Life is too short, so I did it

For a minute I was worried the world would blow up while a dream was in transit. I looked in local pawn shops and the guy at Sam's was very cool with good banter as he let me play the 360 they had. Also the people at Sam Ash were kind enough to let me play a new 360 even though it was not what I wanted to pay. Found it on ebay, from a guitar shop in Phoenix who did a great job packing and shipping the instrument.



Rickenbacker 330. It's new, and it's mine. Wife said she was not going to stand in my way. My Aunt's planning made it possible, and she would have agreed too. So there it is. Wanted one for about 40 years and now I can play one whenever I want. It's lovely, I'm building my callouses again and it's what I wanted. (Although the Epiphone Casino is pretty sweet)

I like the amp too. Stereo loud. I have no plans on upgrading the amp to annoy the neighbors but am looking at pedals.

It has me playing again, with noted improvement over the last three days and I walk around the house with it.



But mostly, since I have no plans on going to the studio or touring, it's for The Back Room.

Making it 1985 again

Readers of this blog know I've been on a constant updating of my sound system project for a couple of years.

I knew the weak link to the system was the amplifier. Even with the clarity of sound, the power was quite low and the system would cut itself out if the volume got too loud. Sometimes I like it loud, but this was a loss I could accept.

My son is on spring break this week so I'm watching him for a couple of days so instead of doing laundry I took a look at my thirty year old Onkyo TX-15 this morning. The only problem is that one of the phono input channels drops out. Opened it up, looked at the connection, tried cleaning it and getting the dust out of places there should not be dust, closed it up and hoped.

It sounds very good, I do have to say the separation is better with the Lepai amp. but I'll take the volume over that any day. Also have the FM if I ever need that. Still working on the AM reception. Plus, I went to Best Buy and picked up a cord similar to this and I can plug in my iPod or laptop to the system. Sweet.

All that's missing is a cassette deck!

Verdict: so far so good, but I'm keeping the Lepai just in case.

A sound system journey

After many attempts and configurations the Back Room of the house is finally set up as my little Man Cave. At the very least the audio components are finally in place.

About a year ago I replaced an old pioneer belt drive turntable with an Audio Technica AT-LP60. There have been no problems with it at all. It delivers solid performance. For the price, it's probably the best turntable you can get.

My thirty year old Onkyo receiver was losing a channel frequently. I still have it and if anyone can fix it, come on over, I will pay you in beverages. I picked up a Lepei LP2020A amplifier. This amp about the size of my hand, has a jack to plug in my computer or iPad. I could not be happier with the sound. Obviously it's not a high quality amplifier, look at the price. But for my needs, in a mud room of the house that is only used 2-3 seasons of the year, it's perfect and fills the room with good noises.

This left the speakers. I have shelves up high in the room that are perfect for bookshelf speakers. It may not be the best placement for sound quality but it's a good use of the spacial limitations of the room. I jettisoned a pair of basement warped 30 year old speakers that were the kings of mid-range. Scoured thrift stores for decent speakers. Thought I found some nice old Radio Shack Omnibus speakers but it turned out they were old and messed up. Pro tip: check under the grill for torn and blown speakers before purchasing. Also, check the heights of the speakers. After paying about the same amount in thrift stores for speakers, I finally bit the bullet and bought new Dayton Audio B652s.

These are the speakers I should have had all along. They fit perfectly in the space, deliver very good sound. I tested them with Queen's A Night at the Opera and was very pleased with the separation and depth of sound. They pack a good punch and again, these are not three or four figure speakers. For my purposes though, I love them. Finally, after twelve years of fits and starts, I have built a sound system I'm happy with.

He is faster than anyone

Been in the back room for a bit tonight working on Arts Fest stuff, and dug out the George Harrison release from 1979. Had no idea there was a video for this song. Fascinating. I also have a picture disc single of the tune in the basement.

The sound from one of the speakers was messed up. Took off the grill and found a large hole in the woofer. The foam was dried up and it was all brittle. Went to a thrift store today and found a bookshelf speaker for six bucks that works. Yes I know, mismatched speakers. A temporary solution that works back here.

I Found them, Now

85 degrees on Thursday, barely hitting 50 today. Going to be a chilly walk back from the car repair shop after I drop it off, but I need the exercise.

Went thrifting over the weekend. A couple of weeks ago I found a couple of old Panasonic speakers to replace the ones I had for over twenty five years. It did not take two weeks to find the ones I was looking for in the first place. Figures, right?



Old Radio Shack Optimus 127's. Bookshelf size. They fit on the shelves in the corner of the back room perfectly. They push out a decent amount of sound and the quality is very good. To put it succinctly, I'm thrilled.

Best part is, they cost eight bucks for the pair. Same price as the Panasonics. So sixteen bucks were invested in speakers. I'll take that price.