BigStewMan Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 I used to hang at a place called Cafe Italia I may have been there. Can’t recall for sure, it’s been awhile. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Naseum Posted January 30, 2016 Author Share Posted January 30, 2016 (edited) If like to hear that "Pacific Stereo" is re opening! Sent from my SM-T330NU using Tapatalk Now youre talking! Lets go pick up a Concept Receiver! Actually the best thing that Pac Sierra offered was the speaker upgrade program. Buy speakers and you could trade them back in within two years and get full credit towards a new more expensive pair. Really good memories for sure!I did it many times! What was that great stereo store on Shattuck in Berkeley???? I could buy used tube amps for peanuts in the 1970s!Sent from my SM-T330NU using Tapatalk Edited January 30, 2016 by jo56steph74 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigStewMan Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 Ok! I am not familiar with Cafe Freddie. Love North Beach - still do. Although chinatown has somewhat moved in! (nothing against chinatown it was just nice to have both the Italian neighborhood and the Chinese Neighborhood. I used to hang at a place called Cafe Italia which was right down the block from Keystone Korner. I dated a girl who had an italian step mother and we would frequent all the italian hot spots! Brings back a lot of good memories for sure.I tried to Google Cafe Freddie and came up empty. So, it's probably gone. We were living in SF all during the, 90s. Just talking about it makes me miss it terribly. We had so much fun, so many good memories there. I lived in the Haight and my wife (now) lived in Laurel Heights. Green Apple books, Tower Records, the MOMA, Ireland's 32, War Memorial Opera House, Farleys, Crissey Field, Fort Mason... Just a fantastic city to live in. Never a dull moment.Today, we would need an income of $200,000 to live like we did back then. Sent from my SM-T330NU using Tapatalk Yes the City is the best. Wow Ireland 32! I played in a pickup band and we played at Ireland 32 a bunch. I had forgotten completely about it! You probably wouldnt recognize the Haight. Not bad - just different. I guess it all changes which is why memories are so awesome!Josh I know the Haight has degraded into a lot of dirty street urchins and worse. Even before we left we had moved to Dogpatch across from The Ramp. Another fabulous Sunday afternoon joint on the water. 3rd/Mariposa.Yeah, the memories are always gold! If I win the lotto, we will be there in a heartbeat. I definitely left my heart.., Sent from my SM-T330NU using Tapatalk It would practically take winning the lotto too. My cousin, just moved to Hayward, after spending most of his adult life in The City, told me that it was cheaper for him to get a parking ticket every day than rent a space in a parking garage. That on top of a couple of grand for rent. But, like you, that place is special to me...so many memories. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshnich Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 There were a few Stereo Shops on Shattuck. The Sound Well, Pacific Stereo, and another that I cant remember the name of but I know exactly where it was! It was the McIntosh Dealer. on the west side of Shattuck down near Hinks department store! Josh 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshnich Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 you would be happy to know that the ramp is still there and thriving. Dogpatch is now a pretty expensive place to live! - shocking I know! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Naseum Posted January 30, 2016 Author Share Posted January 30, 2016 you would be happy to know that the ramp is still there and thriving. Dogpatch is now a pretty expensive place to live! - shocking I know!Dogpatch--We rented a new 1500 ft2 loft in '97 for $3250 on a two year lease. At the end of the term, he wanted $5500. I had to say no and move out of SF. The very first guy he showed it to, walked in, took a quick look, and said immediately, "I'll take it!" It was the first dot com boom. I still have friends in Berkeley, so I keep up a little with what goes on. Way, WAY out of my range! Sent from my SM-T330NU using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Naseum Posted January 30, 2016 Author Share Posted January 30, 2016 There were a few Stereo Shops on Shattuck. The Sound Well, Pacific Stereo, and another that I cant remember the name of but I know exactly where it was! It was the McIntosh Dealer. on the west side of Shattuck down near Hinks department store! Josh Sound WellGreat used department! Sent from my SM-T330NU using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshnich Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 about 10 years ago I bought a pair of Dynaco a25 speakers from a guy in Alameda and he had the original receipt from the Sound Well. I think I paid more than he paid new! Josh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jorjen Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 Thought this was going to be a thread about Kidney Stones...oops, sorry. Anyway, bought my first brand new pair of Klipsch La Scalas from a lovely sales lady named Rita from a little shop on Shattuck by University in Berkeley in 1974. I was a junior in High school. Paid $1118.25 out the door. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldtimer Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 Thought this was going to be a thread about Kidney Stones...oops, sorry. Well it does kind of feel like it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Travis In Austin Posted January 30, 2016 Moderators Share Posted January 30, 2016 read today that circuit city is opening up again...nothing special to me, just reporting the news. Only one place for Box Store Stereo, MATTHEWS ..........................................TOP O' THE HILL..............................DAILY CITY 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigStewMan Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 dang Travis...that brings back memories...can’t tell you how many times while listening to the radio i’ve heard the phrase “...top o’ the hill ... daily city.” funny how some things get burnt into your brain. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigStewMan Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 Thought this was going to be a thread about Kidney Stones...oops, sorry. Well it does kind of feel like it... i suspect you’d have done ok at the Haight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigStewMan Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 jorjen...i know i’ve been to atwater...i just can’t remember why i was there. my brother was at castle air force base back in the 70s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Naseum Posted January 30, 2016 Author Share Posted January 30, 2016 I didn't realize there were so many with SF creds here. Nice trip down memory lane. Now, I think I'll listen to my Alan Watts lectures recorded on the house boat in Sausalito. Sent from my SM-T330NU using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Naseum Posted January 30, 2016 Author Share Posted January 30, 2016 Stereo Back in the Day You couldn't wait for Saturday. You'd make a trip around the local stereo shops, hang out for hours playing in the sound rooms, driving the sales guys nuts because mostly you were just kicking tires. Collecting that beautiful four-color literature! Who didn't have stacks of this expensive stuff sitting in the living room to dream about as you played your records and looked at those little Scott bookshelves while dreaming of the Klipschorn, or the Bozak Concert Grand - how it would fit in your living room. But, it was a retail heaven. Any brand that was anything, was in the stores sitting there waiting for you to twist the knobs, thump the woofers, marvel at the beauty. In the high-end shops, faux-snobs got hired to shoo away the riff-raff who would try to hang out all day with a huge stack of their own records to audition on equipment they couldn't afford in a million years. Outside in the parking lot, groups would huddle together to tell lies about the latest gear they acquired, planned to acquire and were modifying. There was a great social aspect to HiFi because it was all in the public reach, in the flesh. There were little informal "clubs" and people gathered in each other's homes to hear the newest gear, bring a piece of new gear, or a new record. People listened to gear before buying it. The idea of ordering something "unheard" was literally unheard of. A lot of times nostalgia can be deceiving. Things were not automatically better back in the day. But for HiFi, I really think it was more fun, more exciting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jorjen Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 jorjen...i know i’ve been to atwater...i just can’t remember why i was there. my brother was at castle air force base back in the 70s. Yep. Castle, which was a SAC base, B-52's and such was shut down in 1995. Honestly can't remember why the Hell I am here either! HaHa! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldtimer Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 Look back deep into your mind. Maybe you aren't really here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 (edited) And yet Tower Records Japan is doing great. I follow a few Japanese bands, and they often do promo appearances at Tower Records stores in various cities. More info here: http://en.japantravel.com/tokyo/tower-records-shibuya/4542 And here: https://medium.com/cuepoint/the-tower-records-stuck-in-time-43ff2b58c86#.w8el948my Tower Records is still popular in Japan because CDs are still really popular there, plus the CDs are expensive, usually over $25. http://blogs.wsj.com/japanrealtime/2013/06/24/as-cds-spin-on-in-japan-tower-records-rocks-on/ Edited February 4, 2016 by Islander Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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