For Old Timers who experienced the "Golden Age" of Audio of the 60s and 70s.

Assertions of the superiority of contemporary equipment vs. vintage equipment, such as have been made in some of the posts above and in many past threads on this kind of topic, often tend to be based on what IMO is an unfair and flawed comparison. What contemporary equipment should be compared with is vintage equipment that **today** sells for similar prices.  Not a comparison between, for example, a modern $50K system and a system comprised of vintage components that can be bought today for perhaps a few percent of that amount, or even less.

And on the basis of that kind of comparison, based on extensive experience I have had (mainly during the 1990s) with vintage tube components of the 1950s and 1960s, there are countless pieces I could cite from the likes of H. H. Scott, Pilot, Fisher, Brook, Radio Engineering Laboratories, McIntosh, Marantz, and others, that sell today for a few hundred to a few thousand dollars, that if in top condition and/or well restored I would easily consider to be competitive with (and in many cases superior to) their modern counterparts that go for similar prices **today.**

And even in the upper echelons of the price spectrum, there are reasons why Western Electric speaker drivers from the 1930s, Tannoy speaker drivers from the 1940s and later decades, Brook power amplifiers from the 1950s, and some Marantz tube products from the 1950s and 1960s sell for tens of thousands of dollars today. In some cases for MANY tens of thousands of dollars. And the reasons are certainly not just nostalgia. In fact there are at least a few of our most knowledgeable and experienced members right here at Audiogon who have assembled systems with some of those products, which if we were to hear I would expect would leave many of us envious.

Regards,
-- Al

Bifwynne 6-4-2016 5:47pm EDT
Al, ...  how much stock do you place on some of the high-tech materials used in better speakers such as neodymium magnets, lightweight and stiff cone materials (e.g., beryllium domes, graphene, and so forth).

Hi Bruce,

Frankly, I never pay much if any attention to such things.  As I and others have said here many times in the past, what usually matters most is how well a chosen design approach is implemented, and not which approach is chosen.

And when it comes to speakers that applies doubly in my case, as I'm more knowledgeable about electronics than about speakers.

Best regards,
-- Al 

Hi Bruce (Bifwynne),

As I indicated, Western Electric speaker drivers from the 1930s, and to a somewhat lesser extent Tannoy speaker drivers from the subsequent several decades, often go for tens of thousands of dollars these days. I believe it is very possible to spend six figures creating a Western Electric-based pair of speakers, with custom built modern cabinets and modern crossover components (or perhaps active crossovers used with multiple amplifiers). I haven’t ever heard such a system, but based on multiple accounts I’ve heard and also read about over the years from audiophiles I consider to be particularly credible, and who have either done that or have heard such systems, I don’t doubt that such a system can provide performance commensurate with those kinds of prices.

During the 1990s I did own two different pairs of very large vintage Tannoy speakers from the 1960s, the drivers from which would probably go for upwards of $10K today. I was not particularly enamored of their performance, but my belief is that the reasons related to their cabinets and perhaps also to the condition of their crossover components.  That belief is reinforced by reports here and elsewhere of experiences of others I consider to be particularly credible.

As far as electronics is concerned, one of the best sounding amplifiers I have ever heard, at least when used with an easy to drive pair of speakers, was a pair of Marantz Two monoblocks, ca. 1960, which I owned for a time during the 1990s. I believe they would go for a bit more than $10K today. I also owned a pair of the legendary and even more valuable Marantz 9 monoblocks, btw, which in the case of the particular examples I had were outperformed by the Two’s.

And then there are the best of the vintage tube tuners, such as the Marantz 10B (I’ve owned two of them), and the REL Precedent I currently own. I haven’t heard any of the upper echelon models that Magnum Dynalab has produced in the last decade or so (I have heard some of their older models), but I would certainly be surprised if a 10B in top condition, or a Precedent in top condition together with the necessary external stereo multiplex adapter (the Precedent pre-dates the stereo era), would not be competitive with them in terms of both sensitivity and sound quality.

Best regards,
-- Al

A couple of great sites, at which most Radio Shack and Allied Radio catalogs can be found, going back to the first issue (1939 and 1929 respectively):

http://www.radioshackcatalogs.com/

http://www.alliedcatalogs.com/

Enjoy! Regards,
-- Al