Knowing your stuff

[Rare Bird]

Is it more important to be wealth of Knowledge regarding old equipment, to totally ignore whats going on around us the last 20 years? or better to be behind the door where old is concerned, put all your intrest in the present.. for one can't say i've had a single micro second of intrest in anything really, the last 20 odd years.

[Neil McCauley]

Is it more important to be wealth of Knowledge regarding old equipment, to totally ignore whats going on around us the last 20 years? or better to be behind the door where old is concerned, put all your intrest in the present.. for one can't say i've had a single micro second of intrest in anything really, the last 20 odd years.

In my home system, everything other than my modern LFD power amps are all retro, discontinued, inexpensive and musically credible to my ears.

[Rare Bird]

Thats excellent..

[Effem]

Is it a case of wearing some rose tinted glasses or is it more fundamental than that Andre?

I will concede the compact disc never ever lived up to it's indestructibility hype despite being covered in jam, hoover bag contents and fagash on Tomorrow's World all those years ago, nor does it see off a decent turntable sound-wise either, although I don't personally miss the clicks, pops and trudging back and forth swapping big black vinyl discs cos I am a lazy bastid :eyebrows:

The only major change (IMO) in general speaker design trends is more compact dimensions to suit modern homes/lifestyles and needing far more amplifier wattage up 'em because they are less sensitive to drive.

I do miss the discrete style of deep blue illuminated dials, backlit dial pointers and power meters :lol:

[Joe]

I've got a mish-mash of stuff across two systems, some bought new, some second-hand. Most of it is less than 15 years old; I recently 'retired' my Mordaunt-Short speakers (1981 model) but still use the AR turntable from the same era. I have absolutely no nostalgia for vintage hifi equipment.

[Rare Bird]

Is it a case of wearing some rose tinted glasses or is it more fundamental than that Andre?

I will concede the compact disc never ever lived up to it's indestructibility hype despite being covered in jam, hoover bag contents and fagash on Tomorrow's World all those years ago, nor does it see off a decent turntable sound-wise either, although I don't personally miss the clicks, pops and trudging back and forth swapping big black vinyl discs cos I am a lazy bastid :eyebrows:

The only major change (IMO) in general speaker design trends is more compact dimensions to suit modern homes/lifestyles and needing far more amplifier wattage up 'em because they are less sensitive to drive.

I do miss the discrete style of deep blue illuminated dials, backlit dial pointers and power meters :lol:

The topics not about whats best..However to answer the first bit, the reason i listern to CD is the albums i like are transfered to my lug holes in a better defined manner than my old Vinyl ever did. I personally think Hi-Fi today is a long throw from the hobby i once knew & loved.

[Barry]

Hi André,

All of my equipment is classic or vintage. The newest items I have are a used sample of a Sony CDP XB 720E player and a used sample of the Quad 520f (Neutrix) amplifier. The former is probably no older than 15 years (perhaps you can tell me) and the latter cannot be any older than 22 years.

It's not that I'm not interested in equipment designed in more recent times - I just can't afford it! :(

Regards

[MartinT]

Sorry Andr'e, I am completely age-agnostic when it comes to equipment. If it sounds good, it *is* good. I can also at least peek in your door as I have a treasured Leak Stereo 20 and Rogers Cadet III in the garage. However, my main system is all less than 20 years old although my power amp is reaching the giddy heights of 12 years old :)

[DSJR]

I'm a bit like Barry, I can't afford to replace what I have. There's plenty I'd consider new now though, given the chance :)

[Rare Bird]

Why Dave, wasnt that long ago you said you don't care what you moosik is playing on cos you enjoy music so much or something to that effect..Just enjoy what you have for crying out aloud..You get something new it'll not be long before the want want want kicks in again..

[Pete The Cat]

My simpleton's view is that the difference in "what good looked like" between, say 2010 and 2000, is a fraction of the difference between, say 1980 and 1970, and that the pace of improvement has been gradually slowing (I know the thread is about a 20 year line but hopefully you get my drift).

There is very impressive hardware being manufactured today, I'm just personally - my limited experience and my limited ears - not convinced that £ for £ it's discernibly better than a decade or more ago. Age itself is surely irrelevant in what is good, but for me it's relevant in terms of affordability of good. My boxes are from 1969 to 1999, ancillaries more recent.

Pete

[Batty]

TT is 1986 as is the tonearm DL103 although new is a 60s design.
Amp is 1995 at the end of it's production run.
Speakers are also 1995 close to the end of their run too.

The most modern thing I have is the squeezebox Touch, but I have it on VU meter display, blends in nicely.

[Rare Bird]

It seems to me that people are not intrested in build quality & are not intrested in character of unit design nor reliability, they just want what it gives at the time :rolleyes: , people say equipment is more reliable these days than before! no way on earth is that true imho, any electronic faliure regarding old equipment is a fault of the component not the actual amp design!, rebuild it & will last you out imho..

[Marco]

I'm a bit like Barry, I can't afford to replace what I have.

Lol - don't let him kid you on! ;)

Marco.

[DSJR]

Oh, Ok Marco :)

I blow hot & cold over the TD125, this sample made in 1971, yet when I wind it up and give it a spin, the thing sounds so good and i KNOW I'm hearing more through it and the croft than I ever did in my LP12/Naim days, despite the 'briks potentially being more open, if not far more coloured...

[MartinT]

It seems to me that people are not intrested in build quality & are not intrested in character of unit design nor reliability

No way! Those things are very important to me.