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True underdog hi-fi

Now - Nytech receiver, available for pennies and very nice sounding. Back in the day - no way. Quite expensive, build quality dismal, cheap plastic case.

I keep saying I'm going to rebuild one in a nice case. I know it won't happen but it's a nice pipe dream.
 
I think good sounding kit is always engineering lead - and i'm talking about pragmatic design from people who know what they are doing, not necessarily costly kit that's over engineered.
Nothing sounds good for no reason, or unexpectedly IME.

With that in mind I'll nominate a pair of loudspeakers I picked up recently for £120 which sound very sweet indeed and which display good common sense engineering which worked without breaking the bank. I think these cost about £250 in 1979:


DSC_0533.jpg


Then, boring I know, but one of these with a decent cartridge just gets on with the important stuff. Probably £150 for a nice one in todays money:

a584ef13_vbattach19041.jpg



Into one of these for about £80:

P9160944.jpg



And you have a lovely sounding vinyl player for <£500 :)
Nothing fancy and with the engineering focused into the areas which matter most for good value hi-fi.
 
A Denon TU-800L tuner I picked up for £22 at the beginning of the year. Much much better than the TU-260 that always got the attention of the British hi-fi press.
 
Robert said:
With that in mind I'll nominate a pair of loudspeakers I picked up recently for £120 which sound very sweet indeed and which display good common sense engineering which worked without breaking the bank. I think these cost about £250 in 1979:
Click to expand...

What are those? Wharfedale?
 
Robert said:
I think good sounding kit is always engineering lead - and i'm talking about pragmatic design from people who know what they are doing, not necessarily costly kit that's over engineered.
Nothing sounds good for no reason, or unexpectedly IME.

With that in mind I'll nominate a pair of loudspeakers I picked up recently for £120 which sound very sweet indeed and which display good common sense engineering which worked without breaking the bank. I think these cost about £250 in 1979:


DSC_0533.jpg


Then, boring I know, but one of these with a decent cartridge just gets on with the important stuff. Probably £150 for a nice one in todays money:

a584ef13_vbattach19041.jpg



Into one of these for about £80:

P9160944.jpg



And you have a lovely sounding vinyl player for <£500 :)
Nothing fancy and with the engineering focused into the areas which matter most for good value hi-fi.
Click to expand...

Nice rig, a classy set up put together by someone who clearly knows his stuff! I bet it sounds terrific.


Louballoo
 
I got my 57's for 150 on ebay advertised by a dealer as boxed and faulty, Which they were and werent faulty. The Valve Monobloks also advertised as faulty came via freecycle so were free - the Denon was bought on ebay and proved faulty on arrival so I got my cash back and he didnt want the unit back so got it repaired for circa £30.

My bro gave me the 401

so ignoring tannoys linn and Naim kit in another room thats £200 of oral bliss
 
packtech said:
mmmmmm shouldn't that read Aural bliss, if you actually DID mean oral then you have a blast of a hi fi there old son.. :):)
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My bad - I spose I forgot the Shure M75ed with some posh tip on it (cant remember just now) so its cheap there too. I prefer it to my posh Denon MC on the ittok
 
Ortofon MC10 Super - was my first MC experience - it just opened my eyes/ears to a different dimension...
And recent discovery of Shure M75ed2 - sweet...nice
 
I have been loaned a Thorens TD-321 deck and it is very nicely put together and sounds pretty darn great too with an SME 3009. Much easier to set up than an LP12 and far, far cheaper too, probably because it wasn't marketed as well and didn't give exotic names to base-boards and power supplies.
 
Thorens TD 125 - still way underpriced
Early Creek stuff
Digital tuners - being given away and not all are crap
70s Marantz in Europe - but cherry pick!
 
Liquid said:
I'm interested to see what shouts you would make for some underdog hi-fi components.

Regardless of name, perceived provenance or price point, what items have you heard that have put a smile on your face as because they had no business being so musical in the first place?
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Seems to me most of the above A&Rs, Creeks, Regas, Thorens, what have you already have established reputations. It's all sold as hi-fi, so it should sound good to most punters. Cheap doesn't have to mean nasty. As noted, mini systems can punch well above some people's expectations. A friend's Denon springs to mind: I could easily live with it myself. Certain Japanese receivers, likewise, deserve more time than they get.

I'd like to nominate my 23 year old GE clock radio. Doesn't do volume, scale, stereo, or musical choice very well, yet for years it was my benchmark for involvement. A musical champ that still sounds great.

Built in laptop audio has few champions, yet gems can be found occasionally. Here's a thumbs up to the ordinary, yet excellent, audio/hp out of my very budget Samsung. With it I have no need for an external DAC for listening. It sounds the same as my CD player as far as I care and near identical in sound to my M-Audio soundcard, which measures as flat as a DAC should and is only better in having an audibly slightly lower noise floor.

I've been pleasantly surprised by my Samsung Ace 2's hp out, too.
 
Yes but we all have a different idea of a true underdog so this thread has no real focus or reference point

Some would say my main system is true underdog hi fi but it makes a pleasant sound

Denon mini systems were never particularly cheap.

Early Wharfedale diamonds are not very good.

Are we just saying that you dont need expensive hi fi to enjoy music? Shock horror! :)
 
Liquid said:
Regardless of name, perceived provenance or price point, what items have you heard that have put a smile on your face as because they had no business being so musical in the first place?
Click to expand...
It embarrasses me to say the Pioneer C-21/M-22 from the late 1970s is better than Densen's B-250/B-350 monos. Not exactly cheap or plentiful, but a damn sight cheaper than what I paid for the Densens. Now, I have a quandary.
 
James said:
It embarrasses me to say the Pioneer C-21/M-22 from the late 1970s is better than Densen's B-250/B-350 monos. Not exactly cheap or plentiful, but a damn sight cheaper than what I paid for the Densens. Now, I have a quandary.
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Its easy to get hung up on brands though, isn't it?

If your getting more enjoyment/music from the Pioneers, its an easy choice. Sell the Densens and put the proceeds towards more music. That or chicken out and build a second system ;)
 
Liquid said:
Its easy to get hung up on brands though, isn't it?
Click to expand...
Yes, especially when all Japanese brands were tarred with the same derogatory brush in the 1980s and 90s.

Liquid said:
If your getting more enjoyment/music from the Pioneers, its an easy choice. Sell the Densens and put the proceeds towards more music.
Click to expand...
Easier said than done. I'm planning a three-way active system and I have only one M-22.
 
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