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  3. 1415542005

Will the sound quality deminish over the years?

I bought a set of used B&W 802N and see a lot of nice speakers for sale here. I wondered if the age of the speaker would cause the sound to degrade. Sure, I have heard people state how great their 40 yo speakers sound, but could that be like shocks on a car? You won't notice how much less they are until it is changed.Just a curious thought as to 10 - 20 years down the road, can I expect the speakers to sound as good, especially when laying out a lot of quag.
lmr

Showing 2 responses by bifwynne

bifwynne
2,206 posts
 
Perhaps a another way to phrase the OP's Q is whether current model speakers use better materials and employ better technology that the SOTA of 40 years ago. And hence, sound better than the old stuff.

I suspect the answer is in the affirmative. Stated differently, if the OP was to stack an old pair of B&Ws against an equivalent current model, I surmise the newer model very well might sound better.

Technology has advanced across the board.
bifwynne
2,206 posts
 
Short post-script to my last post.

If the OP's Q also goes to whether old speakers mechanically wear out like old car shocks over time, I surmise that some speaker parts will degrade over time. For example, the caps used in the cross-over may change values. Also, speaker surrounds may disintegrate over time. Possibly voice coil spiders too.

In short entropy is part of the natural world. Ain't no stopping it.
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