So...... Which big brand will roll out the "retro" look first???

just how retro is retro? To me this is fairly retro looking
g022AS1100S-F.jpg
 
Function first and foremost,
aesthetics second.
I don't care what it looks like,
it has to sound good.

Fashion changes quickly, I know there's a market for this stuff, but I feel that we have reached 'peak retro', and the next big thing is just around the corner.
I think that any company chasing the retro dollar deserves to get their fingers burnt.

Just my observation.
 
Function first and foremost,
aesthetics second.
I don't care what it looks like,
it has to sound good.

Fashion changes quickly, I know there's a market for this stuff, but I feel that we have reached 'peak retro', and the next big thing is just around the corner.
I think that any company chasing the retro dollar deserves to get their fingers burnt.

Just my observation.

I wouldn't have said it quite that way, but I was thinking also along the lines that the retro look will soon falter. While I grew up in the silver-face age, and appreciate the look, my expectations have changed over the years. For instance, I expect a current preamp, integrated amp or receiver to have a large digital display of volume level and source selection that is readable from across a room. I expect remote control. I expect easily accessed sub-menus for other control info to appear in the display when setting up and/or adjusting various parameters. It frustrates me that even many somewhat pricey models provide poorly lit small displays; after all, one can buy a digital clock for less than ten bucks with displays legible from a distance. I like the precision of a digital tuner and the convenience of presets - yes, those analog dials were pretty, but they can stay in the past, for my money. (Yes, I still use a tuner some.)

Sources have changed. I need a really good DAC, not a phono input. And though I do still use the aforementioned tuner, I stream more than I tune. I spin polycarbonate, not vinyl, but play files more than I do CD. I need a subwoofer output. But I'm still a two-channel guy. So my question is not who will do retro next, but who will get all these things right without having to fork over several grand. But I understand everyone has their own ideas of getting it right; I'm speaking for myself, not everyone.

My Levinson 585 gets it right, for my preferences.
 
Accuphase hasn't really ever gone off somewhat retro looks. The same applies to McIntosh. Nagra is also going for retro looks inspired by their tape recorders. Just to name a few from the top of my head, that have not been mentioned above.
 
For a tuner/receiver to be truly retro, it needs analog tuning.
I think that might be "reissue", not "retro".

Reissue:
p1_un1xupoyw_ss.jpg



Retro:
images


....So my question is not who will do retro next, but who will get all these things right without having to fork over several grand.....

It doesn't seem like there is enough demand for something like what you mention. I mean enough demand for someone to develop it, market it, and produce it for low prices.

Even with the economy of scale of iPhones, they can cost a grand. A guitar amplifier, with their reasonable demand and low-design-cost is a couple of grand. And that amp's "development" stopped 50 years ago.


What is nice, though, is that right now is the golden-age of sound. The quality you can get has never been better. If you love vintage, that still exists. If you love the ultimate in high-end, that exists too.


Much like the car shown above. People may think of 60s/70s "muscle cars" as great, but the reality is... today's cars will smoke those cars in every single way. Performance, power numbers, comfort, reliability, gas mileage, low-maintenance.... we have it all these days.
 
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