20 Vintage Amps That Prove They Really Don’t Make Them Like They Used To

As with many things, we are nostalgic for days gone by.  However, I feel it would also be true to say "they sure didn't build things back then like they do today".  As knowledge and materials have improved over time, it would be unreasonable to think the best of anything made today, does not exceed the best of yesteryear.    

All these amps were excellent designs for their days but many of them had negatives too. Parts are way better today(except possibly NOS tubes) and power supplies which are the true heart of an amplifier are way stronger today. Plus I'd never get near a non-linear single ended amp(Ongaku) that can't even produce a proper sine wave into a load(the negative half is not the same as the positive hald and that's endemic in singled ended topology).

Perhaps though we got more per dollar then(even with inflation figured in) in the old days given the zillion dollar costs of many of today's amps. And I did own a Stereo 70 and 1st generation ARC amps(mu Dual 70 was by far the least reliable amp I ever owned).

I once owned that Bryston amp. 

Like many audiophiles, I am no longer a spring chicken, and have developed many systems over the decades. Roughly 45 years ago, I used the following system in my funky coach house in Evanston, IL:

 Bryston 4B amp ($1,200 then; ~$4,700 inflation adjusted)

APT-Holman pre-amp ($575 then; ~$2,200 IA)

Magnepan Tympani IVA speakers ($3,800; ~$15,000 IA)

Nakamichi 600 cassette deck ($600; ~$2300 IA)

B&O 4002 turntable (~$700; ~$2,700 IA)

And I paid for the system from tips that I earned as a waiter at a local restaurant, though most components were purchased second-hand.

the few times ive read thru those headphonesty clickbait articles theyve been counterfactual, nonsense or just plain bad propaganda. 

in this case, i enjoyed looking at photos of these classic amps. 

Nostalgia plays a big part in this. Romanticizing about a past amp or lover elevates it's perceived status. Much like revisiting that gf we were so crazy about as a young man and finding disappointment, revisiting an old piece of gear disappoints.