I saw the back of an integrated and it depressed me.


Recently took a look at an ad for a Technics SU-G700M2 integrated amplifier, and honestly it made me a little sad for me, my hobby and the gear I ended up with.

When I "wore a younger man's shoes" I needed inputs! I was going to have a turntable, a Tandberg reel to reel and cassette player, and that new fangled CD player would be there as well. 

This new integrated has 5 digital inputs and 2 analog inputs... and anyway I just want to drink while playing Billy Joel radio on my Roon streamer.

erik_squires

The only ’digital’ component in my system is my Sony HAPZ1ES music server, and it has analog outputs! I don’t stream any music and I don’t use ’clouds’ to store any content. The only other source player in my system is a Technics SL1500C TT.  My audio system is strictly for playing music. I’m an old school audiophile and proud to wear the title.

BTW, there are manufacturers who still believe in analog. Vincent Audio makes excellent audio gear that caters to the analog crowd. The McIntosh C49 preamp blends the best of both worlds by offering an upgradable DAC along with 7 analog and 6 digital inputs. 

@erik_squires 

Yeah.  I know how you feel.

I was in the Apple store the other day and noticed the new iMacs don't have a floppy drive built in.  I've got a full 104k of usable data on those disks, and no way to use them! I stomped out the store, made my way back to my 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Mk1A sitting in the parking lot, cranked down the windows, shoved it in first gear, engaged the clutch, did a (quite juvenile, I must say) burn out, and drove home.

"I-n-t-e-g-r-a-t-e-d" means just that.  But how many things do we need to "integrate" and ignore legacy devices?

@tylermunns 

"An accident caused a seemingly uber-fragile screen on a flat screen TV to break the other day, necessitating a new TV."

We had a plasma TV come into our shop years ago for repair with a bullet hole through the screen.  I decided to exercise my First Amendment Right, keep my mouth shut, and not ask any questions.  I believe the cost of a new panel was more than the replacement cost of the TV.  We kept it around for a while, just because.