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Modern or Vintage?

Modern or Vintage?

  • Total voters
    246
I fall into the full analog camp but for a different reason than most posted here- I like the ability to disconnect a faulty component for repair or replacement without losing operation of the entire system. So I have separate DACs, nothing built-in. Same with phono preamps. I like a minimum of switches and pots for reliability. I have a MM phono preamp with a step-up transformer for LOMC use- no adjustments needed and little to go wrong. The second TT is MM only. I had two cheapie phono preamps die in that rig. Those were throw-aways. Now, I'm using an old Hafler preamp just for its phono stage. I have an old Boulder line-stage-only preamp that I keep as a spare. In fact, I have a few amps and preamps as spares and being utilized in other seldom-used systems in the house. Those can be moved around as needed. The last preamp I bought was a passive preamp. It doesn't even have a power cord. For reliability, that is the way to go. So for those reasons, I'm in the vintage camp. But those 1970s receivers with a thousand switches and knobs and complicated circuitry all under one hood are not for me.
 
All Sansui except for a Sony CD player.

#1 - Love M- LPs. 400 each, down from 650. I still do buy M- LPs if I find one M- only -"crate digging" and like the title. They are getting hard to find nowadays.
I'm maybe 40 LPs behind in listening.

#2. 1,200+ M- CDs each approx. I do play a lot more CDs - it's very convenient. Just bought 9 more M- yesterday. Convenient, variety, & access to different genres.
I'm about 30 CDs each behind in total listening actually.
 
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I have probably 9 or 10 receivers at home. Four Realistics and one Fisher from the 70s, two Panasonics, two Denons, and perhaps 1 or 2 more from the 2000s. I prefer the vintage. Better overall sound. The Denon 2000s models sound good tho.
 
The old stuff was made to last and be serviceable. Back then, companies had to compete in a market with quite alot of competition. They have to make things better than each other in order to sell units. Today, companies focus on making their products as cheaply as possible. That's not to say that they don't factor in serviceability when they design their products, they do. The try and make them as difficult to repair as possible, so when it breaks, and it will, you have to buy another.
 
Unfortunately we now live in a disposable world. Nobody keeps anything more than a few years now, so why would companies sacrifice profit to build things to last? Just look at automobiles. Plastic is all you need for that. If you want good modern gear that's built to last a lifetime, then you're going to pay a premium. That is why I prefer vintage. I have gear well older than I am that will last a lot longer than I will. Of course I do also love technology so streaming devices are added, but the root of my music systems will always be vintage. For home theater I have a completely different system and I would say it's sufficient even at 15 or so years old and I have no desire to improve on it. As a population we are filling our world with garbage just to satisfy our convenience and I consciously try not to contribute to that.
 
Nimbley said:
Just look at automobiles
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Not a good example. No way the engine in my 65 Galaxie would have made it to 300k miles with just routine maintenance like a modern car.

Cars, one of the things where it's good they don't build them like they used to :thumbsup:
 
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GChief said:
Not a good example. No way the engine in my 65 Galaxie engine would have made it to 300k miles with just routine maintenance like a modern car.

Cars, one of the things where it's good they don't build them like they used to :thumbsup:
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Good point. But that engine could be rebuilt many times for relatively low cost. Like just about everything else on that car. I was more referencing how some people get a new car every few years. I know people that have never known life without a car payment. I just don't get it?
 
Nimbley said:
That looks sweet. What did you build it for? I meant stock. Horsepower is very expensive. So is a good machine shop. I need to find a new shop for my next build. The guy I used for 20 years finally retired and sold his shop.
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It started out as a warmed up 390 rebuild.

Ended up as a 445" w/steel crank, forged rods and pistons and a soild cam. Only thing original is the block and heads, the heads were worked by a porting guru.
 
poll result is interesting, 80 percent for 50s to 80s analogue and only 20 percent are 90s onward digital!

Would have thought it would be closer to 50=50 at least, this being 2025 and all.

I do like that there is so much old equipment still in use and being appreciated.

In my system only the pre-amp dates from before 1990 and although I still have a turntable and records, I don't use them.
 
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