[Vintage-Audio] RE: Does anyone really care...

[Robert Nickels]

Duane and all,

You're right - it's a lot more interesting to read a list that has 
active discussion.  So I'll do my "Show and Tell" , even though most 
will probably think I have pretty odd taste in equipment, music - or both!

While I've got several vintage stereo setups, my favorite listening mode 
has become "Historic Mono".  As in "one amp, one speaker".  The secret 
sauce in my case is the speaker - an Altec Lansing A7 Voice of the 
Theater.   Sure if I had two I'd use both ;-)  -  but I love the sound 
of the speaker so much I keep going back to it even though I can't hear 
the sound of a locomotive running from left ear to right or whatever.

Of course with the VOT you don't need much of an amp.  I've tried 
several but like the little Knight Kit KM-15 "Economy Amplifier" that 
sold for $19.95 in my '62 Allied catalog.  I have a pair of them, but 
like the one with the nifty optional $3.95 dress cover the best.  This 
wasabout  the cheapest amp you could buy back then, probably most of 
them spent their existance between a ceramic stylus and a 12" infinite 
baffle and produced somewhat medium-fi at best.   But coupled to a 
decent CD player and the VOT their EL84s sound perfect to my ear, even 
with the tone knobs set to flat and the volume seldom more than "10".    
Being in the near field of the A7 just produces such clear abundant 
sound that it just feels good -  that's about as audiophile as I get.

Yes I listen do CDs, even though I'll agree virgin vinyl sounds 
"better",  my LP collection is well into old age and I've replicated 
most of what I really like.  What's in the CD player?    Lately it's 
Hank Williams "Hillbilly Hero" box set and great-grandfather of many 
50's vocal groups, "The Delta Rhythm Boys" - both from the 1940's.   No 
vinyl then, some of these recordings were taken from the original 78s 
because the master tapes are long gone.    But the occasional pop or 
click can't detract from those wonderful harmonies.

Guess I'm going thru a "roots" phase here...

73 Bob W9RAN