At about 10 years of age I convinced my patents to get me an all-in-one stereo. You know, the lid opens up to reveal a record player, the speakers fold out and you then lift them off of the hinges and about 8 feet of wire comes out of a small porthole in the speakers so you can spread them across the room, making for "stereo".
That started my journey. In 1973 I bought my first real hi-fi system. A Marantz 2270 receiver, a Philips GA-212 turntable, Stanton 681-EE cartridge, Koss Pro-4AA headphones, and a pair of 12" 3-way speakers (can't remember the name) that was a brand Altec bought in order to sell box speakers with a dome tweeter. Each year I made a change, for instance, moving up to an Audio Technica AT-15SA cartridge, then a Soundcraftsman dual 12-band EQ. This system lasted until 1978. That's when I made a major step up by getting a full component system. A big stack of Accuphase consisting of a T-100 tuner, C-200 preamp, P300 power amp, a B&O turntable with upgraded MMC-6000 CL cartridge, and McIntosh 12" 4-way speakers. Two years later I added a second P-300 power amp and Infinity active X-over to drive a set of Infinity RS-2.5 speakers. Then a Micro Seiki turntable and tonearm, Ortofon MC cartridge and Luxman SUT. Everyone wanted to party at my house! I've been hooked ever since. I put together a home theater system for while the kids were growing up. Real hi-fi took a back seat for a good number of years. Now, in retirement, I am building a higher resolution and very satisfying hi-fidelity music system. Not yet complete but getting there. And the journey in life continues...