Did you happen to be on the M62 yesterday evening about 1830 ish by any chance?  Just wondering as I went past an identical M car to yours with a lady driver and a private plate around then clearly doing a relaxed under the speed limit speed as I passed heading for Birkenhead and the Belfast ferry.

Edited 24 August, 20223 yr by skomaz

2 hours ago, skomaz said:

Did you happen to be on the M62 yesterday evening about 1830 ish by any chance?  Just wondering as I went past an identical M car to yours with a lady driver and a private plate around then clearly doing a relaxed under the speed limit speed as I passed heading for Birkenhead and the Belfast ferry.

 

I was funnily enough, but it wasn't me as I wasn't in the Beemer and I don't have a private reg. 

 

 

I was also travelling much closer to the speed limit  

Ah well...   Just wondered.

 

Don't recall seeing a different vehicle with some massive speakers in the boot though...🤣

Trying to move big heavy boxes is a lot harder than I remember. Definitely an age thing. I do like to buy hifi by weight, though. 30kg or so, in a big smooth cardboard box with no handles is a bit of a nightmare really, as is unboxing and moving into position without scratching the speaker or destroying everything a knee height with the ridiculously large (after fitting) bolted on plinth. That was a faff too, as you can't easily tip the speaker upside down and you can't fit the plinth while the speaker is upside down in its cardboard box either. I had a similar problem with my telly. Still, it's amazing the solutions you come up with when you have to. Obviously, I refuse to have anyone help me

 

The other slightly odd thing is I suspect these will be the last front pair of speakers I ever buy, as my age means they will probably last me until the point when I can't really appreciate fine hifi 😞 Figure I need to sort all this sort of stuff over the next few years and while I am still earning a living.  Maybe my hifi will appear in a thread like this one many years into the future, when everyone has an inductive coil fitted in their cochlear and google contact lenses. It does raise an interesting question as to what will be desirable in the future. Cassettes are even making a comeback today, but I see no love for early CD players for instance. Quality amps and speakers (assuming parts are still available) will always be worth something, but will people really care about DACs for instance? 

1 hour ago, Lady Elanore said:

but I see no love for early CD players for instance.

 

It's quite sad really. I love my 1980-something Denon DCD-810.

1 hour ago, AnnoyingPentium said:

 

It's quite sad really. I love my 1980-something Denon DCD-810.

 

I've a Rotel RCD-955 which I equally love. It plays in Stereo and proudly says so on the front 

 

Gaz

 

I'm sure I have a portable Sony 1 bit CD player somewhere in my 'cave of frightening old bits of tech'. 

I've got a couple too...    Ones a panasonic a d one a technics but given both brands are the same company the only difference is one has an anti skip feature and is silver the other doesn't and is grey.   They still work fine and my eldest uses one to play backing tracks when she's practising the flute. 

Marantz CD63 KI-Signature anyone?

 

I imagine a lot of the desire for tape is you can't really buy it now, but you can still buy a CD/DVD/BR player that will do a good job for not a lot.

Edited 25 August, 20223 yr by cheezemonkhai

Surprised to see this thread is (was) still alive.

Hifi still very much alive in this household. 
vinyl collection ever growing but space becoming a problem. 
 

currently listening to ' Good God'. 
 

The AE1LE hit the spot! 

 

53 minutes ago, swordstoke said:

Surprised to see this thread is (was) still alive.

Hifi still very much alive in this household. 
vinyl collection ever growing but space becoming a problem. 
 

currently listening to ' Good God'. 
 

The AE1LE hit the spot! 

 

 

 

Nice selection of Naim....standard or "improved" via Avondale Audio?..

37 minutes ago, fabdavrav said:

 

 

Nice selection of Naim....standard or "improved" via Avondale Audio?..

Had some of them since 83 and recently serviced at Class A. 
 

Not a fan of the Avondale sound as have heard a few combinations over the years. 
 

Lucky enough to have 3 systems around the house 2 naim based and the 3rd using Nord Class D amps. 
 

pretty much cover everything we need in the stereo world. 
 

Do you have a vinyl based system? 
 

cheers

3 hours ago, swordstoke said:

 

Do you have a vinyl based system? 
 

cheers

 

Yes & no, its my mothers.....B&O 2000 circa 1985yr....I really need to strip the speakers down (CX100) & re foam all the cones as they are going.....& thats 2 per speaker..so 4 cones!.....A few years back I re-capped part of the cassette deck & the amp & placed new belts in the record & cassettes decks...it really should be overhauled, but it hardly gets used!!

 

 

My system is all digital...Denon CD/Amp/Tuner/Network player with modified Monitor Audio speakers....Its good because it can cope with 24bit 192kHz FLAC files...I like it when they release the studio masters!

 

Well my Sony TC-K570 did a death squeal this morning and the cassette tray won't open.  I'm sure I must've used it at least once in the last decade   Watching videos on YT seems to suggest it's the belts, which would be no surprise.  A belt kit's only about £7, and I think (ever the optimist) I could do it, but if I won't use it again before the new belts are goo/perished, what's the point.  The unit itself isn't worth a light, repaired or not, so I think I'm just being sentimental in not wanting to just throw it away.  Sad day 😧

 

Gaz

 

May as well keep and fix - if only for the pleasure in doing so...   I repaired my FIL's Teac A150 a few years ago for similar reasons - it's still functioning but not used as he's now passed away but one day I'll bring it home and use it.

 

Also for reference there area few Sony TC-K570 on ebay going for decent money...

38 minutes ago, Gaz said:

Well my Sony TC-K570 did a death squeal this morning and the cassette tray won't open.  I'm sure I must've used it at least once in the last decade   Watching videos on YT seems to suggest it's the belts, which would be no surprise.  A belt kit's only about £7, and I think (ever the optimist) I could do it, but if I won't use it again before the new belts are goo/perished, what's the point.  The unit itself isn't worth a light, repaired or not, so I think I'm just being sentimental in not wanting to just throw it away.  Sad day 😧

 

Gaz

 

 

 

This chap (Mend it Mark) might give you inspiration. He has done a couple of cassette recorders, this is his most recent. not a Sony, but a 3 head machine   

 

 

 

This is an earlier one that he did too

 

 

Ooh, I found this. It's a very close relative and I'm guessing that it will be virtually identical inside 

 

 

3 hours ago, Lady Elanore said:

Ooh, I found this. It's a very close relative and I'm guessing that it will be virtually identical inside 

 

I wouldn't mind betting that's the exact same unit as is in my 570 

 

I'm gonna take the lid off and have a mosey 👍

 

Even if I kill it, at least I'll know!

 

Gaz

Edited 14 August, 20241 yr by Gaz
typo

Eyes down, look in....

 

Preparation:

 

 

No belt here:

 

 

Something not quite right:

 

 

Belt remnants around shaft:

 

 

And on screws:

 

 

Hooray and out it comes:

 

 

Found the rest of the belts!:

 

 

Came out easier than I expected.

 

Suppose I might as well buy a replacement belt kit now 😁

 

Gaz

 

Edited 14 August, 20241 yr by Gaz
'nuvver bleedin' typo

I hope you had a first aid kit close to hand and the local A&E department were forewarned.

I'm not saying you're prone to the odd mishap, you understand.

 

 

1 hour ago, Lee01 said:

I'm not saying you're prone to the odd mishap, you understand.

 

I am having to be particularly cautious at the moment as my recently excavated finger is still looking for any excuse to start bleeding again 🩸 

 

And the inside of this unit has some particularly nasty edges that are just waiting to pounce.  So my survival instincts were running high 

 

Dunno what the belts are made of, but it's really gloopy and tar like.  Looks like it'd go well under the felt on my garage roof.

 

New belts ordered and due in two to three days.

 

Gaz

 

22 minutes ago, Gaz said:

Dunno what the belts are made of, but it's really gloopy and tar like.  Looks like it'd go well under the felt on my garage roof.

 

 

Common thing for Sony units of this age. My Sony TC-WR445 has belts on their way out, and the Sony MIDI system my Gran and Grampa has packed in sometime when I were a lad. Belts like goo.

3 hours ago, Gaz said:

 

I am having to be particularly cautious at the moment as my recently excavated finger is still looking for any excuse to start bleeding again 🩸 

 

And t

 

Dunno what the belts are made of, but it's really gloopy and tar like.  Looks like it'd go well under the felt on my garage roof.

 

 

The belts on the Teac I mentioned earlier were the same...   They'd disintegrated to a thick black sticky mess

It's a common problem with late 80s/ 90s drive belts and not just tape decks.

VHS, turntables etc suffered as well IIRC. 

 

Edit. Wasn't there a big sales pitch about direct drive stuff C mid 90s?

Edited 14 August, 20241 yr by Lee01