Just got back into vintage Hi fi, anyone else here also?

pieman109

pieman109

pieman109

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Right, due my age (old fart) I had a hankering a few months back to get back into hifi as comuputer hardware is just too expensive now and I've got bored with it anyway. So....I've just put together the following:

Mission Cyrus 1 amplifier (looks naff but sounds really nice)

Technics SL-D2 direct drive turntable (could have bought new but I wanted old gear)

Audio technica AT-VMN 95 cartridge

Heybrook HB2 loudspeakers (refoamed, recapped Xover, tweeters replaced but I'm in the process of replacing the silk domes/ coils on the original audax units). Mid/bass drivers are in exceptional condition considering their age.

I could have bought all brand new but I wanted the "old British" hi fi sound that I remember from the 70s. I'm waiting for delivery, later today, of a NAD 3020 as I want to compare the sound to the Cyrus one (which needs the phono connectors looking at anyway). the sound is surprising, very relaxed and sort of laid back, but everything is there, easy to listen for long periods but could do with a bit more bass but not much. One thing I have noticed is how different it all sounds to what I thought it was going to, bad hearing, memory and rose tinted glasses an' all that. Overall, very happy and now I've got another interest that'll upset the missus!
 
Thornes Td160 and a Pioneer Pl12d , Rotel RA 12 , bowers and wilkins 603, technics tape and cd player and a couple of thousand records
 
I have a Yamaha AX 496 amp, Yamaha CDX 993 CD player a pair of Linn Sekrit speakers and a turntable that I can't remember the name off lol. I can't remember the last time I turned it all on. When it is the sound is amazing.
 
The 3020 will sound warmer, fuller and seem slower than the Cyrus. I have a 3020 and a cyrus 6XPD and they sound so different but both good
 
Not sure mine's vintage yet, apart from the turntable...maybe it is and I'm older than I think :p

Thorens TD160 turntable
Denon DL110 HOMC cartridge
Rega Fono mk2 phono stage
Arcam CD62 CD player
Naim Nait 5i integrated amp
Quad 11L speakers

It's a great setup for a terrace...the Quads are lush and can be cranked up without the neighbours losing their minds.
 
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my Vintage system -
Pioneer CDS702 (as a cd transport) feeding an original Cambridge Audio DacMagic 1 (I've also got a Dac Magic 100 + Audiolab DAC mini )
Turntable Technics 1200 mk2 (left over from my Pro DJing days)
2 x Audiolab 8000As in Bi-amp mode for amplification
Tannoy Revolution R3 speakers

Doesn't get too much use though as my Main system these days is more PC based

PC server feeding a Chord 2Qute DAC
Amplification is a Arcam A28 used in Pre amp mode only feeding a Arcam P35 Power Amp feeding either a set of
Monitor Audio Bronze 2 speakers (which I use for near field audio work and also my PC gaming Speakers) or
Tannoy Revolution XT 8F Floor standers which are my main audio listening speakers

Again all very much the 'British Hi-Fi Sound'
 
Not sure mine counts as retro but it is over 20 years old now! I’ve got the following:
Marantz CD6000ose
Arcam Alpha 7r
B&W 603’s
Still love sitting back and listening to my favourite tracks, just wish I had a detached house so I could play it loud!
 
All of my systems use vintage parts.

My room:
Thorens TD 160B
Tascam CD-RW901
DIY EL34 power amps - built last year but based on a 50's design
Tannoy Super Red monitor 10B's
Marantz AV7701 pre amp

Office:
Philips CD-930
Luxman L-220 integrated
Spendor SP2/3e's

Downstairs:
Marantz cd6007 uk edition - Had to replace the old Marantz CD-56 as it was getting unreliable
Leak 2200 integrated as a pre amp
Quad 240 power amp
Celestion Ditton 25's
 
My 'vintage' parts are simply 1997ish:
Musical Fidelity A220 amp
Myryad MC100
a pair of Castle Harlechs - these go very deep but not loud, excellent atmosphere too
I have some CableTalk interconnects along with QED speaker wire from the period too :)

The harlechs have suffered due to being put in the conservatory (heat gets way too hot). Everything else ok :)

I used to have some Mission 734s.. the tweeter was horrid, sharp and overbearing.
 
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Ok chaps just had a look back here and theres some stuff being used. I took delivery of a NAD 3020e a few days ago and I must say its night and day between that and the Mission Cyrus 1, I really can't make my mind up between them. The NAD is musical, has more bass and has some nice tone and balance controls, where the Cyrus is far more analytical but lacks bass, and doesn't even come with a balance knob (the very early ones didn't whereas on subsequent issues there was a balance knob)

I've also just replaced the silk dome tweeters on the Heybrooks for no other reason than I was able to, got one installed and I'm just doing the second tweeter now ( just waiting for the superglue to harden)
 
pieman109 said:
Ok chaps just had a look back here and theres some stuff being used. I took delivery of a NAD 3020e a few days ago and I must say its night and day between that and the Mission Cyrus 1, I really can't make my mind up between them. The NAD is musical, has more bass and has some nice tone and balance controls, where the Cyrus is far more analytical but lacks bass, and doesn't even come with a balance knob (the very early ones didn't whereas on subsequent issues there was a balance knob)

I've also just replaced the silk dome tweeters on the Heybrooks for no other reason than I was able to, got one installed and I'm just doing the second tweeter now ( just waiting for the superglue to harden)
Click to expand...

Hehe I remember auditioning the Musical Fidelity, the Audiolab 8000 and the Cyrus at the time and I can still remember my observations:
* Audiolab 8000 - stark cold but very clear detail. Considered a bit of a special nowadays for the secondhand money (pre-buyout). If you wanted to hear the starts and stops of the audio samples in music this can do that with the right source.
* Cyrus - creamy, murky, no detail and no musical feel.
* MF A220 - not as detailed as the AL, clearer than the Cyrus that was polite but excelled in simply playing the music.

In the end - that choice is personal. The A220 has done me well, and has done virtually everything perfectly and lets me listen to the music..

Only issue with vintage gear around the time of the great stolen capacitor recipe scandal is that you may find they need a bit of a re-cap.
 
I can’t wait to have a proper music room to hook up my CD player again (must be >20 years old now). I’m probably enjoying form over function with my Cyrus gear, but the 8vs2 (ok, not vintage but my Cyrus 3 broke) is jolly good with the big Missions for my living room TV and occasional music setup.

One day there’ll be a wingback chair, crystal decanters and a lot of shelving for music. For now it’ll have to live in the loft.
 
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tom_nieto said:
I can’t wait to have a proper music room to hook up my CD player again (must be >20 years old now). I’m probably enjoying form over function with my Cyrus gear, but the 8vs2 (ok, not vintage but my Cyrus 3 broke) is jolly good with the big Missions for my living room TV and occasional music setup.

One day there’ll be a wingback chair, crystal decanters and a lot of shelving for music. For now it’ll have to live in the loft.
Click to expand...

I bought a nice leather wingback a few months ago. Once my hifi rack is built I'll be getting it setup with a nice headphone listening point.
 
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