What made you like/want vintage gear?

[Bodyblue]

Well I am trying some vintage speakers this week. Within two days I have a set of Nova 7s and Minimus 7Ws. For both my wife and I how they looked was a big deal. The M7s are going to replace a pair of black and grey Sonys for the rear surrounds in the living room. The real walnut veneer will look a lot better and hopefully sound as good as the Sony SS MB150s. The Novas will go somewhere in the bedroom where we have our vintage systems depending if they need work or not. They looked fine from the pics but I will have to hook them up to see.

 

[Bodyblue]

+1

I think most vintage speakers put a sound quality first and esthetics second. Also, no wide screen TVs back then to worry about making slim and narrow speakers with tiny drivers just to fit in the available remaining space. Tiny drivers and cabinets that IMO degrade sound quality. There are some large contemporary speakers today made like vintage but they're very expensive.

HT speakers are very different animals than regular models designed for two channel use. Speaker tech has come a loooooong way from where it was 40-60 years ago. That does not mean older speakers sound bad, it just means that the sound one gets from bookshelf type speakers is far better than it used to be.

 

[Uncle Paul]

I use vintage where I get bang for the buck. My amps and speakers are all vintage - I'd spend at least ten times on newer gear to get maybe a 1% advantage. As I move up the chain things get newer - preamp, DACs, PC running JR MC 22 - where it makes more sense. I still have vintage sources like turntables and RtR but they are more for looks and nostalgia than anything else.

 

[sax6]

What happened to me was.. a hit of chance... The tv station I was working for, closed down in 2008 ( TQS )
Every amp and monitors speakers were for sale. Then, I got a full time job with good pay.
I discovered my ( still ) fav thrift and became addic.

I, still as a teen, lustered the amps and speakers the electronic shops in Sherbrooke ( Videotech, Kebekson and Bourget stereo and to not forget Radio Shack ) ) fronted.
The smell of fresh electronic was , and is still , a very deep souvenir.

Now that I'm old, I'm still liking / wanting to get deeper into vintage audio gear adventure.
AudioKarma is helping a lot too.

Just to keep young and acquainted to analog era.

 

[twiiii]

I never started out wanting vintage gear in the 60's. I just kept upgrading until I found components I really liked and kept them. As I look back maybe I should have kept my matched pairs of 275's and MC 60's. But I didn't. I have kept my 2505 I purchased in1971 and my MPI-4. I don't think of my MR-80 and 78 as being vintage, but I guess they are. I traded my C-29 for a C-34 and traded my MCD 7005 toward a MVP 861 and I am very glad I did. I still have my Stax headphones from the 70's and a later pair from the early 90's. CLD 91 and 93 had to be replaced by a 919 because they were worn out Laser players. I still have my F-4460, AG 500, and B-77 HS but they are packed and in storage. So I don't go looking for vintage, I just keep pieces that meet my standards and they eventually become vintage. My Thorens 125 is vintage, but untill I find just the right table , it will remain. I paid $185 for it when new. I have been thru a half a dozen arms over the years, but they are all gone. ALL THE PHONO CARTRIDGES FROM SHURE, PICKERING, STANTON, ORTOFON, EMPIRE, AND EARLIER DYNAVECTOR ARE GONE. I just have the 20 X 2 now, maybe I should have a back -up. My 598 Sennheiser is now my everyday headset and will become vintage. The Koss are all gone. I still have my SAE graphic EQ, UREI crossovers and Crown EQ-2s, they are all vintage now. I'm looking for a MX150/151 to replace my 119 in the future. I wouldn't say its vintage. I recently added a new demo MVP 891. Is it vintage yet, don't think so. So no I don't look for vintage, why step backwards? I go shopping for deals for specific items, and save my coin in the mean time. As much as I loved the MA 6200, I think I might prefer a MA 7900, even with its limited flexibility. There aren't any great HD FM stations in my area so i'll keep the MR-78. I bought a MP100 and looking forward to a XX-2 dynavector some day. Does that make my soon to be backup 20 x2 vintage? If Shure were making a V-15 V MR wouldn't I buy one? No they are vintage and obsolete. Have I thought about the new Technics Sl1200, you bet. But I would probably prefer an SP-10 MK II where I could choose my own tone arm. So if its vinyl related I might go half way and choose a vintage table, but the new Prime Signature intrigues me! And I want the latest and best straight line tracking tone arm I can steal with a great Dynavector.

 

[Drum]

Never really thought about vintage until a couple of years ago I decided to resurrect my 1981 Onkyo TX-3000. In the process of trouble shooting and repairing I had to do a lot of research. I first took it to a local tech who couldn't figure it out. I had always thought it was the volume pot so I found a NOS one online and installed it and everything worked fine. While this was going on I found a pair of old Polk Monitor 4's at the local dump. They were in excellent shape but one tweeter didn't work. Found a new tweeter on the bay and suddenly I had a system for my office.

During my research I noticed that some of my old equipment was much more valuable than I realized (my Pioneer SX680 from high school and Sansui 331 before that as well as my EPI 100 speakers - all still at my moms house). Got me curios and I started looking on Craigslist when I was out of town (nothing in my tiny town) Happened on some ADS L520's for $80 and was stunned at how good they were for the price. Since then I have acquired a few more items, and have really enjoyed the hunt.

 

[jimfet]

All my gear was new. I just turned vintage.

 

[ScottFan355]

Quite simply, vintage gear for the most part just looks waaaay cooler. Throw in the fact that it holds/increases in value better and to me it's a no-brainer. Though I won't go older than mid to late 80s for speakers.

 

[Ross6860]

Update...6, not 5 Golden reasons:
1.)Reuse-ability *I consistently practice discrimination against plastic! (vinyl not included)
2.)Style! The warmth of vintage aesthetics wrecks the frozen blandness of modernity.
3.)Quality! *Just get inside a vintage piece of anything... the build quality of yesteryear was outstanding. Before "planned obsolescence" was a strategy. Before surface-mount and before printed... Before the IC!
4.)Repair-ability! Watch a you-tube video and repair it yourself!
5.)Affordability... Today's real Hi-Fi gear is very expensive....
#6 The cool factor... Whenever friends or family come over, they always want to see the new additions. The obscure and rare pieces get the most attention.
**All it takes is a bunch of money to acquire an expensive new system. So, you have money and you bought some nice expensive gear... yeah for you!
Vintage requires more... The hunt, the research, the obsession, the repair and then the respect.

+1

All of the above, plus when I was in college (late 70's) I have to admit I was a little jealous of the trust-fund students that had stereos worth more than everything I owned. Some were douche-bags, but there were a lot of guys that were pretty down to earth. I was introduced to real Chicago and Delta Blues by the guy in our adjoining dorm room. Also the first time I saw someone clean a record with a Discwasher

At the same time I also had some older non-college friends, most ex-military that brought back killer stereo gear from overseas, and the memories of those keg parties are still pretty vivid after 40 years. They even DJ'd a couple weddings with their gear. Mostly Mac, Kenwood, and Pioneer driving Klipschorns, ARs and 901's

Anyone with money can buy a new Corvette, it takes a little doing to bring a '70 LT1 back to life.

 

[aje123]

Was after i found a free magnavox astrosonic 1964,nice condition just cleaned up and put a new needle in the turntable.The electronics cleaned and deoxited,other than that still has all the original caps and it sounds great and loud for only 30 watts.Looking up info on this got me hooked on vintage stereos and speakers,I can not quit finding great buys.thank you