Age effects vary with the type of component involved. For solid state power amps, the most common problem is that power supply capacitors can deteriorate with age. That can result in an increase in noise. Cap failure can also completely disable the amp.
Audio equipment with mechanical components can physically wear - lubrication dries out, rubber parts harden, mechanical pieces go out of spec from wear, and so on.
Tubes don't go bad just from age if they are not used, but they do have an in-use lifespan. I just had to replace the KT88 outputs in my 10 year old power amp as an example.
Lasers can fail with age on CD players, speaker surrounds can deteriorate and spider assemblies stretch to continue a partial list.
A few of these ageing issues can be spotted by a lay person, but many require specialized equipment and technical knowledge to check and repair. The only way to tell if an amp that seems to sound OK is still meeting its original specs is to put it on the test bench and measure.
If I had a 30 or 40 year old piece of equipment that I absolutely loved, I'd think it a pretty good idea to have it checked by a good tech. The danger is that sometimes when a part in audio electronics fail, it takes other items with it.
Audio equipment with mechanical components can physically wear - lubrication dries out, rubber parts harden, mechanical pieces go out of spec from wear, and so on.
Tubes don't go bad just from age if they are not used, but they do have an in-use lifespan. I just had to replace the KT88 outputs in my 10 year old power amp as an example.
Lasers can fail with age on CD players, speaker surrounds can deteriorate and spider assemblies stretch to continue a partial list.
A few of these ageing issues can be spotted by a lay person, but many require specialized equipment and technical knowledge to check and repair. The only way to tell if an amp that seems to sound OK is still meeting its original specs is to put it on the test bench and measure.
If I had a 30 or 40 year old piece of equipment that I absolutely loved, I'd think it a pretty good idea to have it checked by a good tech. The danger is that sometimes when a part in audio electronics fail, it takes other items with it.
