Very true. Plenty of HiFi gear for sale out there that are crappily engineered and assembled with cheap components. But all things being equal, a receiver engineered and assembled with comparable components to mine, would more than likely be cheaper today. It is hard to compare though. Sort of like comparing quarterbacks in the NFL from different eras.
That just hasn't been my experience, at all, with -well chosen- modern gear. There's certainly some junk made today if you don't get out of the big box stores or are just looking to save money, but if you adjust a '70s receiver for inflation you're into some pretty decent modern kit. I would go as far as to say that in my experience, every bit of new gear that I've had that was the adjusted for inflation price of something like a Pioneer SX-(whatever), was something I'd rather run and listen to and I'd also feel more comfortable that it wasn't going to break on me. I've had some pretty shit luck with vintage gear and so have a lot of people I know, to the point where I no longer recommend it to anybody like I used to. Just within this week I talked a friend out of getting rid of his Exposure 3010 for a Sansui 9090 that was selling for a silly amount. He'd been reading the internet and wanted the advice of somebody who has owned the Sansui and other vintage options, so I gave it.... his Exposure, sonically, walks all over it. It may not look as cool (subjective) but it sounds plainly better for what his taste is. At this point you can probably pick up that Exposure used for less than that Sansui.
Reminds me of Terry Bradshaw going after Aaron Rodgers today and calling him weak. In Bradshaw's day you could be a legendary quarterback with (looks it up) 212 TDs and 210 INTs. Rodgers has TWO HUNDRED more TDs and 121 FEWER interceptions.
Terry Bradshaw is a bit of a clown. My point is that with the rule changes that benefit offensive output, quarterback numbers are going to generally be much better today than in the 70s. Not to mention defensive players these days have to be very careful about touching a quarterback. Something that wasn't much thought about in the 70s. But then players are bigger and stronger these days, so that makes a difference too. See? So many variables just makes it very hard to compare eras. And now we've gone from audio components to the NFL.
Success! Nobody wanted another vintage vs modern audio gear debate.
Ok then. Carry on!
I’m looking at kits for both speakers and amplifiers because I’m looking for value. It’s a confusing world out there however when it comes to the value of DIY. For instance, looking at speaker kits, on paper it looks obvious that the drivers in the kits are superior to those in commercially available speakers at the same price point. But that doesn’t take into the account the engineering that went into the development of the speaker as a whole by the manufacturer. What is that worth? I’m sure there are competent people that have developed the kits, but when I look at somebody like Paul Barton at PSB with his experience and tools at his disposal, it makes me think his final product is more than just the sum of its parts.
I’ve heard some speakers with the best drivers around that I thought were terrible. Tyler Acoustics Linnbrook stand mounts come to mind, and rumor is the crossovers weren’t the work of a skilled artisan.
I have huge hours invested in the Gadget and I believe I have well under $1,000 in actual cost for each one. I am not really trying to make a comparison between DIY and commercially available stuff. The power cord example I gave was more accurate. I have a second unit I built that you are welcome to try when I get home.
Curious, do you have pictures of this preamp?
hifihaven.org
