We've probably all been there. Chopping and changing gear or buying something on a whim. It can be a disaster or a pleasant surprise.

Mostly, I buy stuff I'm pretty confident is good and am seldom unhappy with my choices, but the odd piece of equipment fails to impress.

However, occasionally, a real gem comes along that surprises.

Being a tightwad (on a pension), I tend to buy second hand these days and in the last few years, the following have impressed me very much.

The Toshiba SR-370 direct drive turntable. Available at very sensible prices and offers remarkable sound for the money. I admit I've had mine some years, but was knocked out by the sound quality when I first rigged it up with one of my Mission 774 arms.

Goldring Eroica LX moving coil cartridge. What a pleasant surprise that was. So musical and enjoyable, far better than I'd expected!

The Quad 306 power amp. Definitely bought on a whim, but I'd heard them sounding good elsewhere. It's a damn nice sounding unit, much better in my system than I'd anticipated, it simply does nothing wrong and is very musical. Needs careful pre-amp matching though.

Most recently, the KEF Corelli speakers, part of the classic 'C' series from the seventies. Also bought on a whim, just for a bit of fun. They were decent when I got them, but with minor renovation and a recap, they sound quite amazing. Seems I'm not the only one who thinks so.


What have you bought that exceeded expectations or even came as a total surprise?