Quote Originally Posted by Maelstrom View Post
Thanks for the replies so far, it's most encouraging!

If nostalgia were to bite, would there be any mileage in trying to regain what I had?

The core of it was a Rega Planar 3 with the RB300 arm – I think I had an Audio-Technica AT95E on it for most of its life. Nothing exotic, but it just worked. Amplification was a NAD 3020. I know, everyone and their dog had one, but that little thing drove my speakers surprisingly well.

Speakers were Wharfedale Diamonds – the original Mk I or II, I can't remember now. Sat on rickety Target stands. I had a Yamaha cassette deck (KX- something) for taping records and making mixes for the car. Never bought a CD player until the early 90s – I was a stubborn vinyl holdout.

It wasn't a high-end system by any stretch. But on a Sunday evening with the lights low and Kind of Blue or Rumours spinning? It made me happy. That's all I wanted.

Most of it got sold or given away during a house move in the late 90s. Kind of wish I'd kept the Rega now.

Have things really, noticeably and measurably improved since then (digital sources aside)?
Rega Planer 3 with RB300 and AT95E is the exact set up I sorted for a neighbour a few years ago. Deck was vintage from the 1980s. Yes it still sounds good although personally I like Nagaoka cartridges more than AT but he didn't want to spend more.

NAD 3020 was always a good buy as were the old Wharfedale diamonds. You could buy all that back for maybe £600/£800 from eBay. The only caveat is that amp and speakers will be 40 years old so potentially faulty or prone to fail.

Speakers have generally improved and you get more for your money now due to cheaper Far East manufacturing (not just wages but also automated processes and economy of scale). Plus you have a higher budget now, so yes you can get a lot better than that old system if you want to.