Newbie !

[bbbiker800]

Hi Guys - looks like I need to make an entry in this welcome section so I can start posting and replying so, here goes ...

Its fair to say that the hi-fi bug hits me every 10 years or so (10 year itch? ) and I find the need to upgrade something in my old but modest system.

By way of example, last year I got suckered in by an interesting mag that got me interested in vinyl again which with a few raids on charity swaps has resulted in a new Rega RP3 and Ortofon 2M Bronze - very nice..... Then I added an Audiolab MDAC (not had one before) to my old Marantz CD6000 OSE KI - also very nice and really a night and day type of upgrade. This leaves me with a MF XA2, GS The Bridge phono stage and Dynaudio Audience 52 SE's - I won't bore you with cable details but they are decentish.....

So that gives you an idea of how old my stuff is and how rarely I make a change. Oh and BTW, the other example is this year where I found myself wearing rose tinted specs and fell for a pair of Rogers JR149's (fleabay) - these remind of a local 'HiFi' shop from many years ago (Speaker Selection, Walthamstow, London) where I'd get repeated demo's listening to DSOTM.... looks like the JR's are going to be a restore project !!

So that's a little about me - be gentle with my 1st posts please !

[The Black Adder]

Welcome to AOS, Richard.

lol.. there are some older kit here than yours, so don't worry. I've had the MF XA-2 and it's a lovely thing. A design classic!

Plenty of things to immerse yourself deeper with here, so enjoy the music and enjoy AOS. :)

Cheers
Josie

[Marco]

Welcome to AoS, Richard. Glad you managed to successfully navigate the registration process eventually! Get stuck in and enjoy :cool:

Marco.

[struth]

Welcome Richard. Thought at first youd developed a typing stammer :lol: but on rereading i guess you like bikes. There are a number of cyclists and motorised one here so your in company. also old gear is very popular here and i use some 60 year old speakers..
Enjoy your self and if you are rewuiring help just ask in the correct area.

[bbbiker800]

Thanks guys - nice welcome !

Struth - yes the biker bit was originally referring to motorcycling but that takes a back door now in favour of a bit of fitness so yes i'm a cyclist ... which makes me a MAMIL :). One of the JR's isn't performing too well in that it occasionally 'pops' on some music/peaks. Not sure if dodgy driver (hope not) or capacitors in the XO. I'm not that technical so fixing it will be a big experiment.

Josie - I will look for another Phono Stage upgrade soon but will stick with the speakers and amp for a bit yet though I suspect the amp will be the last bit to get swapped out - lets see !

[walpurgis]

Hi Richard. Welcome to AOS.

Tell us what music you listen to and more about your system plans.

You have some decent gear, so maybe not everything needs changing. The speakers are a bit of a classic and very good by any standards for their size. If you're going to change the phono stage, you could do a lot worse than staying with Graham Slee. The ERA V Gold is fantastic for the money.

Anyway, if you have a look around you'll see that every aspect of Hi-Fi is covered here. If you want a general Hi-fi chat or have questions, start a thread in the Blank Canvas section or join in what going on elsewhere.


Enjoy the forum,
Geoff.

[bbbiker800]

Hi Geoff - Yes the GS Gold stage does seem to get good feedback but then so do lots of others eg Lehmann. But, I'm not loaded (home decorations needed) so I'm prepared to take a gamble on a decent stage on ebay or elsewhere should one come up that I fancy. However, I did see the Firebottle but that seems out of my budget (£700ish ? - whereas i'm looking at £400ish).

Music tastes are varied and include all the 60's/70's/80's rock including prog but also Blues and real R&B - all the usual culprits are in there. But I do have a lot of classical too although no opera - just can't appreciate it (i'm clearly not old enough LOL !). Regarding todays music then I really do struggle to hear stuff I like - which is no different to my sons who are 27 & 30 and they are big Floyd & Beatles fans.

Thanks for the welcome !

[Audio Al]

Hi Richard

Essex UK :scratch: thats a mighty big county

Please 2 see you are a vinyl man

Welcome 2 AOS :)

[vegman1973]

Hi Richard, I love the vinyl I listen to it on my Rega Rp6 you can't beat the sound of a Rega for the price. I'm still using the exact cart but hopefully when funds allow a new cart is in order. What's your regular vinyl selection? I'm always drawn back to Pink Floyd and The Eagles

[Us-&-Them]

Hi Newbie :)

I wont go into all the ins and outs of what I recommend and the like - let your own ears tell you what's sounds good (to you) and then buy it. I'm more of a CD person when it comes to listening but, vinyl has its place for certain recordings (to my ears) as I like some recordings better on vinyl (just dont like the nicks and scratches that come through but I guess that's part of the nostalgia) :)

Welcome aboard !!

[bbbiker800]

Vegman1973 - I don't really have a regular selection but the following seem to be staples for me even though I like lots of stuff..... no order of preference: Floyd, The Who, Radiohead, Yes, Genesis (Gabriel years mainly - yes i know !!), Rush, Rory Gallagher, BBKing, Cream, Clapton, Paul Weller, Led Zep, Neil Young and a lot of others - eg Eagles that I played yesterday !

[Floyddroid]

You'll love it here. Welcome.

[Eagle owl]

Hello and welcome Richard.

Geoff. :wave:

[bbbiker800]

cheers guys !