Senior Audiophiles - Audiophile since the 60-70's?

I can remember in the mid 60s walking through Alco-Paramount in San Jose California and seeing high end Scott receivers and seperates built into consoles, and Marantz 10Bs and 7s on the shelves. The EV Patrician speakers were there as was a JBL Paragon. Those were the days!

Hello to all. I built my first amp in 1959 (Eico kit). Except for the minor diversion caused by the "newer is better transistor" it has been tubes all the way. This is an exciting time. Better parts. Renewed tube manufacture.
Desire to explore forgotten avenues of audio electronics. More worldwide tube interest. Yes, there is hucksterism. There will always be hucksterism. But, there are interesting things being discovered and rediscoverd. My voyage into triodes ( 2A3 45 50 300B 845 ) has yielded the greatest musical surprises and experiences of my audio journey. Don't just settle for what commercial products there are, although there are some very good ones. Take your adventure into learning and understanding. You will find a much deeper satisfaction when the music you reproduce transcends the hardware, touches the emotions, and can take your breath away.

I started in 1957 with a Webcor changer/GE magnetic cartridge, Harman-Kardon Prelude(?) and a no-name speaker. Soon added an RCA 12" coax in a RiverEdge bass reflex and later an Eico HFT-90. Went on to Dynaco and Empire TT with Altec A-7s and never looked back. Too much over the years to itemize.

Allegedly, my musical trips started as a baby, when my mother would play an LP (on repeat) on an old changer -- to keep me quiet.
I was first smitten by "audiophile" sound in the '60s. I still remember that experience: friends of my parents had HUGE Tannoys (at least they looked huge to me), a Garrard and tubes. I was mesmerized. All I had then was a portable Philips gramophone -- that I tried to improve playing around with the arm weight, etc (that's before I knew the official term: tweak)
My first "stereo" was a Philips with two detachable speakers, in the late '60s. It took me 5-6yrs of savings after that to purchase my first detached system: Thorens 125TT, Luxman integrated, Kef 2-way speakers. I was ecstatic, and immediately set out to "improve" the sound (changing wires, making wooden "stands". I wasn't really sure of what I was expecting to happen; this was well before I caught on to cables, stands, etc. I was hoping for magic, I suppose.
I've come a long way since then, only to end up recently with termination-less wire as I/C (so much for my Valhalla's...).

B) For me, the '70s were very exciting musically. Possibly because I was in discovering mode?

C) Current state of audio: good to v. good. The market is opening up, many offerings and some good value/price ratios (think of TT engineering nowadays and 20 yrs ago vs the asking prices).

D) Yes, I would trade my present system for a past system -- my immediately previous one. However, I can't afford to -- which is why I no longer have my previous system in the first place!

My audiophile days started 1958 when my shop teacher helped me build a 3 watt Heathkit amplifier with acid core solder. What a disaster! However, there was no turning back after that. I then graduated to building larger Heathkits, Knightkits, and Lafayette amplifiers. These were the days when the fun was in building the kits. Enjoying the music was secondary.

I was facinated with Klipschorns from day one. I could not afford them at first, so I built a cheap Khorn enclosure imitation called the Aristocrat using Electovoice speakers. I finally got my Khorns in the mid 70's, and have not thought once about replacing them.

I was never happy with records regardless of player. The pops, scratches, and low dynamic range were unbearable. Pleasure in listening came with the arrival of CD's in the 80's.

The same goes for tubed amplifiers. I could not wait for the transistor amplifier to be perfected. While I was enthralled with the fast bass and dynamic range of the Khorns in the 70's and 80's, it wasn't until the 90's that I heard real quality in music using Mark Levinson amplifiers to power the Khorns.

The new millenium started with a bang introducing new standards in recording medium: SACD, DVD, DVDA. The future looks bright with all this competition trying to perfect recorded music. At last the advantages of both vinyl and CDs can realized in one medium. May the best of the above media win.

In conclusion, the speaker was perfected fifty years ago, however, it took fifty years to figure that out. Expensive high tech speakers of today can't compare to all of the qualities of Khorn. Amplifiers were perfected in the past decade. Any improvements in this category will be expensive and probably well beyond the point of diminishing returns. The peak in recorded music media has not yet been realized, but it won't be long. Frankly, I can't wait!