Hi everyone, first 'proper' Hi fi

[RobCool]

Hi everypne, names Rob and I'm getting my nans old Hi fi.

I dont know really anything about them Tbh so hoping someone can shed some light.

It's a philips FCD 465 and I know was from around the mid to late 80's.
Does anyone know if their that good? I've currently got a 1byone record player, would the philips record player be better? (I'm going to get a new needle before I use it)

I've been getting into vinyls for a while, I'm mainly into 90's hip hop / rap & Motown and have around 40 records, most are new but I've got some originals. I like to listen to them a fair amount & I know the Hi fi isnt the best but will it do the job okay? Hopefully the quality is alright until i can get a better one!

Let me know your thoughts :)
Cheers
Rob

[Lawrence001]

Does it look like this one? I hate to be the bearer of bad news but I don't think many people on this forum would call it proper HiFi. Have a look round and see what we use, it will give you a better idea of what's out there.

https://goo.gl/images/jt3EUX

Sent from my BLN-L21 using Tapatalk

[walpurgis]

Hi Rob. Welcome to AOS.

I think Lawrence is being a little negative there. I say give your nan's old system a whirl, it may surprise you. Philips made decent gear.

Hope you've got suitable speakers to go with it. Anyway, if you have any questions, just ask us.


Enjoy the forum,
Geoff.

[mikmas]

I've played records on decks a lot worse than that Phillips' job - a lot worse in fact .... :lol:

Doesn't really matter because it will get you thinking about how to improve on what you are hearing
(although might be worth not playing any brand new vinyl on it until your checked whether the stylus is shagged or not - also make sure the cartridge doesn't drop on the record like a ton of bricks)

[struth]

Used to use a old hitachi deck that I thought the dogs bollocks. It's wasn't a high quality item but it would surprise many even tho it was automatic.
Welcome Rob

[RobCool]

Yeah that's the one, it hasnt been used for a few years so hopefully itll be alright.
It comes with the original boxy speakers ill take pictures later im picking it up today.
Yeah i was going to leave the record player part alone until I get a new stylus but ill check it, ive got a couple of old records I can try it out on and see how it sounds! The 1byone players cartridge falls quite nicely considering its not adjustable I'm hoping the philips one will be the same!

But Yeah I'm not looking to keep this for too long, just until I can find a better one/when funds become available.

I'll give you an update later!

Rob

[walpurgis]

Have fun with it. Keep us posted on how you find it.

[Spectral Morn]

Welcome to AoS :cool:

[Stryder5]

Have fun and enjoy the music!

[Lawrence001]

Didn't mean to sound negative, if it does the job for you that's all that matters, don't take any notice of what people (including me) say. However if you decide you want something a bit better,.you'll get loads of good advice on here. You can get a decent second hand system up and running for about £120-150 with a cd player but if you play records I think £200 is more realistic, although generous souls on here might help a bit on prices. I just moved on my Celestion 5s they would have done the job. I can keep an eye out on eBay for you if you like, where are you based? Gumtree is a good place too, create a saved search within 10 miles or wherever you can get to.

Sent from my BLN-L21 using Tapatalk

[Sherwood]

Rob,

congratulations on taking a first step on the hifi ladder. Seems very few people today seek out quality music playback over crappy mp3 files.

Unless you have also inherited a big record collection I would not advise you to go down the vinyl route. Yes, vinyl at it's best does sound better than cd's but it comes at a price premium. Given that your funds are limited, I would not be investing in vinyl (or cds for that matter, as the latter format also has a limited life expectancy).

Instead, I would subscribe to Tidal (or similar) and use your funds to get some decent speakers and amplification. A monthly subscription to Tidal costs about the same as one vinyl album, but will give you access to a huge collection of uncompressed music files. You can even download these files to a phone so that you can listen on the move.

A cheap device like a Chromecast Audio (30 quid) can feed into your system and will give you a quality of sound that you may not have heard before, and can probably be used with the system you inherited. When funds are available, I would look at something like this: https://www.richersounds.com/yamaha-network-stereo-amplifier.html

This is a digital streamer and amp combined. It sounds fantastic, and the Music Cast system and app is great too. You can play music wirelessly from your phone, pc or tablet.

Whatever path you take, good luck!

Geoff

[HackneyRF]

Welcome Rob

I paired a similar Sony job with some Celestion Ditton speakers years ago. I thought it sounded pretty slick! As the others say give it a go, you might be surprised what you find. Plenty of good unbiased advice to be had here if you need it. Maybe keep your eyes on the Private Exhibitions section here too if you wanted to look for a speaker upgrade. Have fun.

Loz

[RobCool]

Good and bad news, good news it works turns on etc, however the tape player doesn't seem to work.
So the button/function works to go onto tape mode, but when you press play it doesn't turn, you can hear a noise and it engages the bit that spins the tape (don't know what that's called) as it doesnt freely spin but no motor drive. It is the same situation for both tape sections, I will give it a go taking it apart hopefully it's nothing major unless anyone has any suggestions on what it could be?
I've tested the CD player and im going to try the record player tomorrow but that spins okay.

Cheers, Rob

[walpurgis]

It's probably a belt that's perished and broken. Old cassette units have various problems, pinch wheels that turn to 'goo', failed belts, dodgy clutches, servo controls that no longer work ......all sorts really.

[RobCool]

Oh wow okay I didn't realise there was that much too it! Hopefully it's just the belts, weird it's affected them both the same. I'll take it apart and see what I find! I believe most of the FCD series use the same tape system so hopefully I can find spares! I'd love to have the whole thing working, i also want to play the cassettes I have too lol.

I mean I have spotify etc which does the job most the time. I like having vinyls, I don't listen to them all the time, especially the original ones I suppose it's becoming more of a hobby lol!

Rob

[walpurgis]

weird it's affected them both the same

Rob

Not really. All components on both sections will be the same age and be affected by similar problems.

[RobCool]

Ah yeah that is true, I found a mix pack of belts on eBay I'm going to give that ago and see if it fixes the issue, everything that I can see looks to be alright, I'll take the cover off later and see if I can find any other problems :)

[alphaGT]

I had a nice Technics 25w receiver when I was 13, and built a nice, “Mid-Fi”, stereo around it. Nearly 10 years later I had the itch, and got a mid 80’s all Sansui rack that was just awful.

But my 3rd system hit the mark! About age 25 I assembled an Adcom 555 and Adcom preamp to a pair of Vandersteen 2c’s, Denon record player with Ortofon cartridge, and a Sony 608ESD CD player. It rocked! And could provoke emotion with ease! Lasted me 20 years without a change. I gave the system to my daughter and her husband several years back when I started building the system I’ve got now.

Russell

[RobCool]

Just a quick update, I've changed the belts and thankfully ot works! It all now seems to be working as it should. I've been playing the one tape I have, rewinding it etc and it sounds great! The tape is from 88 too so really happy!

Thats awesome Russell, I hope this lasts me a while so I can save up to get a decent system!

Rob