Resurrection of a Stereo System

11.11.11 | The Famous chickensoup

[Chickensoup]

Hello,

After twelve years, I am resurrecting a stereo component systen that has been dormant and in a cabinet. I need to purchase speakers, hopefully white. Do you have any recommendations?

I got the tuner to work, and the six disc cd player. The tape deck is working but wont speak to the tuner. My focus is speakers. they are the wire kind that connect up in the back with little red and black twisties.

[Chickensoup]

There is no Minimus-7 at the Radio Shack website.

I listen to classical, medieval, musicals, crooners, and jazz for the most part.

It is about a 20 by 16 room but opens into other areas not heavily damped (what’s a curtain?)

I think bookshelf size.

How far from the walls? six inches, two feet?

No Tv

I was hoping about 200.

I am trying to regain the music in my life. I have been listening to a $50 sound system the kids bought me from Mart-mart or Targmart or someplace like that.

I just want to listen to beautiful music and not have it blur. i love components and how they work. the music seems somewhat more substantial in a nice component system. After I buy the TV, I am going to upgrade the components although I dont think the cd player needs upgrade. it is a 6 slot Pioneer PDM 426 which replaced the sony carousel that died years ago.

Thank you.

[truthfreedom]

I haven’t been over at audiokarma in a while, but I’m a member.

[truthfreedom]

I would say that

1) use craigslist to determine what is available in the area

then

2) go to audiokarma to determine what the experts say about the speakers that are available in the area.

[Chickensoup]

NEWS/ACTIVISM???

_______________________

MISCELLANEOUS News/Activism and it is very miscellaeous.

[Ransomed]

I think that sounds like a plan!

Freegards

[Chickensoup]

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_107TL2W/Polk-Audio-Blackstone-TL2-White.html?tp=186&avf=N

The man is recommending these.

What do you think?

[Chickensoup]

thank you

[Las Vegas Ron]

You cannot go wrong with Polk, they make excellent quality and give you good sound for whatever amount of money you're willing to spend.

If you are going to use this for a main system, I'd recommend a sub woofer to go with the speakers. But make sure first your amplifier/tuner will be compatible!

Take a look here, these wouldn't require a sub woofer:

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-u9BKgI4eFTf/g_37900/Bookshelf-Speakers.html

I know they're not white but...Whatever you do, take your time, there are a lot of options out there!

[truthfreedom]

http://maine.craigslist.org/ele/2679349276.html

Big ol Pioneers $30.

I’m in Maine, and at least in my part of Maine, there really aren’t any goodwill / salvation army stores with good selections. I have been in those stores, and I have looked for old speakers. The selection is weak.

Back in the day, the Miles Rummage Sale in Damariscotta was the place to go for used speakers. I got a lot of good speakers there. Really, really cheap. But the Miles Rummage sale is gone. So, getting old speakers in Maine isn’t easy.

I would probably go to a 2 stage buying process.

I’d buy those $30 Pioneers. $30 is not a lot of money. And you might love them. Over and done. But you’ll probably want to upgrade. There won’t be any pressing need to do so, because you have adequate speakers. But keep watching for a great deal on classic speakers. Keep watching craigslist for a KLH model 6, a KLH model 17, someone mentioned a Dynaco. A Large Advent. An old AR. And get them for a great price.

I got 2 pair of KLH model 6s, from Craigslist, in Maine, for less than $50. The deals are there.

There are people selling on Craigslist who really want, and need money.

There are people selling on Craigslist who want to get rid of stuff they have.

[Chickensoup]

thank you

[TrueKnightGalahad]

Sorry, I should have mentioned that the Minimus-7 isn’t a current-production speaker; RS stopped making them a few years ago. They’re often found on Ebay - there’s a pair in white listed there now, starting bid $20. Given the size of the room, though, the tiny Minimuses (Minimi?) would be too little speaker to fill the space.

Not listing rock, rap, etc. as your preferred music gives you a lot more flexibility, though - you don’t need something that’s going to whomp out The Who at 110dB.

Your max price puts you square into the vintage speaker market, like Acoustic Research, EPI, Boston Acoustics, ADS, Advent, Wharfdale, Celestion, and so on. BUT that’s a tricky market. Most speakers, being mechanical devices, have a limited lifetime before parts have to be repaired/replaced; the surrounds and cones dry out, crack, separate, etc., and the components in the crossovers are often way out of spec simply due to age. If you buy speakers and then have to have them refurbed, that would add dramatically to the cost.

So you should be looking at speakers that are, at most, 9-to-10 years old, unless you know what you’re doing and can fix them yourself. Forget about new speakers; about the cheapest decent new speaker on the market is the PSB Alpha (and yeah, they’re pretty good), but you’d have to stretch your budget to about $300 to buy them retail. A lot of decent speakers have been mentioned in the thread; if you can find a nice pair in good condition (which means being able to see/hear them for yourself before purchasing), then take a shot.

Don’t forget to visit your local audio dealers. There are fewer today than years ago, but they still exist - and since few people become audio dealers with dreams of making millions, they’re likely to share your love of music and care about reproducing it well. Many dealers will have used/trade-in equipment in good condition, so you’re likely to find something better then your budget might otherwise allow.

[Misterioso]

MISCELLANEOUS News/Activism

{lol!}

[rabidralph]

I have 21-year-old Polk speakers, connected to my tuner with Monster Cable. They still sound great! Polk is American made in Baltimore! Amazon has a nice collection of electronics at pretty decent prices, too.

[rabidralph]

There's also Musicians' Friend.

[Cvengr]

JBL 4350s image nicely.

[truthfreedom]

Ok, well, I’m looking through Maine Craigslist. I’m in Maine too, so, well, if I see a pair of Large Advents for $10, well I might not tell you about it, but.

Get These

http://maine.craigslist.org/ele/2690340962.html

Small, smaller than what I want. $35 in Camden.

Cost $349 new

http://www.nhthifi.com/NHT-History

This person is in Camden. This person is likely the type of person who doesn’t want to throw away expensive stereo equipment, not someone who needs to sell cheap or broken stereo equipment to survive.

The Camden person is selling a lot of good stuff for almost nothing. Also good is the Cambridge Soundworks Model 17. Cambridge Soundworks is a modern version of KLH and the Model 17 is likely a modern version of the KLY 17.

http://www.nhthifi.com/NHT-History

[Chickensoup]

I wrote him. thank you

[Chickensoup]

thank you I appreciate your wisdom

[Las Vegas Ron]

You’re welcome ;)

[Yardstick]

I’m a member. Rarely post though. I joined a couple years ago when I bought an early ‘80s Yamaha receiver (CR640). It’s pretty much the vintage audio mecca.