View Full Version : Predict The Hi-Fi Products Today That Will Be Valued In 50+ Years Time
Garrards TTs, Leak & Quad amps, Mullard & GEC and many other NOS valves etc etc the list goes on. All products from 50+ years ago generally deemed to be excellent or at least very desirable now.
What do you think will be valued that is produced today by audiophiles in 50+ years time?
Hard to guess? Almost impossible to verify... be interesting to see what people think, though.
Stuff that looks cool or is very expensive now. I would be very surprised if any CD players made it through, or DAC's, unless hyper expensive/exotic. Certainly not any of the current fad for speakers with the rest of the system stuffed inside.
A UK perspective and purely my opinion obviously.
The LP12 has to be there I think, as the ultimate Thorens TD150 at least ;) The SME V and Rega RB arms too I reckon will stand the decades. I suspect the Techie 1200mk2 can easily be added to the list as it's holding high prices even though there are millions still about in good working order. Don't know what cartridges will stand the test of time alongside SPU's, Deccas Supex 900? Koetsu's (some with cachet way outside their actual ability IMO) and maybe the Linn Troika, as it was so novel when launched. Possibly certain top model Regas might be desirable - the Planar/P 9's and RP8 and maybe the wild-horse Apheta (a wild and untamed Decca - love it to bits :lol:)
Amps? I do think that solid state Quad could now be added to the list, definitely the Huntingdon built ones and probably the Chinese ones as well, as the only tiny drawback to these has been the quality of the electrolytic caps sometimes fitted (the 909 issues that dada measured and brought to our attention). I also think the popular Rega amps shouldn't be discounted and neither should the better far-eastern integrateds from Cambridge, NAD, HK and others. Obviously the over-done/over-blinged Top End confections may also carry good long-term value, but so many plummet in value in their first few years of life, they might just hold up in future decades and even climb - The Krell KSA50 halved in value very quickly, but serviced ones thirty years on now fetch good money. Later models built on this and currently, a KSA 80 for under £1500 is a superb amp and should appreciate I think.
Speakers are difficult to ponder on I think, especially as cheap far eastern imports can perform so well for very little money. I expect the BBC Legacy models will continue to hold used values well amongst collectors (BC1's and BC3's are now stupid money) and same with Tannoy Prestige one day when all the HPD series have been mopped up (the HPD's were very cheap until prices on early 70's models went through the roof and currently, the late 70's models are fetching very good money while the current Prestige range can't be given away in the UK, despite possibly being 'better.')
Digital? I have no idea, but the late 80's classic CD players might earn a place for collections. There's a fascinating 'History of Computing' centre in Cambridge with all manner of interesting artifacts from all ages and including a few popular domestic mobile phones from the early noughties, so who knows :) It would be nice though, to still be able to play surviving CD's on something, although physical media might well become something from the past..
Fifty years is a long, long time to be thinking ahead.
I'd say forget source components. There will still be some hard core vinyl users but they will be using the same TTs as are on sale now. No-one is going to build a better moustrap there.
Otherwise the source will be digital wireless from the 'cloud' or its 2065 equivilent. Only a handful of serious fringe enthusiasts will be using anything else. A CD player, no matter how fancy, will be about as desirable as a Sony Elcassette is now.
Seperate amplifiers will be a curiosity. It will all be headphones or active speakers in 2065. So maybe look at some of the quality active speakers available today, some of them may become future classics: the Adam Audio range for example.
All sounds a bit dull doesn't it? Thankfully I'll be dead. :)
anthonyTD
28-07-2014, 12:15
The way the majority of the younger generation are heading, i would say none of it! :eyebrows:
I fear we are of the last generations who actually care about HI FI.
"Its the last of the v8's Max" [Mad Max]
On the other hand, i could be totally wrong, and if i am, i will be pleasantly surprised, and happy to still be alive! :eek:;)
walpurgis
28-07-2014, 12:28
I reckon there are plenty of youngsters getting an interest in Hi-Fi. They like the 'cult' like aspect (and probably good sounds too).
. They like the 'cult' like aspect (and probably good sounds too).
Maybe we can link up with the Scientologists? Not that I'm suggesting Scientology is a cult if you're reading, Mr Scientologist lawyer.
Yes, lots of youngsters care and will care about sound quality but how they get it will change. A tablet plus wireless active speakers or headphones do a perfectly good job, they don't see the need for all the racks of gear that we old 'uns use. That looks as out of date and anacronistic to them as a dial telephone now does to us.
'Hi-end' will just become gold plated, gem encrusted tablets and speakers.
istari_knight
28-07-2014, 13:18
It'll be wind up gramophones only post apocalypse :eyebrows:
On a more serious note, I cannot even begin to comprehend the technology of the future... One things for certain though: It won't involve vinyl, valves or 15" drivers ! More like the "cloud" linked to some active carbon nanotube speakers controlled via a future descendant of Google glass.
killie99
28-07-2014, 13:23
Steepletone record players, they'll become collectors items in no time. What's not to like .......
http://cdn.frooition.com/100036/images/Steepletone+ST-9008B+Green+Open.jpg
The Grand Wazoo
28-07-2014, 13:29
Dave, most of the products you mention are 30 yrs old already!
Dave, most of the products you mention are 30 yrs old already!
That's cos for old codgers like Dave this already is the future ;)
Frankly I think by then people will be walking around with implants which contain infinitely more computing power than any home computer today. These implants may well be neural nets which integrate seamlessly with the brain giving us countless new opportunities to integrate with the real and virtual worlds. The possibilities are limitless...
I don't agree about the Tannoy Prestige being rated as future classics. They don't have anything today that a well sorted HPD cant give (or better) in a custom cab, and whilst competent, there's better about for less. Harbeth are more likely to make it onto a future classic list, and remain probably more affordable than the current crop of Tannoy Gold and HPD collectables (which I do reckon will stay collectable). They're not pretending to be styled from the 50's and don't need adverts with wealthy individuals holding expensive malts whilst reclining in their wood panelled mansion. That's all done for image which sells in the Far East. In the UK, the market is very different. I think it's more about what's gaining cult status today, as "cult" items don't happen at the flick of a switch 30 years into the future, but start out as cult from the word go by dint of reputation. Garrard always had that reputation, as did most big Tannoy golds and HPD speakers, irrespective of what they sold for years ago, there's no denying that they were always very popular and supported a huge export market.
It's hard really given the way tech is moving on, to imagine that there will be any cult classic gear about unless it's something that continues to sell well today and in 10 years time. If it's a cult classic today, it's likely to remain a cult classic for the next generation as long as values hold strong and hifi separate sales stay equally strong (or weak, depending on where you are looking from).
walpurgis
28-07-2014, 16:00
Pretty much agree with all that Paul. I had thoughts much along the same lines. At least you've saved me writing it all out! :)
http://i1300.photobucket.com/albums/ag89/Jrb1961/imagejpg1_zpsf30a8ef9.jpg (http://s1300.photobucket.com/user/Jrb1961/media/imagejpg1_zpsf30a8ef9.jpg.html)
Naim gear will be held in the esteem that vintage Quad gear is now.
Frankly I think by then people will be walking around with implants which contain infinitely more computing power than any home computer today. These implants may well be neural nets which integrate seamlessly with the brain giving us countless new opportunities to integrate with the real and virtual worlds. The possibilities are limitless...
And the Luddite / "low tech" movements will come back out in force. :p
And the Luddite / "low tech" movements will come back out in force. :p
You're probably right there... :lol:
anthonyTD
28-07-2014, 17:24
I predict that next generations wont be too hung up on possesions, and will therefore take a more minimalist outlook on everything, including Audio, which is what i was trying to get at in my earlier post, people will always enjoy, and appreciate good music, its just the way they listen to it will change, and their outlook on what they play it on!
I also think we should not use this thread for the bigging up of some products and dumbing down of others just because we may or may not be a fan of one or the other, IMHO there are too many HI FI related products to determine which may still be seen in 50 years time, as an example, i am not paticularly fond of the LP12, but i have heard it at its best, and it is pretty darn good, so, which way would i vote there, do i vote yes or no, depending on my own paticular prefrence ?
The big names of today, will' i am sure still be remembered decades from now, whether they will be remembered and held in the same esteem [or not] for their strengths or weaknesses will be interesting to say the least.
Just my ramblings.;)
A...
Naim gear will be held in the esteem that vintage Quad gear is now.
This is a serious thread.:lol:
Given that Munich 2014 seemed to be topped by a horn system from the 1920s, and the classics we have already established in this time period, I'm not sure the year circa 2014 +/- a few years will be remembered for much.
After the 25th vinyl revival, I predict no one will really be using it extensively. The best designs from now maybe collectors items for some, but not much more than that.
Most of today's classics do not advance on those of yesteryear. It is unfortunate but true. So it may just be that the better high quality high end items will be pretty desirable due to the fact that they are affordable compared to contemporary designs 50 years hence.
In other words, situation pretty much normal. Can't see any amazing digital advances happening either.
What a pessimist:) Perhaps I should have given the subject more thought before raising the thread. It seemed like a good idea at the time:D
Alan Sircom
28-07-2014, 22:28
Interesting topic.
I think none of it will have much worth in 50 years time. The interest in audio as it stands is largely with the Baby Boomers now, the youngest of whom is in their 50s. Half a century from now, even with medical science thrusting ahead, almost all Baby Boomers will be in the ground, and the Boomer's unique interests and the value attached to them die too.
We seem to have a uniquely self-centred attitude to our collectables. When we get older we buy what our younger selves dreamed of owning, as much as we can. We are like our own little top-trumps game, played with our inner ten year old. So we buy that Fender, that Garrard, that Harley-Davidson, or that Leica... because we can, as if we have something to prove to ourselves. The companies that are around today that were around then capitalise on their past, but they are already seeing that world go into a tailspin as even the boomers reach that "I'm too old for this" moment, and most singularly fail to reach a new audience in the same way.
Record players are having their Indian Summer, but that will inevitably turn to autumn. Today's digital audio is tonight's landfill. As headphones moved into the fashion world, they will have the staying power of spats and kipper ties across the decades, and the chances are the large wired 2014 headphone will seem stone-age primitive. That just leaves amplifiers and loudspeakers, which are - to practically anyone under 40 right now - already looking like a couple of dinosaurs looking up at the big meteor in the sky. These are the same people who have grown up in a disposable world, who serially lack our attachment to things because they are always distracted by newer things.
I also think as we move more into an IoT-based world, people will look upon devices from a pre IoT time as a relic from a primitive age. We are our own example of this; many struggle to think what life was like in a world before web-tablets... four years ago.
Interesting topic.
I think none of it will have much worth in 50 years time. The interest in audio as it stands is largely with the Baby Boomers now, the youngest of whom is in their 50s. Half a century from now, even with medical science thrusting ahead, almost all Baby Boomers will be in the ground, and the Boomer's unique interests and the value attached to them die too.
We seem to have a uniquely self-centred attitude to our collectables. When we get older we buy what our younger selves dreamed of owning, as much as we can. We are like our own little top-trumps game, played with our inner ten year old. So we buy that Fender, that Garrard, that Harley-Davidson, or that Leica... because we can, as if we have something to prove to ourselves. The companies that are around today that were around then capitalise on their past, but they are already seeing that world go into a tailspin as even the boomers reach that "I'm too old for this" moment, and most singularly fail to reach a new audience in the same way.
Record players are having their Indian Summer, but that will inevitably turn to autumn. Today's digital audio is tonight's landfill. As headphones moved into the fashion world, they will have the staying power of spats and kipper ties across the decades, and the chances are the large wired 2014 headphone will seem stone-age primitive. That just leaves amplifiers and loudspeakers, which are - to practically anyone under 40 right now - already looking like a couple of dinosaurs looking up at the big meteor in the sky. These are the same people who have grown up in a disposable world, who serially lack our attachment to things because they are always distracted by newer things.
I also think as we move more into an IoT-based world, people will look upon devices from a pre IoT time as a relic from a primitive age. We are our own example of this; many struggle to think what life was like in a world before web-tablets... four years ago.
I'd agree with most of that Alan but there does appear to be a bit of a backlash developing amongst the younger generation against disposable tech per se. Frankly they are fed up with built in obsolescence. For example, one only needs to browse YouTube for videos of Dr Dre and Beats headphones and read the comments to get a handle on where things are going... :)
destroysall
29-07-2014, 02:08
My 2 cents: turntables and amplifiers will remain to hold a strong value in the market of the future.
Cheers,
Chris.
I bet Andre's grandson will living in a 2014 styled house collecting all sorts of current DIGITAL hi-fi products!
I bet Andre's grandson will living in a 2014 styled house collecting all sorts of current DIGITAL hi-fi products!
Interesting point though - It was discovered in the 1970s that the vast majority of people don't like modern design when it comes to houses so almost all the houses built in 2014 will be those mock Tudor/Georgian type affairs.
awkwardbydesign
29-07-2014, 12:48
These-
http://www.dagostinoinc.com/images/product-preamp-1.jpg
These-
http://www.dagostinoinc.com/images/product-preamp-1.jpg
For the whacky casework maybe. Polarising designs which inspire love/hate relationships with people's minds don't get forgotten easily.
I don't know what will be seen as classics in 50 years time but if you want one you will be able to 'print' it out on your 3D printer connected to a virtual catalogue from The Vintage Knob! :D
Regards,
Nick
Judging the way fuel is going, my wind up gramophones will be very desirable.:eek:
Morch tonearms!
I hope so:)
Morch tonearms!
I doubt it.
I doubt it.
You shouldn't.
For the whacky casework maybe. Polarising designs which inspire love/hate relationships with people's minds don't get forgotten easily.
Polarising? I still maintain that the momentum is possibly the ugliest piece of consumer electronics ever. It really is that bad. That might make it memorable, but it won't be a fond recollection.
2064 will probably have a minimum of mechanical things....because they will be expensive relative to digital stuff. People won't value our stuff for sound quality, I suspect, but because it represents a vanished age. Pure nostalgia. I'd take a punt on something like an SME 10 (small, neat, very robust, very mechanical). Maybe Diavelet because of superb design. Forget speakers...nothing worth 'saving' really. And probably something very small like an I-pad (or even a Sony Walkman).
But mainly...small and mechanical and (to that generation) 'weird'. One other guess, people will not have driven vehicles for at least 20 years. The notion of personal manipulation of a vehicle (driving) will seem socially subversive and dangerous.
Martyn Miles
14-08-2014, 07:51
A UK perspective and purely my opinion obviously.
The LP12 has to be there I think, as the ultimate Thorens TD150 at least ;) The SME V and Rega RB arms too I reckon will stand the decades. I suspect the Techie 1200mk2 can easily be added to the list as it's holding high prices even though there are millions still about in good working order. Don't know what cartridges will stand the test of time alongside SPU's, Deccas Supex 900? Koetsu's (some with cachet way outside their actual ability IMO) and maybe the Linn Troika, as it was so novel when launched. Possibly certain top model Regas might be desirable - the Planar/P 9's and RP8 and maybe the wild-horse Apheta (a wild and untamed Decca - love it to bits :lol:)
Amps? I do think that solid state Quad could now be added to the list, definitely the Huntingdon built ones and probably the Chinese ones as well, as the only tiny drawback to these has been the quality of the electrolytic caps sometimes fitted (the 909 issues that dada measured and brought to our attention). I also think the popular Rega amps shouldn't be discounted and neither should the better far-eastern integrateds from Cambridge, NAD, HK and others. Obviously the over-done/over-blinged Top End confections may also carry good long-term value, but so many plummet in value in their first few years of life, they might just hold up in future decades and even climb - The Krell KSA50 halved in value very quickly, but serviced ones thirty years on now fetch good money. Later models built on this and currently, a KSA 80 for under £1500 is a superb amp and should appreciate I think.
Speakers are difficult to ponder on I think, especially as cheap far eastern imports can perform so well for very little money. I expect the BBC Legacy models will continue to hold used values well amongst collectors (BC1's and BC3's are now stupid money) and same with Tannoy Prestige one day when all the HPD series have been mopped up (the HPD's were very cheap until prices on early 70's models went through the roof and currently, the late 70's models are fetching very good money while the current Prestige range can't be given away in the UK, despite possibly being 'better.')
Digital? I have no idea, but the late 80's classic CD players might earn a place for collections. There's a fascinating 'History of Computing' centre in Cambridge with all manner of interesting artifacts from all ages and including a few popular domestic mobile phones from the early noughties, so who knows :) It would be nice though, to still be able to play surviving CD's on something, although physical media might well become something from the past..
As Harbeth speakers carry on the BBC legacy I suspect they might survive and be used in 50 years time. Hopefully my little P3ESRs will be used by one of my sons.
The larger ( and much older ) original HL Monitors I'm not so sure...
Early streaming - they would sound most like vinyl !
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