Hi Trelja; when I was a kid (45-50 yrs. ago), my folks had an Edison windup phonograph in the attic, complete with a stack of near 1/4" thick records. We got to play it once in awhile, and all I'll say is that hifi has come a long way since then! As to your thread, in this age of digital, a couple of years ago, I bought a Sony 3 head KA3ES cassette recorder (MSRP $980.) that sounds excellent when good ($3.50-$4.) tapes are used. I use it to make tapes for my truck, and walkman(s). I record my own from CD. The main thing lacking in sound quality are some dynamics; tape hiss is almost non-existent. Very smooth. When other systems are down, I really don't mind listening to tapes made and played on this machine-- it's that good. Cheers. Craig.
A twist on "Your absolute best..."
OK, here's a spin on the thread of "Your absolute best...". I mulled that question over for a while. Best in that regard is best sound, but you may have another piece which you particularly take pride in. Maybe your most interesting piece. It may not be your "best", but it does certainly deserve mention. My component, an old Edison phonograph. It is a floor standing console, I believe from the 1920's(from the phonographs which came with it). It is a wind up, and plays at 80rpm(NOT 78). Sits in my basement, as a stand for some of the junk down there. Could use some restoration of the cabinet as a result. I certainly cannot say it is a better component than my Jadis amp or Coincident speakers, but it sure is more interesting. It was bought by my family in the 1970s at a garage sale, for next to nothing. Have no idea of its worth, but I am not selling. Would love to see the list we come up with.