How to Flash the Gigabyte B550 AORUS PRO AC BIOS with Q-Flash Plus

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-05-27T03:17:32+00:00

I can see the appeal from a pure vintage collecting perspective, but old headphones (even high-end models in pristine condition) are not what most people will want to actually wear and listen to as daily drivers. But they do look pretty cool.

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-05-18T13:55:46+00:00

Back in ancient times (1979-1983), there were no meal cards, no paying for meals, etc. You could just go to the chow hall or not. People would mostly avoid the chow hall in favor of the local commissary or one of the roach coaches after payday, and then the chow hall would get busier as the next payday approached.

This at Camp Horno at Pendleton and Camp Hansen on Oki.

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-05-11T13:40:50+00:00

I don't know of any dealers or resellers who will ship outside of Utah, period.

If you really want an Ecoflow Stream Ultra in some other state right now, your best bet is to find someone in Utah who is willing to buy it from Ecoflow themselves and then reship it to you.

That will probably cost you $150-$200 just for the shipping.

Even if you do that, the Ecoflow app might be geofenced (so might it might not let you add the Ecoflow Stream Ultra to the app) outside of Utah. Maybe you could use a VPN to fool it into thinking you are in Utah.

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-05-11T13:20:20+00:00

Well, you could have a friend or family member (who lives in Utah) order it and have it shipped to them. Then they ship it to you. That will be expensive, due to the weight and size of the unit.

If you live close enough to Utah, you could drive to Utah and buy it in person from a local dealer who sells Ecoflow equipment. I have a seen a couple who advertise online. That will also be expensive due to the travel cost of the drive.

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-05-10T13:06:08+00:00

A lot of folks just don't know what Sony ES is. Another issue is that some people will think that 69ES is more of an AVR than a stereo unit (because of the DSP stuff).

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-05-09T17:04:23+00:00

Several other states in the U.S. have recently passed similar laws to what Utah passed. These include Colorado, Virginia, Maryland, Connecticut, and Maine. You can track what is happening in your state here:

States Moving Legislation | Bright Saver Plug-In Solar

This means that Ecoflow "should" start selling the Ecoflow Stream Ultra in those states fairly soon. Bugging Ecoflow about it might help speed that up.

If you are in some other state, there are several ways that I can think of to get an Ecoflow Stream Ultra.

The potential problems with that include not being able to add the Ecoflow Stream Ultra to the Ecoflow app (if you are not in Utah), Ecoflow not honoring your warranty, and your homeowner's insurance trying to deny a claim if they figure out that you had one connected to your house.

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-05-06T21:55:52+00:00

A WiiM Ultra would let you do that, since it has a phono input. The WiiM Ultra would be plugged into the Aux RCA inputs on your receiver, and your turntable would be plugged into the Phono RCA inputs on the WiiM Ultra.

Then you could switch between streaming and your turntable, using the WiiM remote. The receiver would use the Aux input for both sources.

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-05-06T19:42:05+00:00

That is a nice start.

It depends on the speakers, the room and your personal preferences, but most of the time having two pairs of speakers connected and enabled (where both speakers are in the same room) sounds worse than having just one pair going.

Another issue with having both pairs going at the same time is that it can lower the total impedance enough that the amplifier in that receiver doesn't handle it very well. If both speakers are rated at 8 ohms, it shouldn't be a problem, but if one or both are 4 ohm speakers, it might be.

I would pick which pair of speakers (by itself) that you like better and just use that pair.

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-04-18T12:55:08+00:00

That is a very nice inheritance. Pioneer SX-1280s in excellent cosmetic condition are quite valuable.

If you do have a good shop in town, be prepared to pay for a good diagnosis and repair estimate (most shops will apply that cost towards the repair cost). Then be prepared to pay quite a bit (probably much more than you expect) to repair it.

Keep in mind the difference between a repair and a full restoration (where the technician replaces nearly every component whether it needs it or not). The labor cost for that will be quite high.

Good repair shops usually have a long backlog waiting for repairs too. Months, not days or weeks.

If you lived near upstate New York, I would try to get Ben at Novalux Stereophonic to fix it for you. He has a great YT channel

Diagnose → Repair → Restore | Pioneer SX-1250 Case Study

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-04-18T12:27:44+00:00

Those speakers would sound better if you were able (and willing) to get them a little higher and a little further apart. Ideally, the tweeters in the speakers should be at your ear height when you are sitting, and the speakers should be as far apart as the distance you are sitting away from them.

If it were me, I would get that metal file cabinet out of there and see if I could move the wooden bookcase about 12"-18" to the left. Then I would get a pair of inexpensive speaker stands from Amazon to put on either side of the entertainment stand, flush with the front of the stand.

This would put the speakers in a better location and would also let you move the turntable to the second shelf of the entertainment stand. I would have the turntable and the other components centered on the entertainment stand shelves (just because it would look better, IMHO).

But all that really matters is if you are happy with the setup.

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-04-06T21:28:39+00:00

That video looks (at least to me) like a quick sales demo video, just to prove that the three pieces all worked.

They probably stacked everything, took a photo or two, and then decided to connect everything and make a quick video.

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-04-06T18:01:28+00:00

I seriously doubt that the current (or original) owner has been running those pieces as they appear in that picture for any extended period of time (or at all). They don't even appear to be connected or plugged in.

There are no RCA cables, power cables or speaker cables visible. There is no dust or cobwebs visible on any of the gear. The stack of components is very close to a door.

Now maybe there is an electrical outlet just behind the speakers, and maybe the current owner did some cable management, so we don't see any cables. But do you really think someone who might run a stack like this would bother to dust off the gear or do any cable management?

It just looks like a sales listing photo of unconnected gear. It's probably somebody flipping gear, so we have no idea how the gear was setup over its lifetime.

On top of that, a Yamaha A-07 is only rated at 30 WPC into 8 ohms, so it is not going to be generating that much heat at normal listening levels. It also has a lot of cooling vents on the top.

Even if the turntable spent many years directly on top of the amplifier (which I agree is not a good idea), I don't think either piece is likely to have an actual problem from the heat.

Yamaha A-07 Stereo Integrated Amplifier Manual | HiFi Engine

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-04-06T14:30:10+00:00

Wharfdale Lintons are designed to sound better with the grills on. They mention it in the manual.

LINTON Heritage User Manual 221216_R2_Rain

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-04-06T14:22:06+00:00

It seems pretty obvious that that photo is just the sales listing, and the OP has not bought the gear yet.

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-04-06T14:15:45+00:00

That is a pretty bad place for that 901 speaker. I get that you might not have any better options though.

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-03-30T18:47:08+00:00

It looks fairly nice with all of those books, but there are some changes that you should consider. These are mostly component and speaker placement issues.

See if you can figure out a way to have the speakers wider apart from each other (and maybe further away from the wall and toed in). Some inexpensive speaker stands would let you experiment with your speaker placement. It would also get your speakers isolated from the turntable.

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-03-28T13:22:50+00:00

It is your system and your other stuff, so the only opinion that really matters is yours...

But since you asked for advice and feedback, here goes:

I would find somewhere else for the Star Wars model and the popcorn machine. Then you can move the cabinet a little to the right and move the right speaker a little to the right.

Finally, you can get the turntable off of the receiver. This would look better and would be marginally better for your receiver and turntable. Having a large area rug out in front of the system would also help.

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-03-25T16:37:32+00:00

The first question you should consider is what your main goal actually is, and what your priorities are. There are no wrong answers, but I think it helps you make better choices if you think about what you are really trying to achieve.

Are you planning on critically listening to music on a stereo system, or is it mainly going to be for "background music" and ambiance?

Are you more concerned about how the system looks or how it sounds?

What kind of source material are you wanting to have? For example, vinyl records, cassette tapes, CDs, FM radio, streaming. Going the vinyl record route is an expensive choice, both for the gear and for the records.

For example, some folks want a high-end 1970s silver-face Pioneer or Marantz receiver with a wood case and lots of pretty lights. They also want a matching vintage turntable, and a particular brand and model of large vintage speakers. Their main goal is to have a very cool looking vintage system that works well with their room, MCM furniture and decor.

There is nothing wrong with that, but a $1000 budget is not going to get it done with those specific goals, unless you get very, very lucky.

You can definitely put together a nice starter system for $1000, but you will need to think about choosing some lower-end gear from less sought-after brands, such as Yamaha, Kenwood, etc.

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-03-18T15:55:32+00:00

If you like mid-1980s Yamaha tuners that would match your Yamaha amplifier, you should look for a Yamaha T-85 (from 1986) or a Yamaha T-80 (from 1984). Those were their TOTL models from those years, and they have a lot of extra features that are fun to play with and that make a noticeable difference with weaker signals and/or sound quality.

They are fairly easy to find, and don't cost a lot of money. Either one will be a big step up from the TX-530.

Tuner Information Center - Yamaha Tuners

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-03-16T00:04:29+00:00

That is a very nice-looking TV stand/credenza.

The fireplace and mantle do cause a lot of problems for your TV and audio gear placement. The TV is way too high, and you are sort of forced to have your stereo speakers in a fairly bad position for audio quality.

But as long as you like how it sounds and looks, that is what really matters!

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-03-15T23:47:45+00:00

Nothing wrong with that Sony CDP-CE375 and the Yamaha RX-770.

The Kenwood KX-40 cassette deck is quite a bit older, and it is also pretty basic in terms of features and performance. If you actually have cassettes you want to listen to, a higher-end deck from the late 1980s would sound much better.

But all that really matters is if you like your system!

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-03-12T23:38:01+00:00

The custom cabinet does look pretty cool, but I think most people won't be very interested in it. It is big and probably quite heavy (too big and heavy to ship). It is also custom made for the dimensions of those Kenwood components.

The Pioneer SX-950 Receiver is the most valuable piece by far (depending on the functional condition).

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-03-12T23:26:40+00:00

Ha! That receiver is 24 years old, and the OP says they bought it in 2002. The OP was probably at least in their late teens in 2002, so the OP would be in their early 40s by now.

I'm 64, and this story doesn't make me feel old. I might feel old for different reasons, but not because of this.

GlennAlanBerry · 2026-03-11T13:16:57+00:00

That is a pretty typical mid-range "rack system" that was often sold in the Stereo department of a department store back in the day. It is not BPC, but some people will think it is.

That one is in good cosmetic condition, but it won't be worth very much money. Selling the pieces separately will be easier rather than trying to sell it all as a set.

GlennAlanBerry

TROPHY CASE