You guys are talking about some great speakers there, I have never owned any electrostatic or ribbon speakers, always been a little out of my reach, I have been tempted recently though with a pair of Martin Logan CLS local to me, that have recent new panels and they seem to be reasonable value too, I don't know though. They do look cool which is a good thing!
If it's any consolation, I was single at the time and living very frugally so I could afford to splurge on my audio equipment purchases. It also helped that I was able to buy new gear at dealer cost and/or industry accommodation (back then, this was typically 60% and 50% of MSRP, respectively), which meant I could often use it for a year or two effectively for free, provided I had the funds to make the initial purchases.
FYI, I also worked for a few years in the mid-80s as the Technical Director of
The Absolute Sound magazine and among my responsibilities was maintaining HP's various reference systems, which is how I came to know well the sonic signature of the IRS speakers. I also happened to live just two doors down the street from him, so I had ready access to all of these systems, especially when HP was traveling and I was house-sitting for him.
The WAMMs were owned by a lawyer here in the Phoenix area and they were installed in a very large listening room in a house built on top of one of the mountains that ring the city. Owing to my (cough, choke) celebrity -- or was that notoriety? -- he invited me to his house several times to listen to them and, at least as he had them setup, they sounded very impressive. (As an aside, Dave Wilson told me this installation wasn't the best one he had ever done, but it was representative of how the speakers performed in most rooms.)
I left the industry in late 1990 and was sufficiently burned out on audio that I never went back, although I do still own all of the equipment I was using back then. (Including, btw, three LP-12 turntables of varying vintage, two of which were extensively modified by me and one of those even has a replacement platter assembly that was designed and manufactured by Bruce Brisson's brother (Bruce, of course, being responsible for the MIT cable products.)
I also have a Goldmund Studio / T-3F turntable / arm combo (although I'd be very surprised if it still works after all these years, because it was quite finicky and difficult to keep working properly even when new) and a review sample Sota Cosmos that's new-in-the-box because the company was sold while I had it, the new owners said it wasn't theirs, and I could never track down Robert Becker to return it to him.
Alas, my memories of those years have started to fade away, but
Ahhh, the stories I could once tell -- especially about HP, who was quite a character in real life, too! -- in a bar late at night were epic!
Anyone ever dabbled with reel to reel? I am fascinated by the machines but only have 1, an old Sony TC-200, just for show, don't have any tapes for it! I'd quite like a row of them one day.
Back in the day, I had several -- Revox A77 and B77 models, as well as large and small tubed Ampexes that still worked, but really needed rebuilding -- as well as a collection of about 80 RCA and Mercury half- and quarter-track tapes from the 50s and 60s, along with maybe another 50 tapes from other labels, and a dozen or so that I recorded myself -- not very well, I'm afraid -- using a rare B&O stereo ribbon microphone.
Unfortunately, the tapes were deteriorating quickly -- the metal oxide coating was literally flaking off the polyester tape! -- and when I was made a few offers I couldn't refuse, I sold everything. I'm very fortunate to have been able to assemble a large collection of LPs (including several hundred golden-era RCA and Mercury LPs), although I believe the last time I bought an LP -- new or used -- was in the mid-90s. While I do still play them today, I don't do so anywhere nearly as often as I did back in the day. <sigh>
Switching gears, I don't know if any of you have heard, but Art Dudley -- most recently a contributor to
Stereophile magazine -- died last week of cancer. We worked together and shared an office at
TAS for a year and he subsequently wrote for my magazine until it folded and he started one of his own. He was a great guy and we were good friends for a while, although we eventually drifted apart due to the passage of time and the geographical distance between us. (BTW, he was a heavy smoker back then, so I'm not surprised he ended up with cancer. He also had an older sister who was (IMO, anyway!) a knockout and we actually had a few dates until Art politely suggested I should back off while she addressed some personal issues.)
Ah, well ... that's enough rambling and reminiscing for now!