Why does vintage hifi sound so good ?

gasolin75

Well-Known Member
I have now experience with 3 real vintage amps, one not being mine and despite not being in mint condtion they all sound good, Why?

Why does vintage hifi sound so good realtive to new hifi for the same price (used vs new)
 
Yeah - I notice that too in general, with some exceptions of course. Quality beefy linear power supplies plus class A/AB topologies vs often cheap noisy insufficiently-filterred switching power supplies and insufficiently-filtered class D amps?

You didn’t mention makeS and models? Care to divulge?
 
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What modern amps are you comparing them too?

Boulder, VAC, Audio Research, Bryston, Gryphon, Luxman, Shindo .............
 
I have now experience with 3 real vintage amps, one not being mine and despite not being in mint condtion they all sound good, Why?

Why does vintage hifi sound so good realtive to new hifi for the same price (used vs new)
according to the snobs, who will soon reply, it is because you are uneducated :)

just dont worry about the whys. Keep it running and laugh privately at the snobs who are forever in turmoil, never to know peace.
 
Yeah - I notice that too in general. Quality beefy linear power supplies plus class A/AB topologies vs often cheap noisy insufficiently-filterred switching power supplies and insufficiently-filtered class D amp?

You didn’t mention make and model? Care to divulge?

Sansui Au-317 II and Technic SU-8600
 
cambridge,nad, had marantz amps i personally have had

Only nad had good bass and wasn't bright'ish
 
according to the snobs, who will soon reply, it is because you are uneducated :)

just dont worry about the whys. Keep it running and laugh privately at the snobs who are forever in turmoil, never to know peace.
And while you are at it, I suppose the All Amps Sound The Same crowd will be asking, If they all sound the same, why wouldn't they sound good?
 
Do you mean that a vintage amplifier at $500 used sounds better than a $500 new Marantz?
I think that is because although you are paying $500, that is $500 for an amplifier that has greatly depreciated in value since it was new.
I don't know how a vintage amplifier that was once $2000 new (adjusted for inflation) would compare to a new $2000 amplifier... I'd guess that the new one would be better, because of better quality components, more knowledge on circuit design, and such, but I really have no idea.
However, no one can argue that a real wood case and silver face ain't mighty fine. lol.
 
If it was good then it's still going to be good now (provided it's in proper working order.)
That said I don't think we're inundated with bad sounding new 2 channel amps. Most new offerings are plenty good as well.
 
I have now experience with 3 real vintage amps, one not being mine and despite not being in mint condtion they all sound good, Why?

The 3 'real vintage amps' were likely, well designed, offered a lot of performance and features, and were produced at a time where the competition among manufacturers was fierce. They were also likely extensively technically reviewed by proper HiFi magazines of the day and had all their results published for all to see. Hence they had to be good to sell.

Physical condition generally doesn't matter with vintage in relation to performance- they can literally take a beating and still hit spec. I've dug amplifiers out of scrap metal piles that were pushed by a bulldozer into a heap of fridges and washing machines and they still tested perfectly. (looked like hell though).

Enjoy your vintage gear and don't listen to the snobs, but just for fun, go listen to a few new offerings too.
 
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Let's see.....my sx950 was around 600 in 1978. My Emotiva pt-100/a300 combo was 600 in 2017. The cool factor goes to the pioneer but the Emotiva CRUSHES it in sound quality. I love my SX and will likely keep it to the last note I listen to but vintage audio is a niche hobby and unless you are a tech or know one you will be cussin more than listening. I found 3 vintage units last month and they all need to go to the hospital:biggrin:
 
My Marantz 2270 spanked my then new Marantz SR 7007when it came to audio quality. Maybe it's because the 2270 only had to do audio instead of having to upconvert videos, pass through signals, worry about room correction, drive seven speakers all at once, biamp the front speakers, wash the dishes and walk the dog like the 7007 did. I don't know. I think sometimes simpler is better.
I love using my 7007 for home theater. But it will not be pulling 2 channel duty anytime soon. For that I've already settled on my vintage crap. And yes, that silver faces look better than most nondescript black boxes that come out of manufacturers these days help a lot in appreciating them too.
 
I've got a theory but it might get me flamed... I think it's the distortion caused by the aged capacitors a lot of the time, you hear people mention the warm vintage sound of old amps but my SA-7500 which I fully restored, new caps, transistors, etc. Sounds clean, clear and bright with good punchy bass, before the re-cap the bass was kinda boomy and the backing vocals sounded muffled and fuzzy, but after the re-cap the bass tightened up and all the backing vocals and quiet instruments started sounding clear as day with headphones and thru my speakers especially after replacing the main filters (Which by far made the biggest difference) and it definitely wasn't placebo it was pretty noticeable. Vintage amps blow a lot of modern gear out of the water in terms of build quality and the price to performance ratio is pretty good though that's slowly becoming less and less true sadly.
 
unless you are a tech or know one you will be cussin more than listening. I found 3 vintage units last month and they all need to go to the hospital:biggrin:
This is a big disadvantage to vintage. I wasn’t cussing, but I can’t seem to win for trying with my Lafayette receiver. :rolleyes:
Turntables are usually a different story, because they are electrically simple inside, and I can follow the mechanical parts for automatic operation. :)
 
In my case, modern gear (Marantz PM15s2, Bel Canto Evo2 and Pre, Marantz PM5008, Onkyo 9150, ARC HD220, and probably some more that I forgot) all gone and not missed. Then only ''modern'' unit that I have is a MA-6850, and I really like it.
I have a healthy amount of vintage gear to enjoy, other for reconditioning, but I guess for me, is more about the gear than the music... So what do I know.
That being said, I think good quality units sounds fantastic, no matter when was fabricated.
 
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