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

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.

I was 8 or 9. I kinda inherited a mismatched pair of Singer(?) tube integrated mono amps my uncle had built from kits.  I built my first set of speakers shortly there after.  My mom had a turntable and a ton or records, so as long as it was symphony or show tunes I had plenty to listen to.