They don’t make ’em like they used to.
That aphorism has few fans among people shopping for cancer drugs, contact lenses, GPS receivers, and laptop computers, all of which seem to get better with each passing year. Hell, even I know that.
It earns a more positive reply from anyone who’s shopping for an oriental rug, or a fly rod, or a tweed jacket, or a musical instrument—people who will tell you that their fond response to the market for vintage examples of such goods is motivated by two things: older products were better made than their newer counterparts (better designs, better materials, better manufacturing techniques), and some, if not all, of those products, over time, actually improve with use.
Take musical instruments: Many, if not most, adult westerners are aware that the stringed instruments made in the late 17th and early 18th centuries by Antonio Stradivari are prized not only for their superior sound but also for their seven- and eight-figure values. Less well known—though common knowledge among certain male baby boomers, a group for whom this magazine’s founder felt a special warmth—is the extent to which other instruments, including those associated with more modern music, have earned similar distinctions. There are markets for vintage drums, mandolins, banjos, analog synthesizers—and, of course, guitars. The market for the last is thought by some to have been kick-started by a 1975 auction in which musician Stephen Stills and a Japanese industrialist fought a bidding war over a WWII-era Martin guitar. Because the final price was in the high four figures—a remarkable amount for the time—the event is linked to the endurance of guitar shops that cater more to the investor than to the musician, and whose proprietors, many of whom are otherwise scrupulous, engage in a continual effort to raise prices for no reason other than the hope and expectation that the market will bear them.1
Esta historia es de la edición October 2016 de Stereophile.
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Esta historia es de la edición October 2016 de Stereophile.
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AURAL ROBERT
Another \"outlaw\" country artist
Nina Simone: Wild Is the Wind
By all accounts, Eunice Kathleen Waymon, aka Nina Simone, who passed in 2003, was a troubled person and a brilliant artist. Why she was not more acclaimed during her lifetime is a question several recent film projects have tried to answer. Did her fierce stand on civil rights lose her fans?
Vintage hi-fi, old and new
Many audiophiles and serious music lovers are passionate about vintage. Vintage has become a popular \"way in\" to the hobby, especially popular among younger folks.
Tekton Moab Be
LOUDSPEAKER
ARCAM Radia A25
INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER
Wharfedale Heritage Series 90th Anniversary Dovedale
LOUDSPEAKER
Technics Grand Class SL-1200/1210GR2
RECORD PLAYER
Thrax Audio Siren
Based in Bulgaria, European audio company Thrax has been active since 2009.
EMM Labs MTRS
STEREO POWER AMPLIFIER
SPIN DOCTOR
Alternative phono cartridge technologies and the DS Audio DS-W3 optical cartridge system