I survey the setup with Jim Dobbs as we await the audience arrival for a packed house, holding my anxiety in very well! For some weeks the decision to take on a ridiculous challenge to put together a vintage system for just £100 maximum that would entertain all was weighing heavy with regret! Add the seasonal cold that hit me last Sunday (typical as real-life workload eases!) and while I sat listening to Graham Chalmers excellent introduction thought hell – I am completely knackered – in more ways than one. I had previously resisted the urge to drown my sorrows the Boxing Day night before at a family meal at The Station as beer gremlins was not a good idea even though my daughter in law was driving, perhaps a good decision???
In the end it was an amazing night, a break from the Christmas hum drum for everybody – packed to capacity and the gods of the great Harrold Leak and Gilbert Briggs (Wharfedale founder) looked after us all as the 1974 system ran faultlessly for the full 70 minutes at near maximum output – just 70 watts RMS of raw British class AB quasi-complimentary capacitor coupled amplification was astounding, the Wharfedale Dovedales sounded amazing in the challenging acoustic environment we faced. Garrard’s 86SB and Goldring G800E cartridge was a great choice and for a budget unit compared with our big Japs and ran admirably.
The caveat here is that restoration costs of the above commercially is circa £600 – I must be honest before you rush to eBay! A bit of smoke and mirrors adds to the fun.
We put a lot of smiles on a lot of faces last night – circa £425 raised with gift aid made it worth it, closing off this year just under £9000 is amazing and our heartfelt thanks goes to all our dear friends and supporters for this amazing achievement. Some overworked speakers and hot amplifiers might agree if they could…
17th January sees another great event at All Saints Church, Kirkby Overblow – Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells, no budget on equipment as we wheel in the heavy oriental silicon – over 400 watts of heavy vintage Sony amplification and KEF/Castle & RAM loudspeaker systems.
Have a Happy & Healthy 2020!
Colin and the Vinylsessions team.