Just recently, I wrote to the South African distributors of Marantz* audio products remarking on the faithful (and continuing) service from my CD42 compact disc player. It’s the youngest member of my home audio set-up in almost daily use, and the only one bought new – in Singapore in 1992.

The rest is unashamedly second-hand and uniformly classic-era. Some of it dates back to the 1960s. All of it has been acquired through browsing the classifieds, visiting flea markets and the occasional auction sale, and through buying or gratefully receiving castoffs from friends.

Living in the US in the 1970s acquainted me with leading American names – specifically speaker makes – such as AR, Bose and Advent. However, by the time I was able to start putting together a system back in South Africa, I had fallen under the spell of the 1980s British invasion.

In particular, I like the understated style and industrialstrength build of the Quad range (above). Over the years, I have accumulated a few of the amplifiers, both solid state and valve. The classic Quad 33/303 preamplifier/amplifier combination is worth considering; it regularly comes up at prices ranging from R1 500 to R3 000. Worthwhile (though not essential) upgrades to this setup entail a few minutes of soldering: new power supply filter capacitors and two pairs of resistors to improve CD replay. The one drawback of Quad equipment is that it uses DIN inputs, which can be tricky to source, so ensure you get all the relevant connecting leads.

Elderly speakers may stand the test of time less well, both through abuse and through ageing of components such as drive unit surrounds. Fortunately, superior materials have kept my B&W DM2a speakers from the 1970s competitive with current designs, though in fairness they were high-end models when new. Like many older designs, they are gigantic by modern standards. Unless you can find the equivalent for a lot less than the typical asking price of R1 000 to R3 000, you might be better off buying new.

My similar-era Linn Sondek LP12 turntable, sourced via Gumtree, is British, although the manufacturer might prefer to be called Scottish. Older models can cost as little as R1 500, but newer ones with the many upgrades on offer head north of R5 000 rapidly.

* Marantz is, of course, Japanese, though American Saul Marantz established the brand before being taken over by Dutch giant Philips and subsequently Marantz Japan.