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Post by Bonzo on Jun 4, 2019 14:27:30 GMT -5
We have had a thread like this before. My parents had a full 7 feet wide cabinet stereo / turntable / radio / TV system, as well as a 1960's cassette player boom box thing (with a slide open cassette door, 2 speakers on the sides, and all the buttons on top) that I've not been able to find in the internet ( would LOVE to know what kind it was) First ever for me was a kids turntable I got for my birthday when I was 5 or 6 with a 45 of Rhinestone Cowboy. Second ever for me was a clock radio I got when my Grandma died in 1981 when I was 11. Third (and most memorable) was for Christmas in 1983 when I got my favorite Christmas present of all time, my little red radio. I still have it to this day out in my garage. It was what got me into music the most, for sure. All prejudice aside, this thing is/was way cool. It was among the absolute coolest well-made boom boxes money could buy back in 1983. It basically out classed everything else due to it’s way ahead of it’s time features, great sound quality, modern looks, out of this world design, and great build quality. The speakers rotated so you could use them straight out, angled up at various angles, up, and could even be laid down on it’s front on a shelf. They came off with the release of a quality lock mechanism (not some cheap crap), and when on, the lock mechanism served as the speaker wire connection, SO, the wires could go in an enclosure to go inside (not just wound around like cheap units), and actually had mini-pin connectors (not just bare wire like cheaper units) for when you wanted to separate the speakers apart. It had RCA inputs and outputs for tape dubbing (and can be used with any modern device having said outputs), the antenna pushed all the way down and inside the unit to help protect it (unique feature), it had auto tape type selection, a cool rotary tuner dial, bass boost, AMS, Record Mute, separate bass / treble controls (not just tone), and took 8 D size batteries. It was amazing. I still love it. classicboombox.com/sony-cfs-700-transound My first real rack stereo was purchased for me by my Mom shortly after my Dad died when I was 19. I still have it all in my house to this day. Sony receiver, dual cassette deck (in my main rack still), 5 CD changer with direct track and CD access, and Bose 10.2 speakers (the only Bose speakers I've ever heard that actually sound good).
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john54
Seeker Of Truth
Posts: 8
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Post by john54 on Jun 4, 2019 15:29:13 GMT -5
Pretty sure it was the summer of 73 while in college, between my freshman and sophomore years. I had a great summer job at Saginaw Steering Gear, a GM owned plant back then. Even with a really good job for the time, I had to take out a GE Credit loan to pay for the rig. My mother was furious with me when she found out about the loan. She just didn't understand how important a good HiFi was to a nineteen year old. What I really wanted, my heart’s desire, were McIntosh components, specifically an MC 2105 Amp and a C28 Pre-amp, but buying those would have meant having to settle for lesser speakers, something like walnut cabinet Advent Large loudspeakers. What to do? I decided to compromise and ended up buying: • Marantz Model 250 Power Amp • Marantz Model 3300 Pre-amp • Thorens TD 160 Turntable with a Shure V15 Type II • JBL L100 Speakers If I can believe what I’m seeing on eBay, I could sell these items for more than I paid for them 46 years ago. Oh well… BTW, AudioHTIT, my very first album was Little Deuce Coupe too!
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Post by Bonzo on Jun 4, 2019 15:43:31 GMT -5
I could take real pics but I just looked them up on line. Receiver Tape Deck CD Player Speakers
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Post by DavidR on Jun 4, 2019 15:49:37 GMT -5
john54 , The OLA (Original Large Advent) was a great speaker and put a huge dent in the #2 speaker manufacturer, Acoustic Research. AR's marketing was slow to catch onto the college craze and basically missed it.
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Post by DavidR on Jun 4, 2019 15:55:30 GMT -5
Bonzo, how were the Bose 10.2 speakers. I never heard them but others have said they were good as well as the 601_II
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Post by Bonzo on Jun 4, 2019 16:32:32 GMT -5
Bonzo, how were the Bose 10.2 speakers. I never heard them but others have said they were good as well as the 601_II Hard to quantify, but I will try to say what I do know, think IMO, and can remember. - I easily had the best stereo and speakers of ANYONE else I ever knew or saw in college (Michigan State). All my friends were envious. My roommates were happy as clams. - They impressed the ladies. - For college they did everything right. They rocked the house, had tons of bass, were great for parties due to the stereo everywhere sound, and had smallish footprint for my dorm room. - I had a friend who had JBLs I think, that could ROCK loud, but sounded like crap. These 10.2s could rock just as loud, go deeper in bass, and stay much cleaner at the same time. My suite mate had some smaller bookshelf Advents. They had a tighter cleaner sound, but they couldn't play loud at all without distorting, and didn't do nearly the bass. Same goes for some guys down the hall with DCMs. Those were nice and pretty sounding when not trying to play loud, but were no match for the 10.2s at any volume IMO. Those guys used to come down to my room all the time to hear stuff. They particularly liked the bass. The 10.2s were like having subwoofers before subwoofers were even available. - They do what they were designed to do VERY well, which is to say spread sound evenly throughout the room. If you close your eyes good luck locating where the speakers actually are. - I have never heard the older original Bose 901s, but I have heard the newer gens (I want to say Gen 4 and Gen 6, but don't quote me on it). My 10.2's (when I was really familiar with their sound) were much nicer sounding than the 901's I heard, at least IMO. In comparison, I'd say the 901's I heard were muddy at best, like a huge pillow was inside them. The 10.2's are clearer and more engaging, with more dynamics and realism.- But, audiophile speakers they are NOT. Not not not. They are not nearly as clear and refined as my Def Techs. Not even in the same book, let alone chapter. They don't play fine details at all. - Compared with other high-fi speakers, they are muddy themselves. - Due to their ability to do the stereo everywhere so well, they don't image, at all. Not even slightly. I don't mind this because I'm mostly about large sound-stage, not imaging. - The bass can get over whelming and sloppy at times. - The tweeters can distort with certain music, like classical especially. I have a Charlotte Church album that WOW sounds like crap due to the tweeters. - I would never buy them now as pure listening speakers. They would be (are) just fine for casual listening or back ground. They would work well in a basic not serious home theater. - I think they would still make great used speakers for a teenage kid or some kid going to college. Or maybe even for someone who is not an audiophile, that just wants better than low end.
EDIT: forgot, it is best advised not to put anything in-between them since the midrange cones fire sideways at each other. This can be a problem sometimes for proper placement.
EDIT#2: Also forgot, these MUST have some form of EQ in the mix. They do not sound good without EQ or with an EQ set to flat. As you can see the receiver I had had a 7 band EQ adjustment in it which I definitely used. It was always an upward curve in treble, with a slight raise in the lowest bass.I hope that helps. What I would love to hear is a set of these reworked with different cones (and perhaps a different crossover to compensate). Make the tweeters folded ribbons, or maybe even put more of them inside like say Tekton does. Make the midrange about the same, with a paper cone. But change the bass woofer to something more tight and robust, so it can kick your butt, but stay more controlled. Here's what they look like inside.
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john54
Seeker Of Truth
Posts: 8
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Post by john54 on Jun 4, 2019 16:37:30 GMT -5
john54 , The OLA (Original Large Advent) was a great speaker and put a huge dent in the #2 speaker manufacturer, Acoustic Research. AR's marketing was slow to catch onto the college craze and basically missed it. DavidR, I agree the Advent Large was/is a great speaker! I'm sure I would have been very happy with them. I remember the RA (resident assistant) on my floor my freshman year had AR's. I was in awe. I believe they were the first acoustic suspension speakers, were they not?
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KeithL
Administrator
Posts: 9,934
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Post by KeithL on Jun 4, 2019 17:05:42 GMT -5
The Advents were not the first acoustic suspension speaker - but one of the very early ones. Acoustic Research was the first company to introduce acoustic suspension speakers.
Henry Kloss, who eventually founded Advent, was a co-founder of AR first.
I had a pair of big Advents (simply called "The Advent Loudspeaker" before the Smaller Advent Loudspeaker came along.) I had the nice version with the real walnut veneer.
The bass was awesome... and the treble was good... but, while it was pretty good, the midrange from the "orange peel" midrange/tweeter was a little lacking. However, considering the price, they were an amazing bargain. As I recall, one of the popular things to do was to set a second pair on top of the first pair, upside down, tweeters closest together (they were then referred to as "Double Advents".)
john54 , The OLA (Original Large Advent) was a great speaker and put a huge dent in the #2 speaker manufacturer, Acoustic Research. AR's marketing was slow to catch onto the college craze and basically missed it. DavidR, I agree the Advent Large was/is a great speaker! I'm sure I would have been very happy with them. I remember the RA (resident assistant) on my floor my freshman year had AR's. I was in awe. I believe they were the first acoustic suspension speakers, were they not?
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Post by mountain on Jun 4, 2019 17:12:06 GMT -5
The Advents were not the first acoustic suspension speaker - but one of the very early ones. Acoustic Research was the first company to introduce acoustic suspension speakers.
Henry Kloss, who eventually founded Advent, was a co-founder of AR first.
I had a pair of big Advents (simply called "The Advent Loudspeaker" before the Smaller Advent Loudspeaker came along.) I had the nice version with the real walnut veneer.
The bass was awesome... and the treble was good... but, while it was pretty good, the midrange from the "orange peel" midrange/tweeter was a little lacking. However, considering the price, they were an amazing bargain. As I recall, one of the popular things to do was to set a second pair on top of the first pair, upside down, tweeters closest together (they were then referred to as "Double Advents".)
DavidR, I agree the Advent Large was/is a great speaker! I'm sure I would have been very happy with them. I remember the RA (resident assistant) on my floor my freshman year had AR's. I was in awe. I believe they were the first acoustic suspension speakers, were they not? I ran double advents for many years. All of them were reconed once due to foam surround deterioration. Absolutely loved them.
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Post by brubacca on Jun 4, 2019 17:26:05 GMT -5
I don't remember what it was. It was a combo unit from the 80s, probably Fisher and probably bought at sears. I listened for hours at a time either through headphones or the speakers that came with it.
It was literally the best Christmas ever because I got the stereo and an Atari the same year. Ibused that stereo through college and loved it.
Eventually I got an Also CD player.
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Post by DavidR on Jun 4, 2019 18:10:06 GMT -5
Bonzo , Great write up. Detail and imaging is not Bose. I know exactly what you are saying with the ported 901's. I went back to the series2 just for that reason. I can tell you that the amp/pre amp combo is key. Bose also never used good quality components like caps, resistors, etc. No way my 901s have the detail and clarity of my ARs but there is something about them that I like to listen to them; not over the ARs but as a change.
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Post by Bonzo on Jun 4, 2019 18:31:11 GMT -5
Bonzo , Great write up. Detail and imaging is not Bose. I know exactly what you are saying with the ported 901's. I went back to the series2 just for that reason. I can tell you that the amp/pre amp combo is key. Bose also never used good quality components like caps, resistors, etc. No way my 901s have the detail and clarity of my ARs but there is something about them that I like to listen to them; not over the ARs but as a change. I've long wondered what the Bose sound everywhere technique would sound like if someone actually did it with good stuff. Like I said, I'd love to hear the 10.2s with good modern tweets and cones. The only other 2 companies I recall attempting such a thing are Mirage and B&O, both employing flying saucer shaped wave guides. I've never heard Mirage, but Ive heard those top of the line B&O and wasn't blown away. Nice, but blown away. I liked their tall skinny things better. I think most audiophile type companies shy away is because audiophiles seem to be OBSESSED with imaging. I've stated my views on imaging many times here, but I generally consider it neat when it happens, but its mostly fakery, not real. I like live music, that sounds real, so to me soundstage is key. The larger the better. Hence why I went from Bose to the bipolar Def Techs. One thing about Bose that is another attribute, they are not fatiguing at all (unless you love classical). You can't use them for critical listening, but you can listen to them all day casually without ear strain. Again, all about what a person wants to achieve. They do fit the bill perfectly for certain criteria. Too bad they are ridiculously over priced for what you get.
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Post by Bonzo on Jun 4, 2019 18:37:02 GMT -5
I don't remember what it was. It was a combo unit from the 80s, probably Fisher and probably bought at sears. I listened for hours at a time either through headphones or the speakers that came with it. It was literally the best Christmas ever because I got the stereo and an Atari the same year. Ibused that stereo through college and loved it. Eventually I got an Also CD player. Fisher! Wow now there's a name I haven't heard in a while. You got your Atari. I got my Oddessey, Magnevox's answer to the Atari. On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a cartridge for my Atari. Alternatively, a cartridge for my Oddessey. 😀 Meanwhile my other friend got Intellivision. So we had all three on my street. It was great!
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Post by tchaik on Jun 4, 2019 18:46:33 GMT -5
Very First System; I was in 10th grade (1968) and starting to earn some money. I bought the tape deck first. Sony reel to reel Tape deck, Realistic Modular 12 system Girard Turntable
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Post by strindl on Jun 4, 2019 18:51:58 GMT -5
The Advents were not the first acoustic suspension speaker - but one of the very early ones. Acoustic Research was the first company to introduce acoustic suspension speakers.
Henry Kloss, who eventually founded Advent, was a co-founder of AR first.
I had a pair of big Advents (simply called "The Advent Loudspeaker" before the Smaller Advent Loudspeaker came along.) I had the nice version with the real walnut veneer.
The bass was awesome... and the treble was good... but, while it was pretty good, the midrange from the "orange peel" midrange/tweeter was a little lacking. However, considering the price, they were an amazing bargain. As I recall, one of the popular things to do was to set a second pair on top of the first pair, upside down, tweeters closest together (they were then referred to as "Double Advents".)
I had the double Advents. I knew them as stacked Advents, but they involved two pair of the large Advents stacked like you mention. I bought the second pair in 1975, along with a Phase Linear 400 power amp to run them. I tried the Marantz 2230 receiver to power them at first, but 30 watts per channel at 8 ohm was not enough to do them justice. The 2230 had pre amp outputs so I used it to drive the Phase Linear. That combination sounded really really nice..extremely powerful with all those speaker drivers. I found this on youtube of a guy demoing his stacked Advents: www.youtube.com/watch?v=RV-nz3WW-6A
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Post by tchaik on Jun 4, 2019 19:03:40 GMT -5
First Real Hi-fidelty system after I got the bug, and put this together between 11th and 12th grade. this remained my system though college with some changes on the way. AR turntable Dynaco SCA-35 tube integrated amp Sony TC 630-D reel to reel tape deck Dynaco A-25 Speakers in my 2nd year of college. I changed to this amp.... Dynaco SCA-80 amp..........
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Post by GreenKiwi on Jun 4, 2019 19:04:51 GMT -5
I started with a Realistic STA-7 Then I moved onto an Arcam Alpha with a Phillips CD Changer With some used Vandersteen 2Cs that I purchased for $500 in 1996
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Post by strindl on Jun 4, 2019 19:06:36 GMT -5
First Real Hi-fidelty system after I got the bug, and put this together between 11th and 12th grade. this remained my system though college with some changes on the way. AR turntable Dynaco SCA-35 tube integrated amp Sony TC 630-D reel to reel tape deck Dynaco A-25 Speakers View AttachmentView AttachmentView AttachmentView Attachmentin my 2nd year of college. I changed to this amp.... Dynaco SCA-80 amp.......... View AttachmentI do recall looking at those Dynaco A25's. They were direct competitors to the large Advents. Did they use a foam surround or the much longer lasting rolled cloth ones?
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Post by strindl on Jun 4, 2019 19:10:10 GMT -5
I started with a Realistic STA-7 I still have two pair of those Minumus 7 speakers here. They were really not bad at all sounding...minus any bass of course, but not bad. Radio Shack used to put them on sale for "buy one at regular price of 49.95, and get the second for a one cent".
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Post by tchaik on Jun 4, 2019 19:10:37 GMT -5
college years cont....... in my third year of college I changed turntables..... Philips GA-212 in my 4th year added this cassette deck......... and in my 5th year of college (double major) I changed turntables one of the first of the direct drive tables Techniques 1200 once I got out of college all hell broke loose.
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