Kind of sort of. A re-made Snell A/III perhaps. Absolutely limitless bass and stereo image.
Would I buy one now? No. The woofers were made with extra mass and the mid and tweets are seriously outclassed today by better models... but if a modern remake appeared, especially the curved upper baffle and huge bass cabinet I'd have to give them a listen.
A pair of Western Electric 59A amps with meshplate 252 output tubes. The tubes alone would be worth north of $60k, so the amps would probably be north of $150k. I’ve heard a single amp, not a stereo pair, and it is easily the second best amp I’ve heard. The best, a one-of OTL would be a good choice too, but it is a bit scary operationally, so I would be more comfortable with the 59A, not that this would ever be a reality.
I haven’t followed the old brands but a SET all modern parts would be cool. An AR SP3 preamp. A Krell KSA50 rebuilt would be fun to try. I doubt if it sounds any better than my Pass XA25
Luxman M-6000 power amp and matching C-1000 pre amp. No idea what the combination sounds like, but, the combination is HiFi beauty in my eyes! In addition, a great testimony to the late Tim De Paravicini who designed this system.
JBL Paragon stereo loudspeaker. Frank Sinatra had three of them for home playback of his studio recording tapes. They were originally intended as the center channel for a three channel playback system with JBL Hartsfields as the L/R.
A mint 301 would be a nice real world choice of vintage gear. I actually like the looks of the 401 a little bit more, and it has a better motor. A friend has a 401 with a transplanted grease bearing from an older model 301. That is a really nice combination.
If you want a really souped-up version, check out the Artisan Fidelity reworkings of the 401. Couple this table with a good modern tonearm and it would be a world beater.
My college days speakers, many an all-nighter with Alison Steele (the nightbird) and Cousin Brucie 1967 to 1970
Got ransacked, 1973, have missed them ever since. I'll use them in my Garage System, move my current B&W bookcase speakers to my shop, retire the small Boston's there.
Oh yeah, and notice, they had level controls for the mid and tweet.
I'm not really a vintage guy...but if I ever had money to burn, I'd love a 70s era Marantz receiver. They are just gorgeous. It wouldn't even have to work. Just sit on a shelf and look pretty! LOL
JBL 4350 monitors, first speaker I really fell hard for...couldn't even dream of owning them at the time ~1976. They are monsters and one of the A'gonrs has two pair I believe.
ESS AMT-1 Towers, A Marantz 7C and an original Ampzilla. The AMT-1 Towers were a 10" woofer transmission line version of the original AMT-1, with much more linear bass and better driver integration than the ported 2-way, due IMO to its higher placement closer to ear level. The 7C is a well known legend of HiFi, and the Ampzilla was the culmination of Jim Bongiorno's career...the first really harshness-free high powered amp. I spent a lot of time enjoying all of these, but never owned them.
the Klipshorn to own from the past would be one of the first twelve ever built. They had Western Electric 713A compression drivers in them. These days, you can spend north of $20,000 per pair just for these drivers, and that price would be worth it given what those drivers deliver soundwise.
Forgot to mention two others on my list. Dahlquist DQ10's which I purchased in 1980's, will remain with me to the end, the other, Technics SP-10 MkII is in my main rig.
Probably the one vintage I don't own would be Technics SP-10 MKIII with Albert Porter plinth.
Of all my gear I really like and hold the most complicated opinion about my Lamm L1. I would love to try an L2, but financially it is way down the to-do list.
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