Did the Old Receivers Sound Good?

Yes,

But it is not about specs,that's marketing one up-manship, keep in mind, the main brands made their reputations with receivers, then separates .... Of course old equipment needs to be checked/renewed by a pro, components drift out of original specs ...

You still have the split, TUBES or SS. And early Transistors vs later with better transformers ...

I have 2 Fisher 500C Tube Receivers,

 

One is at VAS getting it’s tuner aligned.

Main one, I loan to friends when their equip is in the shop. Everyone is surprised how good it sounds.

SS: I’ve got a Yamaha CR1040, two sets of speakers, shop and basement system, sounds darn good

 

Onkyo AVR, Current Sony AVR, they are nothing to sneeze at.

Many times we hear our better equipment thru the better speakers, thus

.......

We should add, at the same time some darn good sounding speakers were becoming affordable, AR turntable changed things, and the music content was revolutionary!!!

Finally: specs/reviews (I constantly read Julian Hirsch during the ’specs era’)...

I settled on: "Is it INVOLVING?"

Sucks you into the content, forget the equipment. Listen for a long session with no fatigue?

For me, tubes are more involving than SS, and then we have the issue: Every time you approach anything: auto; receiver; tt, speakers, coffee maker: is it still a thrill to see/be glad of your choice.

Keeping vintage going properly can be very satisfying, and every time you turn it on, the expectations are high.

It is wise to find a pro to check/repair any vintage components, resistors etc. go out of spec. I don’t ’upgrade’, I just get back to original performance.

I have compared new/old/SS/tube, vintage tubes do it for me.

Also, the vintage FEATURES are a big draw for me.