Another great Monday Monologue, thanks Stephe. And, thanks also for the intro to Eva Cassidy and a few weeks back to the Boz Scaggs, Dig album which I picked up and have really enjoyed.
Biggest mistake I ever made was dumping my analogue (1970 era) gear in the 90’s to chase some digital. Pushed me out of the hobby for the past 25 years. All sound is analogue! Digital is just trying to claim they can improve it by going analogue to digital back to analogue and it somehow sounds better. You nailed the analysis, it’s nothing but another hype to get people to spend money. I’m returning to the hobby, but will stick with an analogue signal path as much as possible. Thanks for the video, wish I had your channel 25 years ago and lived as close as I do now.
Really looking forward to hearing more about that reel to reel. On the digital side of things, it seems like the audible quality peaked a while back & now it's all down to devices that perform better in measurements outside of the audible spectrum. Audiophiles looking to get the best digital experience possible don't need to invest that much money. It's an amazing time to be into hifi...there are so many good options & formats to play with.
Not only sounds better but Feels Better!! I love my Teac X-1000R, Revox A77 & PR99. Getting well recorded material, full bandwidth past 20Khz is my ambition, costly but worth the effort ;) Full respect on your new purchase :D
Agree, agree, agree. Most of those so called honest reviewers hype the crap out of almost everything that comes through their door. All for a little cash in advertisement or affiliated links. Just look at their thumbnails. It’s ridiculous. Shocked face expression with a question, “Is this the best ….. ?” Trash. As to digital well, it changes every six months or so. Investing in so called the best of today makes no sense as it will be obsolete in a year or less. 👍🏻
Totally agree about the hype train, which is why I tend to get pre-80’s nonworking tube or solid state gear to work on (or a new build). They sound great when repaired or restored, each unit seems to have its own sonic characteristics. Better than adding to landfill, whereas newer units crammed with PCB and ribbon cables seem so difficult to work on that it’s cheaper to buy a new unit than pay someone for the labor to fix. Same goes for guitar amps. There’s a YT reviewer who had a vintage amp and liked its “character,” but the co-reviewer didn’t like it to what I think was a scratchy volume knob and pop in the speakers when turning it off. I think we know what the problem is given it’s a solid state 50 year-old unit that some TLC will take care of. As a result, on to promoting stuff that’s thousands of dollars. Well, that and a paid promotion mid-video talking about a hair growth product. 😊 I have a Bluesound Node 2i and have no motivation to replace it. Trying to get off the hype for something new and improved. I feel vinyl has also gone down this hype road, which might be fine for collectors, not for a more casual listener like me. Really appreciate all your videos. This one hit a salty chord with me since I agree so much with it, so my apologies for the ramble.
Love a good rant! I'm more of a jazz person. Listened to numerous tracks from 2cd Nightbird.. just ordered it. Thanks for the recommendation. After all it is about the music, eh? (From Canada with love!)
Fantastic Monday monologue skunkie, everything you said I could hear myself saying ! Yep there's some bloody irritating humans on this planet 🙄 I made comment about R2R on your Facebook video, I actually would say my Tascam R2R is favoured over my TT, I love the sound of tape , so I wonder if you get drawn to cassette tape now ??? I love that too , I have a nakamichi cr7e and with good brands of tape it surpasses cd's , oh and thanks for the like on my blueglow kt88 pic I finally managed to show you 😊
Thanks for this review. It confirms my thoughts when I managed to buy the same machine on Craigslist for the same reasons. It replaced a Sony that had worn mumetal heads and plays my old tapes beautifully. There are comments about one of the transistor types used in this deck, that they may fail. It seems to be that the leads corrode so may depend on how the deck was stored over 50 years. I think some transistors were made with galvanized iron or steel leads.
This is perfect & I am happy you are doing this! I have been looking into buying a reel to reel done a lot of research & looking but haven't pulled the trigger on it yet. I have been looking for a 10" reel size & higher speed 15.5" per second. Another great video.
15 ips is standard. What machine runs at 15.5 ips? Not doubting, some machines do have variable speed, really expensive and sophisticated machines, so I'm just curious.
@@SkunkieDesignsElectronics OK, I was thinking maybe the poster might have a modified Studer A80, Stellavox TD 9, or Nagra T. Its not out of the realm of possibility of your viewers. Esoteric european machines that I could definitely see where the record/playback electronics would yield a superior performance than what I employ currently.
It's really a real reel-to-reel! (a nod to Techmoan) Buying stereo gear every half a year? Meh. I'm more in the "buy a good piece of kit and keep it for decades" camp. You're right on the money with the whole hype thing. Sadly, it speaks volume on modern people's attention spans - not retaining knowledge, not remembering same thing was said three years ago about a piece that got old after two years and ended up at attics and basements, e-waste recyclers or landfills (in the worst case). I love finding cheap or downright free gear, but don't shame anyone for buying it for good cash... You're totally right about service expenses. Getting deals has an inherent risk, only a part of us have the skills, gear, materials, time and patience to go through the restoration process. Just because something is good for me, it doesn't mean it should be the case for someone else - and I respect that. Also, markets are different. There are places where some particular vintage gear is abundant, like Tektronix scopes in the US - and there are places where it's just not around for various reasons, including geopolitics a few decades ago, like here in Poland, where these scopes are simply not around, they're a rarity on secondhand markets and fetch hefty sums, way above what you'd have to pay in the States, adjusted for exchange rates and buying power parity.
I actually owned this Akai deck when I was younger in the 80's and I absolutely loved it. Congrats Stephe! Also agree 100%, so tired of all these RUclips audiophile influencers claiming the latest and greatest is the best...what ever happened to buy right, buy for life? Oh yeah, that's tubes, analog, and magnetic tape, ;-)
It’s chasing things you can’t hear at this point for these solid state amps. They end up super clean, and just boring. Why I LOVE vintage Hi-fi, and tubes. We got there back then, and when I say ‘there’ I mean an awesome sound with noise levels we can’t hear at normal listening levels. Just keep on doing what you enjoy with the videos. We are here for your experience, knowledge and opinions.
Great video! I don't trust reviewers that say that their new amp/speakers/DAC are their end game products only to put out another video a few weeks later and the product isn't even mentioned anymore. Keep up the good work and definitely mix it up more. :)
.Well...another great commentary! The quest for analog sound goes on, and on, and on. Why not simply stick with an analog source? good recommendation w Nighbird!!
I have that same akai deck it’s great and super reliable and very easy way to get into reel to reel. There is a bit of a learning curve but there are parts you can get and it’s a lot of fun!
A great video, and I agree with everything. For me I find the whole DAC fad to be as useless and boring as expensive power cables. The DACs in my SACD player and streamers do the job and that's all I need. Your analogy to digital photography is spot on, and I have a five megapixel pocket camera that I've used for snapshots for almost twenty years, but I do have newer DSLRs too. For the most part I'm not interested in the little inexpensive Chinese components but others are so I can accept that. Just last week on another channel I commented that a hifi piece was a steal and one of those negative knuckleheads was giving me crap and saying they could put together a system for $70. Being frugal is one thing but I'm not impressed by garbage pickers. I would love to have a reel to reel but I just don't have the room for one. If that's all you paid for that puppy I think you made out great. I bought a mint condition 3-head cassette deck from Japan that cost me $700 and I was pleased with that. Being able to get vintage equipment in like new condition is a thrill. Have a great week.
I am retired also. Spending extra money to save yourself time fixing and cleaning is a good thing at this stage of my life. Younger people don't understand that.
Whilst I don’t agree entirely I feel your pain. Think perhaps slightly different … sometimes it’s not so much about better but easier. As to what others think about ones purchases … who cares. Nice vlog. Thank you.
Owned the Teac 2300SD and Revox B 77, for archiving LP's. Both machines biased for Ampex Grandmaster 456, that initially had to drive to Fred Locke Studio, 35 miles each way, to buy 1.5 mil, 1200 ft on 7 inch reels, and add the leader tape. Then 1.0 mil 1800 ft from Tape World, via the mail. When the tape self destructed, I rid myself of the 2 R/R's. My Tascam CD recorder with playback through an Audio Note Kit DAC, superior to the analog tape.
I have the ability to burn CDs + have a really nice CD deck. Do you really think that if I heard that CD sounded better, I would have bothered setting up a turntable and a reel to reel deck? Yes it's more convenient so is streaming and I think people just want to believe digital sounds better because it's more convenient and they just don't want to deal with analog.
@@SkunkieDesignsElectronics I employ a Philips Magnavox CDB 650 digital out to the Tascam CD RW 700 CD recorder, digital in, so bit transfer in real time. But its the playback through the Audio Note kit DAC where reconstruction of the waveform, via different techniques employed in the Industry today, that makes the sound, superior to my B 77 playback electronics. I listen through a 300B, OTL pre, and an EL-509 SET OTL amp, driving my Stax SRD/MK III earspeakers, now vs my loudspeakers. Apartment dwelling has its issues. With albums I record via my B 790. So its not really convenience I'm after, but sound quality. I keep the room quiet,when recording LP's, so reduced microphonics, and I don't stream. Just my, very subjective, observations, noting the gear I've used.
I agree with you overall but want to make a few points about 'advancing tech'. First in the streaming world we have entered an era where software updates are available to many products that make them better mostly for free. My NAD streamer has been updated lots & lots of times even though it was the first version, not the latest. Even my phono preamp has had online updates. Also many solid state products are making it so you can update the OP amps, which was never true like it has always been with tubes. There are even a few companies who allow you to upgrade/replace caps in their units very easily. Then there are examples of upgraded power supplies both internal & external to improve the unit. Yes, new products still come out like crazy with higher prices, excluding the new WIM but, many do offer improvement without buying more new, I think this trend will increase. I remember the whole digital camera issue, the early ones were crap, my Brother was a photojournalist & he kept his lenses of course but, had to keep buying new Nikon bodies for their new sensors. One improvement was that going digital meant there were no costs anymore around film, processing etc. but, just like LPs film is making a comback. I was at the Sundance Film Festival in January & there were many people 30 years old give or take who had vintage 35mm cameras.
Hi Stephe, for today's comment I will keep it short and sweet. You hit the ball out of the park with the entire rant, and got me smiling along the way. PS, great reel to reel, they sound amazing and the Akai ones have got the looks to go with it, with the turn leavers.
I can only suggest getting connected with a "proper" recording studio, and see how often they upgrade their equipment, to get an idea what is real, and what is BS.
Yep, als an Eva Cassidy fan. My recommendation of the week would be Clairo's album "Sling". Singer/Songwriter stuff. Mostly natural instruments, subdued voice mostly in the background. Easy to listen to. Sonically interesting in my view. Good recording quality, lots to discover for audiophiles.
back in 1965 hong kong I bought an akai reel to reel just like the one you have. got the optional big speakers. ran it hundreds of hours as on our ship off vietnam we had no other entertainment. in Kowloon (across from hong kong) I bought tapes from a pirate maker. I have been a sound studio engineer back when we used tape. yes, digital sounds better. time marches on.
I can completely back up your claim that there is a world of difference between a serviced GX400 with all good parts and fully working and one that appears to be good. I have worked on half a dozen of those and they often have small but non-trivial issues that need to be fixed and you need to take it apart to really do that. If I didn’t have all the tools I have I would be paying top dollar for a serviced one as well.
Yeah, all these month to month upgrades are a pita! Makes me think some manufacturers rush their latest development out the door asap, just to be first, & cash in. Same with computers, incrementally speeding up or increasing ram capacity. Now it seems they are incrementing the number of 'cores' at the same rate. It's never ending, & annoying. I guess the pressure of share prices is unstoppable, & shareholders are #1. Personally, I'd be happy if the sharemarket disappeared! I still love & use the ETI 'series 5000' preamp I built back in the mid 80's, & it still works perfectly. My QWL (quarter wave loaded) speakers I built from rough, 2nd hand pineboard in the same era are still in situ. My 10" 125W 'little blaster' & its associated 125W 'plastic power' amp, & Silicon Chip magazine 'sub bass controller', all of which I built back in the 90's, all still work perfectly, & still sound beautiful. Although since I've built my 'majestics', with their 15" Etone woofer & Celestion compression tweeter in 2018, the little blaster just gets in their way. The little blaster is going into my car when I get around to it! Gosh it still sounds so good! But yeah, manufacturers want us to spend our money just replacing our equipment every year it seems, as though our income is limitless! Meanwhile those in power continuously jack up taxes & costs the whole time. It's ridiculous! As for people always bragging they got this or that cheaper than you - that's their problem not yours Stephe! Some people have an inferiority complex or something, where they always have to be better, or faster, or cheaper, whatever. Their self-worth seems to rely on denegrating that of others. Those types piss me off too! - But only briefly! If I'm happy with what I've got, even if it's not 'the best', then I'm happy! There will nearly always be someone who has something better than what I have. Well good for them! It's a kind of a 'sickness' for some people, this 'oneupmanship'. I had a friend who annoyingly always had something better/faster/cheaper than mine. He seemed to delight in letting me know too. Needless to say, I have not had contact with him for a long time. Turns out he had real psychological problems, split up with his missus/newborn child etc. Sad really. But yeah, please continue to tell us how much things cost you! I know they're gonna be realistic, & don't let the (very?) few naysayers put you off. I love the way you present your content, as I'm sure most others do. I like the unexpected mix of stuff you also throw in. Please don't change change just cos of a coupla dickheads!
Hey Stephe, definitely agree with you on the hype train we see on some of those channels-I've been suckered in a few times. Speaking of hype vs. reality, what are your impressions of the Quad S2s you unboxed a few weeks ago? I'm hoping you are still up to doing a listening impression! I don't have a horse in the race, I'm just a satisfied owner of a pair, myself.
I had a Logitech squeezebox streamer that worked really well for years then it just stopped and I have no idea how to fix it. Analog gear I can mostly (& I’m talking to you here cassette deck) fix myself.
With Amir at ASR it is the item with better specs, for whatever THEY are worth, that is referred to as "the best." It's the current best and he has bar charts comparing ratings of all previous models of specific components types. His analysis and conclusions can be trusted ... in the "objective" realm. He freely reveals the inferiror examples whne he comes across them.
Actually it does. Almost all of the objective testing, including my own, is done using a single frequency sine wave. There may be sweeps across the frequency range, but each test point is via a singular frequency at a time. Playing music thought equipment is a very different "test" of what the gear is capable of. Amir does provide a valuable service and I read his reviews, but that obj4ective testing isn't the end of the story. I'm pretty sure him and his followers would HATE all of the gear I build and declare them all noise machines.
Good points,ASR provide great measurements but theres seems to be a peak SINAD circa 123db etc so any improvements in terms of measurements there might be and extra .1db etc so its hardly noticeable, although I believe 115db sinad is considered transparent. I suppose the way forward is getting top measurements at a cheaper price and or added features etc.I think we have reached a peak measurable performance for quite a while now.,in terms of digital gear. No suprise that people explore other avenues like vinyl/tape and of course the glorious tubes.....which dont measure the best but humans appreciate more.Just how much further can we go one may ask??
I think that it is always how the world operating, the pyramid model, there are always some products only for "high end", some for common folk, some for digital, etc. That's all, also I think for the reason there's no easy way we can go back watching those big heavy big box TV instead of watching your RUclips content via phone for example, it is the same human behaviour business over and over again, always. In short, nobody has to obssessed over anything, but they do, it become a game of different cause and effect, and no right and wrong actually.
@@SkunkieDesignsElectronics Thanks, this is for his home system, never had it connected to the system. I did plug it on and was amazed at the way it looked, all wooden front was clear with what seemed like a black light or purple light inside.
Good luck finding modern music on tape. And good luck with those tape jams. But yes, companies are all about money and milking the consuming cows. But I still think well-recorded CDs are the pinnacle of sound. 24-bit, 96 kHz files are marginally better, but that’s it. But analog recordings were made to preserve the dynamic range of the music. And you are right about the peddlers on YT.
Beware the Hype-o-sphere! Unfortunately most marketing is propaganda and can't be accepted at face value. You have to sift through a lot of crap to find meaningful information. The focus is on making folks think that what they have now obsolete. BTW, I've heard that Ritchie Blackmore frequently used Akai tape decks as guitar preamps to get his sound.
Aside from amplification, I am not seeing new technology in digital just a lot of new models I find the new digital amplifiers from Technics and Marantz to very interesting as they inherently convert D to A and don’t need a DAC and that may be old technology just new to me I also find GaN class D to be interesting which also may be old but new to me and it is class D which is old But really there is no new digital technology as a general matter Reel to Reel is making a comeback, especially with people who like vinyl, but how far will it go, we shall see as right now there is one consumer level manufacturer left as far as I know I did not “get” consumer reel to reel back in the 60s/70s but I 100% support people doing what they want Cassettes are coming back but not for me New models yes but not new technology, no as a general matter, in either analog or digital I don’t get caring about how other people spend their time and treasure Everyone should listen to what they want on what they want Over 50 years ago I had a dark-room, bought my 35mm fill in bulk, had a manual SLR and never thought film could ever be overtaken by digital cameras Physical media may become hyper-niche and go the way of film I have seen a lot of change in my life I will just enjoy what time I have left doing what I want and not concerning myself with what others are doing but I do miss film …it may even be making a comeback for all I know but I have long quit using film and have moved on
Right? I paid $1000 for a lightly used pair, in the OE boxes from a dealing with a free return policy, and someone chastised me for overpaying, saying "They are on audio mart used from some rando person for $700."...
Nothing can touch good vinyl playback...a great Tape deck is good...IMO digital sound peaked with the JVC K2 system for digitally mastering 30ips tape in 20bit....find some of those special jazz cd's. And remasters.
How weird. I have a Digitech RP250 from at least a decade ago that just keeps .... working? I want something better but ~ nothing is/does/works better. It's all bullshit. WRITE MUSIC? Worked fer Beethoven; and Chuck Berry; n' Garcia n'..................
😂😂😂 I am old enough to have gone through the many sonic stages, wonders and rollercoasters of hifi change ... from vinyl, reel to reel, cassette tapes, videotape, 8 track, then digital CDs, lazer discs, ripping digital files, downloading and streaming music file etc. and strangely I can be honest and say no matter what format ...there has always some great sounding gear, and so so and complete rubbish kit! As it is the nature of all thing we humans create design promote and peddle! But personally I stayed with vinyl for a long time - loving the sound quality when good,... but equally hating all the faff, ceremony and restrictions of vinyl playback, filling up whole walls with a mix of good, bad and bloody awful recordings! Which some remained hidden, lost or avoided for decades 😂! As I was always irritated by having to listen to whole sides of albums, just to hear the few good or semi decent tracks that I actually liked! And then all frustrations of different mixes, pressing and labels and bloody awful recordings etc etc So eventually sold it all to friends...travelled and changed over to digit file and streaming and absolutely love it! As it sounds nearly as good as my old vinyl system....but I can find and play just the music, tracks or playlists I want to hear - all from my choir! and also have 24/7 access to the biggest music store of wonders ....filled with amazing global artists and music that I would never of known or found! But appreciate it's all highly personal and subjective! Plus ..humans have to make a living so will innovate, create and reinvent the wheel again and again ...which guaranteeing there will always be good, bad, old and new options and choices to explore, choose, smile or frustrate ourselves with! ❤
yeah,aint that the truth, @@SkunkieDesignsElectronics! theres a thing that happens online--an internet cult for every BS artist out there. i think more speaks to internet addicts acting out than real life audiophiles.
And this is why so many of us trust you over those other "reviewers."
Indeed! For me, this is the only audio channel I completely trust.
Thanks!
Besides Steph, I trust Erin's Audio Corner and Ron Brenay.
Another great Monday Monologue, thanks Stephe. And, thanks also for the intro to Eva Cassidy and a few weeks back to the Boz Scaggs, Dig album which I picked up and have really enjoyed.
Biggest mistake I ever made was dumping my analogue (1970 era) gear in the 90’s to chase some digital. Pushed me out of the hobby for the past 25 years. All sound is analogue! Digital is just trying to claim they can improve it by going analogue to digital back to analogue and it somehow sounds better. You nailed the analysis, it’s nothing but another hype to get people to spend money. I’m returning to the hobby, but will stick with an analogue signal path as much as possible. Thanks for the video, wish I had your channel 25 years ago and lived as close as I do now.
Really looking forward to hearing more about that reel to reel. On the digital side of things, it seems like the audible quality peaked a while back & now it's all down to devices that perform better in measurements outside of the audible spectrum. Audiophiles looking to get the best digital experience possible don't need to invest that much money. It's an amazing time to be into hifi...there are so many good options & formats to play with.
You are correct about Erin's Audio Corner. I would add Golden Sound - He was sued for his honesty. Nice video.
Not only sounds better but Feels Better!! I love my Teac X-1000R, Revox A77 & PR99. Getting well recorded material, full bandwidth past 20Khz is my ambition, costly but worth the effort ;)
Full respect on your new purchase :D
Agree, agree, agree. Most of those so called honest reviewers hype the crap out of almost everything that comes through their door. All for a little cash in advertisement or affiliated links. Just look at their thumbnails. It’s ridiculous. Shocked face expression with a question, “Is this the best ….. ?” Trash.
As to digital well, it changes every six months or so. Investing in so called the best of today makes no sense as it will be obsolete in a year or less. 👍🏻
Good on you Stephe. Not everybody has your level of integrity. That is one of the things we respect about you.
Totally agree about the hype train, which is why I tend to get pre-80’s nonworking tube or solid state gear to work on (or a new build). They sound great when repaired or restored, each unit seems to have its own sonic characteristics. Better than adding to landfill, whereas newer units crammed with PCB and ribbon cables seem so difficult to work on that it’s cheaper to buy a new unit than pay someone for the labor to fix. Same goes for guitar amps.
There’s a YT reviewer who had a vintage amp and liked its “character,” but the co-reviewer didn’t like it to what I think was a scratchy volume knob and pop in the speakers when turning it off. I think we know what the problem is given it’s a solid state 50 year-old unit that some TLC will take care of. As a result, on to promoting stuff that’s thousands of dollars. Well, that and a paid promotion mid-video talking about a hair growth product. 😊
I have a Bluesound Node 2i and have no motivation to replace it. Trying to get off the hype for something new and improved. I feel vinyl has also gone down this hype road, which might be fine for collectors, not for a more casual listener like me.
Really appreciate all your videos. This one hit a salty chord with me since I agree so much with it, so my apologies for the ramble.
Love a good rant! I'm more of a jazz person. Listened to numerous tracks from 2cd Nightbird.. just ordered it. Thanks for the recommendation. After all it is about the music, eh? (From Canada with love!)
Sounds amazing because it’s analog technology. Many recording studio’s are going back to analog, 2 1/2 tape for multi track recording.
Fantastic Monday monologue skunkie, everything you said I could hear myself saying ! Yep there's some bloody irritating humans on this planet 🙄 I made comment about R2R on your Facebook video, I actually would say my Tascam R2R is favoured over my TT, I love the sound of tape , so I wonder if you get drawn to cassette tape now ??? I love that too , I have a nakamichi cr7e and with good brands of tape it surpasses cd's , oh and thanks for the like on my blueglow kt88 pic I finally managed to show you 😊
Thanks for this review. It confirms my thoughts when I managed to buy the same machine on Craigslist for the same reasons. It replaced a Sony that had worn mumetal heads and plays my old tapes beautifully. There are comments about one of the transistor types used in this deck, that they may fail. It seems to be that the leads corrode so may depend on how the deck was stored over 50 years. I think some transistors were made with galvanized iron or steel leads.
The early "outhouse" shape transistors are problematic. The later type seem to be OK and not have these issues from what I have read.
That's why Geshelli Labs and Sparkos Labs gives you the option to Upgrade the DAC in their gear.
I salute both companies. Schiit's high-end DAC's also have modular chassis builds.
You forgot NAD Master Series (and yes it's no DAC so how about PS Audio)...
This is perfect & I am happy you are doing this! I have been looking into buying a reel to reel done a lot of research & looking but haven't pulled the trigger on it yet. I have been looking for a 10" reel size & higher speed 15.5" per second. Another great video.
15 ips is standard. What machine runs at 15.5 ips? Not doubting, some machines do have variable speed, really expensive and sophisticated machines, so I'm just curious.
This is "big buck", somewhat frustrating, territory. At one time I had the time and patience for it, but not now.
Pretty sure they mean 15ips.
@@SkunkieDesignsElectronics OK, I was thinking maybe the poster might have a modified Studer A80, Stellavox TD 9, or Nagra T. Its not out of the realm of possibility of your viewers. Esoteric european machines that I could definitely see where the record/playback electronics would yield a superior performance than what I employ currently.
@@scottwolf8633 Sorry I meant 15 ips.
It's really a real reel-to-reel! (a nod to Techmoan)
Buying stereo gear every half a year? Meh. I'm more in the "buy a good piece of kit and keep it for decades" camp.
You're right on the money with the whole hype thing. Sadly, it speaks volume on modern people's attention spans - not retaining knowledge, not remembering same thing was said three years ago about a piece that got old after two years and ended up at attics and basements, e-waste recyclers or landfills (in the worst case).
I love finding cheap or downright free gear, but don't shame anyone for buying it for good cash... You're totally right about service expenses. Getting deals has an inherent risk, only a part of us have the skills, gear, materials, time and patience to go through the restoration process. Just because something is good for me, it doesn't mean it should be the case for someone else - and I respect that. Also, markets are different. There are places where some particular vintage gear is abundant, like Tektronix scopes in the US - and there are places where it's just not around for various reasons, including geopolitics a few decades ago, like here in Poland, where these scopes are simply not around, they're a rarity on secondhand markets and fetch hefty sums, way above what you'd have to pay in the States, adjusted for exchange rates and buying power parity.
I actually owned this Akai deck when I was younger in the 80's and I absolutely loved it. Congrats Stephe! Also agree 100%, so tired of all these RUclips audiophile influencers claiming the latest and greatest is the best...what ever happened to buy right, buy for life? Oh yeah, that's tubes, analog, and magnetic tape, ;-)
That also is a tank. I had one as my first. Now I own like three different models! But that first GX just worked and worked well, always. Good choice!
It’s chasing things you can’t hear at this point for these solid state amps. They end up super clean, and just boring. Why I LOVE vintage Hi-fi, and tubes. We got there back then, and when I say ‘there’ I mean an awesome sound with noise levels we can’t hear at normal listening levels.
Just keep on doing what you enjoy with the videos. We are here for your experience, knowledge and opinions.
Great video! I don't trust reviewers that say that their new amp/speakers/DAC are their end game products only to put out another video a few weeks later and the product isn't even mentioned anymore. Keep up the good work and definitely mix it up more. :)
I appreciate that!
.Well...another great commentary! The quest for analog sound goes on, and on, and on. Why not simply stick with an analog source? good recommendation w Nighbird!!
I have that same akai deck it’s great and super reliable and very easy way to get into reel to reel. There is a bit of a learning curve but there are parts you can get and it’s a lot of fun!
Very cool!
A great video, and I agree with everything. For me I find the whole DAC fad to be as useless and boring as expensive power cables. The DACs in my SACD player and streamers do the job and that's all I need. Your analogy to digital photography is spot on, and I have a five megapixel pocket camera that I've used for snapshots for almost twenty years, but I do have newer DSLRs too.
For the most part I'm not interested in the little inexpensive Chinese components but others are so I can accept that.
Just last week on another channel I commented that a hifi piece was a steal and one of those negative knuckleheads was giving me crap and saying they could put together a system for $70. Being frugal is one thing but I'm not impressed by garbage pickers.
I would love to have a reel to reel but I just don't have the room for one. If that's all you paid for that puppy I think you made out great. I bought a mint condition 3-head cassette deck from Japan that cost me $700 and I was pleased with that. Being able to get vintage equipment in like new condition is a thrill. Have a great week.
I am retired also. Spending extra money to save yourself time fixing and cleaning is a good thing at this stage of my life. Younger people don't understand that.
My time in so limited, the idea of hunting down gear at yard sales or even checking ebay/websites every day for deals isn't really an option.
Whilst I don’t agree entirely I feel your pain. Think perhaps slightly different … sometimes it’s not so much about better but easier. As to what others think about ones purchases … who cares. Nice vlog. Thank you.
Owned the Teac 2300SD and Revox B 77, for archiving LP's. Both machines biased for Ampex Grandmaster 456, that initially had to drive to Fred Locke Studio, 35 miles each way, to buy 1.5 mil, 1200 ft on 7 inch reels, and add the leader tape. Then 1.0 mil 1800 ft from Tape World, via the mail. When the tape self destructed, I rid myself of the 2 R/R's. My Tascam CD recorder with playback through an Audio Note Kit DAC, superior to the analog tape.
I have the ability to burn CDs + have a really nice CD deck. Do you really think that if I heard that CD sounded better, I would have bothered setting up a turntable and a reel to reel deck? Yes it's more convenient so is streaming and I think people just want to believe digital sounds better because it's more convenient and they just don't want to deal with analog.
@@SkunkieDesignsElectronics I employ a Philips Magnavox CDB 650 digital out to the Tascam CD RW 700 CD recorder, digital in, so bit transfer in real time. But its the playback through the Audio Note kit DAC where reconstruction of the waveform, via different techniques employed in the Industry today, that makes the sound, superior to my B 77 playback electronics. I listen through a 300B, OTL pre, and an EL-509 SET OTL amp, driving my Stax SRD/MK III earspeakers, now vs my loudspeakers. Apartment dwelling has its issues. With albums I record via my B 790. So its not really convenience I'm after, but sound quality. I keep the room quiet,when recording LP's, so reduced microphonics, and I don't stream. Just my, very subjective, observations, noting the gear I've used.
It's always fun with you, pls stay that way 👍
I agree with you overall but want to make a few points about 'advancing tech'. First in the streaming world we have entered an era where software updates are available to many products that make them better mostly for free. My NAD streamer has been updated lots & lots of times even though it was the first version, not the latest. Even my phono preamp has had online updates. Also many solid state products are making it so you can update the OP amps, which was never true like it has always been with tubes. There are even a few companies who allow you to upgrade/replace caps in their units very easily. Then there are examples of upgraded power supplies both internal & external to improve the unit. Yes, new products still come out like crazy with higher prices, excluding the new WIM but, many do offer improvement without buying more new, I think this trend will increase. I remember the whole digital camera issue, the early ones were crap, my Brother was a photojournalist & he kept his lenses of course but, had to keep buying new Nikon bodies for their new sensors. One improvement was that going digital meant there were no costs anymore around film, processing etc. but, just like LPs film is making a comback. I was at the Sundance Film Festival in January & there were many people 30 years old give or take who had vintage 35mm cameras.
Hi Stephe, for today's comment I will keep it short and sweet. You hit the ball out of the park with the entire rant, and got me smiling along the way. PS, great reel to reel, they sound amazing and the Akai ones have got the looks to go with it, with the turn leavers.
So far I am loving it!
I have a Pioneer SX-1010 receiver made in 1976 and it sounds as good or better than any digital equipment that I have heard.
some ppl just got way too much time and need a way to feel superior，simply
ignore them （ or better use them for Monday rant material 😂）
LOL!
I can only suggest getting connected with a "proper" recording studio, and see how often they upgrade their equipment, to get an idea what is real, and what is BS.
Just ordered songbird uk thanks for the recomendation
Yep, als an Eva Cassidy fan.
My recommendation of the week would be Clairo's album "Sling". Singer/Songwriter stuff. Mostly natural instruments, subdued voice mostly in the background. Easy to listen to. Sonically interesting in my view. Good recording quality, lots to discover for audiophiles.
Thanks for the tip! Got a copy on the way :)
back in 1965 hong kong I bought an akai reel to reel just like the one you have. got the optional big speakers. ran it hundreds of hours as on our ship off vietnam we had no other entertainment. in Kowloon (across from hong kong) I bought tapes from a pirate maker. I have been a sound studio engineer back when we used tape. yes, digital sounds better. time marches on.
I disagree but it is a personal choice what we enjoy listening to.
I can completely back up your claim that there is a world of difference between a serviced GX400 with all good parts and fully working and one that appears to be good. I have worked on half a dozen of those and they often have small but non-trivial issues that need to be fixed and you need to take it apart to really do that. If I didn’t have all the tools I have I would be paying top dollar for a serviced one as well.
Yeah, all these month to month upgrades are a pita! Makes me think some manufacturers rush their latest development out the door asap, just to be first, & cash in.
Same with computers, incrementally speeding up or increasing ram capacity. Now it seems they are incrementing the number of 'cores' at the same rate. It's never ending, & annoying. I guess the pressure of share prices is unstoppable, & shareholders are #1. Personally, I'd be happy if the sharemarket disappeared!
I still love & use the ETI 'series 5000' preamp I built back in the mid 80's, & it still works perfectly.
My QWL (quarter wave loaded) speakers I built from rough, 2nd hand pineboard in the same era are still in situ.
My 10" 125W 'little blaster' & its associated 125W 'plastic power' amp, & Silicon Chip magazine 'sub bass controller', all of which I built back in the 90's, all still work perfectly, & still sound beautiful.
Although since I've built my 'majestics', with their 15" Etone woofer & Celestion compression tweeter in 2018, the little blaster just gets in their way. The little blaster is going into my car when I get around to it! Gosh it still sounds so good!
But yeah, manufacturers want us to spend our money just replacing our equipment every year it seems, as though our income is limitless! Meanwhile those in power continuously jack up taxes & costs the whole time. It's ridiculous!
As for people always bragging they got this or that cheaper than you - that's their problem not yours Stephe! Some people have an inferiority complex or something, where they always have to be better, or faster, or cheaper, whatever. Their self-worth seems to rely on denegrating that of others.
Those types piss me off too! - But only briefly! If I'm happy with what I've got, even if it's not 'the best', then I'm happy! There will nearly always be someone who has something better than what I have. Well good for them! It's a kind of a 'sickness' for some people, this 'oneupmanship'. I had a friend who annoyingly always had something better/faster/cheaper than mine. He seemed to delight in letting me know too.
Needless to say, I have not had contact with him for a long time. Turns out he had real psychological problems, split up with his missus/newborn child etc. Sad really.
But yeah, please continue to tell us how much things cost you! I know they're gonna be realistic, & don't let the (very?) few naysayers put you off.
I love the way you present your content, as I'm sure most others do. I like the unexpected mix of stuff you also throw in. Please don't change change just cos of a coupla dickheads!
Monday Jazz Album:
KENNY DORHAM - Whistle Stop
Hey Stephe, definitely agree with you on the hype train we see on some of those channels-I've been suckered in a few times. Speaking of hype vs. reality, what are your impressions of the Quad S2s you unboxed a few weeks ago? I'm hoping you are still up to doing a listening impression! I don't have a horse in the race, I'm just a satisfied owner of a pair, myself.
Love them, plan to do a review soon!
I had a Logitech squeezebox streamer that worked really well for years then it just stopped and I have no idea how to fix it. Analog gear I can mostly (& I’m talking to you here cassette deck) fix myself.
With Amir at ASR it is the item with better specs, for whatever THEY are worth, that is referred to as "the best." It's the current best and he has bar charts comparing ratings of all previous models of specific components types. His analysis and conclusions can be trusted ... in the "objective" realm. He freely reveals the inferiror examples whne he comes across them.
If folks are only interested in measurements of gear using a single frequency at a time, then yeah just go watch Amir :)
@@SkunkieDesignsElectronics That has nothing to do with your original point nor, therefore, with my response.
Actually it does. Almost all of the objective testing, including my own, is done using a single frequency sine wave. There may be sweeps across the frequency range, but each test point is via a singular frequency at a time. Playing music thought equipment is a very different "test" of what the gear is capable of.
Amir does provide a valuable service and I read his reviews, but that obj4ective testing isn't the end of the story. I'm pretty sure him and his followers would HATE all of the gear I build and declare them all noise machines.
Good points,ASR provide great measurements but theres seems to be a peak SINAD circa 123db etc so any improvements in terms of measurements there might be and extra .1db etc so its hardly noticeable, although I believe 115db sinad is considered transparent. I suppose the way forward is getting top measurements at a cheaper price and or added features etc.I think we have reached a peak measurable performance for quite a while now.,in terms of digital gear. No suprise that people explore other avenues like vinyl/tape and of course the glorious tubes.....which dont measure the best but humans appreciate more.Just how much further can we go one may ask??
I think that it is always how the world operating, the pyramid model, there are always some products only for "high end", some for common folk, some for digital, etc. That's all, also I think for the reason there's no easy way we can go back watching those big heavy big box TV instead of watching your RUclips content via phone for example, it is the same human behaviour business over and over again, always. In short, nobody has to obssessed over anything, but they do, it become a game of different cause and effect, and no right and wrong actually.
Oh wow Steph, I used to own the Akai reel to reel.... Stupidly sold it about 20 years ago... 😢😢😢😢
Where are you getting source material for your tape machine?
Right now it's just for recording 45RPM vinyl to avoid flipping disks so often lol.
Hey Skunkie, trying to understand a part of my fathers' system he has a reverb box, do you have a clue what it what used for?
I've seen them used on mono system to simulate stereo or in early car radios for the back speaker.
@@SkunkieDesignsElectronics Thanks, this is for his home system, never had it connected to the system. I did plug it on and was amazed at the way it looked, all wooden front was clear with what seemed like a black light or purple light inside.
Good luck finding modern music on tape. And good luck with those tape jams.
But yes, companies are all about money and milking the consuming cows.
But I still think well-recorded CDs are the pinnacle of sound. 24-bit, 96 kHz files are marginally better, but that’s it.
But analog recordings were made to preserve the dynamic range of the music.
And you are right about the peddlers on YT.
Indeed, well recorded CDs are tops.
These tapes sound great!
@@SkunkieDesignsElectronics Some definitely do!
Beware the Hype-o-sphere! Unfortunately most marketing is propaganda and can't be accepted at face value. You have to sift through a lot of crap to find meaningful information. The focus is on making folks think that what they have now obsolete. BTW, I've heard that Ritchie Blackmore frequently used Akai tape decks as guitar preamps to get his sound.
If I spin my wheels would I be cool?
Also, capitalism. There needs to be something new to sell to stay in business.
Also, many companies are just making things to get in on the action.
@@turokforever007 agree
I'm all analog. Have no Digital gear.
That's a radical stance in today's digital world.
Aside from amplification, I am not seeing new technology in digital just a lot of new models
I find the new digital amplifiers from Technics and Marantz to very interesting as they inherently convert D to A and don’t need a DAC and that may be old technology just new to me
I also find GaN class D to be interesting which also may be old but new to me and it is class D which is old
But really there is no new digital technology as a general matter
Reel to Reel is making a comeback, especially with people who like vinyl, but how far will it go, we shall see as right now there is one consumer level manufacturer left as far as I know
I did not “get” consumer reel to reel back in the 60s/70s but I 100% support people doing what they want
Cassettes are coming back but not for me
New models yes but not new technology, no as a general matter, in either analog or digital
I don’t get caring about how other people spend their time and treasure
Everyone should listen to what they want on what they want
Over 50 years ago I had a dark-room, bought my 35mm fill in bulk, had a manual SLR and never thought film could ever be overtaken by digital cameras
Physical media may become hyper-niche and go the way of film
I have seen a lot of change in my life
I will just enjoy what time I have left doing what I want and not concerning myself with what others are doing but I do miss film …it may even be making a comeback for all I know but I have long quit using film and have moved on
I paid $1450 for a pair of new fyne f500 from a dealer. I would pay it again in a second.
Right? I paid $1000 for a lightly used pair, in the OE boxes from a dealing with a free return policy, and someone chastised me for overpaying, saying "They are on audio mart used from some rando person for $700."...
Nothing can touch good vinyl playback...a great Tape deck is good...IMO digital sound peaked with the JVC K2 system for digitally mastering 30ips tape in 20bit....find some of those special jazz cd's. And remasters.
Half life of Digital components is probably 6 months ? It's insane especially ChiFi....
Rubbish
How weird. I have a Digitech RP250 from at least a decade ago that just keeps .... working? I want something better but ~ nothing is/does/works better. It's all bullshit. WRITE MUSIC? Worked fer Beethoven; and Chuck Berry; n' Garcia n'..................
😂😂😂 I am old enough to have gone through the many sonic stages, wonders and rollercoasters of hifi change ... from vinyl, reel to reel, cassette tapes, videotape, 8 track, then digital CDs, lazer discs, ripping digital files, downloading and streaming music file etc. and strangely I can be honest and say no matter what format ...there has always some great sounding gear, and so so and complete rubbish kit! As it is the nature of all thing we humans create design promote and peddle!
But personally I stayed with vinyl for a long time - loving the sound quality when good,... but equally hating all the faff, ceremony and restrictions of vinyl playback, filling up whole walls with a mix of good, bad and bloody awful recordings! Which some remained hidden, lost or avoided for decades 😂!
As I was always irritated by having to listen to whole sides of albums, just to hear the few good or semi decent tracks that I actually liked! And then all frustrations of different mixes, pressing and labels and bloody awful recordings etc etc
So eventually sold it all to friends...travelled and changed over to digit file and streaming and absolutely love it!
As it sounds nearly as good as my old vinyl system....but I can find and play just the music, tracks or playlists I want to hear - all from my choir! and also have 24/7 access to the biggest music store of wonders ....filled with amazing global artists and music that I would never of known or found!
But appreciate it's all highly personal and subjective!
Plus ..humans have to make a living so will innovate, create and reinvent the wheel again and again ...which guaranteeing there will always be good, bad, old and new options and choices to explore, choose, smile or frustrate ourselves with! ❤
the gear review youyotube world isnt a review schtick. most of these are just infomercials and just as helpful.
Yep, but too many people see them as gospel.
yeah,aint that the truth, @@SkunkieDesignsElectronics! theres a thing that happens online--an internet cult for every BS artist out there. i think more speaks to internet addicts acting out than real life audiophiles.