A few more notes - I have a Hitachi tuner and a satellite tuner on this system. I'm married, and as system is in living room, it's tucked away in a nice AV cabinet, cherry, with closing doors.
I live with 3 cats,also.
My ears are still good, I wore ear-valves to rock concerts. Own a few nice headphones. Vintage Stax SR-5N, Sennheiser HD-650s, and some decent earbuds.
I'm back to buying vinyl, but still get an occasional CD. Computers are networked, and I can stream music from several computers, but do not have that hooked into the system. Maybe someday I'll go for a music server, but I don't think I'm ready for that.
Wife claims she married me for my stereo, which was much the same as it is now, except I didn't have the Sansui amp. I've run the Rec IIIs with many different combinations over the years, including Dynaco PAS3x preamp and Tigersaurus mono amps, Dynaco Mark III tube amps, and other lesser stuff. Wife has input into appearance of upgrades, so I don't think I'll be able to sneak Quad 2905 speakers into the room.
I anticipate coming into a bit of money in the next year, and am in a quandry as to what to upgrade first and how to go about it.
I'm guessing the speakers ought to be the first item, and I listen to many speakers in the $3500-4500 a pair range that sound about as good, but not seriously better. I'm not going to afford Magicos any time soon, but we like the B&W 802 Diamonds. I also like Martin Logan, and their Ethos and Montis lines look pretty cat-proof. Only concerned about scratching, not spraying!
Really looking for suggestions here. I'd also looked at upgrading amplification - but the research on that AU-919 suggests it might not be the place to start. If it goes, I'd want about 200wpc, perhaps Musical Fidelity. On the other paw, I see the Wyred4Sound stuff here at a great price, but it needs a phonostage.
Eventually, I'll get a new turntable. Again it looks like I made a smart choice with the old AR, with its suspended chassis, but the tonearm is certainly not top notch. New turntables see so VERY expensive. Not at all sure what to get. The Thorens TD350 (or maybe 550) look like possibilities. Someday.
Comments most welcome. I'm still skeptical about the magic of power cords because I've done a little bit of work with Romex and knob and tube, and I know what's on the other side of that wall plug.
Classic Sansui from the good old days, gone over and cleaned up a few years ago. Original caps are good.
Rotel RCD-975
2003, bought at online auction when nobody was looking. Newest piece in system.
Acoustic Research XA
My original turntable from college, then priced at $63. Recently serviced per wonderful do-it-yourself instructions by Vinyl Nirvana
SHURE V15 Type III
Shure's all time classic MM cartridge. Very compliant. Bought new. Now has excellent JICO stylus, a big improvement.
Rectilinear III Highboy
Julian Hirsh's 1968 speaker of the year. This set in poor cosmetic condition but great working condition. Modified in 1974 with addition of Phillips-Norelco soft dome supertweeter, with help of grad student in engineering acoustics at Penn State. They test well, sound even better.
Monster, (Mostly) unknown
When a major audio chain folded, I grabbed a bunch of decent interconnects from their showroom equipment.
Monster sold by the foot
About 15 years ago, these were a couple of bucks per foot at the audio store. I come from the generation that thinks of speaker
The Sansui 919 is a powerful beast. Treat yourself to the B&W 802 Diamonds. A sophisticated and handsome speaker that will last for years and give you great pleasure.
Pictures and dimensions of your room, some information about the genres to which you listen, and a budget/timeline would make advice much easier. And perhaps your listening goals (areas you wish to improve), biases (such as priorities, format preferences, and pet peeves) would help as well. I really need to get back to my studies. I am a composer and recording engineer with, perhaps, more information and opinions than you need. You did ask. Be well.
dstabb on Getting Started