A (nearly) Christmas special

Thanks for the videos. Obviously, when I checked, the speakers had sold out. But on the other hand, getting the exact same speakers would mean not getting the point of these videos. Although I do regret missing out on a Pioneer PL-600 for €90 because I dilly-dallied.

Thanks so much, Mat, for all your wonderful entertaining & educational videos this year. I had the pleasure of perusing them all while incapacitated in hospital for several weeks this year following a motorcycle accident, and now I'm hooked, eagerly awaiting each new installment. I have also made several purchases myself, of some of the products you've reviewed - some products that I would have been none the wiser of even existing if not for your videos. So thanks again for spreading the joy, and best wishes for the New Year. :-)

Mat - While I hadn't any intention of putting together a hi-fi system, I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed this series, and am now contemplating assembling one even though I don't really need one. Your homily at the end was an unexpected emotional moment, and perfectly timed for the season. Thank you! May you and yours have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Thanks for this series, it has kind of given me the bug to get cracking on building myself a set up like this. As somebody who's body of knowledge about Hi-Fi systems largely consists of "Techmoan's 4 part series on how to build a cheap Hi-Fi set up," I am researching and learning more about this stuff so I can get my way through this without blowing a ton of money on ostentatious things/pure junk, haha. If I get a set up worth anything at all going,, I'll pop it on the community tab on here to show it off!

Thanks Mat, really enjoyed watching these. Took me back to the several times I've been through the process myself. Currently looking for a "slide out" turntable, or a wall mount - very limited space in the office/den/musicroom

Thanks Mat. I just blew £900+ on Technics A900S Reference amp (with big VU meters!), Technics tape deck and a 70's "record player"... budget it ain't!

Mat, your ending message was something I really needed to hear right now. A message I'll take with me to what I hope will be a better 2019. Thanks for all that you do to make this channel and to keep it forever interesting, and happy Christmas to you and your family.

Loved this 4-part video either for the idea of splitting the whole thing in four parts and for the contents. While I was watching it I was wondering how many people would now build an Hi-Fi system like that. Also, I enjoyed the final tale... you are right: sometimes reaching the finish line is not the real goal. Merry Christmas to you Mat and all your channel supporters!

Well, unfortunately due to my long-time absence on Patreon I've not been able to watch the videos when they were available to us supporters, and have been watching them on general release. I watched the fourth part today, and I knew you'd be able to somehow fit your usual ending words into the video :) Also, out of curiosity, do you have a copy of The 8-Bit Guy's soundtrack CD?

Thanks Mat for this special. I really enjoy a multi-part serie. I'm not sure if it is going to be successful in this age of binge watching, but you could do a multi part video, and release it with a week in between. I like the anticipation. Coming home, and after supper watch a video you know that's there... Anyways, thanks again, and have a good holiday and I hope your health situation improves next year.

Cheers for the videos! When you said the sound hit a brick wall for the Candy Apple Blue CD this is sadly the case with virtually all modern music. It is so sad to see it butchered to have no Dynamic Range =(

Great Series. :)

Fwiw, and in case you're interested; I have a Dual CS505 turntable which I bought in 1982. It's also semi-automatic and didn't have an on/off switch, This rankled with me so I fitted a rocker switch inline with the power cable when it was new. Perhaps it was a common omission in that era? Great video, as ever. Thanks.

EDIT: I meant the "EPO E" upgrade of course, since that is elliptical. The EPO S is spherical/conical just like the original ATN-91 stylus so that wouldn't be much of an "upgrade". Hi Mat, great series, looking forward to the last part! Some comments on the turntable episode: 1. The turntable is probably a great choice. Direct Drive is usually low maintenance and "just works". I have a Technics SL-D2 and an SL-3310 and I like them a lot. 2. The turntable was packaged fairly well, but it would have been a good idea to remove the platter and package it apart from the turntable. That way the heavy platter doesn't put any stress on the platter bearing when the package is being knocked around. 3. The cartridge is the ubiquitous Audio Technica AT-91. It's their entry-level model with a spherical tip. The tracking force range is 1.5 ... 2,5 grams, 2.0 being the "recommended" setting. So you're still within specs. This cartridge is ok for a start, but a better one will improve the sound significantly. If the stylus is used, I would probably replace it since we don't know how much (ab)use it has seen and a broken one might damage your records. AT-91 styli are very cheap and you could also get the Thakker EPO E upgrade which is an elliptical stylus that fits on the AT-91 body. What is nice about this turntable is that it has a removable SME headshell so you can fit any half-inch cartridge or even have several cartridges ready to go with additional headshells. But that's it for the moment... Thanks for reading :-) I wish you happy holidays and a great year 2019! Kind regards, Stephan

Again with the perfect record stop in Part 3! Nice work! :D

Aw bugger, missed the window, now i have to wait for 3 and 4 with the "plebs" have recently finished sorting a budget system to have in the home office, new marantz amp, 2nd hand techncis tuner & sony 300 disc cd & technics tape deck & aiwa turntable, new wharfedale diamond speakers Have a "spare" tape deck and tuner that i could do with putting on ebay ( both technics ) i digress, wishing you ( and fellow patrons ) all the very best :o)

I missed the Patreon window. But hey, now I've got a new video to look forward to for three more days. I'll take the opportunity to wish you a Merry Christmas and hope you are feeling better.

I just want to chip in that many years ago an audiophile friend said something I'll never forget. He said, whatever your budget, expect to spend about half of it on the speakers.

It's Christmas with Mat :-) Happy Christmas from Oregon, friend, from another Mat(t)

Hey, that Technics turntable (with linear tracking and track skip) is my turntable! Glad to know it was a good choice. :-)

Thanks for this, I really enjoyed it. It's nice to see someone who takes the same approach to your hobby as you do. I don't hear many people acknowledge that it's not about the endgame, it's about the constant discovery and building, it's about finding that component that is perfect for you even if it's not the 'best'.

FINALLY got around to finishing all 4 parts. I have to say, your "afterword" on Part 4 was BRILLIANT. Thank you for that.

What an entertaining series. I thought you made up the word caseiver as I've never heard it before and a search online, which I spelled wrong, didn't bring up anything. But I kept looking and finally found a reference to it in a 1981 Populars Mechanics. Thanks! I learned a new word that I can annoy everyone with at Christmas. I'm setting myself a quota of saying the word at least 25 times - which they'll probably take as me really wanting a caseiver and getting one next year for Christmas. Anyways have a great holiday!

I found, and bought, a late 70's Panasonic RA-6700 casseiver as a result of watching this 4-part series. 25 wpc and what appears to be all the bells and whistles. Hoping that my experience watching your channel assists with the inevitable belt replacement!

Merry Christmas Mat. Thanks for the thoughts at the end of #4. It reminds me of the joys I have,and had, finding that piece of hifi. A couple of months ago I got a nice Akai r2r well within my budget. The seeking is half the fun. Is it the best? No, but what fun finding that gem and sharing it with the next generation.

Oh god look at the difference in widths. I should maybe consider replacing pieces. My receiver (since it has a tuner - learning things) is borrowed and he might want it back someday. The record player a DJ gave me for free and the speakers (which are ohm mismatched) were pulled off a mini system. I looked at the same model receiver on ebay and it's in the hundreds so that's nervous enough, but then maybe I can get one that accommodates the speakers I have... Augh :P The DJ gave me a record player because the friend who lent me the receiver told him how I was using one of the "suitcase record players from a clothing store" :P So far I guess it is its own adventure so dunno what the next chapter is. Kind of a sad ending on ruining that guy's hobby :P Kind of had the same thing happen to me for video games when I modded my Wii.. kind of no point collecting after that :P I'll have to think about my hobbies and finding something that I enjoy doing. Definitely enjoy watching your videos. Thanks for giving early access even for a buck. :)

I really enjoyed this series, especially the story and message at the end. Thank you for an amazing year of videos. Merry Christmas.

This was incredible. Loved the story at the end – it tied it nicely together for me. Lots of few little details (like the calibration and anti-skating mechanism). Thanks for doing it while you have a cold. Happy holidays!!!

Matt, thanks for all your hard work. I always look forward to the videos and your approach to the subject. I hope you and your Mrs have a great Christmas!

Mat, glad to hear you're feeling better. Great job on a very interesting series of videos. That's the first time I've ever seen a quality cassiever... Usually I've only seen that sort of thing in a very cheap combination cassette / tuner /record player / CD / coffee maker / pencil sharpener / etc / etc. Also, I was fascinated to see the record that you used to test anti-skating... I worked in a record shop for almost 20 years (back when they actually sold records), and I don't believe I've ever seen such a thing. Usually, we would just set the anti- skate for the same setting as the tracking, and hope for the best. Your way is much more precise. Thanks for teaching an old dog a new trick. Again, here's wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas.

Very interesting series, i myself found a 1981 Pioneer A-X30 amp while tidying up my father's warehouse a few months ago, and thought to build a nice HiFi system out of it, maybe i'll try in 2019. I feel you about people confusing stereo leads, as you pointed out in part two. Some time ago i was chatting with two of my friends, i was joking about my ear problem, saying "i mostly hear in mono", and i discovered they didn't exactly knew what stereo sound was, they thought both of the speakers/headsets output the same signal. And we're talking about two quite intelligent people, with a university education in STEM fields. I was actually shocked, it seemed to me a thing so simple everyone knows about it... Sounds like one of the usual jokes you hear about us millennials not knowing anything. Anyway, thanks for the special, and for the nice tale, i absolutely agree with you about the journey being more important the destination. Happy holidays from foggy Italy to you and the Mrs.!

Hi Mat, Congratulations on a great series with good advice an a lovely message at the end. My brother had a Panasonic system with a casseiver and automatic turntable. Not as good spec casseiver as the one you found in but it served him well for many years. The turntable (Panasonic SL-N5) was very budget but after a new belt was fitted still works over 30 years later. My best wishes to you and your family for Christmas and the New Year.

Dear Mat, Iwish that everyone will enjoy the journey in to and through 2019, and maybe start to build a great HIFI-system. Thank you for giving us your time!

Part 3 not working for me :/

Perhaps interesting to know... My Akai AP-100C turntable doesn't have an on/off switch either. The controls are quite similar to your Pioneer, but mine does have an automated needle drop, but it doesn't move the arm to the beginning of the record. Anyways: I really love the videos and wish you a very happy christmas and a happy new year!

Very interesting, thank you very much! Reminds me of my own long road, starting in childhood, getting worn out cassette decks, fixing them, and about 27 years ago, aged 10, my dad told me to buy that set for ƒ60 (less than £20 back then) on a flea market: receiver, damn ugly speakers and a record player. The ugly speakers I'm still using, as they sound perfect! On my third receiver now, a nice Yamaha Dolby Digital one, an almost matching 80's Yamaha cassette deck (bought it with the receiver, of course, they don't match ;-)), a brand new Pro-Ject turntable, and Revox A-77 tape recorder. Just the way to go, a continuing journey! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Happy Christmas and happy new year Mat

Thanks for the series Mat. I'm not a audio expert, if the sound is not distorted I'm generally happy. Happy Christmas to you and the Mrs. And say Aye Yup to the Moans. (I wonder if one of the Moans will make a 2 second appearance saying Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays?)

Great stuff, Matt - four videos all at once, a veritable orgy of Techmoaning - if you can put aside the visual images that expression may call to mind! As you are describing the various hi-fi components and your thinking behind getting each of them, I find myself nodding along with everything you're saying - it is so nice to have one's prejudices confirmed by a competent authority! I would SO love to be sufficiently discerning to justify getting high end hi-fi, but I have never been able to hear the differences that the audiophiles say are evident. I have had direct-drive and belt driven turntables - all sound the same (perfectly fine) to me. I did experiment with different turntable mats; cork, felt, acrylic and I sometimes thought I might be able to hear a small difference, but I am sure if you put me in a darkened room, I would struggle to differentiate them by sound alone. Anyhow, I thought your choice of equipment was very interesting; I would have steered clear of casseivers back in the day for the simple reason that they greatly limited one's upgrade paths, but overall they all sounded fine over YouTube and I thought they looked good too. That turntable obviously looks better than it feels. Thanks for a great year of interesting videos; best wishes for the festive season to you and yours!

Well done, mate. I appreciate the effort that it takes to put into making these videos, and doing it whilst on death's door (aka: a man cold) is rough. Have a great Christmas.

Matt, do you think you could do a video, or a series, on speakers? I have a pretty good sense of the electrical side of hi fi, but speakers are a real mystery. I have some used speakers myself, but I have no idea if they'd be considered "good or bad." It seems like speakers deteriorate over time, what's the deal on getting a speaker that's particularly old?

Although I'm not a huge audio buff, I do enjoy watching your videos and learning a lot. Merry Christmas

Longwave, eh? If that was ever a broadcast band in North America (ITU Region 2 for the turbo-nerds) it was pre-WW2 ... and I don't think it was. Do you know of any "chewners" in the UK or Continental markets that included any shortwave bands? If I were to do what you are doing here -- and the thought has crossed my mind -- I'd love to have SW capability in addition to the usual AM and FM Broadcast bands.

Fantastic series, Mat, thank you so much for this. When my financial situation is a little better I hope to build my own “budget(ish)” hi-fi set up so these videos will come in very handy for what to look out for. Glad you’re feeling better, and Happy Christmas!

God Bless You for not going crazy about speaker wire in your second video. I abhor so-called experts who go on and on about the wires in their rig. It's just (bloody) wire. I've even had arguments with some regarding ethernet, as if there is better and worse ways to get a _DIGITAL_ signal from here to there and the individual bits can be somehow better or worse depending on the wire that transported them. Insane gibberish.

Amazing, watched parts 1 and 2 even though I was late for work. Worth it! Mat, quick question on the speakers: you picked up new two-way speakers instead of used three-way ones (which would cost the same). What's your logic behind it? Is it only because it's a bookshelf setup and not floor-standing? I always thought that three-way ones are superior and getting some reputable brands like Pioneer or Technics will almost guarantee the success even if it's used. Thoughts?

Awesome! Thanks for this. I'm still working on putting mine together. 💙💙

Four videos in four days! That's a great early present. As much as I love a good binge watch, I think I'll space them out to increase my enjoyment. :) Happy holidays!

I think someone, even a hifi & ebay expert like myself, would have an extremely difficult time beating the value you got for your 240 pounds! - I was sitting back watching these 4 videos just waiting to think, "what is he going to pick, I am sure I could find a better deal" and each time I was like "whoa - excellent choice!" - So I wouldn't care to go up against Mat in a contest for making a certain amount of money go fatherest on ebay! - I love how you never let the overall system quality go below a certain threshold, just to keep in under budget - it takes a very high IQ to pull this off! - And your story at the end of part 4 was very profound wisdom! - now you have your videos done for the year and can concentrate on a puppet Christmas special!

Merry Christmas anmd glad you knocked these out. Sucks you had to do it sick, but such is life sometimes. I did want to inquire of something a little off the topic. In the intro portion of this video the lighting is such your hair looks more contrasting than usual. Has more of a darkness in it than most video's, which wash it out to more of a light to grey look. Which is the correct color? :) I love this as a series. Takes me back to my youth browsing stuff in tons of stores and trying to figure the best options for components. I am curious, in the UK do they let you demo equipment with your own cd/cassettes in the store? Or, well.. did they I guess since thats less of a thing now.

Your dedication to putting out quality videos to your viewers in spite of your illness is quite inspiring. A very Merry Christmas - I certainly hope you are on the mend!

I like these videos. I cleared out my old hifi for a Sonos set up in the house when we moved to Texas from UK. Seemed like progress at the time! But I kept the early 90s Yamaha cassette player (230V) and some nice Tannoy speakers. Tempted to jump back in! (Need to get Mrs on board!)

Merry Christmas and have a happy new year Mat :).

Careful with using a blu-ray player in a hifi situation. I tried that with two different Sony players in my house and neither of them will play anything unless they're connected to an HDMI monitor that's turned on.

Well done in getting these out in time for Christmas and I hope you get the chance for at least some relaxation over the festive period.

You are getting to the level of hifi system where you don't need a switch box but a full blown patch bay. Although it doesn't look as good in a livingroom setting.

I thoroughly enjoyed watching those in my lunch hour, seems like a perfectly reasonable system for about the same price as I paid for my new Denon amplifier. If I had any cassettes the SA-K5L would look very tempting. Cash converters seems like a decent place to look in this country, a friend of mine picked up a Technics twin tape deck (RS-TR 515 I think) for £20 and it appeared to be in very good condition. They had the matching tuner for £15. Anyway, hope you and the missus have a good Christmas and new year.

Grills on or Grills off? I suppose if you have kids poking their fingers into everything then Grills on!

This is an interesting idea, those of us who lived through the years when these things were made have an idea, but I'm sure others will find it interesting and informative. You're lucky you get away with that kit, Sonos is as far as I'm allowed to go in the lounge! The system in the study is a bit more, er, component...

This rings so true to me I've just finished building my first HiFi System. An Upgraded Rega RP3-24V Turntable, Rega Pre-amp and Speed Controller, Monitor Audio Amplifer and the higher end model of the speakers you've shown the Q-Acoustics Concept 20 with stands. I've very pleased with it but I'm already looking for a new Amplifier it's good but it doesn't fit right with everything else. Enjoy your christmas

“...dead people’s clothes...” Ah, that explains the shirt, Kramer. J/K of course. Merry Christmas to you and your family, Mat. Thanks for all the fun.

Good to see you up and about again for this series, Mat. I was almost afraid your voice would not return on time :). Great video. It really captures the process of making specific choices for this stuff. Brought back memories to the days I bought my equipment a long time ago.

Merry Christmas to you and your family, Mat and a healthy and profitable 2019.

Funny enough there was a cracking NAD Tuner in the local YMCA (charity) shop the other day, £15!! I'd have to agree though, it was the first, and probably last, time I have seen quality separates in a charity shop in a long time. I've just built my 'dream' (mid-priced) HiFi stack that I simply couldn't afford at the time, all bargains from eBay. If anyone is wondering, you're bang on it's hard to recommend, but for a safe choice, I personally think you can't go wrong with nearly any Yamaha cassette deck from the last ten years of their production - and it won't cost you a lot. Great vid as ever, looking forward to the rest.

'Dead People's Clothes'. Awesome. Merry Christmas.

Merry Christmas to you and your family. You say buying a hifi without speakers does not make much sense but you could use headphones if you wanted

Thanks for the specials Matt! Merry Christmas to you and yours 👍🏻