David's post got me thinking... over the years I have heard a number of fellow enthusiasts (that includes people just like you if you hate the word audiophile) say that they still remember the day when they heard the model XYZ being played with so and so electronics and wow it changed their world... ever since they have wanted to recapture that sound. Or something along those lines.
I believe Don McRitchie was originally smitten by a JBL 030 system. There was something about the effortless dynamics, realism and punch that caught his imagination. I have heard similar tales from many JBL heads about the first time they heard a model this or that. For me, I was first really blown away by a pair of Harold Beveridge Model 2 electrostats. I'd love to hear a pair again, but I doubt they could hold a candle to the goose bump invoking sound I remember. I had some JBL S7 systems at home and they were pretty darned good, but there was something about these fast as light electrostats that really blew me away... unfortunately they needed a million dollars worth of electronics to make them really sing and they cost about $4K back in 1981... they might as well have been a NASA prototype. There was no way I'd ever have a pair.
I thought it might be interesting to hear what speakers, or other bits of audio gear first blew you away.
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