2nd Hand Bang and Olufsen Advice Required
Discussion
Hi all,
My wife and I are thinking of having an extension built, as part of that it will have one room, which will become like a music room, library, relaxing space. We'll have book shelves to put all our books, CDs, DVDs, LP,s cassettes etc, etc.
Since we had this idea, I have been coveting an old 2nd hand B&O system if I can find an affordable one. The reason is my brother had one in the '80's and I always loved the styling etc.
The question I have is, if I get for example a B&O tape/CD player and then a B&O turntable, will they definitely connect, as I'm not sure I'd know what era they were from. Have connections for such things changed over time? Also, if I were to then get some modern speakers, would they work, can you get for example a bluetooth connection to go in the system, so it can then transmit to bluetooth speakers elsewhere? Could I connect a more modern amp unit (if they even exist) to an older tape/CD and turntable enabling me to play tunes from my phone also via bluetooth?
Or, what are the alternatives? As I say, I like the styling of the old B&O stuff, and I guess the snobbery of the brand (though that may be misplaced, I don't really know how it's viewed). Are there other more modern units out there which are reasonably priced but look as good.
By reasonably priced I'm probably looking at max of £750, hence why I can only really afford 2nd hand B&O stuff. Feel free to shoot me down in flames if I'm dreaming or offer alternative ideas.
My wife and I are thinking of having an extension built, as part of that it will have one room, which will become like a music room, library, relaxing space. We'll have book shelves to put all our books, CDs, DVDs, LP,s cassettes etc, etc.
Since we had this idea, I have been coveting an old 2nd hand B&O system if I can find an affordable one. The reason is my brother had one in the '80's and I always loved the styling etc.
The question I have is, if I get for example a B&O tape/CD player and then a B&O turntable, will they definitely connect, as I'm not sure I'd know what era they were from. Have connections for such things changed over time? Also, if I were to then get some modern speakers, would they work, can you get for example a bluetooth connection to go in the system, so it can then transmit to bluetooth speakers elsewhere? Could I connect a more modern amp unit (if they even exist) to an older tape/CD and turntable enabling me to play tunes from my phone also via bluetooth?
Or, what are the alternatives? As I say, I like the styling of the old B&O stuff, and I guess the snobbery of the brand (though that may be misplaced, I don't really know how it's viewed). Are there other more modern units out there which are reasonably priced but look as good.
By reasonably priced I'm probably looking at max of £750, hence why I can only really afford 2nd hand B&O stuff. Feel free to shoot me down in flames if I'm dreaming or offer alternative ideas.
£750 will easily buy you a very nice Beosystem 5000 from the mid 1980s complete with AM/FM receiver, cassette deck, CD player and turntable, plus the magnificent Master Control Panel remote control.
You can plug any pair of conventional loudspeakers you like into it and there's even a second tape input so you can connect some form of Bluetooth wizardry here.
It'll sound magnificent and....well, look at it: https://beocentral.com/beosystem5000
Couple of tips:
(1) I personally prefer the earlier Beogram 5000 radial tracking turntable to the later Beogram 5005 linear tracker. The linear trackers command a higher price and are more sought after, but they don't sound as good.
(2) B&O turntables take their own proprietary cartridges and the styli are not replaceable. B&O haven't made them for years but SoundSmith in the USA make official replacements. They're expensive, though and, to my ears, not as good as the originals. There are, however, places that will rebuild the originals for you.
Alternatively, how about the best music centre ever made (IMHO!), the Beocenter 7700: https://beocentral.com/beocenter7700
...plus a Beogram CDX CD player: https://beocentral.com/beogramcdx
One final word of warning: B&O is quite addictive. Be certain you know what you're letting yourself in for!
You can plug any pair of conventional loudspeakers you like into it and there's even a second tape input so you can connect some form of Bluetooth wizardry here.
It'll sound magnificent and....well, look at it: https://beocentral.com/beosystem5000
Couple of tips:
(1) I personally prefer the earlier Beogram 5000 radial tracking turntable to the later Beogram 5005 linear tracker. The linear trackers command a higher price and are more sought after, but they don't sound as good.
(2) B&O turntables take their own proprietary cartridges and the styli are not replaceable. B&O haven't made them for years but SoundSmith in the USA make official replacements. They're expensive, though and, to my ears, not as good as the originals. There are, however, places that will rebuild the originals for you.
Alternatively, how about the best music centre ever made (IMHO!), the Beocenter 7700: https://beocentral.com/beocenter7700
...plus a Beogram CDX CD player: https://beocentral.com/beogramcdx
One final word of warning: B&O is quite addictive. Be certain you know what you're letting yourself in for!
In that case, my caveats about the cartridges still apply but other than that there should be no issues. The cassette deck will probably need new belts if they haven't already been done. Belt kits are readily available but, whilst the act of replacing the belts themselves on the cassette mechanism is easy enough, getting to the mechanism and extracting it is a sod of a job!
Also lookout for the Beocenter 7007 - this was a slightly cheaper version of the 7700 that has a plain plastic lid on the turntable instead of the fancy metal-panelled one of the 7700, came with a slightly lower-specification turntable cartridge when new and had a standard remote control handset instead of the fancy two-way Master Control Panel 7700.
Ironically, though, it has all the circuitry to operate the Master Control Panel fully, so you could still buy one of these separately if you wanted!
I have a 7007 myself as I prefer the look of the normal lid, plus the metal-clad lid of the 7700 is heavier and you'll find that most of these won't stay up on their own any more as the hinges have gradually given up the ghost under the extra weight.
Either one is a fabulous thing, though.
Also lookout for the Beocenter 7007 - this was a slightly cheaper version of the 7700 that has a plain plastic lid on the turntable instead of the fancy metal-panelled one of the 7700, came with a slightly lower-specification turntable cartridge when new and had a standard remote control handset instead of the fancy two-way Master Control Panel 7700.
Ironically, though, it has all the circuitry to operate the Master Control Panel fully, so you could still buy one of these separately if you wanted!
I have a 7007 myself as I prefer the look of the normal lid, plus the metal-clad lid of the 7700 is heavier and you'll find that most of these won't stay up on their own any more as the hinges have gradually given up the ghost under the extra weight.
Either one is a fabulous thing, though.
stevoknevo said:
Thanks for the link, I won't be buying one until next Spring/Summer probably, but that link will give me a good starting place to search when the time comes, thanks again. 
shouldbworking said:
None of that kit talked properly to each other even when it was new. Looks lovely, but as a system of systems, it's a bit s
t.
Spent far too much time helping an enthusiast connect the many systems from that era, they were / are a bit of a collector
Good to know, thank you, more research to be done then on the feasibility. Cheerst.Spent far too much time helping an enthusiast connect the many systems from that era, they were / are a bit of a collector
sgtBerbatov said:
Just to put this out there, the prices of replacement needles for B&O turntables are ridiculous. It's the one thing that's put me off buying a B&O music centre.
Thanks Chap, Deranged Rover mentioned it above and I've seen the prices on line, that may be the thing that scuppers this if I can't find a system with a recent needle cartridge replacement.OP, connections are not a problem. I bought this object of wonder on eBay back at the start of March lockdown
Cost me under 300 quid from a chap who refurbishes old hi-fi, it's immaculate. He made me up leads to connect to non B&O phono, Bluetooth and iPod docks and ancient B&W speakers for very reasonable cost. Best money I've spent on self indulgent nonsense all year (and I seem to have spent a lot...)
Cost me under 300 quid from a chap who refurbishes old hi-fi, it's immaculate. He made me up leads to connect to non B&O phono, Bluetooth and iPod docks and ancient B&W speakers for very reasonable cost. Best money I've spent on self indulgent nonsense all year (and I seem to have spent a lot...)
I used to install B&O back in the late 90's and early 2000s. My favourte was this one,
Which could be wall mounted both vertically,
And horizontally,
The CD carriage would travel to the CD.
Back to the OP, I remember there being generations of cables but there was always a box you could use to convert.
Which could be wall mounted both vertically,
And horizontally,
The CD carriage would travel to the CD.
Back to the OP, I remember there being generations of cables but there was always a box you could use to convert.
For any B&O cabling and connection issues, just get in touch with Steve at Sounds Heavenly. He's a top chap, makes superb quality leads and there's nothing he doesn't know about B&O connectivity.
https://soundsheavenly.com/
Disclaimer - no connection with the above, etc. etc. - just a satisfied customer on many occasions!
https://soundsheavenly.com/
Disclaimer - no connection with the above, etc. etc. - just a satisfied customer on many occasions!
Deranged Rover said:
For any B&O cabling and connection issues, just get in touch with Steve at Sounds Heavenly. He's a top chap, makes superb quality leads and there's nothing he doesn't know about B&O connectivity.
https://soundsheavenly.com/
Disclaimer - no connection with the above, etc. etc. - just a satisfied customer on many occasions!
Cheers Deranged Rover, much appreciated.https://soundsheavenly.com/
Disclaimer - no connection with the above, etc. etc. - just a satisfied customer on many occasions!
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