Hello everyone -- going down memory lane... [Archive] - Audio & Video Forums

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bba5757
12-10-2009, 07:37 AM
I am a new member of AudioReview -- but I have been reading the reviews here for a quite a while. I finally joined up because I like this site best (and I like Audiogon) out of all the audio sites I've come across.
I started out a long time ago (?late 70's) working for a place called Lafayette Radio & Electronics. My brother was one of their managers for years. Does anybody out there remember Lafayette? Would love to hear from you!
I remember Fisher and Marantz were two of the biggest names back then. I still have an Aiwa stereo from back then. Could now shoot myself for giving away the Aiwa reel to reel I used to have. (so many things I should have kept!)
I guess my main interest is vintage electronics -- fascinates me. I sell mainly newer-used audio electronics, but I'm always on the look out for vintage --
Thanks for all the great reviews everybody!

manlystanley
12-10-2009, 08:47 AM
I am a new member of AudioReview -- but I have been reading the reviews here for a quite a while. I finally joined up because I like this site best (and I like Audiogon) out of all the audio sites I've come across.
I started out a long time ago (?late 70's) working for a place called Lafayette Radio & Electronics. My brother was one of their managers for years. Does anybody out there remember Lafayette? Would love to hear from you!
I remember Fisher and Marantz were two of the biggest names back then. I still have an Aiwa stereo from back then. Could now shoot myself for giving away the Aiwa reel to reel I used to have. (so many things I should have kept!)
I guess my main interest is vintage electronics -- fascinates me. I sell mainly newer-used audio electronics, but I'm always on the look out for vintage --
Thanks for all the great reviews everybody!


Welcome! You've got to check out the vintage section of this board. Lot's of people there. Some folks (like me) looking for a deal, others cause they love the older sound.

Best Regards,
Stan

poppachubby
12-10-2009, 10:11 AM
Lot's of vintage lovers here. As for the others, they've owned most of the quality vintage items at some point. Lots of help and interesting people to mingle with. Welcome!!

bba5757
12-10-2009, 05:50 PM
Thanks to Stan and the "chopper of lo-fi heads" for the welcome. and I love that Michael Jackson dancing icon. Sometime soon you'll hear from me in the vintage forum!

thekid
12-11-2009, 02:15 AM
Welcome to AR.

I am very much into vintage gear myself.
Look forward to seeing some posts and hopefully some pics of any vintage gear you might have.

Jimmy C
12-11-2009, 05:16 AM
I am a new member of AudioReview -- but I have been reading the reviews here for a quite a while. I finally joined up because I like this site best (and I like Audiogon) out of all the audio sites I've come across.
I started out a long time ago (?late 70's) working for a place called Lafayette Radio & Electronics. My brother was one of their managers for years. Does anybody out there remember Lafayette? Would love to hear from you!
I remember Fisher and Marantz were two of the biggest names back then. I still have an Aiwa stereo from back then. Could now shoot myself for giving away the Aiwa reel to reel I used to have. (so many things I should have kept!)
I guess my main interest is vintage electronics -- fascinates me. I sell mainly newer-used audio electronics, but I'm always on the look out for vintage --
Thanks for all the great reviews everybody!

...we had one in the Smith Haven Mall, Lake Grove, NY. Moms used to bring my friend Bill and I there all the time... we would hit Different Strokes (head shop, posters, etc), the book stores, Spencer Gifts, and, of course, Layfayette.

I had a pair of Criterion speakers from them, my friend Bill still has a pair (mint condition - now at his Dad's house) as well a a pair of Pioneer HPMs... buy one, get the other for $1.

And, yup... I'm talking late 70s, early 80s as well...

Worf101
12-11-2009, 05:30 AM
Lafayette Radio is as much a part of my youth as the apartment I lived in or the clothes I wore. I grew up in Jamaica Queens, the red and yellow neon lights of Lafayette's headquarters could be seen from my bedroom window. I got their catalogue all the time. My first real bass amp was a small solid state job from Lafayette. Only the J.C. Whitney catalogue held more dreams for me. Welcome aboard and thanks for the memories.

Worf

JoeE SP9
12-11-2009, 06:45 AM
Welcome to AR. There's lot's of old geezers here. Being one I should know. Like so many others I remember Lafayette Radio. The closest one to me was next to a Dunkin Donut's all the motor heads used as a meeting place. As an audiophile and motor head it was a perfect hang out spot for me.

bba5757
12-11-2009, 08:49 PM
Wow - Great to hear from everybody -- so glad you guys remember Lafayette -- Most of you being from New York and near the HQ where they started (and ended I guess) -- Can you believe they did a booming business all the way out in New Mexico -- That's where my brother and I worked and built a lot of those stores.
And thanks for the welcome to Geezerville -- hard to believe we belong there now (but we do).
Lot of good equipment you guys listed up there -- as for what I've got right now: I am just now selling, this weekend, a David Hafler Model 110 pre-amp -- probably somebody made it from a kit back in the early 80's.
I also have an old Altec Control Board 1214 -- can almost hear the disco music, can't you?

blackraven
12-12-2009, 12:39 AM
I can remeber going to a Lafayette store with my dad. he was an electrical engineer and helped design and build the first Telstar communications satellite back in the 1960s. He would pick up parts to build a radio and even built a Lafayette stereo for us.

bba5757
12-12-2009, 05:24 PM
Blackraven - that is so cool about your Dad building a radio and a stereo -- my granddad built a radio back in the '30's (he also claimed to have built a lot of other things, but we think that one was true).
I also have an adcom GFS-700 right now (picked up from a customer) - what do you think of it?

Happy Camper
12-12-2009, 07:02 PM
Another vintage set of ears here to welcome you to the geekdom. As I write this Marillion's "Script for a Jester's Tear" plays (foobar set to random). This is a good omen bba.

Long live tubes.

bba5757
12-13-2009, 07:33 PM
Oh, man, I could use some good omens. Thanks for the welcome.
Does anybody know what a "pre-out" is, or maybe its pre-output. -- on a receiver? Someone has asked me about that, and I'm just not sure...

Happy Camper
12-13-2009, 07:56 PM
Pre outs are used to add any further processing gear before entering the amp. It can also be used to feed other devices a line signal. I used to run an equalizer between my main pre-out and the amp on a NAD receiver.

blackraven
12-13-2009, 10:03 PM
Blackraven - that is so cool about your Dad building a radio and a stereo -- my granddad built a radio back in the '30's (he also claimed to have built a lot of other things, but we think that one was true).
I also have an adcom GFS-700 right now (picked up from a customer) - what do you think of it?

Ive got the Adcom GFR-700. Its a beast of an AVR and has good sound with a good preamp. Too bad it only has HDMI passthru.

bba5757
12-16-2009, 08:50 PM
Pre outs are used to add any further processing gear before entering the amp. It can also be used to feed other devices a line signal. I used to run an equalizer between my main pre-out and the amp on a NAD receiver.
Thanks for answer about pre-outs -- I have also realized that those are necessary if you want to upgrade with your current equipment. I wonder why all receivers and pre-amps don't come with pre-outs, would seem to make sense...

bba5757
12-16-2009, 08:54 PM
Ive got the Adcom GFR-700. Its a beast of an AVR and has good sound with a good preamp. Too bad it only has HDMI passthru.
On the HDMI passthrough -- I'm always having people say but does it have HDMI? What other kind of passthrough would you want to have?