I've tried several times to replace my 20 year old amps with something comparable in price... only to be disappointed. I own 2 Brystons... I just had my 4B-ST restored (by Bryston... an amazing deal!) and am very happy to have it working again... sounding possibly better than new with modern caps. I also have a newer 4B-SST2... which at twice the price, does not sound better in my opinion. It's more refined, but less exciting. My all time favorite amp (don't laugh) is my Nakamichi PA-7AmkII. I had it restored/recapped and it sounded better than ever for a few years, but it's now nickel & diming me with weird power up issues. I so LOVE this amp, but wonder how much i can afford to keep it running reliably. This is the problem with big vintage amps. No matter how great, they can start to develop weird little problems. I also share with the poster above... that my trusty backup amp for 20 years is a Hafler P3000.... not GREAT.. but surprisingly good!!
20 Year Old Amplifiers compared to 2017
Just a random thought, but I’m curious just how well the state of the art solid-state amplifiers from 20 years ago compare to some of today’s better offerings. For example, what does a pair of Mark Levinson 33Hs or a Krell FPB 600 sound like if compared to the latest offerings from Pass Labs or Ayre Acoustics?