what are your top "audio bargins" in your system history?


It is great to have all the money you need to have the best and endless upgrading.  But what about the components you've had that were inexpensive that turned out to be favorites of yours?

jusam

Showing 3 responses by raam

Forgot these!

Directly from Bruce, got to know him quite well. Edgarhorn Slimline with upgraded huge oil filled caps and higher end Foxtex tweeters, demo set so needed recovered, $800 shipped. Still have them though not likely to work well going to try them in the RV I spent several hundred hours adding to the length and area mods to do so.

Too much work to recall it all but a few stand out.

Early 80's, ADS aluminum cabinet mini car audio speakers, $8. They felt way to heavy, opened them up, filled with sand! Cleaned them out, upgraded caps and resistors, offered $500 for them a week later at local audiophile shop.  I still have them, used in several different garages and shops for decades.

A couple of years later a little passive subwoofer with crossover, used with the ADS and good car audio head units as above. I still have it as well but do not remember brand.

ST70 in very good condition for $25 at the Navy base thrift store, refurbished it, used a few years, sold a couple of years later for $500

Mostly into car audio for a long time at a level many believe impossible to achieve but I can setup an incredible system far less costly and less work than a home system. Lots of deals, including sponsorship when competing, best speakers were Rainbow Reference, retail was $7k, I paid $4500 which was below what the distributor paid for them.

Everything I own now was bought wholesale or used at great prices though getting back into DIY speakers, I used to build quite a few.

I do have some little KEF line arrays I got for around $300 I really like with a decent sub, going to sell as no place to use them.

Best current deal was Martin Logan Vision X sound bar, dang fine and perfect for our full time RVing remodel until I get a proper system setup in it, $225.

 

 

 

First "Audiophile" interconnects taught to me by Stan Warren (the S of PS Audio in the early 80's) at their facility. Three gauges of magnet wire(motor or coil winding wire) in something like 2/2/3 strands, wish I could remember exactly, braided and silver soldered into the cheapest Radio Shack RCA connectors, the ones with little metal wings and no outside insulation. Cost back then, about $1 for 3 ft pair.

We listened to his set on their shop system and compared to the best other cables they had on hand, they were better:) Also go to listen to the original cigar box preamp as well:)

------------

Later 90's I learned about using Star Quad raw cable and decent but low cost RCA connectors to make dang fine cables for around $10 a pair or less. I have used it for balanced cables as well.

I have no plans to spend more on cables, have plenty of raw cable to make all I will ever need.

Rick