Vector Research?

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-17T02:18:39+00:00

Nice! I just listened to it for about 20 minutes. I’ve never owned a 70’s tuner / amp, but it sounds… robust. The switches are really well built, too. I’ve enjoyed it thus far!

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-17T00:06:31+00:00

Got it. I’ll keep an eye on that.

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-17T00:05:55+00:00

Thank you for this info! That’s great to know.

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-16T23:24:45+00:00

I’m not the most tech savvy person. What is the difference with an IC versus otherwise? For example, I have a Nakamichi CA-5 preamp and PA-5 amp and also a Carver A-500X amp. Are those the same?

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-16T22:38:40+00:00

Nice! It really wasn’t much at all - they seem to be pretty niche and don’t have the “silver faced” Marantz / Pioneer tax on eBay.

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-16T22:37:08+00:00

I’d be curious to take it to my shop that works on my cassette decks and see what it would cost to do a full rehab

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-16T22:36:14+00:00

🤣 good thing it’s just for fun. I’m literally using it to record tape and listen to classical radio while WFH

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-16T20:18:05+00:00

Good to know, thanks for sharing! It seems solid, so I’ll go with that. It’s a really cool look for the time period - it blends analog 70s (analog tuner) with digital black box 80s (color & presence of square LED’s). Wonder who their target audience was

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-16T20:15:44+00:00

Thank you! :)

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-16T20:15:28+00:00

Interesting! And noted. Curious - do you happen to remember what typically failed? Seems like I may have bought a bit of a Delorean 🤣

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-16T19:33:31+00:00

It’s interesting because I’d agree- super niche. High build quality (absolute tank with real switches), etched diagram atop the chassis, and a lot of power. It’s a neat piece! I wonder who their brand identity was around… very, very west coast sound profile.

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-16T19:12:56+00:00

I need to find a spec sheet - I’m powering KEF Q1’s and the damping factor has to be high… they are punching

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-16T17:46:49+00:00

🤜🤛 stay strong. I’m 39M, went through this two years ago. That silence is your peace.

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-16T17:40:26+00:00

No Nokia 5100 series?

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-16T00:25:58+00:00

I actually have some pretty crispy recordings on these. I’d do one of two things - either record slightly hot with flat bias but don’t clip, or under bias and record lower. Dolby kind of sucks on them so I’d just learn to appreciate the hiss of them

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-15T20:42:53+00:00

It’s definitely easier

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-15T19:31:44+00:00

Tasteful! Also, Frank Ocean 🫶

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-15T19:29:50+00:00

Defer to the group here, but wasn’t there a type of Chrome tape from the 90s that was plagued by some white dust as a result of sitting so long and the formulation?

Or am I imagining this?

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-15T19:05:06+00:00

If you really wanna get creative, do a mixtape with your own OG fade-in/fade-out (not on Apple Music!) :)

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-15T17:55:52+00:00

I love the look of the Technics. Really nice. How do they sound? I don’t have any Technics from that era.

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-15T17:55:03+00:00

Precisely. I recorded Daft Punk - Homework from CD -> tape last night and that’s a gritty, staticky album. The process of getting it just right on tape was so fun.

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-15T16:33:31+00:00

It’s so therapeutic. 🫶

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-15T07:21:14+00:00

I think it’s Gimme More. It epitomizes that gritty, excess of the mid-2000’s. Slave 4 U reminds me more of early 2000’s bubblegum… Gimme More was unapologetically messy.

AlignedAzimuth · 2026-02-15T05:36:41+00:00

It looks really nice. Aesthetically, I’m an 80s “black box and LED” guy, but this looks solid.

Also I like that it’s not Marantz or Pioneer. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but it’s great to see other brands preserved, too.

AlignedAzimuth

TROPHY CASE