When I think of how many items have hit the retail market with 'old' iconic names.....meant to illicit a response that makes you think you're getting a piece of history! Hah!! I don't think there's too much about this amp that's really 'Dynaco' except the name......and even that is just because someone bought that!! Don't get me wrong.... I don't think there's anything 'wrong' with this! Indeed, it's 'brilliant' in some ways!! Triumph motorcycles are back, Dodge brought back the Charger....even though 'Dodge' is really Fiat, and 'Triumph' is mostly made in Thailand....if you buy one, you 'think' you're getting a piece of 'old school' nostalgia. And, perhaps you are.....as there is a bit of 'throw-back' involved in the process of design and manufacture. This new ST-70 is beautiful, and I bet it sounds wonderful, and it's tubes glow just like tubes did back in 1960! If I had a spare $1500 sitting around I'd buy one in a heart beat. Do I believe it would sound better than an 'old, original' ST-70? Well, Yea!! Why? Well.... go read Dave Gillespie's write up here on AK about some of the issues with an ST-70. Given that most any 'stock' ST-70 you'll find today will contain 'some' if not 'all' of those short-comings....and given that this new amp appears to have compensated for much of that.....then, 'yes, it probably does sound better'! BUT....take an 'old' ST-70 and do some of the upgrades to it that are easily performed and reasonably priced.....and now you've got an amp that sounds REALLY great!! In particular, simply 'enhancing' the power supply with a solid-state rectifier and some added capacitance. Then, make sure everything else is 'in spec'...INCLUDING having 2 good driver tubes in the driver stage.....and as Dave supports.....now the 'stock' amp performs extremely well. BUT....that said, take a look at it!! It's old, most are pretty ugly (by comparison), and the WAF just is NOT what this new one is!! At one point when I was deep into my Harley 'customizing' days, I sent a couple of Dynaco Chassis and Cage Cover assemblies to my local HD Chrome shop. I've done spray painting, powder coating, and custom wood covers. In spite of all that, I still think that 'new' amp looks better! AND, THAT is, what I believe, is going to sell it! That, along with the fact that it's a 'good' amp, a 'safe' product, with 'all new' stuff in it, thoughtfully upgraded, and 'guaranteed' by it's manufacturer. Yes, you can still have the 'fun' of building your own Kit.....and I believe MANY will still want to do that. But, as we used to say in the car business: There's an ass for every seat!! I bet they sell every one of these new amps they make.....at least while they're at $1500!! $3K....yea, too much! But I think the $1500 is probably a good price-point. I'm actually 'tempted'....but like NJ..... I'm now at the point where; "if I didn't build it, I'm not listening to it!!". So.....there's my $0.02 worth....FWIW. Tom D.
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It would be really interesting to read a review which compared the sound of this series 3 with refurbished or modified originals using original OPTs.