All American Audio

[kevinmi]

Please help- I am wanting to put together an Audio system with components made in the USA. Being a proud UAW member (BUY AMERICAN-BUY UNION), I think it's time to walk the walk. I'm not trying to bash foreign companies, Lord knows I own plenty. My wife's new Chev. Equinox has an engine from China, transmission from Japan, and is assembled in Canada. You get the picture. I'm wanting to base it on Heritage speakers and maybe tubes(how original!). I will have to buy used equipment as my budget is limited. Contrary to popular belief, you will not get rich working for G.M.! I know you guys have the broadest knowledge base when it comes to the best equipment out there, so if you can point me in the direction of American made products, I'll greatly appreciate it. Thanks, Kevin

[Jay481985]

Is the system going to be new or buying used stuff. Ebay for used stuff is okay now since all the great deals are gone. Check craigslist religiously also.

The cheapest heritage is the heresy the most expensive is the klipschorn or jubilee. They are all in america

The Reference RF-83 and 63 series are made in america

So is the Palladium

I am not so sure of electronics, for tube amps I heard great things about the blueberry made by a member of this forum so it is Made Proudly in America

[oldbuckster]

Does it get any more American than Klipsch Heritage Speakers, and good ol' McIntosh, built right here in New York State, USA !!! If your talkin' new, vintage covers alot of ground starting with Scott,and go from there !!!!!!!!!!!!

[Marvel]

The Juicy Music Audio tube gear is great (preamps and power amps), but it is pricey if you can't find it used. A fairly new company with a long history behind the owner. NOSValves power amps, his VRDs rock great too. Made in Michigan. Again, pricey for the new and uninitiated.

What kind of music do you listen to? How loud do you want it? CDs only, or is vinyl in the mix as well? Room size? All these can make a difference on what we would recommend. You into home theater? That would change the game plan a bit.

Other used tube gear would be HH Scott, Fisher, Dynaco. Do you have a specific budget to work from?

Bruce

[kevinmi]

The Juicy Music Audio tube gear is great (preamps and power amps), but it is pricey if you can't find it used. A fairly new company with a long history behind the owner. NOSValves power amps, his VRDs rock great too. Made in Michigan. Again, pricey for the new and uninitiated.

What kind of music do you listen to? How loud do you want it? CDs only, or is vinyl in the mix as well? Room size? All these can make a difference on what we would recommend. You into home theater? That would change the game plan a bit.

Other used tube gear would be HH Scott, Fisher, Dynaco. Do you have a specific budget to work from?

Bruce

I did check out the JuicyMusic web site. Nice stuff. NOSValves is close to me but I haven't checked them out yet. I'm currently running a 5.1 HT system with all Klipsch speakers, but I'm leaning towards getting back to just stereo due to the small size of my listening room. I have a line on a used pair of K-Horns selling locally- my dream speaker! Sorry JUB guys, no room for those awesome babys! Thanks for all the input so far-Kevin

[Marvel]

Craig (NOSValves) is pretty much a one man shop, but his amps are nice. I haven't heard them yet, but the new Heresy III knocks the socks off of the older models. Depending on the room you have you could check those out. ... but then you are thinking of Khorns... way cool.

[Audible Nectar]

NOSValves is close to me but I haven't checked them out yet..

I STRONGLY recommend that you talk to and see Craig/NOSValves if possible. Even if you cannot afford his flagship VRD amps, there are less expensive options.....and the experience of just one hour in his shop will show you a LOT more than forum posts will. While there are many here who are very helpful, and with lots of experience, hearing the gear will teach you more than just talking about it here on forum.

Craig also has a JuicyMusic BlueBerry as the core preamp in his system....an opportunity to check that out too.

One point about price: "Expensive" is in the eye of the beholder....and any accountant will tell you that expense doesn't seem expensive if spread out over many years. The VRDs are 30-50 year life cycle products.....built solid as a rock. Yeah they cost about $2800 per pair (the ST version somewhat less), but they might be the last pair of power amps you ever buy.....save for replacing the tubes on occasion you could own them until you are dead. In that context, they aren't as expensive as they might first seem.

[John Warren]

McIntosh is owned by D&M Holdings, a Toyko based company.

[oldbuckster]

McIntosh Factory still in New York, still being handbuilt by New Yorkers ....... in the USA .............

[mas]

McIntosh Factory still in New York, still being handbuilt by New Yorkers ....... in the USA .............

[]

Buc... Toyota, Nissan, Honda, BMW and Volkswagon all have factories and build cars in the US by Americans too!

[]

The notion that all components come from solely one country for a complex piece of equipment has become an anachronism.

For 2 Channel - fine.

But 5 or 7 channels of tubes for home theater?

Buy Crown. An American company that will not only offer quality sound, but also an economy of cost of operation and maintenance over an incredible lifecycle. Something tubes can only dream about.

[kevinmi]

McIntosh Factory still in New York, still being handbuilt by New Yorkers ....... in the USA .............

Buc... Toyota, Nissan, Honda, BMW and Volkswagon all have factories and build cars in the US by Americans too!

The notion that all components come from solely once country for a complex piece of equipment has become an anachronism.

For 2 Channel - fine.

But 5 or 7 channels of tubes for home theater? Buy Crown. An American company that will not only afford quality sound, but also an economy of cost of operation and maintenance over an incredible lifecycle. Something tubes can only dream about.

Thanks for all the info. I didn't realize that McIntosh sold out. Pity. I did have a chance to hear Crown/Klipsch combo when I helped a friend out in his DJ business in the 80's. He used industrial LaScalas and 250 watt Crowns. A little abient hiss if I remember correctly, but brutally powerful! Has anyone have experience with B&K components? It may be futile to go 100% American, but it's a fun challenge to see how close we can get. Kevin

[kev313]

Here are a few US audio companies or builders manufacturing tube gear: Manley Labs, Cary Audio, Wright Sound, Fi (Don Garber) (all amps are SET), Wavelength (also all SET) Bottlehead, (SET and you build it yourself), Mapletree Audio, VTL, Audio Research (I think). In addition to Craig (NOSvalves), there are plenty of other guys who built semi-custom and really nice gear like: Cyrus Brenneman, Jeffrey Jackson at Experience Music, Don Allen (check the Audio Asylum for contact info). On the used front, if you are into SET, you can look for Welborne gear. I'm sure there are plenty more. I seriously doubt that all components in this gear will come from the US, but you never know... Maybe Manley; I think they do alot of in-house manufacturing of caps, transformers, etc.

[kev313]

Forgot to mention Quicksilver.

[oldtimer]

Hey Kev good to see you down here.

[IndyKlipschFan]

D&M Holdings (TYO: 6735) is a Japanese corporation that owns several audio and video brands. It was formed in 2002 from the merger of Denon and Marantz. It has acquired several other companies since that time. As of March 2005 RHJ International [1] is the majority owner, which is associated with Ripplewood Holdings.

[edit] Holdings and brands

• Denon
• Marantz
• McIntosh Laboratory
• Digital Networks North America
  
  • Escient
  • ReplayTV
  • Rio (digital audio players)
  
  
• Creative Technical Network (CTN)
• Boston Acoustics
• D&M Professional
• Denon DJ
• Snell Acoustics
• D&M Premium Sound Solutions

[jheis]

As you can see from my signature line, I'm a big fan of B&K products.

I stumbled into B&K by accident. I answered a newspaper clasified for KG2s and guy who was selling them brought along a B&K ST-140 amp on spec - the deal was too good to pass up, so I bought the amp as well as the speakers. At the time my main system was a 375wpc Carver TFM-45 driving Cornwalls. I plugged the "new" 105wpc ST-140 into my system and, over time, I realized that I was listening to the B&K more than I was listening to the Carver. I ended up selling the Carver on ebay.

When I moved into HT, I bought a B&K Ref 50 pre/pro and eventually acquired four ST-125.2 amps to power the system. Over time I picked up two B&K PT3 SII pre-amps and two more B&K amps for my office and BR systems. I now own six B&K amps, one B&K pre/pro, and two B&K pre-amps.

After about 10 years of faithful service, I sold the original ST-140 on ebay for about $100 more than I paid for it.

B&K sounds great and it's built to last. Good stuff.

James

[Audio Flynn]

NOSValves is close to me but I haven't checked them out yet..

I STRONGLY recommend that you talk to and see Craig/NOSValves if possible. Even if you cannot afford his flagship VRD amps, there are less expensive options.....and the experience of just one hour in his shop will show you a LOT more than forum posts will. While there are many here who are very helpful, and with lots of experience, hearing the gear will teach you more than just talking about it here on forum.

Craig also has a JuicyMusic BlueBerry as the core preamp in his system....an opportunity to check that out too.

One point about price: "Expensive" is in the eye of the beholder....and any accountant will tell you that expense doesn't seem expensive if spread out over many years. The VRDs are 30-50 year life cycle products.....built solid as a rock. Yeah they cost about $2800 per pair (the ST version somewhat less), but they might be the last pair of power amps you ever buy.....save for replacing the tubes on occasion you could own them until you are dead. In that context, they aren't as expensive as they might first seem.

SO true you have to amortize the investment.

Cannot go wrong with NOS Valves power amps or Juicy Music preamps

[oldtimer]

Investment? Maybe but it's the pleasure you derive that is what you are paying for. An investment is what you put money into expecting to get more money out of in the future.

[dkp]

McIntosh Factory still in New York, still being handbuilt by New Yorkers ....... in the USA .............

Buc... Toyota, Nissan, Honda, BMW and Volkswagon all have factories and build cars in the US by Americans too!

The notion that all components come from solely once country for a complex piece of equipment has become an anachronism.

For 2 Channel - fine.

But 5 or 7 channels of tubes for home theater? Buy Crown. An American company that will not only afford quality sound, but also an economy of cost of operation and maintenance over an incredible lifecycle. Something tubes can only dream about.

Thanks for all the info. I didn't realize that McIntosh sold out. Pity. I did have a chance to hear Crown/Klipsch combo when I helped a friend out in his DJ business in the 80's. He used industrial LaScalas and 250 watt Crowns. A little abient hiss if I remember correctly, but brutally powerful! Has anyone have experience with B&K components? It may be futile to go 100% American, but it's a fun challenge to see how close we can get. Kevin

Hi Kevin,

I have used B&K in my theater for some time now. Very solid products. There is a dealer in Flint-let me know if you need directions.

I have some B&K equipment for sale. If you're interested in learning more, send me an e-mail or pm. I live in Davison, BTW.

[boom3]

I'm with you on this quest, but even components labelled "Made in USA" may have foreign parts inside. The law allows that label to be applied if the domestic parts content is some percent of the total and final assembly is performed here. I think that percentage varies by product, so there are different criteria for cars and electronics. Klipsch sources a lot of its (non-Heritage) drivers from the Orient, and I think the K-77-F tweeter, used in the Klipschorn, is made in the Phillipines.

I wish I could buy all-American everything, but even niche products (like high-end audio) are becoming globalized. For me, how socially and environmentally responsible a company is, and how they treat their workers, is more important than country of origin.