Advice needed: Should I buy older, high-end equipment or cheaper new models?

[admin_exported]

As per title really – if constrained to a strict budget, is it better to go for secondhand, older equipment (say 2-3 years old), that is really high spec but doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of today’s models, or go for a ‘lower’ model which is brand new? I am in the process of buying a new receiver, blu-ray player and speaker package after a 10 year hiatus from home-cinema and don’t know what to do!

When I was 17 years old I was treated to a demonstration of the £2k Yamaha DSP-AX1 rigged up to a decent 5.1 speaker package and projector in a dedicated home cinema room. I closed my eyes and it was quite literally like being at the cinema; the sound quality was breathtaking, I’ll never forget that moment. I have loved Yamaha amps ever since, having had the DSP A1 and A5 myself.

So would it be better to go for an older mid/high-end setup, for example a high-end receiver from Yamaha or Denon (AVC A1SE?), B&W 602/3 5.1 package and budget (£200) blu-ray player?

My requirements are basic – I want TV and movies in HD, and that’s it. I don’t own any games consoles, music will be streamed from my Mac using a basic phono cable (I guess?), I like the idea of streaming internet radio as well. Furthermore, it would be useful if I could watch a small TV in another room (bedroom), so an amp that would facilitate this would be a bonus. Budget is approximately £1500, although I am more than happy to build a system as I go along – there’s no rush!

Any help would be very much appreciated – I am open to any sensible suggestions as my knowledge is dated and very rusty.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Hudson

What you have to remeber is that last years hi end is this year mid/buget range. So you could argue that any body that buys mid/buget equpiment is actually buying hi end from 1-2years ago. So when you look at it like that buying all new equipment now is pretty good and some mid range stuff will give high end equipment from 4 years back a run for it money.

What you have nower day is manfactures offering very hi end functions there amps, such Onkyo who have sophiscated EQ system (that actually work i might add) the same manufacture also includes THX select 2 processing on there amps (now there was a time that you wouldn't get THX on anything under 2k). You can get good deals at the moment on certain sites that your buget will more than cover and still allow you to buy a decent blu ray player.

Im 28 now and have gone through a fare few amps from pioneer, yamaha and now onkyo and i have to say that onkyo is so hi powered in every regard compared to these and i payed the same price for my older amps.

I have to say IMO that its not really worth buying older stuff thats more than 3-4 years old as the contivity on the back gets differcult and you get this trickly down affect of tech any how like always.

And i would be stair clear of secound hand speakers as they have moving parts and theres alot you cant see that could be wrong like ripped diaframs but that is just me and i dont want to cause arguments. ( unless you buying from a source that has checked and refurbed the units for sale)

A good starting place would be A denon 1912 and a monitor aduio radius r90hd10 and this would still leave you budget for a blu ray player denon so could tell you. you will be suprised how good it is. i can vouch for the radius series it very good!

hope this ramble helps ( sorry for spelling and grammer im not very good at it)

 

[6th.replicant]

What you have to remeber is that last years hi end is this year mid/buget range...

True, but not always... It depends on how high-end the second-hand product is? IME, a pair of 2nd-hand speakers that cost £1700 (RRP £3800) still trounce new £2000 speakers. YMMV...

 

[Anonymous]

Technollogy i dont agree eg amps. Speakers I do and i dont

When you say that " speakers that cost £1700 (RRP £3800) still trounce new £2000 speakers" it really depends as new materals and production tecniquic make things cheaper in the future it may take time but it will and dose happen

Take B&W nautilus the tec from those speakers has trickled down into there lower rangers and now most have a tweeter,cone, or bracing derived from that experiment/production. But the orignal nautilus will never be bettered in terms of quality and sound. but it has bettered the lower rangers that earlier iterations couldnt match aftere those advancements where made in todays models

But also what i was trying to say was How "hi end" buget hi stuff these days can sound and you just couldn't get that performance a few year back at these prices.

Hope that make sense.

 

[relocated]

I would suggest that second hand speakers are an easy win, so long as you get a decent listen first.

Electronics can be a very different kettle of fish. My denon receiver and dvd player are still as good as new after years (7+?) of heavy use.

But up to date bluray players seem to be devoid of analogue 5/7.1 outputs so that makes difficulties especially as the recent bluray players (Panasonic for me) all seem to turn in a remarkable performance for very very little money. If your intended amp/receiver have decent hdmi throughput then the likes of high-end Denon and Onkyo should be a reasonable bet.

Happy hunting and let us know what you get on.

Best of luck

 

[ellisdj]

Pick up last years top model - for this years mid model price - generally last years top model will be much better than this years mid range.

LX83 being sold by Seven Oaks for £1109 - Thats about £800 (nearly half) less than what I paid and is a steal.

That will be much better than this years £1000 amp from Pioneer

This is of course unless the newer model steps up a platform i.e. Dolby Digital to Dolby True HD

However Speakers - they age more like wine if you ask me - there has been very little development in this area over the years.

A 10 year old pair of high end speakers like B&W Nautilus 805 are still stunning - they have a level of dynamics and transparency you wont get in lesser speakers / speakers you can buy for the same money new / old.

The chap mentions tech trickling down and uses the Nautlius as an example. The lesser speakers in the B&W range have tubing etc in inside but they dont have a proper Nautilus that you only get on the 800 range / PM1 now. Therefore the older higher end will still sound better than the new lesser

 

[speculatrix]

I still have my AX1, 15.5 years on it's still a great amp. I paid £1000, so that's like £1500 in today's money.

It's surpassed in features by even a 300 quid amp, for things like HDMI switching and Atmos processing. But the analogue amplifier performance is just amazing, the ease it can drive big speakers with immense clarity.

So, whilst I can upgrade to the latest tech for £300, it won't have the awesome pre and main amplifiers that I'd get if I bought an older model discounted from £600.

 

[davidf]

6 year old thread. Usually best to start a new one. Any thread started by “admin” the banned members.

For info, the AX1 was £2k rrp, which is more like today’s £4k AV receivers/amplifiers.

 

[Forever Young]

When I was a teenager and early 20s,I bought new everything, the best I could afford. I'm 37 now, and have snagged some great second hand bargains. As already said, some of the new AV amps have some nice features and current connectivity options. In terms of sound quality, there is some great older stuff about, with more to give. Whether it's worth getting older stuff recapped etc, is something you have to decide down the line. I guess it all depends on your budget. If you have the dough to spend on new high end gear, go for it. I haven't, and I've found that by buying second hand, I get the best sound for my money. Price comes in too. Second hand is worth it if you get a bargain.

Sellers often ask silly money. For example, I have an amp which is all over the Internet for around £1,000 used. I got mine with a preamp which is also going for around £1,000. I paid £250 via Facebook. It came with a load of other equipment I didn't want, which I sold. I effectively paid just under £100 for each. Now struggling to find a decent sub at a good price. Probably end up having to buy new.