music quality of speakers in the 70's vs now

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While listening to some music It just dawned on how much better speakers are today vs when I was growing up in the early 70's. While some had good audio equipment at home it wasnt common(at least in my neck of the woods.) and vurtually nonexistant in cars. I just think of the sound engineers and producers spending countless hours only for us to listen to it on some transistor radio or car radio with that one lousy speaker in the dashboard.
Heck, I remember when my dad got his first car with an FM radio, I thought we were so cool
 
With home audio, there were some floorstanding speakers available in the 1970's that stood out as being quite good. They compare well to today's mid priced speakers. However, today's better quality high end stuff is simply worlds apart in clarity, from the 1970's stuff. But not necessarily in the punchy bass department.

Another way to put this is that a well chosen vintage speaker is often quite a pleasure to listen to. Advent or Acoustic Research stuff, if in good shape, is often really nice.

I have Polk RTi-a9 floor speakers (a modestly priced speaker) and my Neighbor's vintage 12 inch Pioneers sound WAY better.
 
I have a set of Bose 501's Series II in my bedroom, in the corners were they belong used as nightstands as well. I keep writing off these old speakers but they sound wonderful and full and not harsh in the least. They are 42 years young.

In my living room I have a set of Magnaplanar 1.7"s. They are a modern iteration of the original pure ribbon speakers that used conventional woofers. Modern versions also have there bass produced by ribbon technology. These speakers are for critical, focused and detailed listening. These sound their best on music like Jazz and Classical where the bulk of the instruments are not electronic. Old Brubeck is just stunning.

In summary both have their place and both sound very good. The Bose were a inheritance and are appreciated at least 4 hours a week for a weekly radio show that I have listened to for over 20 years. The Magnaplanar's are as good as the material you feed them.

Old and New can both be good.
 
Anybody that thinks that modern home speakers and modern multi channel electronics sound better than home hi-fi sytems of the 1970's and 1980's don't have a grasp on reality. MP3...really?
 
My dad's 1972 Sansui floor speakers will still be the best full range speakers I've ever heard. They weigh like 60 pounds each. He's still pumping them!
 
Originally Posted by sloinker
Anybody that thinks that modern home speakers and modern multi channel electronics sound better than home hi-fi sytems of the 1970's and 1980's don't have a grasp on reality. MP3...really?

Sorry I got you so worked up, life is too short. I was talking about what the average person listened to not some audiophile and I never mentioned MP3.
 
I remember my childhood best friend's uncle had this stereo system that was LOUD!! I can still remember what it looked like. This huge power amp with led meters all over it called Crest,and Altec Lansing horn speakers that were taller than us! Sounded like being at a concert!
 
Originally Posted by sloinker
Anybody that thinks that modern home speakers and modern multi channel electronics sound better than home hi-fi sytems of the 1970's and 1980's don't have a grasp on reality. MP3...really?


Having a main system of a mix of modern and vintage 2-channel of equal quality, they really can mix well if you know the strengths and weaknesses of each component. IME the KISS philosophy FTW. My pre is modern feeding a classic 300+ per channel Carver amp. One turntable a modern USA made Audiophile piece, and a really good CD player. Oh, Alexa when I'm feely lazy.
 
I'm still using my big Marantz speakers from '73, with a circa 2005 receiver. The Sony receiver from '73 sounded just as good, until it was fried by lightening in '88.
 
Having worked on both modern and vintage home audio gear I can you the vintage stuff was better. It wasn't nearly as powerful wattage wise but the build quality was far superior to what they are cranking out now.
 
Originally Posted by CDX825
Having worked on both modern and vintage home audio gear I can you the vintage stuff was better. It wasn't nearly as powerful wattage wise but the build quality was far superior to what they are cranking out now.


My neighbor works on them,,,says the same thing.....
 
I still have my 1975 Yamaha CR-820 receiver and Cizek loud speakers. They sound OK for their age.
I always liked the Sound Craftsman line of EQ's & Amps.
 
Originally Posted by aquariuscsm
High end home audio loudspeakers from the 70s blow away the mass-fi big box junk made today.

Totally agree!
 
My set up in high school days was a 20 watt Marantz, the simplest of their turntable, likely the lowest priced belt drive maybe a 6100 if I recall correctly. Three way slightly larger than book shelf size Marantz speakers. I'm believing the speakers were nicer than I gave credit but for some efficient rock n roll, Infinity had a 2 way book shelf with the EMIT tweeter that really danced with a low watt system. Would love to hear those Marantz these days and give them some listening time just to know what I was missing and didn't value at the time. They were by no means in the upper end of the spectrum. Shortly after my few years of audio intro, I was in the business so to speak.

I wound up working in a HI-FI shop with nicer equipment than the big box stores were known for, got some experience with nicer stuff, related sales / marketing, etc. For a number of years, my "system" was a mix of components that were brought home to "borrow" from the store. I had a Bogan tube amp, Tandberg cassette, at one time I had a Kenwood car stereo amp running things for giggles. I had an all Onkyo set up that still used the Infinity's around mid 1980's.
1983- CD came to be. Prior to that we were recording live music on VHS or Beta somewhere around dynamic ranges in the low 80 db I believe. We thought that was 'punchy'.

These days for around the house, home theater, patio, it's a simple Marantz/Audyssey with Polks front, center and a Polk powered sub, with Klipsch surrounds and runs Bose environment speakers on the patio.

I think newer speakers with newer materials may offer some durability, longevity benefits, but cabinet, workmanship and sound has probably been lost on much except for the premium stuff of these days. Mid end speakers of the 60's or 70's would be a fun contrast to what passes for mid end today IMO.
*Keep your eyes open, this stuff shows up in thrift stores quite a bit when people cleans out closets, garage or basements.
 
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A lot of us young rascals back in the day would put home stereo speakers on the rear deck of the car. Those who remember know that there was a fair amount of space right behind the back seat and the rear glass. Somewhere in the 70's that started to disappear.

In simple terms, the large home stereo cabinets usually sounded good. All that cabinet volume added to the speaker bass. We used to have a Magnavox stereo that held records as well as the turntable and radio controls. Sliding doors on top. It was a piece of furniture.
 
I would say the quality of the speakers today is far superior than what was put out in the 70's and 80's. I have Polk speakers now and they have been excellent for the past 6 years. The fit and finish from the cabinet to the cone is great! I can't tell you how many speakers and cabinets I blew up over the years. I have had the cabinets split at the joints, cones dry rot, tweeters fry. I listen to music loud and the equipment needs to perform. I have auxiliary fans on my Yamaha receiver as that thing generates some heat at high volumes.
 
I haven't heard 70-s speakers but I prefer 70-s receivers coupled with high end modern speakers. The wattage numbers are lower than what you see in modern ones but they are far more powerful in real performance.

Is Bose is the epitome of mass market performance speakers, I can only shake my head, though.
 
Hmm, have not heard that setup … waaaaaay back, had a HK pre amp, Sony amp and tape player feeding 901's …
I remember how solid the percussion was in the early rock songs …
 
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