Preface: This post is about build quality and real measurable specifications which are objective and not about sound quality which is subjective.
"Yamaha still builds ‘em like they used to"
"Remember those big ol' amplifiers with the level meters on the front? They were, and still are, the envy of many audiophiles, conjuring the glory days of overbuilt audio gear when sound quality trumped features and connectivity. But you don't have to scour specialty shops for the remaining few vintage amps out there. Yamaha has created a modern version, with all the benefits of those classic amps — even the level meters — alongside the latest audio technology. The A-S3000 integrated amplifier is a seriously sophisticated machine with an important mission: to get the best performance from your speakers while keeping every detail of your music intact."
That's quote is from the Crutchfield online catalog describing the beautiful Yamaha A-S3000. This beautiful amp was brought to my attention by an astute AK member as a modern alternative to the build quality and real power of a Sansui AU-20000. Although the power is lower and the distortion is higher on on the Yamaha I'll take it.
It seems like you really have to pay for that build quality of yesterday. The inflation adjusted price of the Sansui was $2,500 "street price" and $3,993 retail vs. the Yamaha at $6,999.99 "street price" and $7,999.95 retail. Notice how Yamaha highlights the innards of this bad boy (nice video too).
http://usa.yamaha.com/products/audio-visual/hifi-components/amps/a-s3000_u/?mode=model
http://www.musicdirect.com/p-161292-yamaha-a-s3000-integrated-amp.aspx
I can't imagine what something with the performance and build quality of a 61 lb. Sansui AU-X1 would cost today.
http://audio-database.com/SANSUI/amp/au-x1-e.html
"Yamaha still builds ‘em like they used to"
"Remember those big ol' amplifiers with the level meters on the front? They were, and still are, the envy of many audiophiles, conjuring the glory days of overbuilt audio gear when sound quality trumped features and connectivity. But you don't have to scour specialty shops for the remaining few vintage amps out there. Yamaha has created a modern version, with all the benefits of those classic amps — even the level meters — alongside the latest audio technology. The A-S3000 integrated amplifier is a seriously sophisticated machine with an important mission: to get the best performance from your speakers while keeping every detail of your music intact."
That's quote is from the Crutchfield online catalog describing the beautiful Yamaha A-S3000. This beautiful amp was brought to my attention by an astute AK member as a modern alternative to the build quality and real power of a Sansui AU-20000. Although the power is lower and the distortion is higher on on the Yamaha I'll take it.
It seems like you really have to pay for that build quality of yesterday. The inflation adjusted price of the Sansui was $2,500 "street price" and $3,993 retail vs. the Yamaha at $6,999.99 "street price" and $7,999.95 retail. Notice how Yamaha highlights the innards of this bad boy (nice video too).
http://usa.yamaha.com/products/audio-visual/hifi-components/amps/a-s3000_u/?mode=model
http://www.musicdirect.com/p-161292-yamaha-a-s3000-integrated-amp.aspx
I can't imagine what something with the performance and build quality of a 61 lb. Sansui AU-X1 would cost today.
http://audio-database.com/SANSUI/amp/au-x1-e.html
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