System on a Shoestring

[AD Audio]

I was in Italy over the weekend and had a chance to have dinner with an audio friend who's got a shoestring system as follows:

-Thorens turntable with SME 3 arm given to him by a friend's father
-Rotel amp and CD player reclaimed from a skip
-Zingali speakers from a skip which he re-coned (Zingali was an upmarket Italian speaker manufacturer making great-looking cabinets and using JBL drivers)
-a fairly cheap phono amp bought in the US

He's got a system friendly room and some of his old 60s vinyl recordings sounded stunning with pin point imagery and great tone. The CD player was much more variable depending on the CD, but still decent enough with a good recording.Overall, the system could put some expensive systems I've heard to shame. Moral of the story for me: firstly you can get great sound with little outlay with a bit of ingenuity; secondly I'll need to move house to get imaging like that or else install lots of sound absorbing panels!

[Theadmans]

...Very True !!

- I have :-

Pioneer Stable Platter CD Player - bought Mint for £39

Squeezebox Touch - bought on half price Amazon Sale for £135 (try getting one now for that after they stupidly discontinued them !)

Raspberry Pi + Wolfson Audio Card - used in bedroom system - sounds the same as SBT for around £70 in custom case.

Creek 4330 Integrated Amplifier - bought Mint for £120 (was Stereophile best amp under $500)

AVI Neutron IV Speakers - bought Mint for £200 (the best of the whole Neutron Passive Speaker line)

Beresford Caiman II DAC - no need to explain.

Beresford Capella Headphone Amp - no need to explain.

Musical Fidelity X10D Tube Buffer - bought for £90 then fully renovated by Pink Floyd mods.

Anker 20,000mah battery - £50 - powers SBT, Caiman II and Capella (no pricey Linear Power Supplies).

Sennheiser HD650 Headphones - Free - won in Hi-Fi competition !

Tesco Finest Granite Chopping Boards - £10 - makes great system stands stood on Squash Balls in Castor Cups.

[IHP]

I still recall the AoS 'cheap as chips' system at Scalford a few years ago. The thing sounded wonderful, not a spot out of place after visiting rooms with real esoteric and pricy gear. I can't be a hypocrite, I've spent a few quid myself, but can't help thinking there's loads of fun to be had with pocket money gear. My first thought is Castle speakers, that's where I'd go first.

Adam, what on earth is a Pink Floyd mod ?! An amp called Roger that falls out with the rest of the system ? ;-)

Edit: ......and that NAD amp for sale here, you could build a heck of a system round that.

[struth]

TThink the Floyd mods are pretty similar what I did to my v3.(rock grotto) made a huge difference to the buffer and I now dont need a dac.

[Macca]

The Scalford cheap as chips set up was amazing. Best dem I've ever been to, just to see some of the looks on the faces.

You have to choose and match wisely (or luckily) though. I've got a whole room full of failed experiments to prove it, bit like a hi-fi related Doctor Moreau's Island. I've got a great system now, cheap as chips at £2000 (for what it does) but I've spent about 10 grand over ten years getting there.

[martian sunrise]

What was in the cheap as chips set-up?

[Macca]

IIRC Cambridge P50 amp, RAM speakers (can't recall which model) and a Pioneer stable platter Cd player. Might have been using a laptop as a source too at some points. I think it cost eighty quid total.

[walpurgis]

Some years ago I had an eBay members forum called 'The Hi-Fi Shoestring Project'.

The aim was finding items that were the best bang for your bucks in Hi-Fi terms, with the idea of assembling a great system for a modest outlay.

eBay forums are pretty low key, but it ran OK for a year or so, then started fizzling out and also gaining some 'odd' members so I closed it.

[southall-1998]

Some years ago I had an eBay members forum called 'The Hi-Fi Shoestring Project'.

The aim was finding items that were the best bang for your bucks in Hi-Fi terms, with the idea of assembling a great system for a modest outlay.

eBay forums are pretty low key, but it ran OK for a year or so, then started fizzling out and also gaining some 'odd' members so I closed it.


Have you thought about running a hifi group on facebook, Geoff?

S.

[diviy]

This is what I amp currently using and the cost
Amp Arcam a65 running as a pre £100 soon to be gone
Deck sl1210 Acromat Isotone feet ,Time step powe rsupply kab fluid dampner £300
Power amps Arcam alpha p8 x2 £235
cd Creek evo £100
speakers Ditton 15xr £100
Beresford tc7510 + little pinkie power supply £79
Dab Cambridge dab300 £30
Phono stage Music Fidelity x-lpsv3 £100 soon to be gone
Xcan headphone amp 79
power lead and interconnect all hand made £50

total £1186
one more addition being sorted a nice custom valve pre-amp with phono stage cost ???

[walpurgis]

Have you thought about running a hifi group on facebook, Geoff?

S.

I have friends who use FaceBook. The mindless rubbish I see them involve themselves in put me off ever joining.

[southall-1998]

I have friends who use FaceBook. The mindless rubbish I see them involve themselves in put me off ever joining.


Irrelevant to you, I see! Don't blame you.

S.

[Theadmans]

Adam, what on earth is a Pink Floyd mod ?! An amp called Roger that falls out with the rest of the system ? ;-)



Yes Grant is correct Ian - Pink Floyd is the Username of the bloke at Rock Grotto - purveyor of mods and Little Pinkie power supplies. Here is my pimped up X10D tube buffer with before and after shots of the board :-

http://rockgrotto.proboards.com/thread/1961/work-progress?page=15

[hifinutt]

is zingali still trading ? you mentioned them in the past tense

[Michael loves music]

I have 2 systems room 1 a Nad 541i CD player £20 a Nad 310 amp £20 Jpw sonata speakers £20 Pure DRX 701es tuner £40 other room Denon 520AE CD player £50 Denon 350SE amp £30 that was a bargain mint Tannoy Mercury V1 speakers on Atacama nexus stands £70 stands were £15 ! Yes peanuts but to my ears both systems sound lovely I love eBay and post office windows adverts old hifi etc ! Geoff what was your favorite system on a shoe string ???

[walpurgis]

Geoff what was your favorite system on a shoe string ???

You'll laugh. A Sharp MD-MT80 personal MiniDisc player/recorder driving a TDK S-60 'Tremor' multimedia NXT speaker system.

It sounded way better than you'd expect. I used to rig it up next to the main system and people thought that was what they were listening to until I pointed out the tiny little speakers. They were usually gobsmacked.

Still got this setup. The TDK speakers are currently rigged up to my PC.

[AD Audio]

is zingali still trading ? you mentioned them in the past tense

You're right. I did use the past tense but they are still trading......

[paulf-2007]

The difference between a £1000 amp and a £69 amp " can be " marginal, as I have just discovered. I have had 2A3 amps into front horns with compression drivers, also 300B into the same front horns, various other speakers including lowthers and my current Zu's, PX25 into the Zu's, all very nice with all the detail you'd ever need. Then I bought the Sony receiver and the box count has been cut, no need for a preamp, tuner ( not that I listen to radio much ) or phono stage, nor do I listen with one ear cocked trying to hear something different/better/worse even, just lovely music with a quality sound. I feel my swapping days are done and I can get on with my other obsession, my classic car restoration, although she is still on the road and useable.