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Post by ChrisB on Aug 3, 2014 23:47:47 GMT
Buying vintage and classic kit can be a bit of a minefield if you're not careful, so our HFi Virgin will benefit from the guidance of those experienced members who are seasoned veterans at this game.
Let the good advice commence!
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Post by John on Aug 4, 2014 6:33:44 GMT
Their is a strong likelihood that the equipment will need some tender loving care to get it performing back to its best
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Post by MartinT on Aug 4, 2014 6:42:36 GMT
'Condition appropriate to its age' means it's tatty beyond belief.
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Post by Paul Barker on Aug 10, 2014 8:49:09 GMT
Garrard 301 is one of the best vintage purchases available.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 10, 2016 11:49:38 GMT
Just as a sideline: At the end of the day you cannot pull a Vintage machine down that old before it is fully serviced. This is a really really annoying aspect with people for me. I used to recommend vintage Equipment, they would go out buy it & claim it sounded crap, unrelable, etc "last time i listern to you it broke down & all that crap" people have even stop conversing with me over it.. VINTAGE GEAR NEEDS FULLY SERVICING OR DON'T BOTHER IS THE MESSAGE Also vintage gear is not an access point to get something cheap & well built, You will most times get the well built but im afraid on top of the price you paid for the item you are now faced with service/Rebuilding cost which can be mighty high in some respects. My Ferrograph 'F307' amp cost me near on £1000 for a complete rebuild & that was all my own work. Hence as for moaning about the Braun string, something that should have been sorted in service imho. (Admin: Moved from Braun PS500 thread) |
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Post by dsjr on Jan 10, 2016 13:50:17 GMT
I've had a lot to do with old Dual decks (well worth the hassle of service) and Garrards (more for sideline fun, but they've surprised me hugely once fettled and I admire the basic designs technically if not the Plessey penny-pinching that went on - the 401 suffered too, so not just the auto models).
Old greases will tend to dry out on mechanical items and solder joints also on electrical ones, especially where there's much heat involved and much as I'm enjoying my twenty year old Krell, which has survived because of the plateau bias system keeping everything cool at idle and very low levels, I pity those who buy the full (mostly) Class A amps they made in the 80's as the (Roe) caps seem to like blowing their tops and the amp chassis get almost as hot as an oven set low if they're left on for hours at a time - see Simon's (SQ) threads on KSA 250 rebuilds on AOS and elsewhere I think. Much as the passive preamps I have will drive the Krell to pretty loud kevels on CD and the NVA phono 2, there needs to be more gain for older sources such as tuners, but again, the fact you can buy a good vintage krell preamp for a grand or less doesn't mean it's going to work well and the circuit used in many of them calls for rows of hot running transistors and banks of iffy caps to replace to bring the performance anywhere near to original spec...
Back to Braun - I don't think many came over to the UK (I did see a good review on a tasty looking reel to reel once, one with 10.5" spools). They do look amazing still and in a way, timeless in a style rather different from B&O. You may have to learn German, or use a good translator, and look on German sites for inspiration.
Good luck.
(Admin: Moved from Braun PS500 thread) |
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Post by dsjr on Jan 10, 2016 17:21:19 GMT
For a cheap-as-chips vintage vinyl system, I don't think you'd go far wrong with the likes of a PL12-D deck or similar (Sansui SR222 and loads of others), an AT95E cartridge - or Rega Bias/AT91 if your records are a bit shagged), one of the better small Jap integrateds (Sansui again not A or AUD models, or once popular Rotel UK-tweaked models, or NAD 3020A) and there are seemingly dozens of 1980's speakers for very few tens of pounds and many of them won't need the driver surrounds re-foaming!
The decks I mention briefly are simple and motors aren't difficult to lubricate. Belts can be got I believe and the cartridges I mention (Ortofon OM5 is another) are easily fitted and very kind to such arms.
The amps I touched on seem to have long lasting components, unlike many UK amps of the early 80's. The creek 4040 and A&R A60 are delightful, but may need recapping I think. Worth it though.
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Post by Slinger on Jan 10, 2016 23:33:37 GMT
If you're buying a DAB tuner make sure it comes with it's remote control. A lot of "features" can be quite difficult to access without one
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Post by jandl100 on Jan 12, 2016 7:49:09 GMT
VINTAGE GEAR NEEDS FULLY SERVICING OR DON'T BOTHER IS THE MESSAGE Yup, you do need to bear this in mind. I've been collecting some vintage gear for the last year or two - Rotel RA-1412 amp, Marantz quad receiver and cassette deck, JVC receiver, Technics console cdp. I think they look fabulous, but most times they won't be sounding their best (or even work!) until they've had a service from a competent tech. I go to a guy who specialises in DJ and car audio as well as hifi. Does a good job, cheap prices, honest about whether it's worth spending money on, and quick turnround (usually a week). The pride of ownership of this vintage gear is out of sight, imo, just for its looks. And it can sound surprisingly good, too. But do get it checked out by a tech. |
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Post by ChrisB on Jan 12, 2016 8:04:28 GMT
Spring connectors for speaker terminals!! If you don't want to or can't put proper sockets onto the back panel, then you can buy things that work with fat cables. This type are better than the pin type as the jaws of the spring clip bit into the little piece of cable.  |
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Post by dsjr on Jan 13, 2016 17:18:54 GMT
Milty (I think) used to similar but far less elegant 4mm-with-tails adaptors. Worth every penny and there was some darned goof far eastern gear around in the 70's with those nasty nipper-type terminals with too-small holes for decent gauge cable.
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