I first found out about Vintage Hi-Fi from a nice gentleman in McMurray who sold me a Denon HT receiver that he had listed on CL about two years ago. (If you read this I'm sorry I don't remember your name, but your amp is still running like a champ! Thanks again.)
I was slow in finding the place, but since then I've met Tom a couple times and bought a cheap Technics receiver from him (thanks again Tom). I needed the receiver for a young friend at church who was getting into vinyl. He told me his "system" had gone down and would I help him fix it. I asked him what he had and he told me it was a Crosley USB table into computer speakers. I told him to throw it away and I would give him something decent. So I had some old yard sale finds around, a Sony PS-X something and a pair of heavily modded Yamaha NS-625 (IIRC) speakers. But I had no amp to drive them. I told Tom my story and he treated me very well. My friend is quite happy.
This is kind of my mid-life crisis. I grew up in a poor family and always wanted a nice system, but couldn't afford one. I had a friend who gave me his hand my down stereo mags (his folks had plenty of money and he had a couple systems). I used to lust after the ads. So now when I see a piece at the thrift or a yard sale, I buy it, play with it a while then give it away to a worth youngster (mainly college students in my church).
As a kid I didn't have one system, now I have them all over the city of Pittsburgh!
My own system...
Marantz 2230 (found on side of road in Sq Hill)
JVC QL-A7 (bought from a really nice guy here in Penn Hills who sold it when he upgraded to a Transcriptor!)
AT 440 MLa cartridge
KLH Model Twenty speakers (Freecycled, I recapped and used Howard Restor a Finish on the cabs - great stuff!)
Computer audio with a PC and an EMu 1212 card (sounds better than any CD player I've owned).
Grado SR-60 headphones (bought new probably 20 years ago and the best $70 I've ever spent).
Not as "Hi-Fi" as most of your systems I suspect, but it brings me joy.
