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I suspect all your "pro-sumer" decks are old enough to still be using discrete analog circuitry in the amplification stages. I doubt if a newly designed 2015 R/R deck would use them however. That is simply because the availability of the discrete transistor is going the way of the dinosaur (or the costs are so high the economics don't add up). It is the reason Parasound management told John Curl he could not have his favorite discrete jFETs in the JC-3 pre-amp design. Their cost was out of bounds and the availability uncertain. The JC-3 now uses IC op-amps.
I think the closer you are to the source of music, the more you can get away with some degradation that goes less noticed. The further down the chain to the final product, the more noticeable any degradation will be. That is why I think recording studios can get away with IC opamps in mixing panels but an audiophile at home will hear their effects immediately. And of course, we don't know how much better any commercial recording could have been if the recording engineers did use all class A discrete components in mixing panels and mic pre-amps.
I am surprised about what you say for tape longevity, particularly in light of (admittedly) anecdotal evidence that recent re-masters are suffering in AQ due to the age of the mastering tapes. But I defer to your judgement here...
I suspect all your "pro-sumer" decks are old enough to still be using discrete analog circuitry in the amplification stages. I doubt if a newly designed 2015 R/R deck would use them however. That is simply because the availability of the discrete transistor is going the way of the dinosaur (or the costs are so high the economics don't add up). It is the reason Parasound management told John Curl he could not have his favorite discrete jFETs in the JC-3 pre-amp design. Their cost was out of bounds and the availability uncertain. The JC-3 now uses IC op-amps.
I think the closer you are to the source of music, the more you can get away with some degradation that goes less noticed. The further down the chain to the final product, the more noticeable any degradation will be. That is why I think recording studios can get away with IC opamps in mixing panels but an audiophile at home will hear their effects immediately. And of course, we don't know how much better any commercial recording could have been if the recording engineers did use all class A discrete components in mixing panels and mic pre-amps.
I am surprised about what you say for tape longevity, particularly in light of (admittedly) anecdotal evidence that recent re-masters are suffering in AQ due to the age of the mastering tapes. But I defer to your judgement here...