Are modern Hi-Fi components markedly better than those from 15-20 years ago?

[admin_exported]

Hi All,

First post so please be gentle with me!

My current kit consists of Sony CDP761 CD player, Nad 5120 turntable, Music Fidelity Elecktra E10, and Mission 733 floorstanders, and it's pretty old (15-20 years). If I remember correctly, these components were pretty good at their respective price points at the time and they've served me well.

Recently, my turntable packed in, and the CD player is now struggling to read discs (it's not the discs, and I've tried a lens cleaner), but given their age, I've ruled out trying to get them repaired, so I need to replace them. I was considering Project Essential or Genie 3 and Marantz CD6003, as these seem good choices given my budget, so I suppose a side question is whether the knowledgable folk on this forum agree with these?

But the main question is whether my amp and speakers will hold back my new equipment? I should probably point out that both the speakers and amp are showing signs of age cosmetically, and I've noticed that one of the speakers has developed an occasional (but annoying) buzz in the tweeter when playing certain frequencies.

Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

Jase

 

[plastic penguin]

jasetbass:

Hi All,

First post so please be gentle with me!

My current kit consists of Sony CDP761 CD player, Nad 5120 turntable, Music Fidelity Elecktra E10, and Mission 733 floorstanders, and it's pretty old (15-20 years). If I remember correctly, these components were pretty good at their respective price points at the time and they've served me well.

Recently, my turntable packed in, and the CD player is now struggling to read discs (it's not the discs, and I've tried a lens cleaner), but given their age, I've ruled out trying to get them repaired, so I need to replace them. I was considering Project Essential or Genie 3 and Marantz CD6003, as these seem good choices given my budget, so I suppose a side question is whether the knowledgable folk on this forum agree with these?

But the main question is whether my amp and speakers will hold back my new equipment? I should probably point out that both the speakers and amp are showing signs of age cosmetically, and I've noticed that one of the speakers has developed an occasional (but annoying) buzz in the tweeter when playing certain frequencies.

Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

Jase

Welcome Jase

What is your budget? I don't think you've mentioned a figure and what music is preferred.

Right, the older stuff is good (some is good and some isn't, like modern stuff), but is generally different in presentaion. The biggest problem with the vintage equipment is more, in my view, down to reliability. A few of the posters on here have amps etc from the 80s and 90s and have little problem. However, like any mechanical object, eventually it wears. Once they start going wrong, usually other things need renewing or replaced (generalising).

This, again, comes down to budget - go and listen to a few different set-ups, including the Marantz, and let your ears tell you. Sorry, but that's the best advice I can offer.

Good luck.

 

[Mr Morph]

Hi Jase,

I have no problems with anything the Penguin said, which is very accurate. Todays hi-fi scene mirrors pretty much what was going on ten years ago, it's the same mix of averagely engineered components with a few stand outs. You pays your money and you takes your choice. I will say that there is one marked difference with equipment from the 80's, 'build quality' in terms of price has shifted massively, but that is understandable.

When you say you're CD player 'has trouble reading disks', are we talking about skipping here? Transport travel probably just needs cleaning and re-greasing, and it's a relatively cheap job to put it right. Most people think that their CD player is at deaths door when they usually have a good ten more years left in them.

 

[chebby]

With a (very) few exceptions, yes. (Answering the thread title.)

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the replies...

Penguin, my budget for CD and TT is £400-£450, and I've got a fairly ecclectic tastes, (guitar based indie, female vocalists, but also more complex arrangements like the Flaming Lips), and bass is particularly important to me.

Morph, re: the CD player, increasingly it doesn't even recognise that a disc is in the tray, and only repeated ejecting and reinserting fixes this...I think this a goner!

Chebby/All, specifically,assuming I bought the Marantz CD6003 and the Genie 3, would my Musical Fidelity amp and Mission 733's hold back the sound or would I be better replacing these with, for example, the Marantz PM6003 and some Aviano 6's or Monitor Audio Bronze BX5s, basically giving me a 5* modern system?

Any advice or thoughts, much appreciated.

Jase

 

[Anonymous]

Sorry to bump this thread, but does anyone have any views on my previous post?

 

[DavieCee]

IMO - CD Players will have improved dramatically, amps & speakers less so. But that is just an opinion based on my old NAD 3020, Arcam Xeta One and Tannoy 611 MKII's and what I have now..

If you like the sound of your amp & speaker set up, why change?

 

[plastic penguin]

jasetbass:

Sorry to bump this thread, but does anyone have any views on my previous post?

Sorry, had a busy weekend. I would say the aforementioned MF amp and Sony CDP could be improved upon. I've not heard the Mission 733 but did hear the 734i a few years ago in Richer Sounds and they do need a fairly gutsy amp.

Look at something like this.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Arcam-Alpha-8-Phono-Integrated-Amplifier-stereo-hifi-/170591879021?pt=UK_AudioTVElectronics_HomeAudioHiFi_Amplifiers&hash=item27b8117f6d

(£145.00)

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ARCAM-ALPHA-8-CD-PLAYER-REMOTE-GUIDE-MINT-/320590052412?pt=UK_AudioTVElectronics_HomeAudioHiFi_CDPlayerSeparates&hash=item4aa4a7fc3c

(£190.00)

Both these components will give similar presentation to your MF but with more vigour. I have have the 7R and it's fabulous for the money.

 

[Mr Morph]

jasetbass:

Morph, re: the CD player, increasingly it doesn't even recognise that a disc is in the tray, and only repeated ejecting and reinserting fixes this...I think this a goner!

Jase, this is a more specific problem! If it's having problems reading the TOC (Table of contents), it could 'for once' be an optical lens problem. Despite the claims about lens cleaners, they rarely work, because optical problems are usually due to a buildup of condensation over time. However, the bad news is, it could also be a failing laser. However, if it's still playing discs once you can get a disc in there, might be worth getting a technician to take a look at it. If you think it's worth £15 getting someone to take a look at it, your local hi-fi dealers should be able to recommend a good technician.

As for the modern sound of D/A conversion. My estimation is that todays D/A conversion is about 20-30% better than it was 15 years ago in similar priced products. And a lot smoother than the old Philips TDA1541 in the 80's! Difficult to give a blanket endorsement obviously, and always worth auditioning for yourself.

 

[Anonymous]

The speaker buzz could be either a problem with the tweeter itself or the amp. The best way to check is to swap the cables at the amplifier end. If the buzzing changes to the other speaker, then its the amplifier and not a problem since you're having it replaced. If not, its the tweeter but worth having it looked at just to be sure.

If it's the tweeter there's a problem, since my quick perusal of the internet shows they are not readily available.

 

[Anonymous]

Sorry Penguin, wasn't having a pop, it's just that this forum is pretty busy, so when I looked this morning, I was on page 3!

Appreciate your time and advice, but I promised myself I wouldn't use Ebay ever again after a long-winded and very uncomfortable dispute last year...

 

[Andrew Everard]

Mr Morph:If you think it's worth £15 getting someone to take a look at it, your local hi-fi dealers should be able to recommend a good technician.

Highly unlikely a good technician would take a look at it for that little money.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Grottyash,

Thanks, never considered that it could be the amp, I'll give that a whirl...

 

[Anonymous]

Yeah, I thought it'd cost a lot more than that...

Here's a bit more info about the problem in case it's common; even after it's successfully read the TOC, it still struggles to select tracks (you can hear the mechanism clicking as it tries and re-tries), but once it's playing, it's fine, so if I select the first track for example, it'll play the whole CD fine without skipping or any other problems. Does this help diagnosis of the problem?

I'll be honest, given its age, I wasn't really considering a repair, but if it doesn't need new parts then maybe it's a go-er.

 

[Anonymous]

DavieCee:

IMO - CD Players will have improved dramatically, amps & speakers less so. But that is just an opinion based on my old NAD 3020, Arcam Xeta One and Tannoy 611 MKII's and what I have now..

If you like the sound of your amp & speaker set up, why change?

Thanks Davie, I suppose that's the nub of my question, I do like the sound of my amp and speakers but, assuming I get a new CD player, I was wondering if I get the most out of it with my old amp and speakers, and you're saying I won't, which is exactly what I was after.

Cheers,

Jase

 

[Anonymous]

jasetbass:DavieCee:

IMO - CD Players will have improved dramatically, amps & speakers less so. But that is just an opinion based on my old NAD 3020, Arcam Xeta One and Tannoy 611 MKII's and what I have now..

If you like the sound of your amp & speaker set up, why change?

Thanks Davie, I suppose that's the nub of my question, I do like the sound of my amp and speakers but, assuming I get a new CD player, I was wondering if I get the most out of it with my old amp and speakers, and you're saying I won't, which is exactly what I was after.

Cheers,

Jase

Sorry Davie, you're saying the opposite!

 

[Anonymous]

jasetbass:

Hi Grottyash,

Thanks, never considered that it could be the amp, I'll give that a whirl...

Feel a bit of a plonker, but when I went to swap the speakers, found that the wires to the banana plug on the 'problem' speaker were loose. Tightened up and I can't seem to re-create the problem anymore. Thanks Grottyash, you seem to have inadvertantly fixed it for me!

Note to others, check the obvious before you humiliate yourself on a forum!

 

[the record spot]

It depends what you mean by "markedly better". I'd say that while the functionality on a lot of gear has recently taken an upward turn, performance isn't a given over what came before. I use 15 year old speakers, a CD player from 2008 and an amp from 1977. The amp wins out - comfortably - against its contemporaries in the shape of Leema's Pulse (previous version before the mark 3 came out), the Exposure 3010s and Harman's HK990. Not bad. So, better? Maybe. Depends what you buy and what criteria you're setting out as the end arbiters of what makes contemporary gear the supposed better of older stuff.

 

[Mr Morph]

Andrew Everard:

Mr Morph:If you think it's worth £15 getting someone to take a look at it, your local hi-fi dealers should be able to recommend a good technician.

Highly unlikely a good technician would take a look at it for that little money.

Exactly what I paid to get a quote on my amp last year! (Admittedly, not including the call out charge)

 

[Mr Morph]

Double post - the site is lagging today?

 

[matthewpiano]

I have a good midrange Sansui amp in storage in my spare room (an AU-D5) which, to these ears, is as good as any of the £200-£300 amps I've had or heard. It does fall some way short of the Arcam but that is probably to be expected. Older gear can give great value for money and if you get something really good the bargain price will expand the smile on your face!

 

[ID.]

Old gear can be great value for money, and in my experience, amps in particular can stand up very well.

I think the budget end of modern Hi-Fi is probably better, particularly when you take into account inflation and what the real cost of quality kit at the time.

 

[Singslinger]

Maybe look at a progressive upgrade? Start with the CD player and/or turntable since they're the ones in most urgent need of replacing, then when funds permit, change the amp and then later, the speakers.

As for whether modern gear is markedly better than older kit, I'd say it depends - my 18-year old Naim amps and ProAc Response 1 SC speakers still sound fabulous and I've yet to hear better modern alternatives.

 

[Anonymous]

The answer depends on the criteria you apply. A budget amp from 1975 worth £30 now probably won't beat a new £250 budget amp, but from my experience a top of the range amp from 1975 worth £250 now is in a different league to a similarly priced brand new budget amp.

 

[Anonymous]

I have been using a Yamaha RX-300 receiver bought new in 1989, it was positively reviewed at the time, despite trying various amps over the years nothing seemed to offer any great advantage, the Yamaha delivering a very natural, pure sound through my Mordaunt Short MS35Ti speakers. I have recently been looking to upgrade and nearly bought either the Marantz 6003 amp/CD combo or the Yamaha A-S500 / CD-S300, it was only being undecided that stopped me.

Subsequently I have bought a Yamaha AX-300 amp of the same generation as my receiver, though even better thought of in its day, and a couple of 5* Cambridge Audio CD players (640C V2 & 340C) and all is sounding great, the amps styling is a real classic too, it is much simpler than the receiver with only one set of speaker terminals (though high quality binding posts with incorporated banana sockets), gold plated input terminals and only bass, treble, balance, input and volume controls on the front.

Great sound and much more fun than simply buying new and plugging in, not to mention quite a cost saving.

The 20 year old MS35Tis have a new lease of life though I may look at new speakers shortly.