What I've Been Doing Instead of Working on a Bike...

[crazy steve]

I've been talking about this for literally years, finally got busy and did it....

I built an all-inclusive cabinet for my stereo system about 30 years ago, and as time went by I upgraded/replaced pieces of gear. Some fit in the cabinet, some didn't, so I finally pulled all the gear, intending to reconfigure it. Well, 'stuff happened' and it sat... and sat. Originally set up for two reel decks, a pre-amp, tuner, amp, a cassette deck, a outboard dolby unit, and the speaker equalizer. Well, the reel decks are long obsolete, I gave up on the tuner as there's no FM reception here, etc, etc. It also has storage for 7" reel tapes and records (the two drawers). SWMBO said either put it together, or get that monster out of the living room. Too damn heavy to move, so....

[IMG][/IMG]

If you look closely, you can see where I cut/filled to install the 'new' gear. Had a black formica face; what a PITA to get off... The reel decks were at the two ends, with the amp/pre-amp/tuner in the middle.

[IMG][/IMG]

Finished.... Left to right, top to bottom: equalizer, amp, sub controller/amp, pre-amp, CD burner, DAT recorder (another dead format, but still useful), cassette (still have a couple in the cars), CD changer. The turntable is in a drawer under the center section (you can see the edges, if not the handle).

[IMG][/IMG]

Front cover closed. The top/sides are solid black walnut, the face is black walnut plywood. Hate to think what that would cost now... I still need to redo the top drawer to hold CDs, but that can wait....

Great to have music again, as it all ended up stored when I remodeled the living room a few years ago.... Woo Hoo!

[81xsproject]

Looks great. Good work.

[hamjam]

nice did you put any fans in there ?

[tom clisham]

Stop by my House!

Very Sharp, Steve!

Let's hope all the noise makers in it aren't obsolete too quickly.

[crazy steve]

I had fans in the cabinet back in it's first incarnation, but I left the back off this time. The main amp has OEM thermostatically-controlled fans built in, and there's plenty of room around the rest of it. Most of this gear, with the exception of the two amps, only draw 10-20 watts, so there's very little heat involved.

And after talking to some people, it seems almost all my source equipment is pretty much obsolete, as everyone is going to computer or web-based sources. Interestingly enough, the one source that's still popular among audiophiles is vinyl and my turntable (Linn) is worth more now than what I paid for it...

I had to replace my CD changer, as my 17-year-old Sony ES changer went TU as soon as I got all the gear back in. There's very few changers even being offered anymore, and no higher-end models at all. After much looking, I settled for a Yamaha unit (requiring me to modify the freshly-done front as the size didn't quite match...) as it was one of the very few units with decent reviews for reliability.

I'm pleased as punch to have good music again (I have a surround system for video, but it sucks for music), but my dog is very unhappy... he doesn't much care for Live Dead at warp drive...

[latexeses]

Is all of your Mac solid state??

[crazy steve]

Yep.... I'm not a 'tube snob' as quite frankly I can't hear enough difference between the two to justify the price difference or the power limitations tubes entail, although the Mac solid-state equipment was/is known for it's 'tube sound' or so 'they' say. The amp is a late 70s MC2500, the last of the heavyweight big-power stereo amps (129 lbs! 500 WPC stereo! Rock ON!!! I had to get help to get it into the cabinet...), the C712 preamp I bought in '95 only because SWMBO couldn't figure out how to run the C28 I had. I ain't rich either; except for the C712, all the other mac gear I've bought has been 'pre-owned' or I couldn't afford it...

[jetmechmarty]

I like it! I still have a pile of 30+ year old audio with no home. Mine includes a full line of DBX components including 3 band dynamic range expander, graphic equalizer, and noise reduction system. I have a NIB Technics turntable from 1979, and all plug into a 80 lb Sansui receiver/amplifier.

My daughter just informed me that CD's are obsolete. So, how do you play music these days? Are we down to just an IPod? (I don't have one, but I have a lot of LP's)

[crazy steve]

...My daughter just informed me that CD's are obsolete. So, how do you play music these days? Are we down to just an IPod? (I don't have one, but I have a lot of LP's)

Well, I wouldn't say CDs are totally obsolete, but they're definitely not 'mainstream' anymore. The younger generation has grown up with computers and the web being the media gateway, so they've got a very different perception of what's 'good' audio. And let's face it, to a casual listener there isn't all that much difference in sound quality. If you're listening in a car or with earbuds, you probably won't notice any differences. The fact that most new vehicles (as well as many aftermarket car audio head units) now come with a built-in Ipod connection is enough handwriting on the wall for most....

I'll stick with my vinyl and CDs, but I am going to look into computer-based storage/playback for home use as that's obviously where things are going...

One good thing to come out of this; it looked like vinyl was dead for a while, but it's made a comeback. There's some really excellent turntables and cartridges available again, as well as new albums.

[bikerphil]

My daughter just informed me that CD's are obsolete. So, how do you play music these days? Are we down to just an IPod? (I don't have one, but I have a lot of LP's)

Windows Media Player or Realplayer on your computer. Get your music from bit torrent or you tube and/or rip the cd's you have to your computer.

Steve, nice set-up, make sure to crank up some FZ.

[foreda]

Eight Track

Hey Steve..
I think I might have an old eight track machine in the shop if you want nostalgia!

[crazy steve]

Already got one.....

Believe it or not, I've still got a 8-track recorder deck somewhere around here, along with an unopened pack of blank tapes...