Lets hear about the gear you parted with and regret letting it go

[jdandy]

Sometimes I romanticize the appeal of old gear I owned many years ago. A good example of this for me was the Advent Model 300 receiver. I purchased one new in the mid 1970's to use in a second system. The Model 300 had a decent FM tuner, and a relatively clean 15 watts per channel at .5% THD for rated output. I bought it new for less than $300.00. I liked that little receiver and kept it for several years. Move a head about 38 years and I ran across a very clean Advent Model 300 for sale for $200.00. Remembering my fun with the original Model 300 I owned, I bought the used one. I had absolutely no use for it, I just wanted it. Well, long story short, in today's world the Advent 300 just didn't reignite the original excitement of my mid '70's experience. I played with it for a month, then sold it. I let my imagination and nostalgia get the best of me when I bought it, but it did not live up to today's modern standards. The Advent Model 300 came, stayed 30 days, then left with a new owner. The good thing is I didn't lose any money and was happy to get my $200.00 back. Sometimes hindsight isn't 20/20.

[PHC1]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Sometimes I romanticize the appeal of old gear I owned many years ago. A good example of this for me was the Advent Model 300 receiver. I purchased one new in the mid 1970's to use in a second system. The Model 300 had a decent FM tuner, and a relatively clean 15 watts per channel at .5% THD for rated output. I bought it new for less than $300.00. I liked that little receiver and kept it for several years. Move a head about 38 years and I ran across a very clean Advent Model 300 for sale for $200.00. Remembering my fun with the original Model 300 I owned, I bought the used one. I had absolutely no use for it, I just wanted it. Well, long story short, in today's world the Advent 300 just didn't reignite the original excitement of my mid '70's experience. I played with it for a month, then sold it. I let my imagination and nostalgia get the best of me when I bought it, but it did not live up to today's modern standards. The Advent Model 300 came, stayed 30 days, then left with a new owner. The good thing is I didn't lose any money and was happy to get my $200.00 back. Sometimes hindsight isn't 20/20.

Nostalgia does have a tendency of clouding the mind. For the most part, today's technology is clearly superior in every imaginable way for just about every imaginable product out there. That inner voice of nostalgia is often difficult to reason with however.

[Mr. Big]

^^^ I also had an Advent 300... it was the front end of my first high-end system. There's a way of using it as a preamp only and I had it hooked up to my Son of Ampzilla amp (which I still have in my bedroom system) and a pair of Magnepans. That along with my Micro Seiki BL-51 TT and Eminent Technology II tonearm made for fantastic sounds.

[Grasshopper]

The systems I have regretted selling have all been attached to cars.

I still miss my trusty 4Runner that had a nice JL Audio subwoofer, a Lexus LX470 with a custom subwoofer enclosure, and most of all my Honda S2000 convertible which had a full Focal system and sounded fantastic (even with the top down).

[Projectman]

A LUMIN S1. I own a PS Audio DSD and thought it made more sense to get an Aurender N10 and use the DSD. Big mistake! The N10 was soulless, the app wasn’t nearly as good as the Lumin’s, and I just didn’t like the idea of another device to store my music. Sold the N10 and purchased a LUMIN U1 to pair with the DSD.

[62caddy]

Originally Posted by jdandy

Sometimes I romanticize the appeal of old gear I owned many years ago. A good example of this for me was the Advent Model 300 receiver. I purchased one new in the mid 1970's to use in a second system. The Model 300 had a decent FM tuner, and a relatively clean 15 watts per channel at .5% THD for rated output. I bought it new for less than $300.00. I liked that little receiver and kept it for several years. Move a head about 38 years and I ran across a very clean Advent Model 300 for sale for $200.00. Remembering my fun with the original Model 300 I owned, I bought the used one. I had absolutely no use for it, I just wanted it. Well, long story short, in today's world the Advent 300 just didn't reignite the original excitement of my mid '70's experience. I played with it for a month, then sold it. I let my imagination and nostalgia get the best of me when I bought it, but it did not live up to today's modern standards. The Advent Model 300 came, stayed 30 days, then left with a new owner. The good thing is I didn't lose any money and was happy to get my $200.00 back. Sometimes hindsight isn't 20/20.

I'd be willing to bet if you ever picked up a pair of mint MC30s again, those would stay around for some time.

BTW - Your MR74 cabinet is still looking beautiful as home to an MC2505.

[jdandy]

Originally Posted by 62caddy

I'd be willing to bet if you ever picked up a pair of mint MC30s again, those would stay around for some time.

BTW - Your MR74 cabinet is still looking beautiful as home to an MC2505.

Eric.......I agree, a pair of MC30 tube mono amps would definitely be keepers. I feel exactly the same about my restored MA230 integrated amplifier. This one warms my heart in the same way as my original one back in the 1970's. Some audio gear, particularly vintage McIntosh, never loses its appeal or thrill.

[nicoff]

“Non, rien de rien, non, je ne regrette rien”
Edith Piaf

[Toccata]

When I got married, I reluctantly agreed to part with my Mark Levinson No.380S preamp, ML No.334 power amp, and a pair of Martin Logan Request speakers, and consolidated my separate audio and video gear. So, I bought a better Sony AV receiver and a pair of B&W 804 speakers to reduce the "visual blight" (not my words...) in the living room. I have since assembled a better system, which is visually acceptable to my wife and auditorily acceptable to me, but not quite the same quality as in my bachelor days. In hindsight, I should have stood my ground, but then again, I might not still be married nearly 14 years later!

[the1010boy]

TANNOY PS350 subwoofer.

Of all the subwoofers I have owned, NONE have sounded so musical and beautifully melodic in the mid-bass (as well as "regular" bass) as did the TANNOY PS350 I once owned & foolishly parted with.

Someday I hope to find a successor that can pair just as well or better with bookshelf speakers like that sub can!