How old were you when audio gear first caught your interest?

@wharfy 

77, Born in 1948.

Dixie Liquors, right across the G. W. Bridge from Virginia. into Wash. DC. 

Drinking age in DC was 18, VA. was 21. The joke was, if you could reach the counter, you could buy anything.

I was short for my age, only 5’-1" my freshman year (finished 6-0" senior year) it used to crack my friends up when I’d come out carrying two big bags of beer.

We all lived in McLean, VA., 8 miles from Dixie Liquors, get some gas money, get some beer money, get going, get back to the party! I remember, gas and cigarettes were the same price: .23c/gal; .23c/pack.

A lot of Military there. One of my Motley Crew stole blank IDs from his father, and we all were Drivers for the Army Motor Pool, they were green I remember.

Bars in DC, they would glance at the IDs, my normal sized friends, in we went, then at me, 5’-1", baby face, in I went. The problem was when we started going into Georgetown and those clubs had College Students. They were not happy with us showing attention to the girls, fights, arguments with the doormen, .....

That was the era of Muscle Cars, OMG, flying down the Geo. Wash. Parkway, music BLASTING!

I was 15 during XMas 1976 when I purchased my first system. It was an inexpensive no-brand name system consisting of a turntable, receiver and really cheesy cloth grilled speakers. My gateway drug into all this.

10 years old.  Bought my first 45s and played them on my parents Magnavox console turntable.  That same year I got my first turntable in a box for Christmas and I was on my way.  The equipment gets better and more expensive but the passion for the music is still the same.  

I was about 10-11 years old when my aunt bought me a mini reel to reel player/ recorder and she added 2 45 singles to go with it! One was “Crystal Blue Persuasion” the other was “Spinning Wheel” I was totally fascinated by it and learned the recording process and the love of music at such a young age! Definitely one of the events that influenced my life.

I was 10 years old in 1961 when me and my sister sold monogrammed Christmas cards door to door to suburban housewives for a company that advertised on the back of comic book covers.  Once we sold the requisite amount of cards we got a cardboard suitcase all in one record player in  the mail with a plastic tonearm and a ceramic needle.  One of my four brothers bought the Gary U.S, Bonds album Dance 'til A Quarter Of Three.  We were off and running.  My oldest John brother was in the Marines and he thought our beloved record player was ridiculous. He then bought a mono system consisting of a Shure cartridge, a Garrard record changer with a beautiful wood base, Dynaco preamp and power amp and a JansZen Z-400 speaker with an electrostatic tweeter speaker.  When I heard this system I was moved and In love with the audio hobby for the rest of my life.

Later when I was in the 8th grade I bought a Dual 1010 turntable from Radio Shack near Arch St. in Philadelphia to use with my brother Jerry's Philco tubed receiver and some single driver speakers that were thrown in with the purchase of the receiver.  The system had a wonderful sound.  This was my first "serious" audio component purchase.  The rest is history.