Vintage vs Modern stereo cost comparison - Is Vintage a value compared to Modern?
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- čas přidán 24. 03. 2023
- Is a vintage stereo system too costly? How does the cost of a collectible vintage system compare to the cost of a modern stereo system?
In this video, I put together an example vintage stereo system and compare the value of it to equivalent modern components.
Correction: The graphic depicting the Polk SDA 2 as being a 3 way is a typo, it should have been denoted as a 2 way with passive radiator.
I am a long time collector of vintage stereo gear like receivers, speakers, amps, turntables and cassette decks from brands like McIntosh, Sansui, Pioneer, Yamaha, Klipsch, JBL, Marantz and many others. Be sure to subscribe so as not to miss future videos.
Email: stereoniche@gmail.com
Channel: / @stereoniche
Video: • Vintage vs Modern ster...
#bestvintageaudio #vintageaudio #classicrock #records #vintagecassette #audiogear #cassette #audiocollections #audiophile #stereo #klipschorn #klipsch #vintagespeakers #vintagestereoequipment #vintagestereo
Your numbers are spot on.
I picked up a Yamaha CR1020 on Craigs in N. California for 600.00
Had its lights replaced with blue led and recapped for 650.00
It’s driving my Legacy protege 98db 4 ohm beautifully.
I bought it part nostalgia as I had a CR 1000 back in the day driving Norman Labs. I grew up in Norman Ok in 70’s and always regretted selling it when I moved west.
I had been running my Jolida tube amp that was new old stock and when I hooked up the Yamy, I was doing my happy dance.
Punch, definition, air, soundstage and the thing that is it’s claim to fame. Natural un colored yet smooth sound.
I then acquired a Yamaha CDX 1030 vintage CD player that had been refurbished. Together they are making beautiful music.
I’ll be selling the Jolida now.
One thing that your video does not address is that you can go into a modern stereo store and spend $8000 on an integrated amplifier turntable and speakers combination but what will you have in five or 10 years? I would argue that that system that you purchased today would only be worth 25 to 40% of the retail value that you originally purchased it for. If you spent $2000 on a vintage system with the gear that you showcased or many others, potentially your system is worth at least still $2000, but, I would argue, may appreciate in value. To me, I would never buy new gear because, on average, it’s typically going to go down in value. Amplifier technology hasn’t changed. Analogue turntable technology has not changed. For the most part speaker technology hasn’t changed. We’re not talking about CDs or streamers. Vintage audio is a far better investment than purchasing new not to mention the quality of the switches and the knobs and a quarter inch thick face plate. Modern companies can’t afford to do these things like they could in the 70s.
I agree 100% I think it is a pretty well known fact that Just about anything that is vintage was made to last a long time. And you cannot say that about modern anything. If a TV makes it to 10 years old, your lucky, Just a example, My Dad has a RCA Colortrak Console 25 inch TV from 1983 and it still works perfectly. I have a Technics Receiver from 1989 and it works perfect. NO issue at all ever and I use it everyday for at least 3 hours. In my opinion you get much more for your money buying vintage and you know that is will last awhile
Agree..I just spent 6 G’s on a totally rebuilt Linn Turntable from SkyFi Audio and they knew how to pack and ship..if I had bought new, I would have spent 13 grand for an equivalent TT.
All very true. There is plenty more to consider, depreciation cost of new gear is certainly a big issue, but also, there are many pieces of vintage gear with unobtanium parts that should also factor into any decision as well. I'll probably do a Part 2 at some point and cover more. Thanks VERY much for adding to the conversation.
I only buy a dac new, but don't spend much because most don't have what I want.
For the rest 30 years minimum age 😁
Totally disagree….there have been many advancements in Amp technology. Most vintage gear I have owned has most always needed to be fixed or serviced. I don5 use turntables anymore as the entire medium is a huge waste of money.
Well done. There's also another factor if you're old enough: nostalgia. For those of us who lived in the 70s (the Golden Age!) and lusted after that equipment as youngsters, it can bring back a very happy vibe. Thank you!
Indeed! I plan to do a follow-up at some point on other factors, nostalgia is CERTAINLY a big one, at least for me.
As the original owner of a vintage Sansui 5050 receiver, I totally agree these were/are fantastic pieces of equipment- however, we need to keep in mind that most of these products are electronic pieces approaching a half-century old, meaning anything can fail at any time, and then must be repaired/restored by a competent electronics tech, let alone finding one locally willing to do the repair. Second, even purchasing a "fully restored" unit on the open market- how would you know the quality of previous repair work and/or restoration that was performed on the unit? Simply said, there are a lot of risks in owning and acquiring units that are decades old. The best scenario is finding one in excellent cosmetic and working condition from an original owner, with the knowledge of the service history - if possible!
Great points Arnold!
Sound quality has improved on most equipment over the years. I grew up in the 60-70's and owned many vintage items. Prices however have skyrocketed even when inflation is calculated. Also, Extreme hifi equipment we have now such as $700K Speakers and electronics in the several hundreds of thousands of dollars didn't really exists back then! With that being said you can still buy new equipment that sounds better than vintage for not that much money if you really want. Vintage equipment will have the issues with age, and most will have to be worked on. Most older people like myself have bad memories and are nostalgic about the vintage sound and equipment but it didn't sound better! If you put your vintage gear side by side with modern well selected value gear of today that is equivalent in price with inflation the new system will sound better!
Certainly good and bad examples exist from both the vintage and modern sides. There have certainly been some extreme price inflation on some modern high end gear though, well outpacing inflation.
I agree with what you say here. People do get nostalgic about all things in the past.
The sound quality you can achieve from very small budget equipment is incredible now.
Still an interesting topic.
I have both a vintage and a modern system. Both are solid but sound very different. I love my Vintage setup but it can't do what the new stuff can. The imaging, clarity, detail in new gear is amazing. Vintage has that romantic tonality. Both are great just different.
I picked up my CR-1020 last year from one of my record store customers for $550. It was professionally restored back in 2014 for the price of $425, so I got a hell of a deal. It sounds great and only has one very small nink in the faceplate. The speaker selector, tone contrails, pre loop, and stereo selector offer a lot of flexibility.
That certainly was an excellent score and you are set to go for another several decades. That series was quite exceptional.
Really enjoyed the comparison Scott. Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it!
New to your YT channel love your reviews very much to the point no BS..keep up the great work greatly appreciated.
Thanks and Welcome to the channel! Some fun new reviews coming soon, so stay tuned.
I actually have a pair of those exact same Polk Audio SDA-2 speakers myself. I was lucky enough to find them at one of my local thrift stores for $25/pair! (They were asking $50/pair for them, but I negotiated lower because one of them had a damaged grill.)
I have fully restored them along with rebuilding the crossovers with all modern polypropylene capacitors and better quality resistors and inductors too, along with better terminals, internal damping material, and other minor improvements, so now they most likely sound even better than when they were brand new, and they are absolutely beautiful sounding now!
I wish I had one of those Yamaha amps you have there too, but oh well, I find whatever I find at my local thrift stores and such, on a regular basis, so I do pretty good. My stereo system is probably worth about 10 times as much as I've actually paid for it all over the years, because I know a great deal when I see it, and I never buy anything brand new, especially not nowadays with everything being made in China to usually rather crappy quality standards! Vintage audio is definitely the way to go for the best value for money spent, especially if you have the knowledge and ability to fix or improve most things yourself!
It's like my twin typed this lol! I do the same, I have the same. Getting into tube gear, now. It's far out.
If you can find vintage really cheap and it's fully functional, vintage for me. I've been lucky with speakers, receivers, and turntable.
Many many moons ago I purchased new a Quad 405 with a 44, a Linn Sondek LP 12 turntable with an Ittok arm and Rogers JR 149 speakers. I've never looked back. They all still sound sweet! Prices now are insane.
Well, you started out on the top end and others eventually figured that out too, so demand skyrocketed, along with prices.
@@stereoniche I really do wonder about the actual demand for equipment, such as shown in Stereophile, priced in the incredible thousands of dollars. I think that it has really turned off many people in the hobby. The human ear can only distinguish so much.
This is a good subject. You put it all into perspective very well too. I have a mix of both new and vintage. I like it all but a remote is always good. I think I bought my vintage gear at great prices and much of it sounds better than the modern gear I have tried. I think one would have to spend a substantial amount to better some vintage gear.
Thanks Crimson!
You can easily fix the remote problem with a streamer/DAC with volume and input controls like the Bluesound Node.
Here's what you need to know: If the amplifier uses discrete transistors, it will probably sound pretty good. If it uses those hybrid blocks it probably won't. That's the most important thing if you're comparing solid-state consumer stuff like this.
When the new consumer-grade gear is still running in 50 years like some of the gear made 50 years ago that is still running today, THEN the new gear will be able to complete with the old.
Well said! :-)
Good Video, I have always found price comparisons between vintage and new equipment interesting. It always puts into perspective what the vintage gear should be compared to today. For instance, I own a JVC R-X500b receiver from the early 1980's. (great by the way) It was JVC's top model at the time and its MSRP was $650 when new. If adjusted for inflation for 2023 that receiver would cost $1900 give or take. It never fails to amaze me how inexpensive you could buy (some) gear like this now, compared to new, and it also gives a great point of comparison for todays gear. Thanks for the videos as always.
Thanks for adding to the conversation!
You had me at Yamaha..... LOL
Great comparison in equipment and price !
Vintage (in good shape)sounds just as good as new and looks better in my opinion and of course more affordable.
Yamaha has kept the look as well as the sound very consistent past to present.
I’ve also noticed that a lot of newer equipment of several brands is starting to reproduce the vintage look with
Silver facing and wood casing! Leak, Nad etc.
Everything old is new again. 😀
Nicely done. Like many, I have a vintage/2000s setup - so even my new gear is ~ 20 yrs old. I agree completely with this evaluation, and with commenters below who see vintage performance on par with at least medium/high end of today.
Thanks for commenting David!
Now I feel quite happy about my CR-800 for around 250€ ...
Nice comparison. There certainly is some bargains buying vintage units either high end like in this video or very low budget units
Hi Michael, absolutely. You certainly would know. Thanks very much for stopping by and commenting.
What a great video!!! As far as I am concerned, I would always choose Vintage over brand new. The quality is better and I have read over and over in articles online that Vintage audio equipment sounds better, then new. I am not sure if that is true, but, it sounds like it would be true. I really enjoy your audio videos. Very Interesting
Thanks Richard!
I'd argue that vintage and contemporary sound different. Amplifier topology has improved and is tighter in a lot of cases. That can end up sounding a bit more analytical and perhaps a little lean by comparison. It depends what you are after, or maybe even what you are combining with. Value in the old receivers has been rediscovered - and that is a shame since the prices were quite good for a long time. Unless of course you have been weahousing them and now its time to sell them off.
I'd argue that separates pre and amplifier are a better way to go. Also the DIY rabbit hole has a ton of value. I built a Aleph J2 clone and with the right speakers, its pretty hard to beat for any money IMHO.
When they made vintage receivers / amps / equalizers... they made them to make the user think about a space ship control panel. Remember the moon landing was just a few years ago at the time. When one approached a receiver of that era, you felt important and in control.... You had to effectively design a soundscape for yours and your guests ears. This is the appeal, at least to me, of vintage.
- These days, it's not worse... It's just a different philosophy of using and listening to AV or Vintage equipment.
While not as extensive as your collection, I have a LOT of vintage stereo gear. Several newer systems too. One thing to consider for vintage gear is, "do you live in an area where you can have it serviced easily?" Or, if you live in Jackson, MS for instance, if you and you need to get something worked on, you must send it to, Memphis, New Orleans, Birmingham, etc to get it serviced, fixed etc. I love vintage gear. A lot of what I have had been serviced, recapped, etc. when I bought. Yet.... later a push button fails, a pot goes out, etc. and I must send it off. Or... wait crazy times for the dying few vintage Tech guys in Jackson to fix it. So, vintage is great but I found that I have a lot of gear that I have to rotate into the "to be serviced stack" while something else gets back in the rotation. In the meantime, I have new Schiit gear, or McIntosh gear in various systems that I can count on. This particularly applies to receivers, turntables (especially idler wheel TTs that need to be serviced). Vintage speakers are a much more reliable proposition. Assuming they don't need foam or have already been re-foamed, most I have had have been great even without a recap. Or.. recapping most vintage crossovers is not a big deal and can be done DIY at your house. So, except for some newer Wharfedale Lintons, my other speakers in all systems are vintage. K'horns, Cornwalls, L-100s, HPM 100s, Wharfedale 60s, Advents, etc. They sound great solid state or tubes and have been very reliable.
Boy, I can't wait til I come across a stash in a mirage in my dreams in my part of American.
Keep looking!
I picked up a pair of Jean Marie Reynaud Cantibile for 800€…retail is 4.500! Amazing sound
A decent vintage amp from the late 70's onwards, as long as it's performing to original spec, should be a match for anything made today. Peter Walker, designer of Quad amps did a blind test using 3 generations of his amps. The panel of "experts" couldn't reliably tell them apart. What you get today is abundant power in a sensibly sized cabinet.
Agree 1000%, but also, quite the same for any tube era amps as well.
Excellent analysis! You are so right. Vintage stuff is very cool, but does have restoration cost. I bought a Luxman L100 used for $1,200 but cost me another $1,500+ to restore it. But sounds great!!
Very nice amp! Luxman's tend to be a bit more rare and expensive, but are fabulous units.
I've had a lot of different receivers and amplifiers new and old, and the one that I regret ever getting rid of was the CR 1020.
it was just fantastic in every way and magical sounding. oddly enough though when somebody asked me for a recommendation for a new amp that sounds sort of vintage I always point them towards Yamaha.
We all have our seller's remorse models, don't we? For me, it was the Sansui G-9700. My first vintage receiver. Yamaha seems to be one of the few Hi-Fi companies that still retain some of their DNA from the golden era of Hi-Fi.
Hey Scott i started to like your channel .I am a Yamaha vintage collector ..i just pour me some coffee ,and i will listen at every word you say ...
LOL, well, thanks so much. Very glad to hear you are enjoying the content. A LOT more to review, so I hope you have plenty of coffee!
Enjoyed your video as always Scott. I am not familiar with the JVC turntable vs. the Music Hall. My guess though is the JVC might be more solidly made, but the Music Hall would outperform it because of the carbon fiber tonearm. I have a different brand turntable whose tonearm is made of carbon fiber and it runs all up and down most Japanese made tonearms of that era, and makes them sound "Clunky and full of resonance" is the best phrase I can think of. As far as phono cartridges I am sure that modern cartridges have less uncontrolled resonances because of their shells being made of space age materials which are better materials than plastic. You still may see plastic used in cheap cartridges, but it's better materials often now, and it does definitely improve the sound. The Ortofon 2M cartridge pictured has a shell that is made of a different variation of just straight plastic. Grado and Clearaudio cartridges are often made of wood. Metal body cartridges which were a big improvement over plastic (way less vibratory & resonant) started becoming the trademark of quality in the mid 1980s. The metal bodied Talisman S cartridge I had with a sapphire cantilever was a giant leap above the similar priced plastic body cartridge I was using before as far as sound quality. I think for the most part the 1980s were when things got really interesting as far as advances in audio. Not everything was good though.
Amplifiers at a lower price than nowadays, often had bigger beefier transformers than modern ones at an economical price. Transformers are the heaviest thing in an amp, and shipping costs would be really high if they still put in a huge transformer. Shipping costs are way way higher now They do give you beefier transformers at higher price levels though today. But you really have to pay a price Regardless of the watts being around the same, the new Yamaha would have no trouble showing that it is the far better amo than the vintage one. They do learn some things over the years, and Yamaha is a good enough company to do R&D and actually give you the benefits of what they've learned over the years.
The Polk SDA looks almost exactly like the Polk model 10 that I had in the 1980s. The midranges of the SDA2 would have been smarter to align them vertically, instead of horizontally, so they could have made the cabinet slimmer. A wide cabinet like that ALWAYS suffers from cabinet diffraction. The drivers sound interfered with, having all that wood behind them. That's another thing modern designers have learnred; not to make the cabinets much wider than the drivers themselves to decrease cabinet diffraction. Cabinet area below the drivers and above them also gives plenty of opportunity for bad effects Less wood around the drivers and less early reflections and diffraction. A few advanced companies like AR with some of their taller models many decades ago, like the AR91 and the famous gfeat AR 9 were not only narrowing their cabinets by putting the woofers on the side of the cabinet so the cabinet could be slimmer with less area for diffraction, but they also started putting acoustic foam around the drivers to lessen driver deflection off the front of the cabinets, which causes phase smearing in addition to some other bad things. One of the best speakers of the 1980s, the Snell Type A, had a wide cabinet but instead of being flat, they decreased diffraction by going to the trouble of rounding the cabinet around the drivers, instead of the usual flat surface behind the drivers.
The Focal speakers you will notice are much slimmer which much less front baffle area to develop diffraction and standing waves. They would run circles around the Polks, maybe not in low bass frequency response, but they would sonically disappear infinitely better and have better clarity and better focus and spatiality by far. As a manufacturer in Europe, Focal makes some of the best drivers; used in not only their own speakers but in many brands of expensive audiophile speakers who outsource drivers. Focal is great.
You didn't give what the second hand price would be for the more current equipment. For those who could afford an extra $3,000 they would be getting way more than a smidgen of improvement. Probably 90% better sound quality for 300% more outlay (money). Looked at it that way, it would be a savings.
Thanks, as always for chiming in and giving a lot of great comments.
Great video Scott. Would have loved to hear your opinion on the difference in how they sound compared to each other. I have been AB-ing my new to me, re-capped, 1972 pioneer SX 9000 (had one when I was a kid and loved it) to a Topping LA 90. I have been amazed at how well the pioneer stands up! The only real flaw is some hiss at high volume listening levels in quite tracks. The LA 90 is silent. But to be honest, I prefer the sound of the Pioneer at normal listening levels, no hiss is audible. The LA 90 sounds a bit clinical to my ear. Thanks for video Scott! Great topic.
Hey Bob, thanks for the feedback. I would certainly love to do an A/B session with with any of the new Yamaha amps. If I can get a loaner, I'll certainly put it up against several vintage amps/receivers.
I just picked up a sweet pair of Polk 7B speakers for $130 (my second pair) hard to beat the sound with that peerless tweeter. And the bass on these sounds so good for such a small speaker. 😊
Nice pickup! And they have great imaging as well, a great under-the-radar gem.
Great video. How does the sound compare between the two systems?
Thanks George! This was only to review the up front costs. Unfortunately, I do not have one of the new Yamahas to do a listening comparison. As I am a vintage audio collector, that may not happen unless I get a loaner at some point.
I love vintage audio and have the Yamaha cr820, technics sl 1400 turntable and polk audio monitor 7 speakers. It's a great set up. The biggest problem with vintage equipment is finding a local, honest, and competent person to do repairs.😢
Just one point. Nobody makes a new turntable of that quality that's automatic today.
I am not at all up to speed on all of the new offerings, but I cannot recall seeing any fully automatics from any manufacturer. I did not purposely select this particular table, it has just been there for several months already. I was too lazy to set something else up. :-)
@@stereoniche I think there are some low end automatics, but nothing like that JVC. I'd like to get one of those or the QLY-77F some time.
Interesting vid. I do love vintage (I own a couple of vintage turntables) and definitely see the appeal and many of the pros, but I think it's probably worth mentioning a few other things on this topic. You compared the vintage haul with brand new components at full RRP but if someone was looking at those same components used, ie a couple of years old, the price differential would narrow considerably. And then you're comparing 2 year old gear that may also still have some warranty OR is unlikely to go bad for a long time vs gear that is approaching (or over) 40 years old. That's a huge difference. There's also the cost. You don't exactly have to go back far to a time when people were literally giving vintage audio gear away (or selling it for peanuts) and I do think that's where much of this 'buy vintage' mindset comes from. Trouble is, these days people are very rarely giving it away or selling it for peanuts. A lot of vintage gear has gone from being under (or fairly) valued to vastly overvalued.
The other thing is, reliability/ longevity. I do think lots of people have slightly unrealistic expectations of how good/ reliable vintage gear is or can be. Sure, sometimes it can work flawlessly for years if you're lucky and/or it's been properly serviced/ restored. It can also break very quickly and prove to be less than reliable. Vintage gear is great if you can get it for a really good price and either you (i) can repair it yourself or (ii) have a friend that can do so for beer money or (iii) have a good, reliable repair tech local to you that is available to work on gear at fairly short notice and for a good rate. Otherwise you could be in for a lot of disappointment, downtime and possibly expenditure. I'm happy to own some vintage gear but I wouldn't have it as main system unless I was prepared to do without it when it develops a fault (as did one of my turntables). If you absolutely have to be able to use all of your system all the time and without fail, I think you'd be better off with either brand new or used but contemporary gear in all honesty.
Thanks for commenting. All valid points. The subject of the video was restricted to just Vintage vs Modern (new) up front cost. I'll look at doing a more in-depth video of some pros/cons to vintage gear as well as newer, but used gear.
@@stereoniche Yeah, that's fair enough. I appreciate the vid was confined to that specific scope.
Nice, informative video, but I would’ve enjoyed at least a cursory probe into the sonic differences of the old vs new.
Nice comparison. With the vintage system you also get an AM/FM tuner. With a modern receiver based system from Yamaha (for about the same price as the integrated amp) you can get newer means of network connectivity to streamers and such and even multimedia.
Wow! Up on stage! Great! Prior to my marriage I worked at a radio and TV shop in a small town. That’s how a guy gets hooked on stereo gear!
The JVC QL-Y66F would mop the floor with that Music Hall.
The tonearm on that JVC was a technical marvel being electronically controlled using both horizontal and vertical servos to control and dampen arm movement as the arm traces the record grooves. It would more easily control the arm for warped albums and eccentricity in the horizontal tracing of the groove during playback.
The QL-Y66F if complete comes with a low mass straight arm tube, but could be swapped out for a medium mass S shaped arm tube. This allowed the user to mount any cartridge made be it very low mass choices especially back in the 80's to more medium mass cartridge choices.
Being coreless, cogless, double servo quartz lock direct drive would blow the Music Hall away for pitch and speed stability.
The QL-Y66F was one of the finest turntables ever made and not just of its era.
All true Digby. I was not attempting to do a direct functional comparison in this video. Sadly, although I have the original box for my QL-Y66f, the S arm was not included.Thanks for adding to the conversation.
@@stereoniche All's good.... JVC back then made some top rated high tech turntables. I owned a QL-Y5F a version a few years older than the QL-Y66F. It's had the same type electro dynamic servo control arm. But the servos were not as miniaturized as those in the QL-Y66F. It also only had an S Shaped arm but operated much like the QL-Y66F.
Of all the turntables I owned and they were many it was my favorite turntable. The ED servo control tonearm works great .
Great video!!
But you leave "THE" ( for me at least!😉) question unanswered: which of the two sysyems sounds best?
I would think the "new" one: it is 50 years younger and there have been a lot of technological improvements in that time period.
What is your opinion on that?
Regards
Rob
Netherlands
LOL, well, this was restricted to only costs, but if someone wants to loan me a new Yammie integrated, I'll give it a comparison.
I found this very interesting. To me vintage audio has a soul and beauty that modern gear can't match. I rotate gear in and out of my main system and right now I'm running my Harman Kardon PM-650 that my wife surprised me with in 1984. I will put it's sound up against anything today at the same power level. I have a remote control power on/off switch and a Sabaj A10h headphone amp with RCA ins/outs as a remote volume control in the tape 1 loop. All the conveniences and I don't have to get out of my grandpa recliner. BTW what is that outro song? I really like it.
Hey Mike, thanks for the comments. I agree on the appeal of vintage gear, there was so much more put into the design and aesthetic back then. The track is "Last Train North" - TrackTribe
@@stereoniche Thanks! Track Tribe has a bunch of non copyrighted music.
@@mikecampbell5856 Yes. It is on the CZcams royalty free music list.
Love vintage gear but in all honesty I only recommend to get fully restored units. Or find something at a very nice price and restore it yourself. It's a bit like buying a 20 year old car, you need to expect repair bills exceeding the cost of the unit.
Yes, there are some other factors to consider. I plan to do a follow-up on other things to consider with vintage.
Appreciate the comparison, many could not afford the higher end but they can get higher end 1979 for less than half the price. you need to compare what $1000 could get today on vintage and new. You will find, the cheaper stuff with the same price, is not near the quality of the vintage.
Check out the latest video. 😀
@@stereoniche will do
One thing to keep in mind is that one can find contemporary gear for sale, barely used. A great way to save a lot of money. There's always people who need to sell what they recently bought, or estate sales, etc.
And one thing for sure: the Focal Aria will perform much better than the old Polk. I had Polk speakers back in the 80's, though not that particular model. Their passive radiator design was not that good, and the soft-dome tweeters were a bit buzzy.
And I used a Yamaha integrated amp on the Polks, a model that is in the ancestral line to what you picked here. It was fine if uninspiring.
Like most of the Polk Audio products of that era, the SDA-2 is a 2-way design. The passive-radiator acts like a vent (with compliance due to the suspension)
Correct, I mistyped it and added a correction in the notes section.
I'm a Hi-Fi enthusiast of 44 years, and I can say, generally speaking, in my opinion, that the BEST gear is NOT remote controlled!
You are among your fellow enthusiasts here! :-)
Nice! Yamaha CR-1020 and other 20 series receivers were nice and had discrete transistor amplifiers. Stay away from the 40 series because they used IC driver and output modules. Pioneer, Onkyo and others also used IC modules in the late 70's.
Thanks!
RE: Those Polk SDA II's have that large ten or twelve inch passive radiator for bass being driven by the dual midrange drivers - how are they a three-way speaker?
There is no motor on the passive radiator, no crossover. I see a two-way design with a passive radiator for bass.
Do I misunderstand what I am seeing?
Thanks for helping me understand the design and any errors in my perception.
Shodan. For this video, I was moreso focused on the cost comparison than the actual specs. The graphic depicting the Polk SDA 2 as being a 3 way is a typo, it should have been denoted as a 2 way with passive radiator.
Interesting subject but the important question which is not asked is, what do the systems sound like next to each other? I’m pretty sure the modern system seriously outperforms the vintage one.
Sonically, to me, they have different purposes. The modern receivers are AV... where I can immerse in a 7.1 speaker setup when watching a good program.... The vintage I have is good for first thing in the morning - a little symphony music.
Putting together a Vintage Modern System- A Like New
Pioneer SX1280, MO FI Fender Edition TT With Phono Stage and JBL L100 Classic 75s, But don't forget the Cost of Power Supply, Decent but not Expensive Cables and Interconnects, so add another 2 Grand ( on the Inexpensive side) and you have a Killer System That probably won't depreciate and with the (Economic Situation) We are in Now ! WHOA Who knows what it will cost 10 Years from now and the Marantz system it replaces has Tripled in value in 5 years, So it's all in What you Love , an Audiophile will probably not be impressed But I don't Care , Grew up With the Vintage Receivers and to me the Realworld Sound that they Produce is What I Love!!
It's taken over a Year to put this together Mainly because of the Hunt for the Speakers, 2 to 300 Calls before I found a Set in the Good Ole USA, So all I'm saying is Buy What You Love and That's all that Matters, After All we are All Different and Love Different things, that's what Matters the Most!!
Everyone that reads all this ENJOY YOUR SYSTEM and have a Great Time!
It's all about what makes us happy! Thanks so much for commenting!
I paid 200,- for a perfect focal chorus 716 and denon pma 720 sounds amazing
Modern or Vintage... hmmm... I found out that I can have both:
I hooked up a 7.2 AV system.... which is great for Star Trek, etc... Sometimes in the morning, or late at night, it's too much though. I have a vintage Yamaha receiver as well. I found out that with an A/B switch like what Monoprice has, I can switch sources for my two main tower speakers... I can use the two main speakers in a 7.2 configuration for my Home Theater Receiver.. Or with a flick of a switch, they can be hooked up to my vintage receiver - when I just want a quieter experience.
- The system is not complete yet... On my vintage receiver, the output through the Monoprice, is to the two main speakers. But as inputs, it's only used for my CD player and for the tuner. Because it only knows analog, if I want to feed the audio from my TV to it, I need to get a DAC... I'm in the process of researching them now.
- For you Scott.... I hope that you would have something like a A-Z switch... to handle all of your receivers.... I'm only half-joking... Good Luck.
Good comparison. Cost is factored very well, but, isn't the sound comparison supposed to figure in here? I know it's all in the listener's ear, but that to me is the heart of the comparison. I was waiting for that, and it didn't come. Is it in another video? Thanks.
Hey Mark! Thanks for the question. I am strictly a vintage collector, so unless someone wants to loan me one, I'll be restricting my reviews to vintage gear. This was just a quick exercise to price compare as many feel that vintage gear has become too pricey over the years.
Cool, just curious. My Kenwood KR-6160 was only $200 purchased locally last summer, and sounds great. You can bet there’s nothing I can buy for that money would compare! Thanks for the reply and posting this video. 👍🏻
With prices ballooned with the top Vintage Receivers might as well get a Luxman or Accuphase modern Integrated Amps! they both have Vintage vibe!
It's actually harder to compare prices than just putting them in a calculator that adjusts for inflation, but i understand the impulse. From what i understand, speaker technology has improved quite a bit, and now the cost of speakers that sound great is way down. That doesn't mean vintage speakers don't sound good though. While there are a lot of extras, I'm not sure new amps have progressed as much as new speakers. I'd like to do a bunch of a/b testing of old vs. new, but i don't have the means or the time. There is an English guy with a channel who occasionally talks about comparisons, but i haven't found one that does it on a regular basis.
It is certainly time consuming. Then, of course, trying to compare others to others, etc. and there is no time to compare everything. Which is why I have planned to mostly just use the Advents as my baseline for med/large speaker reviews, but occasionally, there may be a good reason to do something like a Frazier vs Klipsch since they are so similar.
Cool😊
Did you give a comment on the comparibility of the sound quality between the old and the new hifi components?
No, this was only a theoretical cost comparison.
I can tell you that my friend and I have both vintage and new equipment, and I would take my new gear over vintage all day. I have compared that exact model you have in this video next to my newer Yamaha, and it definitely sounds and operates much better. I was tired of repairing vintage equipment all the time. My back up system which is vintage is now down. The receiver and turntable broke the same day! I am not an electrician, so I have to pay for someone to fix all that stuff.
Certainly caveats to either, but while my vintage gear certainly needs periodic maintenance, I've never had a catastrophic failure which I have had on 10 yr old gear.
I suspect the new amp'freq response may be wider and with a flatter line .The vintage one may need it's capacitors changed but how knows??
A 10 yr old Emotiva 5 channel amp I recently sold had to be almost all recapped, but who knows? :-)
I recently discovered vintage gear after purchasing a used pair of Zu Omen Dirty Weekend speakers. I had a whole suite of mid-fi gear, and it simply was not doing it for me. I have gone through probably $20,000 or so in gear in the past two years or so...
Then I bought these Zu speakers, and boy this was tough, bought more gear, amp and preamp that matched incredibly good with the Zu's... Still not getting it.
Then I stumbled upon a video regarding vintage Sansui, yes, brand specific stereo receivers, paired with the Zu speakers specifically, and I found an old, in working condition, Sansui 2000, circa 1969... Then I had a minor issue with the 2000 and jumped back on FBMP and found a one owner 4000 unit and went and picked it up for another $200. I did a service on it myself and she is sounding fantastic.
Meanwhile, I tore out my new gear, most of it is now gone, sold, and am sticking with the Sansui, the Zu DW's and a Mofi StudioDeck TT I picked up with their MasterTracker cartridge. I did install my PS Audio Gaincell DAC/Preamp and use that as my digital hub out to the Sansui via RCA. I use a WiiM Pro for streaming. I have the TV and Oppo BDP-83 hooked up too, with the Sansui handling the sound.
Everyone that has heard this has been completely surprised at the sound quality out of this old Sansui. Just the FM tuner alone is night and day when compared to modern gear. The Sansui is incredible with bass and has an airy tube sound in the midrange. the highs have that bit of sweetness to them, something that just tickles the ears. Best of all, no ear fatigue.
You found that Sansui smoothness. It just has to be experienced. Don't miss the AU-20000 review.
@@stereoniche Yes, and I won't. TY!
There really isn’t any real “comparison” here if the sound of both setups isn’t discussed. I have a Yamaha AS-801, that puts out 100 Hi Current Amps, with THD at 0.019….a very important spec that was not mentioned here at all. It drives a set of KLH Kendalls, that reach down to 25hz, with a sensitivity rated at 96db. I stream and play Discs and the AS801 has digital inputs to support both and a turntable as well, which to me is a huge waste of money in 2023. Brand new, the AS801 is 899.00, the KLH Kendalls are 1499.00, that’s les than 2500 bucks, and pushing any source there is no way the Yamaha recover or those Polks will sound better. Equipment today is far better, especial speakers!! Gone are the compressed paper cones replaced by more responsive and accurate materials that I grew up with in the 60-70 & 80’s!! Without a proper “audition” this “comparison” isn’t one at all!
It was only a high level cost comparison for this video, correct.
I think one reason the vintage receivers sound better is that they have more robust power supplies than new equipment. That allows for higher current to give the speakers more punch.
Enjoyed the video. Most of my audio gear is vintage. Some purchased when it was new. I think it's important to keep in mind that all gear becomes vintage eventually, so even if one spends big bucks on the latest thing - it's still going to be vintage someday. New gear comes with a warranty, and should be trouble-free for many years. Older gear needs attention from time to time. It's a trade-off on value. On sound, I would say it's a wash too. New gear can sound stunning, but so can vintage - if it's properly set up and well-cared for. The gear that does not get much love these days is from the 80s and early 90s. Usually, you can find those pieces at a very good discount. For some reason, they aren't coveted as much as the 70s amps and receivers. Carry on!
Can't argue on any of your points, well said!
@@stereoniche Thank you. I don't have near the collection as you have, nor the room to display it all. But I regularly rotate gear out of my basement for use in various rooms in my home. For some reason, from a very early age, I realized I could remember the model numbers of each piece of gear I came in contact with, and many of the pieces I desired but could never afford. So your YT channel really speaks to me in a personal way. Please keep making videos.
@@mxbishop Great to hear. For years, I have so much enjoyed the collecting of all this great gear I admired as a kid, then one day I realized there are surely a LOT of others that feel the same way which is why I started the channel. Thanks for watching, a LOT more to come as I work my way thru the collection.
I wouldnt trade out the harman kardon hk 720 turntable over jvc q series but would consider picking one up If I came across one used...Years ago i owned a jvc higher end turntable ..cant remember the model# thiough.They do seem reliable from what i can tell?.Over the past 15 years ive pick up mostly used H.K. componets due to there outstanding sound quality & reliability, an have learnt to cautiously fix em up & modify them( disc players specificly)... By the way My turntable Listed for $400.00 new.I paid about $150 for mine.. used like new .......Luvin it!
I've not yet had a HK TT. Came close many years ago, but it sold before I could get it.
Interesting video, a lucid explanation of inflation. I'm curious if the "new" Yamaha amp can drive a 4 ohm load? It seems that many "modern" amps ain't designed for 4 ohms no more and that's a pity because it limits many vintage speakers from use. Like your 4 ohm Polk's and my Ohm Acoustics model L's and H's. My measly kitchen system Pioneer SX-434 (15wpc) can drive 4 ohm speaker systems or parallel 8 ohm speakers. Can't lose sight of inflation, ain't no doubt about it. During the 1970's/80's one of the best bang-for-buck purchases was audio components. Being a jaded septuagenarian vintage guy, most of my gear is original purchase from later 1970's/early 80's. Kept in good working order (you gotta have a fix-it guy or girl) it is extremely satisfying. The advances in audio from say, the 1940's to the 1970's was revolutionary. However, from the 1970's till today it's more evolutionary. So for me, quality gear from later 1970's is the bees knees.
Thanks for the comments. I pretty much see it the same way on the revolutionary changes to audio from the 40's - 70's, it was quite dramatic. A lot of technology peaked by the mid-80's. On the new Yamaha A-S1200, it is actually rated for both 4 ohm AND even down to 2 ohm! So it has some hefty specs and is a very nice amp (although I have not seen/heard one first hand).
@@stereoniche- madone, 2 freakin' ohms. Awesome. One of my few audio regrets is never getting an amp (power, integrated, receiver) that could drive 2 ohms. My Ohm Acoustics model L's and H's are rated (nominal) 4 ohms so paralleling is not possible with my Hitachi. If the A-S1200 is rated for 90wpc into 8 ohms, how much more power into 4 and 2 ohms respectively? Betcha its at least 150wpc into 2 ohms.
@@martyjewell5683 Specs are only shown for 4 ohm, 150 W ＋ 150 W (4 ohms). It is a robust amp for sure.
Absolutely well stated, and true
1980s vintage equipment I bought 10 years ago has double, even tripled in price. I wish I has bought a lot more back then. And it is better quality and features. I could not afford new stuff today.
It has certainly been a good investment. How many can say that and also get to enjoy it? :-)
What about maintenance costs? New gear comes with several years warranty, so basically there are no maintenance costs. But if your old system breaks, then it may be expensive. Proper spare parts are often hard or impossible to get.
One thing, your new stuff will probably run for the next 20 years maintenance free but the vintage stuff will probably need some up keep and or repairs which can get expensive.
Sure, maintenance is always a concern, however, even after doing a full recap/restore, often times it is still less expensive than full priced new gear. There is no right or wrong here, just personal preferences.
Price comparison makes sense. The Focal aria however, really sound nothing like polk. They are far more on the analytical side where polk is on the soft side. SVS might be a little closer to polk.
Thanks!
What I do NOT like about vintage is so few line level inputs. I need at least 4. Also I want banana plugs for speaker outputs. Those little spring clips are infuriating. I do not need AM/FM. And the modern stuff also often has too few line inputs. So, I tend to go with stuff about 35 years old now, and about 10 years old now. I DO like digital inputs with the new stuff. So I have Crown PSL-2 preamps and PL-2 power amps in two of my systems. For my main, all purpose system I have Cambridge CXA80 (don't use the power amp section on that), Cambridge AZUR 851W, Cambridge CXNII and Cambridge CXC. One of my bedroom systems has a nice sounding Pioneer SA-8100 with those damned spring clips!
Not sure why it took manufacturers so long to put good speaker binding posts on gear to handle nice sized gauges. I like all audio, mix and match what works best for your specific setup. 🙂
I get why people want these high end vintage units. Can you tell me where i can get vintage human ears that haven't lost any of the frequency range of hearing audible sounds?
Isnt there a set limit to all this audiophile expectation and potential listening experience?
This "vintage" gear, the gear of my youth, has a totally different sound than this new modern gear. Two different animals. To me, my vintage Sansui is delivering a sonic presentation that no modern gear can touch in say that $10,000 to $20,000 range where I used to play. I cannot get over the difference in sound produced, the way the engineers at Sansui thought about sound and the engineering that went into producing it. It is difficult to desribe sound, at least for me. There is no clinicalness or digital to this older gear. It takes me back in time, I am sitting here right now listening to a very clean FM signal of the local classic rock station. No internet required! I paid $200 for a working Sansui 2000, and it blew me away. I went and found a Sansui 4000, a one owner unit that I did have to service. I was able to do that in a couple of hours out on the patio, and it was not that difficult. I cannot do that with my PS Audio or Parasound gear... When finished, it sounds awesome. Even the phono stage is a different animal in this unit, besting a Parasound, Pro-Ject and Schiit phono preamps I have in the house. Try it, you may just like it. ;-)
Been doing this a long time. If you want vintage especially anything mechanical, be prepared to get them back to snuff. New you unboxing them, and enjoy them. Easy. Vintage is about replacing worn parts, chasing down documentation, and techs to get it working right. Not easy to do. At the very least you are looking things like tired electrolytic capacitors with high ESR, and electrically leaking if not physically, and a dead short like a resistor. Noisy transistors would be next. Seldom are you getting off scott free. New gear is very expensive for sure. But you can go a bit less than shown here. Depends where you are. I refuse to buy new because it is outrageous. I have some electronics skills, and I am very careful what I buy. I have a TEAC A-7300 reel to reel I am slowly restoring. Save the work, buy new. Save potentially on used assuming it needs nothing. Be careful what you look for, as there are no modern equivalents on my reel to reel or casstte deck. Receivers and such, much different story. If you are really. Buying vintage, and care it is right, buy from a reputable dealer like Sky Audio. They will test, and restore gear best as possible. Also vintage gear, parts are hard to get like, motors, head stacks, ring emitter transistors. So you have to know what you are doing. Also you should be using an isolation transformer with variac, and a dim bulb powering gear slowly, and carefully so you are not promoting any more damage, than could already be. I watch XrayTony and Mr. Carlson's Lab, and learn allot. I have been doing audio since I was 5. In my 60s now. I love this stuff. Yeah I was the kid who saved the teacher from doing anything stupid on the AV gear at school. Vintage is great, new is great. Do your homework, and understand what you want. New is the budget with warranty. Vintage, you are on your own unless a dealer will support you.
Hi! I’m still scratching head because I wonder how a vintage amp compares to an entry level Denon/Yamaha/Marantz/NAD/Pioneer A/B amp under $600. The quality of transistors and capacitors has improved over the years. The circuit boards for these vintage amps and newer entry level amps seem comparable. The major difference is that vintage amps have more switches and knobs on the front panel. Anyways, are vintage amps overrated compared to new entry-level A/B amps?
Not according to many, but this was just a simple cost comparison video.
@@stereoniche The brand, the resale value, the looks and the nostalgia play a huge part in the appreciation of an amp. I would wager that a Cambridge Audio AXA35 ($400) would outshine most vintage amps.
@@user-xg6zz8qs3q I also have an amplifier. The sound of the vintage amplifier is good.
@@thesourabh2672 So I answered my own question. I previously had a 1979 Continental Edison PA9109. I thought it was great, it turns out to be mediocre at best. I suppose that most vintage amps you don’t hear about are just mediocre. I recently bought a Creek 4240 and it’s way better.
l have always try to buy second-hand quality hi-fi gear. The new gear that l have bought over the years has needed much repair…..Nakamichi 550. Luxman R1070. l have saved thousands!
In years from now the new stuff from today will be considered “vintage” and it’s always been that way.
What’s old is new again.
What sounds better?
Saving a lot of money by switching to vintage. 😄
The low price of the vintage speakers re enforces the consensus that speakers have improved over the years more than amps. I had a Yamaha CA 2010 back in the day and it would sound fabulous powering modern speakers.
For the vast majority, what changed was the size. Consumer tastes shifted to smaller and smaller speakers or even to ceiling or inside wall mounting with the increased adoption of surround sound. Large vintage speakers, from any era, are a hard sell.
@@stereoniche The retro Missions and JBL's seem to be popular on the forums, dunno if they are actually selling tho.
Modern amplifiers have a DAC, which is worth @ $200 or more, and more recent connections. And modern components should be more reliable. And they may have higher quality output, with less noise or popping.
I am pretty much 1976-1979, and 5 systems set-up, probable another 4 in closets. However, wanted something in Living Room that I do not have to worry about. So, I bought the Yamaha A-S1200 all 53 lbs. In 2021 everyone on Internet wanted 3k, I finally found a dealer selling for $2199 and no Tax. The strange thing about this integrated amp is that it hates vintage speakers, hooked up Celestion Ditton 66, horrible sound, Cerwin Vega AT 12, horrible sound. So, did the gamble 1 day, drove 150 miles 1 way to get a pair of Naim NBL that were very expensive and are quiet weird, but was a success, and sound very good with the Yamaha. Ditton 66 have wired to a Kenwood 9000G and sound great. Cerwin Vegas have wired to a Pioneer SX-980 and again sound great.
Very interesting Robert, thanks for sharing your experience. Not something I would have anticipated either. There are certainly times when an amp/speaker combo has an obvious synergy, but that is most often a rare occurrence than the norm (in my experience).
Owe a CR2020 since new, been spending the past 15 years in a locker 5,000kms away at great expense. Haven't figured out a way to transport it and hundreds of records across country (Canada) and I don't really want to make a special trip to get it.
Well, make it a vacation trip, grab a small trailer on the return and just enjoy the road trip! :-)
The vintage by far is the better deal however performance wise the new system here will way out perform the vintage mainly due to the turntable and speakers.
Are you sure those Polk speakers are a 3-way design and not a 2-way?
True! Should be 2 way + Passive :-)
The Focal speakers are $3,600 each.
I don't know much about this stuff. But I know my parents had a vintage Kenwood system in the 80s and as far as sound goes it sounded way better then the newer systems of today. Then only real reason for a modern system in my thinking is only good for surround sound theater experience. But for music vintage systems just sound better.
I can certainly agree with that perspective! :-)
Is that a Pioneer SX-3700 I see behind you?
Close! It is an SX-3800
@@stereoniche I used to own a 3700. I loved it! Wish I still had it.
I'm not sure why there is so much love for the vintage Japanese stuff, outside of nostalgia (they did look friggin cool) but it was always mid fi gear. If ya wanna go down memory lane then look to things like Dynaco, which despite the price, had superb sounding transformers. Of course all this old gear will need a rebuild to replace things like worn-out caps, and addition of modern input jacks and speaker binding post if you actually want performance. Other great vintage stuff would be say, Macintosh or Conrad-Johnson. etc. Just opinion of another random internet guy.
Lots of pros and cons no matter which side of the fence you are seated.
I think speaker technology has advanced the most.
I think overall what has happened is that the technology improvements for speakers has lowered the cost to make a good sounding speaker, but the art of creating a well voiced speaker still lies in the hands of the engineer. Graphs simply cannot determine if you will or will not like how a speaker sounds.
"Found it interesting..." more than interesting. My take: money is important. My specific example is this: Technics 1200 turntable. About 1 grand. but if you spend about another grand on tweaks: Feet, Mat, damping the chassis, bearing upgrade, platter damping: then you get the quality that would would cost 20K for a high end belt drive. (You have the advantage of a Direct Drive).
Very good points, the Technics SL-1200 being the longest running production turntable is certainly a winner.
what's the point in comparing equipment by prices "then and now" without comparing by what they are made for - by sound?
Cost is a factor for some people. :-)
@@stereoniche why not to compare some chi-fi then? They have gear cheap as dirt. I suggest to compare 2 setups which sound +/- similar and THAN compare prices. Otherwise you compare an old Porsche to a new one judging only by price
4:10 Why is a 1984 $700 turntable now less expensive than 1978 $560 amp? Was there that much inflation between 1978 and 84 to make the amp surpass the ttable in value? According to inflation calculator, the 1978 amp would be $2592.42 and 1984 TTable would be $2033.54 today.
Not sure, I'll have to go back and find that calculator.
I own a Yamaha CR-2020 which I purchased new in 1978 for $670. I just had it recapped and brought back to factory specs for $915. What range in price might it bring in today's market? I'll be keeping it for a bit but may sell it in a few years or so. Thanks in advance!
It would take a little time to find some comparables, but I would think it would be in the $1600 - 2200 range if the restoration is fully documented and the unit is in very good physical condition.
I think there is a bit more to tech specs than watts and remote control. THD, wow and flutter, flatness of frequency response. Technology has moved on so a piece of electronics at an inflation adjusted value has very different performance today than 30-40 years ago. With speakers also the driver suspension (brittle rubber) has to be taken into account. Bottom line: you get what you pay for, vintage or modern.
All true. This was really just a quick cost comparison, not a deep dive into either side.
Obviously, to me at least, that modern system is going to sound much better. I have modern Polk speakers better than the ones you show and they do not sound as good as the Focals. I listen to my Yamaha A-S1200 through Focal Stellias and it sounds great. Nice and warm with taut bass.
But which one sounds better?
If I ever get one, I will do another video on sound vs this one that was just touching on a basic cost comparison.
An old Mercedes probably doesn’t drive as well as a new Mercedes😁
@@milesv5352 But many would prefer how cool they are riding in them. 🙂
You get a great new complete audio system for the price of the old one! Yamaha R-N803 if you still can find one and really A-S and R-N line's are blast from the past regarding their power amplifier AB class Sunken stages, perform good and have long proven longevity and reliability. It has a basic room correction and streamer along other things like phono input stage (and quiet deacent balance one) and not bad subwoofer menagement. Around 800 $. Pair of Elac DBR62's (one of the Andrew Jones latest budget creations that turned out to be very, very good) bookshelf speakers which perform very nice for around 500~600$. A sub or pair of them like SVS SB-1000 which are now about 450$ a peace. If you fancy add in turnable and you have objectively and subjectively much more capable and brand new complete audio system and far from not good made one which will keep you happy for a long time.
That could certainly work for many, but for another many of us, it doesn't bring the nostalgia we long for which I need to cover in a future video. Thank you for adding to the conversation!
@@stereoniche well you can pair it with Wharfedale Linton Heritage speakers or CLA 10 if you are all that much nostalgic. Most folk's streame now days and this is much more adequate for tham. I don't make my recommendations on bias or nostalgia even I like old AB class Yamahas and speakers I recommend are from golden era designer. It's all actually based on measurements check out ASR!
I made the mistake of buying a pair of Polk SDA 2 speakers in late '85. I had them for less than a week then put them up for sale. 6 yrs later I finally threw them out because no one wanted them even @ $150.00 for the pair. They SUCKED BALLS!!!!
So what do you really think about them? :-) Sorry to hear they were not for you, but your experience I do not think is what the majority of owners have experienced.
Uhm so how much would a 1978 speaker cable cost in today's prices?
Check into that and get back to us.
I say go both ha ha…the initial cost of Vintage is not all there is to acquisition unless you’re just “collecting” . You must have a shop near by to do your service (repair) unless you want to ship everything and there are down sides to that..I have new and vintage Yamaha, and all has been serviced after purchase on…EBay, Audio Mart, Canuck Audio mart..SkyFi Audio..are my sources
Yes indeed. At some point, I will do a video of all the issues one must be willing to contend with for vintage gear. Thanks for adding to the conversation!
Or just buy a TPA3255 based little chip amp for 100 bucks and play everything from your smartphone. It's dead silence, super efficient, 0.00x THD and about 100db dynamics.
But you're not taking in consideration to buy used modern equipment. It's probably easier to find that new or a similar Yamaha than that old one. Plus it can be risky to buy a vintage amp, suddenly it can start to sound bad and you need to repair it. Same with speakers and turntables if you're not very handy. But I don't mind vintage at all, I have a pair of old Tannoy's. :-)
Certainly, each side has their risks. I have some slightly older gear from around 2009 that went kaput, so you never know really.