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It would be cool if audio followed auto-makers lead . . .

Artie

Artie

Super Member
. . . as far reintroducing "vintage" units. The Big three auto manufacturers seem to have hit a winner with the Camaro, Mustang, Charger, and Challenger. Wouldn't it be nice if Sony, Yamaha, Pioneer, etc, reintroduced their TA-5650, CA-series, SX-series, etc.?

I wouldn't think it would be that hard if they still have the schematics and stuff.

Just a thought.

Artie
 
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I pray that the audio industry NEVER does anything in the footsteps of the auto industry.

I like the reliability of my audio gear.

I like that there are many facets of my gear that i am able to service and repair myself.

I like that there are experts within reach who can service/repair my gear when i can't.

I like that my gear holds long term resale value.

I like that no part of my gear is engineered to fail or wear out.

But, these are just my preferences and surely don't represent the views of the entire market.
 
Yamaha introduced some retro styled amps and CD players a couple of years ago:

http://hd.engadget.com/2007/10/24/yamaha-gets-official-with-cd-s2000-sacd-player-a-s2000-amplifie/

These take the same approach as the current Mustang, Camaro, etc - classic styling but modern under the hood.

These are still available - curiously enough, a quick Google search shows that the silver versions will cost you quite a bit more than the black ones, even though MSRP was the same for either color. That should tell the manufacturers something!
 
well let's see... Marantz sold reproduction 8B amplifiers a few years back.
McIntosh has never (AFAIK) stopped selling the MC-275.
Luxman vacuum tube amplifiers have been continuously available since the 1960s.
The Shahinian Obelisk loudspeaker systems have been available uninterrupted (AFAIK) since 1977.
The Klipschorn has been in production since 1946.
 
It's also worth noting that the retro-styled pony cars are not exact duplicates of the classic models from the 1960s and early 1970s. They're modern cars with all the safety, emissions, and comfort and convenience hardware required by law and/or demanded by consumers. If GM built an exact replica of the 1969 Camaro, they could not legally sell it in the United States because it would not meet safety and emissions regulations.

To the OP's point: Would you buy a Pioneer "SX-1250" or a Yamaha "CR-1000" that looked much like the original but was a modern design inside? For me, the styling wouldn't be enough to make the sale, and I would hazard a guess that most fans of vintage audio gear would agree with me.
 
Dr Tinear said:
...
To the OP's point: Would you buy a Pioneer "SX-1250" or a Yamaha "CR-1000" that looked much like the original but was a modern design inside? For me, the styling wouldn't be enough to make the sale, and I would hazard a guess that most fans of vintage audio gear would agree with me.
Click to expand...

Yamaha's already effectively got that covered...

http://usa.yamaha.com/products/audio-visual/hifi-components/amps/a-s2000_black__u/?mode=model

16870_12073_1.jpg


yamaha_ca-1000.jpg
 
Given the desire to get things at score prices, I don't think many would buy them, as they would be extremely expensive to make, just like they were when new. When you can get the exact same thing for $75, it's hard to make a case for asking somebody to pay $3000, when they can take that $75 find to a good tech for an overhaul. Marantz and McIntosh can do it because the originals were still commanding large sums. Also, the market for vintage gear isn't as large as it seems when you're on AK.

But I think it would be cool, too, and I wish that more manufacturers had the design aesthetic of the tube-gear of the 1960s.
 
mhardy6647 said:
well let's see... Marantz sold reproduction 8B amplifiers a few years back.
McIntosh has never (AFAIK) stopped selling the MC-275.
Luxman vacuum tube amplifiers have been continuously available since the 1960s.
The Shahinian Obelisk loudspeaker systems have been available uninterrupted (AFAIK) since 1977.
The Klipschorn has been in production since 1946.
Click to expand...

And ESS still makes speakers with Heil tweeters...
 
wizargoz said:
And ESS still makes speakers with Heil tweeters...
Click to expand...
good point.

...and Ohm still makes and sells Walsh speakers (although not the full-range Walsh big boys).

oh, and Winslow Burhoe still makes, and distributes, a pretty good modern take on his classic EPI/Epicure speakers.
 
If the manufacturers did, it would be very expensive with all the metal and glass they used in the vintage pieces. I could not afford it anyways.
 
mhardy6647 said:
well let's see... Marantz sold reproduction 8B amplifiers a few years back.
McIntosh has never (AFAIK) stopped selling the MC-275.
Luxman vacuum tube amplifiers have been continuously available since the 1960s.
The Shahinian Obelisk loudspeaker systems have been available uninterrupted (AFAIK) since 1977.
The Klipschorn has been in production since 1946.
Click to expand...



Good points, and I will add Quad who sold modern versions of their tube pre and power amps.
 
That Outlaw is nice, but it's not really terribly "retro" other than being fairly high-performance 2-channel (as opposed to HT) receiver and in that it has an aluminum face plate and rotary controls. Cosmetically it's - just kind of weird - and it's otherwise chock-full of digitalia.

2150Per.jpg
 
How much different on the inside is modern gear?Still basically the same trans,caps and circuit boards.Digital inputs and computer chips are new,but what else is different. It would probably be cheaper to by vintage and replace all the major internals than to buy new retro.
 
Audio and the auto industries' leads...?

Ok, with tongue in cheek, let's imagine audio componentry with...

...legendary Lucas electronics...

...Chevy Vega's legendary structural integrity...

...Ford Pinto's legendary combustion resistance if dropped...

...GM's legendary K-car cosmetic finishes... (oops, should have said "X-car"...)

...Yugo's legendary reliability...

... a reputation of being unsafe at any speed (sure to hit reel to reel decks and turntables especially hard)...

(Again, only tongue in cheek. And yet, I get to say stuff like that because at least one of those automotive "legends" has been a part of my life.) :thmbsp:
 
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As far as doing anything even remotely like the modern auto industry; Uhh, NO. :pistols:

However, I do think it would be really cool if someone could take the classic power, clarity and looks of say an SX-1980 and combine that with the modern 5 or 7 channel HT processing of something like a VSX-1121. All the while, using the best materials available and preserving the vintage build quality. Now, I understand this would be a ridiculously priced receiver but I'd sell a kidney if one of the manufacturers built it right...
 
ec1st said:
Audio and the auto industries' leads...?

Ok, with tongue in cheek, let's imagine audio componentry with...

...legendary Lucas electronics...

...Chevy Vega's legendary structural integrity...

...Ford Pinto's legendary combustion resistance if dropped...

...GM's legendary K-car cosmetic finishes...

...Yugo's legendary reliability...

... a reputation of being unsafe at any speed (sure to hit reel to reel decks and turntables especially hard)...

(Again, only tongue in cheek. And yet, I get to say stuff like that because at least one of those automotive "legends" has been a part of my life.) :thmbsp:
Click to expand...

I wasn't aware that GM made K-cars. All the ones I saw back in the day had Dodge or Plymouth badges on them. :scratch2:

I also find it interesting that every car you mentioned was pre-1990 (except possibly for the British cars with electricals by Lucas, The Prince of Darkness). Perhaps you should test-drive an automobile built in the last decade. You might be surprised at how good most of them are, and how much their reliability has improved since the dark days of the 1970s.

Back to audio ... let's recall speakers with foam surrounds that self-destruct after 10 or 15 years. Or direct-coupled power amps without protection relays that go full DC and torch your woofers (I'm thinking Flame Linear here). Or the earliest solid-state amps with germanium transistors that melt down without warning. Maybe the good old days for audio equipment weren't that much better than the good old days for cars...
 
There would be no way for the manufacturer to win.

What if a mechanically identical SX1980 was reintroduced into the Pioneer line up? It would be so absurdly expensive that most of the fans of vintage gear on this site wouldn't be able to afford and it would recoil in disgust taughting Pioneers newest "old" receiver as a tremendous rip off and unmarketable.

Now, if Pioneer built something that looked like an SX1980 but had more modest internals to keep costs down every single cheap vintage fan would feel vindicated about their skewed views and arguments on new gear.

And also, nobody is giving enough credit to the Mini Cooper, the Fiat 500 or the Porsche 911 in this thread. They are truly modern interpretations of retro classics and the new V6, IRS 30mpg Mustang falls in league with them. The Camaro and the Challenger are both designed by fools, built by, well, Americans, which is a good thing, and marketed to fools. Further more one is a dark dank cheap rot bag and the other is built by the least reliable car company on the planet (which Chrysler is) :D
 
bowtie427ss said:
I pray that the audio industry NEVER does anything in the footsteps of the auto industry.

I like the reliability of my audio gear.

I like that there are many facets of my gear that i am able to service and repair myself.

I like that there are experts within reach who can service/repair my gear when i can't.

I like that my gear holds long term resale value.

I like that no part of my gear is engineered to fail or wear out.

But, these are just my preferences and surely don't represent the views of the entire market.
Click to expand...

:lmao: I was liking the OPs thought until I read this!
 
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