# What gear did you start with back in the day?



## wurgerd9 (Mar 22, 2013)

I liked the thread on "what got you started collecting and how old are you". Here is one that might be fun too... What was your first gear? Did any of you start with junk and learn along the way as I did? I am assuming that some started with good stuff but I sure didn't!

My first stereo was a Kraco AM/FM cassette, regular size, with gold and wood grain finish a "weather band" and a built in 5 band eq powering some Kraco 6x9 triaxials in homemade boxes made out of 3/8 plywood and not even sealed! This was circa 1982. About a year later I bought a pair of "Hi-Tech" brand 6 1/2 in speakers at a booth at the Oregon state fair and put them in the kickpanels of my 52 Ford F-1 and replaced the deck with another Kraco - their "Stackmaster" that was silver and made to look like home components with the grab handles on the front side edges of each piece. It was 3 separate units that bolted together... tuner on top, cassette deck in the middle, and 5 band eq/amp on the bottom. One year later I blew out half the amp and had learned enough reading Crutchfield catalogs to buy a Sony XR-40 deck and things just got better and better after that!


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## strapdood (Apr 16, 2013)

I started with a Pioneer cassette deck that came with my first car. It sounded horrible with only 2- 4" speakers. I was in High School and didn't have much cash, but knew I needed something better. I went to the local stereo shop and looked at all the cool stuff and was almost talked into a 400 watt eq booster! I decided to walk down the street to another store and they were more high end. The salesman was so good at selling, I got talked into a small system that to me was way overpriced. I put it all on layaway for $10 and almost went back to get my money back several times, but was too embarrassed. I just ended up paying it off and they installed it for me. Wow, was I blown away. I got a real good education on what quality is all about.

The system was not big, but for 1983 it was pretty cool. It was a Concord HU with a pair of JBL 6x9's powered by a Linear 402(40w) amp. This sounded way better than any of my friends cars that had powered EQ's with flashing lights claiming 400 watts. 

It didn't take long before I went to a sound off(Thunder on Wheels) to see what a real sound system was all about. The rest is history.


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## wurgerd9 (Mar 22, 2013)

Wow, you DID get some good stuff there for 1983! It took me a little longer to get going (cash issues). I didn't get my first amp until the early 90s. Nice to read your story, thanks.


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## TheFamily (Feb 13, 2013)

I was 16 and I have a lowered fullsize chevy...this is what I had for my first system.

Clarion Pro Audio CD Player.
PPI A200
PPI A600
JL Seperates
3 10w6s


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## CDT FAN (Jul 25, 2012)

1981 or so:

Pioneer under dash AM/FM cassette
Audiovox 40watt booster
Pioneer 2-way 6x9's
It rocked pretty good.


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## strapdood (Apr 16, 2013)

wurgerd9 said:


> Wow, you DID get some good stuff there for 1983! It took me a little longer to get going (cash issues). I didn't get my first amp until the early 90s. Nice to read your story, thanks.



Yeah, it was expensive to me at the time so I had to do the Lay-away plan
The Linear 402 was used until the early nineties in my competition system to power tweeters(8).


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## Old Skewl (May 30, 2011)

Yamaha AM/FM/Cassette
Alphasonik PMA-2100(damn that thing got HOT!)
Pyle Pre-Fab Box(w/(2) 8 in. woofers and (2) tweeters sitting in the hatch)
Alpine 4x6 in the doors running off the head unit for front fill(LOL!!)

This was the late 80's buy the way. I learned what good quality heavy gauge wire wire could do for a system too. WOW! Ordered lots of stuff from Crutchfield then.

After I read the post 2 above I remembered the Alphasonik replaced a Pioneer EQ/Booster that was mounted Under-dash and teh Pyle Box replaced (2) Pioneer 3-way 6x9's that were mounted in boxes strapped down in the rear hatch of my '78 Datsun 280-Z


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## sienna12 (Mar 31, 2012)

~1997

Kenwood cassette deck, Boston Acoustics 4" coax in front, 2 Kicker 12's from Nobody beats the Wiz with an Audiotek 600 watt amp.


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## Spkrboxx (Jul 21, 2010)

1997

1986 ford tempo
Sony CD player
cliff designs 6.5" components
soundstream reference 200
IDQ12
hifonics 4ch (the one that best buy used to sell)
infinity reference 6x9's

Woot Woot!
I was still the envy of all the high schoolers!


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## jstkilntim (Dec 30, 2012)

First (what I thought) real system in between 1988 & 1991 in a 1973 Dodge Challenger.

Started w/ a Kenwood Pullout but traded up to a Nakamichi Casette Deck
Sony Walkman CD Player
Kenwood 4042 Equalizer (Not sure if it was a KGC back then)
Alpine 3501 2 Channel amp w/ who knows what model Alpine Components up front.
Rockford Fosgate Punch 150 w/ 2 Punch 12"


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## JPOSEY (Nov 9, 2011)

1986 I started off with a JVC headunit and 6x9's. Then added two 10" RF Punch subs with a Kenwood amp and EQ, plus added a small JVC amp to the 6x9's. 

Around 1989, I graduated to 2 Punch 45's powering Boston Acoustics Highs and mids and RF Punch 8" midbass. I had 2 Punch 75's pushing two RF Punch 15's in a ported enclosure tuned to 37 hz. I had an 87 Toyota Supra and took the back seat out to build the enclosure for 15's and 8" midbass's. Pioneer cd and cassette slave deck. All amps were bridged with one 45 handling the right side and the other the left side. Each 75 was bridged handling each sub.


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## wurgerd9 (Mar 22, 2013)

I have enjoyed reading each of your responses! Some of you had a MUCH higher quality start than I did! But though i was cash poor for years, i really enjoyed getting different stuff and trying it out. My second system (the first was my one in the 52 ford F-1 with the Kraco stuff in my first post) was in a 1968 Mustang coupe. This system was put in around 1987 and consisted of an Audia TRX-10 with the matching eqx-7 Audia Equalizer and the little add on dbx module (i still have them but the deck died years ago). I cut the rear deck to add some Alpine 6x9 coaxes but didn't want to cut door panels so i used some Pioneer "tune-up" tweeters (TS-M2) and set them on the corners of the dash for a little front fill. They wired in line with the rear speakers and had their own level control. No amp and no subs - couldn't afford them while paying for college. But when cds became more the thing i laid down the cash for a Sony D-160 car discman with the dampened mounting plate that also supplied power from the cigarette lighter and the cassette adapter to slip into the deck.


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## teldzc1 (Oct 9, 2009)

Line out converter from my Honda tape deck.
Coustic Amp 360
RF Punch 12" in a giant ported box

I think I was 16. So awesome listening to 2 live crew, too short, nwa, public enemy, bell biv devoe, MC Hammer....


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## BadSS (Feb 2, 2008)

1979 Monza Hatchback
Stock GM 8-track (rocking Waylon Jennings Greatest Hits and AC/DC Highway to Hell)
AudioVox under-dash 40-watt power booster equalizer w/power meters (15 watts maybe)
Jensen 5.25” Separates (5.25 in the kick panels and the tweeter "pods" on the dash)
Jensen 6x9 Coaxials in custom enclosures for the rear

I doubt I could stand to listen to it at all now,,, but it didn’t sound any worse than any other 15-year old kid’s system of that era.


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## amalmer71 (Feb 29, 2012)

teldzc1 said:


> Line out converter from my Honda tape deck.
> Coustic Amp 360
> RF Punch 12" in a giant ported box
> 
> I think I was 16. So awesome listening to 2 live crew, too short, nwa, public enemy, bell biv devoe, MC Hammer....


Yep.

I started with the JC Whitney special.  
A 600 watt EQ/Amp for $40. What a dumbass I was for buying that. It lasted a whole 10 minutes before the smoke show began.

From that point on I promised myself I was only going to buy the best that my wallet would let me. I saved up and bought "the first" bridgeable amplifier (so they claimed) made by Sherwood. I don't remember the model number.

It was my first car which was a 1965 Mercury Comet. I already had an Alpine cassette player, a pair of Jensen 6x9 coaxials, and an 8" Ultimate sub mounted in the dash. It took the shop (The Shoppe) 4 hours to install the amp in that car. A lot of metal to work around. LOL

That **** was LOUD!!! 

My favorite song back then was Brand New Funk - DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, and I played that song endlessly, when I wasn't busy playing


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## tulse (Mar 16, 2010)

8" Bazooka
A/D/S components (I think). 
Punch 40ix DSM that I still use to this day.


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## JuiceMan88 (Jun 13, 2012)

My very first system consisted of a Pioneer CD... Can't remember the model but it was around 1992 powering two Alpine 4x6s in a Fiat X-1/9! 

Next was an Eclipse EQZ-301 (cassette) with four Blaupunkt 4x6s (guess I had a thing for a 4x6!) in a Porsche 944. Then I made a big upgrade to a Clarion ADCS-1 and two Orion XTR amps (250 & 275) along with two Boston Rally series 10s and some Pro 6.4s up front in the same car. 

The rest is history.......


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## vwdave (Jun 12, 2013)

This was back in 1996, in my 88 Jeep Wrangler:
Pioneer deck (I forget the model, but the face dropped down with the CD slot in back)
Pioneer 6.5" components
MTX Thunder 4300x
Aura Force 12" sub

I later added Aura Bass Shakers, got Kove audio 6x9s, and added an MTX Thunder 2300x. I tried to get another Aura Force 12 off ebay, but i was scammed and it never arrived.


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## Chronic Carz (Jun 15, 2013)

in 94 a clarion 9375 hu a clarion 920 eq clarion 4*6s clarion 6*9s clarion tweet's 2 bazooka 8's behind the passenger side rear plastics and 3 JL10w6's on a rockford punch 150 and a punch 4040 in a 25th anniversary rs Camaro white on white with a grey gut


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## Victor_inox (Apr 27, 2012)

1990, Two Turbosoundline array stage speakers powered by an amp I pulled out of junk car in Japan. Clarion cassete deck with EQ Pulled from another junk car ( Japaneese junk yards were awesome at that time). No dedicated sub, turbosounds were awesome. It was so ****ing loud I think I damaged my hearing.
I think speakers were like this:Turbosound Flexarray Line Array Speakers Pair Used | eBay


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## JuiceMan88 (Jun 13, 2012)

Chronic Carz said:


> in 94 a clarion 9375 hu a clarion 920 eq clarion 4*6s clarion 6*9s clarion tweet's 2 bazooka 8's behind the passenger side rear plastics and 3 JL10w6's on a rockford punch 150 and a punch 4040 in a 25th anniversary rs Camaro white on white with a grey gut


Dang dude, I bet that thing hit hard as hell. That's a lot of subwoofer action!


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## vwdave (Jun 12, 2013)

vwdave said:


> This was back in 1996, in my 88 Jeep Wrangler:
> Pioneer deck (I forget the model, but the face dropped down with the CD slot in back)
> Pioneer 6.5" components
> MTX Thunder 4300x
> ...


Thinking about the deck... DEH-735? Something like that.


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## JuiceMan88 (Jun 13, 2012)

vwdave said:


> Thinking about the deck... DEH-735? Something like that.


I think you're right. I have several old Pioneer factory catalogs and from the description the 735 matches up the best. I miss the looks of those pre-96 Pioneers.


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## vwdave (Jun 12, 2013)

I added that model number based off memory, but when I searched pictures of that model it looked right. Its funny how I got it, I was in high school. A friend of mine stole his dads credit card and bought an entire system off crutchfield. When his dad found out he made him sell it all. The rest of the stuff was crap, but I really wanted that deck so I made an offer and it was mine.


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## Doozer (Jul 15, 2013)

1979 in a 1978 camaro. Craig HU cassette with auto reverse and scan (top model Craig) two 3" Jensen coax in bottom front console, unpowered equalizer (don't recall brand), 80w amp to run two 6x9 infinity speakers in the back. The infinity spks were awesome. Loud and clear. They he'd just come out and everyone snubbed them because they were not Jenson , pioneer. Steely Dan, Alan Parsons, Pink Floyd, YES and AC/DC never sounded so good!


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## CK1991 (Jul 13, 2013)

My first system was pretty laughable. Had a 97 safari that came with a kenwood cd deck (the 60 dollar special with an insane bass boost and 3 band eq). It started turning itself off, so (stupid me) thought it was broken (problem was a speaker wire grounding out on the body). I didn't have cash for a new system, so $50 to a friend of mine got me 2 sets of $100 1 year old kenwood 6.5 full rangers and a pair of infinity 6.5 woofers. I needed a new radio, so I asked my dad and he dragged out his old car stereo box- an early 90s clarion shaft radio (the super cheap one....didn't even say it had dolby, but if you pressed 5, dolby came on LOL) and a 1987 blue anodized look jensen 40 watt amp (max) that would fit in your hand. I installed the kenwoods in the front doors, a set of blaupunkt transparent series 3.5s in the factory tweeter holes (crossovers, what are those? LOL) and the 6.5 infinities in the rear doors. I put wood blocks in the rear doors to stop the doors from rattling from all the bass from that jensen amp (which I ran at 2 ohms and I'm amazed it didn't die.) It actually sounded pretty good, but I couldn't turn it up too loud thanks to the insane amount of distortion that that clarion had (it could do normal listening level with eq flat and windows up and that was it). The clarion claimed 15x2 wpc rms, but I highly doubt it had more than 5 clean watts of power


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## Eggroll (Mar 2, 2012)

PG M25 on a JL 10w0
MB Quart coax
Alpine 7905 (i think) cassette 

Then moved on to all fosgate and stayed that way for over 15 years


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## bigaudiofanatic (Mar 1, 2009)

Very first system
Pioneer head unit (dual knob forget the model)
Sony xplod 6.5 coaxial's 
Kicker 6.5 rear coaxial's 
Sony Xplod 4 channel amp


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## JayinMI (Oct 18, 2008)

1990: 

1970 Vw Bug, Midland special, 2 shaft auto stop analog tape deck and 2 4" full range speakers. My mom's BF helped me put it in. Lasted less than a year.

Followed that with

1991: 

Realistic Auto Stop 2 shaft with digital tuning and clock!
high leveled into a 7 band/40 W EQ
high leveled into 2 40+40 Watt "Boosters"
running 2 Realistic 8" DVC subwoofers in a box I built with gaps you could see through.

Front speakers were some Craig super shallow 5" cut into the front doors.

Had that for a while and thought it as great, until I was out cruising with some friends one night. Parked at a party store with my buddy on one side (2 10" Rockford Pros in a 4th order Bandpass on the back 2 channels of his FACTORY premium sound amp in a 1991 Escort GT and his buddy with a PPI A1200 on 2 Cerwin Vega 15's. After hearing those two cars effortlessly drown me out, I went back to the drawing board...

First REAL system, 1992:


Pioneer Premier DEH-44 (3/4 detachable face, 2 yr warranty, 1 gold plated pre out, bridgeable speaker outputs 15x4 or 25x2)
to an MTX RTX-01A crossover feeding signal to a 
Sony XM-4040 (40x4) amp...front 2 channels running a set of $60 Optimus components in the first fiberglass pods I ever build (thanks to a blurb in the letters section of Car Stereo Review) the back 2 channels were bridged to an Orion XTR10 in 1.0ft3 sealed firing up at the rear window. Built this box with a jigsaw like the last one, but planed all the edges straight before assembly and sealed with silicone. 

Rocked that until 1994 when I bought my S10.

Jay


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## ween (Mar 12, 2009)

hi,
1984....'77 vw rabbit...kenwood krc-9900 head unit, kenwood kec-1000? active crossover running 3-way,
audiomobile sa400 kenwood tweets, ads p100 kenwood mids, linear power 1501 no name 12" subs running IB.
'course it was nice that i worked for a kenwood dealer. 
still have the sa400.


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## AudioBob (May 21, 2007)

My first set up was a Sanyo AM/FM, Cassette deck, Kraco power booster with EQ and JVC 6.5" coax in front doors and JVC 6x9" in the rear deck.


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