The Allure of Vintage Audio Gear

I put together a decent system in the mid -90s, and haven't changed it since. It has been re-cabled, re-capped and cleaned; one broken volume custom pot in the pre-amp has led to replacement of both pots with two quality stepped-resistor attenuators. For 30 years I haven't really compared to new(er) stuff as things other than HiFi took priority. Last year something else went awry (DAC), and I started looking again. So far, my conclusion is that good vintage components, properly maintained, can sound as good as modern gear. Emphasis on good components.

Do I "prefer" vintage? No, not as such. But I would need to hear something that convincingly sounds better, not just different. Until now, this hasn't happened - provided I stay within reasonable pricing comparisons (i.e. not a £20k modern pair of speakers vs. my £5k inflation-adjusted 1995 ones).

Similarly, I would say that there is no 'vintage sound'; a Yamaha CA-2010 through a pair of Yamaha NS-1000 does not sound like an Audiolab 8000A through a pair of Rogers LS3/5a, never mind the source.

Vintage, especially speakers, isnt even close. The allure seems to be that on poor recordings, the vintage stuff reveals less and as such is less irritating. 

Modern High End gear BLOWS AWAY vintage gear.

I have a collection of fine vintage gear... all REBUILT to OEM standards... Marantz 2325, Sansui G7500, Kenwood KA3500.KT5300, fully kitted Maranzt 4415/SQA1/CD4 demodulator/wired remote, Akai AS980/wired remote, NAD Monitor, Teac Reference, etc... all of them have been rebuilt to OEM specs.

But the only "vintage" gear that stands the march of time is my ARC D70-II and Conrad Johnson PV9 with the Teflon cap upgrades.  And the Acoustic Energy AE1 speakers... with the factory provided rubber surrounds!

Even so, modern gear like my Aleph 2 and 5 clones, FW F4 and F5, SIT 3, CJ MF2100 and various modern preamps and amps simply sound FAR bettter than vintage. The soundstage, detail, dynamics are FAR better than any of that vintage stuff.

Mind you, my vintage stuff was the top of the line then and it has been rebuilt to OEM -no LEDs- in the last three years... yet, yet... they sound very good for a mid 70s, mid 80s product.

I like them in my 4th and 5th systems, not for my main systems. They just don’t have the quality of modern audio design.

So, no, vintage is OK but be aware they will need serious rebuilds and will never sound as accurate as modern designs.  Forget about getting a deep soundstage, you will get good lateral positioning of the instruments but the detail and depth will be missing.   This is for the best of the best then... forget about the Marantz 2215 offer on eBay for $800 (absolute rip off ).

OK, my Linn LP12 is 35 years old... BUT, it’s like Grand Pa’s axe.. It currently is a Linn LP12, Trampolin 2, Lingo, Karousel, Keel, Ekos 2, etc.... the only thing that is vintage is the plinth.... everything else has been changed.

@esporma

Well, I know no one is going to change your mind, but I had someone over the other day who was dumbfounded and scratching his head. He was struggling with the fact that he spent $150,000 on completely modern equipment, yet I was getting sound quality that was - a little colored? Yes, but - as good and better than his for 1/3 the cost with vintage equipment regarding soundstage placement, detail, timber accuracy and particularly depth, height as well as breadth. The depth to the point that it is holographic / surround. He called it seductive and arresting.

Go figure.

My take…Depends on the gear, an appropriate setting and personal expectations. Above all it’s your ears and not the buffoon that listens out of his wallet. I don’t know how many times I’ve heard negative Vintage assumptions because your equipment is 30+ years old. I know there’s better out there both new and old, that said my system is well tuned, in the right setting with most believing close to perfect examples visually and sonically. A well set up Infinity IRS Beta layout powered by two Yamaha Pc 5002m’s (aka 101m) is hard to beat. Beyond the specs, old reviews, and dollars… 0 complaints so far. 
Cheers