess pieces and board.

Tony M

Thanks.

I agree.

I always wanted the Star Trek set and after years of looking I finally bought one from eBay at a great price. I pleaded with the seller to please pack it well. They said they would.

the box showed up and it looked like it was used as a soccer ball for a quick game. I posted pic.s here on the Forum when it showed up. I took pics. as I opened it up to have pics. for a certain/probable insurance claim.

To my surprise it was pristine. It was jumbled big-time and a big miracle nothing was damaged!

Tony M wrote: »

And I thought USPS handled our packages better than UPS or FedEx. Man did my wife and I freak out when the mail-(person) snuck this onto our porch and high tailed it off of our street at 6:00 PM. Thank God the chess set survived without a scratch.
The shipper had a friend ship it off after he had moved away. There was 6+ inches of airspace above the board with 2 sheets of paper ( flat paper) for space filler! At least the board was wrapped in very thin bubble wrap. I don't think it would even be considered bubble wrap but it had some air things going on but almost useless for protection. But it was taped tightly around the board so it kept it together. The pieces inside were not secured and they were everywhere and in every direction inside the board. Glass board top and crystal bases on the pieces. Nothing damaged. A true miracle!

We put the pieces in their proper places before I took a picture. I almost didn't want to open the box and have USPS come take it back. I'm glad I looked in it and found the set to be perfect. It was a great bargain buy from Ebay too.

Tony M

I still want to add these sets ( among others ) to my collection;

https://www.ebay.com/itm/283971808508?mkevt=1&mkcid=1&mkrid=711-53200-19255-0&campid=5338761608&toolid=10049&customid=102_280_190


https://www.ebay.com/itm/174638766193?mkevt=1&mkcid=1&mkrid=711-53200-19255-0&campid=5338761580&toolid=10049&customid=102_185_296


Also...The king tut set where the board is covered by a glass pyramid.

VR3

I actually have that first set, been sitting in the box on a shelf in a closet at my moms for almost 2 decades

Thing is massive, would be sweet if you had a room dedicated to chess, seriously massive

Milito

Very nice!

Tony M

I have thought many times about me having one stereo system and lots of chess sets set up on shelves like this chess store is set up.. And then having chess matches from a local chess club, or college people on a certain day of the week.

https://youtu.be/ck1U12t16Oo

Willow

Some guy in skinny jeans must have packed that box...

Tony M

rooftop59

Are those JBLs? How do they sound?

Tony M

Yes, JBL s412pii's.

They were probably the BEST BARGAIN in audio history when they went on 50% off sale at Best Buy or Circuit City for 450.00 a pair. Reg. 900 a pair.

Got them from a Pawn shop many years ago. I then lost those 10 years or so and they ended up in the back room as soon as I built it. I hooked them up about 6 months ago in the back room and noticed a loose RCA jack for the powered sub on one speaker. I fixed a set of RSL 3300's the other day and then thought...bring in that JBL now and have a look. I found out the mounting screws for the jack were loose. They both (JBLs) work just fine now.

They blew me away the other night!!

They're hooked up to my Adcom system. I think from what I re-read the other night, I have them hooked up to what makes them shine...Good POWER. These monsters do everything right! The other night I was 7' from each speaker and they were 7' apart to their inner sides. They are still on dollies. I can't see how they could sound any better than they did the other night when I place them on the floor soon. They're 96 lbs. each so I will get help to take them off the dollies.

Sat. night I spotted something...I saw where I could place my Tritons against the wall if I took out a stereo rack from the right side. I worked a lot tonight doing just that. I then listened to my Tritons for a couple of hours in their new positions. They still sound GREAT too.

I'll listen to the JBLs again very soon but further away and spaced further apart too.

BlueBirdMusic

Love those JBL’s

Tony M

I've sold 14 sets of speakers now. I started last August.

I sold 2 sets to start it off.

Then the next set sold was 2-4-21.

It's been pretty steady ever since. I just need to keep posting ads!!

I've heard some very nice stories and met some very nice people, two of which are so more advanced with audio knowledge, experience/s and have collections that make mine look like a closet full of odds and ends. I felt like a 6th grader talking to graduates with Masters degrees but enjoyed every minute. They both offered their knowledge to me when-ever I needed to talk to them about anything. Knowledge or physical help fixing a problem involving electronics or speaker/ crossover and wire construction of all the types. So NICE!


Remember that set of Kenwoods with the 15" passive woofer in the bottom separate cabinets. That set with about 8 speakers up top...Out of the blue...He emailed me and said he had a set of Pioneer CS99A cabinets that were a lot better than mine that were in my ad. He said he sold his components from the cabinets and I could have his cabinets and grills for nothing. He said I'd have a better chance of selling mine by using his cabinets. My boxes are rough! I went to get them Sat afternoon and met him. This one man has been collecting church, auditorium, movie houses and stadium speakers FOR YEARS. He buys them, fixes them up to his acceptance level and then tries to re-sell them. I was in his warehouse ( for 45 min. that afternoon. My wife was PISSED because she sat outside waiting, and waiting. ) and he was glad to point out a lot of his projects. A lot finished, a lot in progress. It is with-out-a-doubt an AWESOME huge collection of very expensive large pro audio equipment and speaker systems. Some home gear and speakers too. AWESOME if you have a huge warehouse to warehouse them all.

But Mostly HUGE SPEAKERS. I will def. accept his offer to hang out at his warehouse when-ever I want to. He's a down to earth guy and would love to help teach anybody what he knows JUST to be of help. He's a super-kind soul! The huge Tannoy speakers that were here and there. JBL pro stuff like in my back room everywhere, but his are black. Every name you could think of related to pro-speakers is in his warehouse. Miles of wires, THICK wires that is, everywhere. I was in PRO-speaker and pro-AMP HEAVEN. There were the sound mixing boards for systems everywhere too. Like me...it's his "passion but really just a HOBBY" that he loves to do. He was me x100 or more.

So...Sat. I accepted his empty cabinets to swap with my pos's as soon I sanded and made the better ones look like new again. I never even got them out of the garbage bags we put them in because of spider weds everywhere. the webs were really old and dusty so it was just a small concern but we bagged them just in case anyway.

But this morning, the man from Raleigh area had sent me an email around 9am, stating he wanted my Pioneers but because of their cond. he wanted to pay rock bottom money for them. I had them VERY LOW anyway but we worked it out...I NEED space!
When I said I had a lot nicer cabinets, 2 more grills and a spare bad-cross-over, he said he was on his way and the price was good now. He was happy as a clam I think. He now owns 2 pairs CS99A's but his pair is the FB editions. They are more desirable. 2 spare cabinets and a spare cross-over that just needs a capacitor replaced. He loves their sound!!!! I plan to visit him asap after the 15th when his house is move-in ready.

Then the man who came today from Raleigh area showed me his collection back home of STUDIO electronics and speakers too on his smart-phone. He's a sound mixer for who-ever hires him to make or finetune recordings. He has a separate studio building. UNBELEIVEABLE impressive racks and RACKS of top-of-the-line amps, and sound control electronics I have never known existed. Multiple racks...Only a studio engineer would know about most these components. I believe he is a master of engineering sound recordings. He told me owns an original AMPZILLA amp that he LOVES. His studio gear PLUS a lot of top-of-the-line home-style amps and receivers. He likes to tri-amp speaker set-ups he said. He also analyzes the sounds frequencies before and after him putting his touch on them in real-time. He really LOVES his business of audio playing and recording manipulation if needed.

And his wife is into his studio sessions as much as he is. They were very nice and they both loved my cottage and the stuff in it. Him the stereo stuff, her ...my nick-naks and artsy stuff.

My empty floor space is getting bigger and bigger. Even the back room has gained some noticeable floor space now.

I have yet to donate any speakers. I did give that old co-worker friend 2 subwoofers that needed fixing. He was such a great co-worker to me, I hope he gets them fixed cheaply. I wouldn't regret one bit to hear he got them working.

Later.

Tony M

It's been years I believe since I could sit in my couch and face the SDA-SRS2's and Newform research's.

I really enjoyed the evening tonight!

Milito

Nice improvement Tony. Looks like all of your hard work was worth it.

Tony M

I finally did something with my main Integrated NAD amp that was suggested to me to do. Can you spot what I did?

The LED line is a huge clue.

Tony M

The hum in the Adcom system seems to have been a loose IEC power cord on the AMP socket. A tighter fitting cord seems to have solved it.

I also kept a 3 prong to 2 prong adapter on the male end.

On to another project...

schwarcw

The improvement in appearance is astounding. You've done such a great deal of work. Very nice!

Tony M

Thanks Carl.

I should've never let that room get cluttered but it has a reason why. Just like hoarders, we have a traumatic experience/s and we take in more than goes out. I guess to take our minds off of a negative/s mental or physical anguish. Like a cocoon of joys that's really smothering us slowly.

My pain has been gone for a long time (years) and I'm checking off the "to-do" list all the time now. It's a long list though...

The other day, I thought, I need to replace the red Camry's hood assist lifters. I've been propping it up for years with a 2x2. why...?. 40.00+ and I had 2 new ones ready to go. I read online about the job and that helped a lot. Just like today, I set up my trash and recyclables cans for work benches and in 45 min., I have a like new, powerful! hood lifting assist pistons. 15 years or more of bs, that should've been long ago. But it's done now...

Today, I wanted to clean my cars and truck headlight faces. Been thinking about it for a few days lately since doing those hood lifters.
A few hours of steady work today and I polished/rejuvenated 4 headlights, one front turn-signal lens and then prepped my wife's car headlights after she got home, for a polishing job tomorrow. She even helped me.

Then ate dinner and out to track down the hum as long as it took. Thankfully it was what I thought because of last night's little investigation. I heard a hum last night. I pulled the shelves out from the wall...NO hum. OK.... I've got it zero'd in on the movement of the shelves the system is sitting on. THAT movement involves the hum 100%. :-) It was a very quick fix.
Well, tonight it was. :-)

I forgot to say I even waxed the headlight lens after restoring them. I didn't do that the last 2 times I restored them all over the years.
Headlights restored w/Mother's Headlight Restoration kit;






















I'm loving my new camera too!!!!!

Tony M

The generous man who donated his Pioneer CS99A cabinets to me to help me sell MY pair with bad cabinets emailed me this morning. He had no idea I have JBL Pro speakers until I met him picking up those cabinets. He had put them in front of the business. My wife and I loaded them in the car and I went looking for him inside. If I had not gone looking for him, he would've NEVER known I had a set of Pro speakers he would LOVE to own and refurbish the ones that need attention.

Small world it seems, and some people we meet are meant to happen for a reason.

He really LOVES working on the Pro level speakers, remember? He knew I had those JBL giants and he made me an offer "sight-un-seen" this morning.

He helped me out with no acceptance of $$ wanted. He refused to take any when we met that day.

His offer on my JBLs was really good. He knows what I paid for them. I would want more from anybody else but one good deed deserves another in return if possible. I WILL miss them but SPACE "IS" more important this year.
I'll need some more CBD oil soon too. It helps me get through projects.

These will be gone this week-end I believe;