[Bodhi]

I thought it would be fun to post about what your dream vintage system would be. The caveats are..

• This would be a system that you would have loved to have owned back in the 80's, 90's or early 2000's, but possibly didn't have the knowledge and/or funds to buy back then
• The gear should be from around the same period (within about 5 years either way) where practicable
• You could reasonably afford the system at this point in your life
• All the main components are vintage (see first two caveats), except supporting gear like cables, racks, distributor etc
• Mentioning mild mods/refurbing is ok - but no 'frankin' gear
• And finally, this is a system you could fit in your current home

To start things off, here is my dream vintage system..

- Infinity IRS Omega speakers (refurbed incl: replacement Emim diaphragms from AMA and new magnets from Miller Sound, Watkins woofers serviced by Watkins Stereo, new internal wiring, x-over parts & WBT NextGen binding posts)
- Coda Model 11 amp
- Audio Research Reference Two Mk2 pre (refurbed incl: caps, connectors, iec & tubes)
- Nakamichi CR-7e cassette deck (refurbed incl: new caps etc and Furutech NCF iec)
- Yamaha T-85 tuner (modded/refurbed incl: new filters, caps, connectors etc)
- Reimyo CDP-777 cd player

The IRS Omegas were the last classic Infinity floorstanders, and were designed by Cary Christie before he departed and Infinity went mass market. But they're a brutal load, so they need an amp with a strong psu which the Coda certainly has. And an ARC valve preamp and either Threshold or Coda class a or a/b amp(s) are a classic pairing with vintage Infinities. I've always lusted after the top Nakamichi decks, so the CR-7e would get the nod as it was still sold in 1993. The Yammy T-85 is a great DX'er, and with a few mods is virtually unbeatable even today. And from my experience owning a JVC XL-Z1050 cdp for 17 years, i'd 100% believe the reviews which describe the Reimyo CDP-777 as very natural sounding. That player used one of the best off the shelf transport mechs ever made - the Victor XL-Z900, along with JVC's Extended K2 processor - and was a tour de force collaboration between Japanese businesses, incl: Reimyo and Kitamura Kiden. If you can find a good example today, they're now relatively good value. That's a system I could happily live with until they dragged me off to the old folks home . What's yours?

[Mitsuman]

Recently reconfigured our living room and dining room, leading to me being able to put a system in the living room. Not 100% my dream system (missing the cassette deck and tuner) but I’ve married my Mitsubishi DA-C20 tuner/preamp to its companion DA-A10DC power amp. I purchased them in high school in 1978 and they are now paired with one of my Mitsubishi DP-EC1 turntables, added DA-M10 meters, and they all reside in my Mitsubishi DA-R720 rack. I still have the original Mitsubishi MS-20 monitors I bought in 1978, but they are in storage.

[Mitsuman]

My main man bunker system represents another aspect, and is my go to system for critical listening. Mitsubishi DA-P20 preamp, DP-EC1 turntable, McIntosh MC2100 with Rotel CD11 Tribute, SOTA Pyxi preamp, feeding some vintage Klipsch RF-35’s.

[Solarflares]

I always wanted a Mitchell Transcriptors Reference turntable, with an SME mk2 arm, and a Shure V-15 mk3 cartridge.


I liked the idea of a Quad 33/303 with a pair of ESL57’s.
Or a 44/405mk2 with a pair of ESL63’s - hung from the ceiling with strong chains.
But a top Marantz or Macintosh amp, and some big Acoustic Research, or Meridian speakers was also on the radar.
A Nakamichi was a given!

But since 1994, my dream system was Tannoy DMT’s with a Bryston amp setup.
30 years on, and I have it.

[Bodhi]

My main man bunker system represents another aspect, and is my go to system for critical listening. Mitsubishi DA-P20 preamp, DP-EC1 turntable, McIntosh MC2100 with Rotel CD11 Tribute, SOTA Pyxi preamp, feeding some vintage Klipsch RF-35’s.

That's a nice looking system with an interesting mix of gear, congrats . I've always liked the classic McIntosh MC2100 amp.

[Bodhi]

I always wanted a Mitchell Transcriptors Reference turntable, with an SME mk2 arm, and a Shure V-15 mk3 cartridge.

I liked the idea of a Quad 33/303 with a pair of ESL57’s.
Or a 44/405mk2 with a pair of ESL63’s - hung from the ceiling with strong chains.
But a top Marantz or Macintosh amp, and some big Acoustic Research, or Meridian speakers was also on the radar.
A Nakamichi was a given!

But since 1994, my dream system was Tannoy DMT’s with a Bryston amp setup.
30 years on, and I have it.

That sounds like an impressive vintage setup. The ESL57's are cruisers as Steve Guttenberg would say. That tt rings a bell, but I haven't seen or heard that deck before. But looks like a serious bit of kit! Unfortunately I don't have the room for a vinyl deck in my current apartment (or to store lp's), so my dream vintage system is all-digital.
Lastly, congrats on achieving your goal of owning your dream Tannoys and Bryston amp .

[Solarflares]

That sounds like an impressive vintage setup.
Lastly, congrats on achieving your goal of owning your Tannoys and Bryston amp .

You’re too kind my friend. Nice one.

[Bodhi]

You’re too kind my friend. Nice one.

Cheers

[SteveFord]

It's hard to go wrong with A Clockwork Orange turntable.
I would like one of those, too.

[SteveFord]

I think I would build a vintage system around some Magnepan Tympanis.
I'd pair it up with Audio Research gear from the same time period and would have to go with an older SOTA turntable and an Ortofon MC cartridge.
I think that would all work together well.
Wendell Diller is vintage, I'd get him to fine tune the speaker placement for me.

[SteveFord]

For solid state, maybe a GAS Ampzilla?
I forgot, a Sherwood tube tuner, I have 4 of them here at the moment. 
Those things sound great.

[Bodhi]

Steve, being a fan of planar magnetic/ribbon speakers and vintage ARC, I can't fault your dream valve-based vintage setup. And SOTA have always been good value and well made decks .

My older brother owned classic Yammy gear back in the mid Eighties which made a strong impression on me when I was in my mid teens. So if I ever had the room and spare funds, it would be fun to setup an all-Yammy system incl: an MX-1000 power amp, CX-1000 RS pre, CDX-5000 cd player, KX-1200U RS cassette deck and T-85 tuner, a Rega Planar 3 tt and pair of Infinity Renaissance 90's to round things out.

I'd also love to setup an all-Onkyo system, as I lusted after the flagship Onkyo gear back in the late 80's. My dream setup would be a Grand Integra M-510 amp, P-308 pre, DX-G10 cd player, TA-2090 cassette deck, T-9090II tuner, Rega Planar 3 tt and mmm, maybe a pair of Infinity IRS-Sigma's .