kallasr wrote:

a Beosystem 5500/6500/7000 should be your choice then

get it on ebay or anywhere else - local pick-up will give you the better price and a chance to see the system before paying

you can always sell the system if you don't like it (which won't be the case ;-)) without loosing (too much) money on ebay.

All these eBay purchases are of course a little bit like buying a used car - don't get the most expensive one you can afford, because you are bound to need some repair budget as well. In particular when you're planning to play a lot of vinyl, don't trust a word the sellers have to say about the cartridge in the Beogram - always count in that you might need a replacement or a rebuild right away.

These systems are of course very nice in that you can use just about every B&O (or other) speaker with them, from the most affordable passives to the latest actives, and swap / upgrade at your own pace (only 5500 won't have Powerlink connectors).

However, I have a mental block talking about the stack systems as vintage - but it's true that most of them are 20+ years old now.

For that sort of money, the bargains are in the older equipment - a Beomaster 8000/6000 can come up at a low price but do remember that it was almost definitely need work. If you are relatively useless electronically (like me!) you will need to factor in the repairs. Remember that old systems travel badly - what works at one end may well not when it gets to you.

If you want to be safe, buy from one of the re-sellers who will offer a warranty so you know it will work. My 7000 system , which is not cheap, comes with all the original boxes and packaging, manuals, set up guides and cables. It also comes with the 7000 remote which is quite an item in itself. By the time you buy a group of disparate items, repair them and find the manuals, you will approach a similar price for a lesser system. If you look at the prices , a good Beogram 7000 with an MMC2 will sell for up to £600 especially if boxed. The Beolink 7000 sells for £350 and this one has a new battery pack. You then get the Beomaster, Beocord and Beogram CD for £545 in total, again all boxed and with a guarantee.

The 6500/7000 system has the huge advantage that it works with the modern equipment - a 5500 is not as accomodating. You can choose passive speakers to start with and then get active Beolabs if you wish.

However if £750 is your limit, go for a Beocenter 9500 and a record player. Get the 9500 from a reseller and chance your arm on eBay for a record player as they have less to go wrong. On the whole I would always pick a record player up yourself - do not get it posted - it will get broken!

Thanks guys,

I see what you're saying Peter in relation to the 7000 (and every time I read what you say about it I'm drawn to it) but I think to an extent I have to take a bit of a gamble.

Some elements are not so important to me. I know I can live without a remote for now, I only have a one bed flat with a total of 4 rooms so I don't need to link the system. So I figure why sink my money into elements I don't need now unless there is an obvious investment value in doing so (I don't know the answer to the investment question).

Is there a compatibility issue if I get a 6500/7000 master, cord and cd, with the more affordable beogram 5000 to start, with a view to upgrading to the 6500/7000 beogram when I have the money to do so and using the sale of the 5000 beogram to part finance it? 

Another vote here for one of the stacking systems as a starter system!

18 months ago I was almost in exactly the same position as the OP. I'd decided I fancied building up a vinyl collection and started looking on ebay for turntables, stumbled across a few B&O stacking systems which directed me to Beoworld, where I was sucked in by the enthusiasm for all things B&O, and it's been down hill ever since! 😁

I ended up with a full Beosystem 5000 which I picked up for £325 and love, however as others have said it does limit compatibility with active speakers and the later remote controls, so I would recommend looking for a 5500. I have since replaced the Beomaster 5000 in my system with a 5500 for those very reasons (which I was given free very kindly by Peter!). The 5500 seems to be the most common of the vintage systems on Ebay so you will have more chance of finding a good one, and the prices for them are generally quite a bit lower than the 6500/7000 systems which as John says you will struggle to get with a turntable in your budget, even without speakers. I would recommend trying to find a full system going as one lot as you will probably get it cheaper that way than buying the components individually - if you manage to find one you should be able to get it for less than £400. Plus although as Peter says you can't use the latest active speakers, you can still use the active Beloab Pentas or Beloab 4500/5000 range which IMO are the best match for the stacking systems anyway.

As for the beocenter 9500 as much as I love the looks of that range (I have a 9000 in the bedroom) they tend to go for £400-500 on their own and the matching turntables don't turn up that often and when they do seem to attract a price premium. Similarly, as fantastic as the Beosystem 6000s and 8000s are (I did have a BM8000 in my bedroom before the 9000, but sold it because I didn't need the power), it might take a while to build up a full system as they aren't as common as the stacking systems, esp. with turntables, they take up loads of space, and they are more likely to need work doing on them. All just my opinion of course!

Having said all that, the great thing about buying vintage B&O is if you buy well you can easily change your mind and re-sell what you bought for the same as what you paid, or even make a small profit! 

kb1981 wrote:

Is there a compatibility issue if I get a 6500/7000 master, cord and cd, with the more affordable beogram 5000 to start, with a view to upgrading to the 6500/7000 beogram when I have the money to do so and using the sale of the 5000 beogram to part finance it? 

These won't hook up directly, as in the 5000/5500 the phono (RIAA) preamp is in the Beomaster, while in 6500/7000 it is in the Beogram. So you would need an external RIAA preamp, and some hassle with cable adapters if you want the remote control to the Beogram to work.

Technically these are otherwise all mix & match. But the alu parts of 5000/5500 are brushed while 6500/7000 are polished. This cosmetic mismatch would personally annoy me severely, but that is of course a matter of taste.

kb1981 wrote:

Is there a compatibility issue if I get a 6500/7000 master, cord and cd, with the more affordable beogram 5000 to start, with a view to upgrading to the 6500/7000 beogram when I have the money to do so and using the sale of the 5000 beogram to part finance it? 

Sorry, started typing my reply bnefore the OP's latest post. To answer your question, I'm afraid there would be an issue as the Beogram 5000 hasn't got an in-built RIAA which it would need to function with the later 6500/7000 amps. It would however work with the Beomaster 5500, which is what I have in my system. Also there would be an aesthetic difference which you might not have realised, as the 5000 & 5500 systems were a matt aluminium finish, whereas the 6500 & 7000 were a mirror effect polished aluminium. 

I would recommend buying a full matching 5500, and then if you still wanted you could save up towards a full 6500 or 7000 using the full re-sale value of the 5500 system to contribute to the cost.

Regarding the remote, please note you will definitely need one, as apart from the Beomaster 5000, none of the stacking systems actually have any controls on the units themselves!

ETA: Must type faster! 😁

Wow... this thread has been everywhere! 😂

Today...

1.) BM6500

2.) MCP6500

3.) iPod lead

4.) Passive speakers -don't have to be B&o... but buy some RL60.2

That will get you started!

Later...

5.) BG6500 + allocate for cartridge

Later...

6.) CD6500

Later...

7.) Beo4

Much later...

8.) Upgrade to some active speakers

During the entire time...

9.) ENJOY!

rgs218 wrote:

Regarding the remote, please note you will definitely need one, as apart from the Beomaster 5000, none of the stacking systems actually have any controls on the units themselves!

Good point, well made!

Thanks for everyone's input on the incompatibility, too.

tournedos wrote:

However, I have a mental block talking about the stack systems as vintage - but it's true that most of them are 20+ years old now.

You too, huh? 😂

IMHO, if B&o released the BM1900 (or moreso the 2400) tomorrow (not ~35 years ago!!!)... it would still drop my jaw!

Agree! Bought one of these new when it came out! (the 2400-2) Just gave a 2400 system away a few months ago - sorry to see it go but it did take up quite some space!