Customer Reviews

Vintage Hi-Fi Price Guide 2003-2004

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I have no idea how the prices listed in this book were arrived at, and they bear little resemblance to any market for this equipment with which I am familiar.

The market for "particularly desirable" tube hi-fi gear-particularly Marantz and McIntosh-is set primarily by overseas purchasers,traditionally (but not necessarily at this time) the Japanese. A current copy of 'Stereo Sound' or 'Musen to Jikken' magazines- available readily,if not cheaply, from Japanese booksellers in NYC and San Francisco-would provide guidance here. Other sources of values would include U.S. dealers-particularly, for McIntosh, Audio Classics,located near the factory in upstate New York-and, of course, eBay.

Other items which are of primarily domestic hobbyist (rather than collector/speculator) interest, particularly Dynaco, are harder to valuate because the supply often exceeds demand and because so many have been extensively modified, which unquestionably can improve them as user equipment but which often limits their marketability, because buyers tend to be very specific in which modifications, if any, they would be interested in.

This book simply shows no relationship to the market for this stuff as I have seen it. I wouldn't accuse the author of having simply invented this data, but I am at a total loss to think of any other explanation.

I have this guide and the prices do give an idea of which models are worth more then others. But, the actual prices are changing so fast for vintage Hi-Fi that any price guide is pretty much out dated within a month or two. The prices fluctuate a lot and to be frank, a past auction search on Ebay would offer a better pricing guide then this book. He offers a scant few reviews on certain models and a little on tubes and transformers used in vintage amps. The author is well versed in tube hi-fi, but is in no way the last word on the subject. When it comes to opinions on which amp is great and which is not, I always say that YOUR own ears are the best judge for you. Use this guide as just that, a guide. But don't discount a piece of vintage hi-fi just because it isn't highly valued in this book, or if it is not even listed. Some of the off brand vintage hi-fi units I have worked on actually sounded as good if not better then some of the 'big name' amps, tuners, and receivers. I use several vintage systems (Scott, Fisher, Dynaco, Marantz) on a daily basis and one thing I will say is that once they are properly refurbished, they sound fantastic and are incredibly reliable.. eventhough they are 40 - 60 years old! The prices in this guide generally reflect what you will pay for a unit in as-is condition. It says little about what it generally takes to refurbish this 40 - 60 year old unit so as to make it reliable. Most all the information in this guide can be found via internet searches.
There are even some brand specific websites with forums and news groups. Information is good in this publication, but it can be found for free if you are willing to do a little searching on the internet.