My Hifi Journey

    Everybody starts somewhere. When you are young and still learning about the world, sometimes it takes time to find your passion or natural born skills that make you unique. Even then there may have been hints left for yourself along the way as a child, puzzle pieces you will connect later on. My interest in audio started with gaming, computers, and electronics in general. Everything in my room had been disassembled at least once, curious eyes and hands eagerly trying to learn how things worked or how I could improve them. This is how I first learned not to hold a PCB while being plugged in, along with many other life lessons on electronics safety and what parts go boom. My stepfather always had music playing, so I usually always had something audio related I was tinkering with.  I started off with a set of old hand me down Creative brand powered PC speakers and eventually after a while of saving I had the opportunity to upgrade to a Logitech 2.1 set up.  I’d never had a subwoofer on a computer before, it was amazing how much it added to the music and games and how much more clear they were. The subwoofer brought out more presence in the music, slam to explosions, and what kid doesn’t like to jam out? 

    The Logitech served me well at the time, unfortunately at some point I had lost the Logitech in a move. I found my Creative speakers packed away and just happened to have a extra set of drivers out of who knows what that were roughly the same mounting size.  After some disassembly, a little bit of cutting and sanding, my powered desk speakers now had bigger better drivers in them. It was my first successful electronic project and that was a proud moment for me turning them on and everything working better than ever. This was one of the first moments I can remember that spurred me to start learning engineering, so I could at least learn how to put things back together correctly and the more intricate workings of electronics.  At that age I had quite a few “extra parts” reassembling the poor technology I just demolished in curiosity, and I needed to know how to build more than a simple battery powered circuit. 

    That love of tinkering and exploring bigger and better sound led me to subwoofers and car audio in my teenage years. I started studying 12v electronics and purchased my study guide for an MECP certification. It didn't take long before I became the go to person in town that had the know how to install, troubleshoot and tune anything car audio. I liked what I did, and loved the learning I did along the way but it still didn’t feel right. I cared about quality, the time it took to do things right, and I preferred to be able to enjoy music at home and not have to drive to enjoy my best stereo system. Not to mention working in a car all day in all manner of positions that would impress the best contortionists wasn't doing any favors to my back. 

    

    Audio took a back seat for me for a few years of early adulthood as I tried to get myself settled. I had other hobbies that kept me busy and fulfilled tinkering wise. I started a new job on an overnight shift and met a friend that I consider as close as a brother nowadays; James. James is a character that only meeting will truly show his personality. You want to talk history? James is your man. Stepping into his living room would be to step back into glory 50s and 60s, and 60s wouldn’t be complete without records and a hifi. I had never heard a record before that day and I immediately fell in love with the experience. It felt like more of a connection to your music having a physical medium, maybe it connected with me growing up on cassettes and CDs. James took pride in the vast library he had collected over the years, just about anything you could imagine. Some albums where hilarious, others were precious artifacts of times past, an alarming amount Elvis and rockabilly.  I was instantly hooked, and when I get hooked on something I dive headfirst to learn all I can, it’s just in my nature. I needed a record player.  I kept an eye out on marketplace listings and I ended up scoping out a GE tabletop record player in a storage locker for $20. I threw some speakers from the basement onto it and I couldn’t have been happier. It sounded so damn good.

    Sometimes you just need a spark to start a fire. I was obsessed now knowing about the world of vintage audio.  My weekends were spent browsing Goodwill and flea markets looking for a glint of silver or the surprise of a wooden cabinet. I’ve thrown in some pictures of how gear came and went. Usually it was sold or traded for better gear. At one point I even had a console stereo. A 5ft long piece of wooden furniture packing a Magnavox stereo with horn mids and 15 inch woofers. I loved hearing how every piece I brought home was different. This one was smoother, this one had more detail. One does something better than another. I started building skyscrapers of amplifiers, turntables and tape decks, each a tool along my journey teaching me what was possible, and what came before. 

    Along the way I met another audio passionate friend at a record booth. Michael taught me the technical side of it all. How to make my system sound better, and what I really needed to pay attention to. It really started to make sense when I brought home a set of Infinity RS-5b speakers. I could clearly hear the difference in the amplifiers I used. Some where drastically better than others and it made me realize I needed to prioritize my focus into just doing what sounded best. I didn’t care about collecting stacks anymore. I wanted a dedicated system to where I could make my music sound the best that I could with just a single set up. Over time finding Facebook groups, and following along with the journey of my friends I finally found my passion and it had a name. I was an audiophile.  

    So this is where I start my true "Hifi" journey. I've learned at this point that not all gear is the same, and while the stacks of equipment is good nostalgia's sake and experimenting, it was in the way of me getting the most out of a singular dedicated system. Not to mention, I started small and these pieces brought me hours of happiness, they could do the same to someone else. Just as they came, one by one I cleaned and sold or gifted each piece I no longer needed. Better they be enjoyed by someone than to collect dust. Along this same mindset, I realized that there was an interest in the local community for vintage stereo equipment, but due to age there was an abundance of gear that was in various levels of disrepair. I didnt have the advanced knowledge of electrical circuits to do full restorations or in depth repair, but most of the time of well built equipment, some simple capacitor or transistor replacements could breathe new life into an old silver faced reciever. Tape decks and turntables need lubrication and belt replacements. This was the birth of my first audio business "Voltaic Symphony". James was my very first customer with his portable mid century stereo, a 1968 Magnavox.

    Voltaic Symphony gave me an opportunity to connect with other local audio enthusiasts (confirming that I was the craziest local) allowing me to hear all manner of vintage systems. I am honored to have seen and worked on some of the most iconic equipment of the stereo heyday, the predecessors to the world of high end audio that we hold dear (and sometimes take for granted). The mighty Pioneer SX-1980, a couple of the monster Marantz recievers, countless speakers from AR, McIntosh, ADS, Infinity, Klipsch etc. 

   

    Along the way as I continued to get new clients, I would either trade equipment, or use the profits to fund my own stereo repairs and upgrades. It all started with my set of Infinity RS-5B I mentioned earlier, originally powered by a Yamaha integrated, moving up to an NAD 3080, then a Carver MXR-130, and slowly moving out of integrated units into separates with a Heathkit AA-1600 and Carver C-1 combo.

    After a while the business died off, couldnt afford the upgrades in tooling I needed, not to mention everyone knew the value of vintage stereo by now, or at least they thought so with the prices that even non working equipment was going for. The margin was getting a bit too tight and taking too much of my time after work, so Voltaic Symphony petered off into Modest Midwest Audiophile. My last business trade before closing was still my best to this day, an unloved set of QLS-1, the legendary Infinity FET preamp, and a McIntosh Mc2250, all needing work. This was the foundation to my first taste of true high end audio, and I have spent the past few years restoring each of these. The QLS became my main system after some maintenance, (documented in a separate article) Id say are close to 70% complete. The last 30 is crossover upgrades and modifications, as well as driver replacements. After they are all ironed out, I plan to offer the upgrade/updates to the public for other owners, or possibly even build my own speakers. I continue to explore the options of the audiophile world, looking for the start of my career in the industry and chasing a level of quality I can’t quite afford yet. I'm not sure where I will land, but the journey so far has been fruitful in the people I have connected with, and I am eager to see what the next leg has to offer.