I have a 2270 Marantz stereo receiver + wooden case that I purchased from Lafayette Electronics in Detroit back in January 1976. Still have all the original documents that came with the receiver. I had to have it repaired a few months ago (many $$). It is like new & works flawlessly. I also have a pair of Bose 301-V speakers, Marantz pmd300cp cassette tape deck, Candle 8 track player, Radio Shack Realistic record player, Sony cdp700cp cd player. Back in 1974, I purchased Radio Shack products - receiver, cassette player/recorder, 8 track player, speakers, record player and Sony 8 track recorder/player. Only the record player still exists. All the other old hardware is long gone. I have about 280 lp records (which I will be listing to sell), 35 cassettes, a 12 8-track tapes ( I gave 80 8-track tapes to the fellow who purchased my '72 GS back in October). The receiver gets used every day either for lps, cassettes, 8 track, cds, fm (sxm). That is what I have.
I can't even imagine 270 watts. I purchased my SX-450 and HPM-40 speakers in 1979. It's only 15 watts per channel and it's loud and clear. I was in high school when I got it and my bedroom was in the basement. I didn't realize that when you put the headphones in the headphone jack, the speakers are still on unless you turn them off. It was after one am and a good song came on, I don't recall what song, but I put the headphones on and cranked it up. After the song was over, I removed the headphones and realized that the speakers were still on! I turned the volume down and hear my mother outside my room screaming "ARE YOU NUTS? IT'S ONE OCLOCK IN THE MORNING"! She was not happy. I still use the receiver and speakers. I also have a Marantz 4270 that I use downstairs.
I did something similar with my Yamaha receiver. I had just got it and didn't realize you had to turn off the speakers when you plugged in the headphones. My mom got a high-volume dose of Pink Floyd before I realized what was going on!
Borrowed the photo, but this Sansui 555Awas the centerpiece of my dirt-poor-high-school kid's pawnshop and Radio Shack assembly of stereo equipment I assembled in the early 80's along with RS speakers in cabinets made in wood shop plus other relatively low-buck RS components. Still have the amp and a Pioneer turntable I couldn't let-go when cleaning out my pop's estate. Hunting a few accessories to set it back up again, but haven't found the right stuff yet. Doing it the old fashioned way and hoping to scrounge the additional gems.
That is why I made the analogy to the horsepower wars in the 70's - Pioneer - like Buick - underrated their capability for power output on their receivers and amplifiers. Nando.
Get some while its cheap https://www.ebay.com/itm/304254937636?hash=item46d701ea24:g:U50AAOSwkmxhgD9z
That was not cheap but I have heard old stuff is going for a great price The Marantz can go higher than what you paid back in the day. I almost bought a quad Marantz but I did not like all the colored lights it had back then It did not have that cool light blue/green look on the lights. I bought the normal stereo one and have had mine since 76 I use it now as the preamp for the Adcom amp that thing rocks Hey Devon I see you mentioned Bose 501 I had a set I bought in 77 but got stolen in 81 along with a nice Dual turntable Marantz was stolen too but managed to get that back got real lucky there. Did you ever have to recone the speakers and I wanted to know if yours had a wood strip that went across the middle of the woofer to hold the cloth in place? I had that on mine and when the heavy bass came that cloth would rattle against the wood strip going across. I had to take that cover off and glue that cloth to the wood. I have a set of 901's I bought from friend but speakers need a recone. I also had dials on the corner tweeters so you could direct the sound. Do yours have those? I used to love watching stuff dance on top of those speakers you couldn't leave anything on them thats for sure. My Marantz would put out 52w per ch but since the Bose were 4 ohm the Marantz would put out 65w. Grand Funk RR Inside Looking out will wake up those woofers!!
NJ No doubt. I bought my Sansui 9090 (in excellent condition w/wood cabinet) in 2008 for $575.00, the same one goes for no less than $1200.00 now. Yikes. It is plenty powerful enough for my needs.
My stereo isn’t as cool as the vintage stuff you guys have, but it does the job for the time being. I bought the JVC amp in ‘89, borrowed the Yamaha turntable from my brother in ‘92(?) and scored the rest of the stack, including the Pinnacle and Polk speakers over time at Goodwill. Listening to bootleg Judas Priest from ‘86 currently; had Ted on earlier. May move to the Byron, Ga festival stuff later-the Hendrix courtesy of Wild Bill and some Allmans I bought. Patrick
Sooooo.......I keep on seeing these threads on here, & well I'm a vintage audio noob. I'd like to get started on a nice vintage set-up. Any pointers on what equipment to start with? Amp, speakers, etc.... Don't want to go too crazy but would like a good quality set up. Let me know if you have any suggestions, sorry for the clog up! Kyle
Try to find a guy who deals this stuff. Ask for advice and demonstrations. Buy American made speakers in wood cabinets, no pressboard. Buy Japanese tuners from well known brands. Listen to them with stuff you really know well. For all but the most sensitive audiophile, CD players, tape decks and turntables are all about the same as long as they’re a well known brand and made in the last century. Patrick
I don't know if I'd pay double what stuff went for in 70-72 today. My old Marantz has survived an Onkyo, and a Yamaha so far. It needs a couple grain of wheat bulbs but that's it. My Dual 2229 turntable has a dry-rotted belt that I might try and replace with a giant o-ring. The block foam grills on my Marantz speakers have disintegrated. Can be fixed with cloth from Michael's crafts I think. Haven't powered up my Teac A450 cassette deck in years. Currently using a Denon AVR3310CI that kicks it out thru Bose Acoustimass 15's with powered sub. Great for tunes or theatre surround sound. Hey, remotes are kinda cool when you don't want to get up off the sofa.
I had a Fisher tuner and receiver with 2 speakers that were about 3 feet tall and put out a ton of good sound. Also a Technics turntable and Craig 8 track. Anyone else remember Tokyo Shapiro electronics stores from the 70's and early 80's ?
No on the wood across the woofer, haven't had that prob. My woofer speaker cones and foam surrounds were shot, so I reconed/refoamed them and upgraded the capacitors in the crossover circuit. And yes, these have the dial for changing tweeter reflection! So far working great. Devon
Dual 1229 or 1219 maybe? I have not heard of the 2229. I bet Amazon would have a belt, Dual turntables were super popular, I have 2 of them.
You have entered the rabbit hole lol. One thing I can tell you is that wattage rating on the 40+ year old amps is not what the newer stuff is. They were conservative and imo, underatted. I have a Marantz 2220 (20 watts per channel) that sounds way more powerful. Another thing, big speakers are hard to beat, and just work. An old beat up pair of Cerwin Vega's may surprise you.
…And heavy little speakers like DCMs, Pinnacles and Boses will surprise you, too. My pinnacles have amazing clarity and seperation, just not much bass. Take AC/DC’s High Voltage with you, and listen to Live Wire. It’ll tell you a lot about a pair of speakers. It’ll sound the same on a bunch, then you’ll find a pair that makes you say ‘wow’. Bob Seger’s Turn the Page-turn it up and listen to him inhale. Crank up Hendrix’s Voodoo Chile and listen for the off center sound. Paranoid-listen for the solo, see if it sounds like one channel is blown. Sympathy for the Devil is a good one-how clear are the ‘woot-wooh!’s? Patrick
Probably, the best value for vintage audio are Realistic components from the 70's to early 80's. They are still affordable, today, as the brand often gets overlooked. How about a Realistic STA-1080: Or Mach One speakers: Nando.
