Stereo systems are like Harleys


You'll never see two exactly alike. They are an expression of the owners ideas on design and performance, usually within the construct of a budget. Often put together over time with new and used parts.

I love that about this hobby. How boring would it be if we all had the same ideas of how a system should sound or look?

When you go to any kind of a rally, be it a poker run, charity ride or whatever.... it's customary to just walk around, checking out other peoples rides and chatting it up. It's a great way to meet people and have fun. Oddly, those bikers who's stigma is to be rowdy and obnoxious, are the nicest people I've met. Never once have I ever heard comments like DUH you should done this or that with your bike. Everything and everybody is accepted as is.

Perhaps some folks around here could learn a thing or two from the bikers. 


treynolds155
My sound systems have never marked their spot, or enjoyed riding in the back of a pick-up, as did my dogs and '53 Pan (on rare occasion).                                                                Nor have I ever seen a shirt, proclaiming, "I Own An Accurate Sound System, NOT Just a T-shirt!"                                                                                                                                          One similarity: If anyone had to ask WHY I own either: they (obviously) wouldn't understand!

 I am more old school. I am not a fan of all the electronics in the new bikes. Just seems like more to go wrong. I don't even have fuel injection, my bike has a carburetor. Though I did upgrade it to a smooth bore Mikuni. I will say that the Twin cam was one of the most reliable engines Harley ever designed. I have not had any trouble with it in all the time I owned my bike. Just regular maintenance and a new battery. And it still starts right up every time.

 Back in the late 1980's I listened to everything I possibly could. I lived in Chicago then and there were plenty of audio stores. When I heard a Audio Research classic 60 I was hooked. It was so much better than anything else I heard. I have had Audio Research ever since. I have had other stuff in my system from time to time, but I always sell it and go back to Audio Research.

I hear ya on the electronics, but there's no going back. My Twinkie gave me no issues either mechanically, just fuel injection problems.  

I've settled on Mcintosh for now, pretty happy with it for the time being. My bucket list keeps growing though. 
Ha.   Thank God I don't have to spend as much time replacing tubes, bad solder joints, broken switches, bad wiring, stripped bolts, valves, pistons on my system as I had to on my '67 stock XLCH.
When I first started riding I met any number of Harley enthusiasts and it was always chill.  But at some point in the late 80s/early 90s I noticed a change.  Suddenly there were these faux bikers who thought they were bad boys tooling around on $25k toys.  They were McDonald's franchise owners, urologists and investment analysts.  They were the type of people who paid taxes and voted in local school board elections living out some sort of mid-life crisis.  They were just consumers who put it on their credit cards.  I hope there's not an audiophile equivalent.