Hi end audio equip sounds better today than in decades past due to tech - T/F

The one major area where gear sounds so much better is DACs.

About 20 years ago there was a significant improvement, and Redbook suddenly sounded almost as good as 96/24. Not sure what happened, but it was a real seismic shift upwards in even low cost, USB powered gear. The need to use high resolution formats to get excellent performance almost vanished.

Speakers as well now can be much more neutral and extended in the top octaves with less distortion.  Not all, of course, but a lot of brands have gotten truly excellent tweeters, far better than early Be or micro-motor diamond tweeters. Magico, Monitor Audio, Sonus Faber, Legacy, YG and others have pushed this part of the envelope forward a great deal.

I had the MAANTZ 2245 receiver, JBL l00 speakers, and an ELAC MIRACORD turntable back in my university days in the 70’s. it was considered a top-shelf audio system back then in the Jurassic Era of audio.

My take:

- today’s equipment smokes that "vintage" era gear.
- Sure, it still appeals to certain cohort of fans today, mostly from a fond nostalgia, just like old cars.
- "Vintage" in audio is not the same perception of perceived product step-up as "vintage" in old wine. It just means "old" and in need of attention for age-related failing parts..
-And it still won’t best today’s modest price strata offerings even if restored.(just like old cars ...)..

But one can enjoy them if that’s the nostalgia straw that stirs their drink..

While the average quality MAY have improved, certain vintage gear still sounds as good, or in some cases better than current stuff.  If you ever have a chance to sit in front of a pair (or even one) original Quad ESL57s driven by original Quad amplification, you can tell us how much progress there has been.

I still run gear that is 40 years old in one system and 20 years old in my main system.

I love vintage technology, especially watches. But the performance gap between watches produced during the "Golden Era" (i.e. '50s and '60s") and today is far more narrow than that of stereo components, cars, or pretty much anything else.

I was using a re-capped and upgraded Accuphase E-303x integrated amp for about three years, and enjoyed it thoroughly. But when I switched to a used Hegel h160, I was very surprised at how big a step forward it was. 

On an inflation adjusted basis, they were comparable in cost, and yet despite the obvious quality of the Accuphase, it was no match for the Hegel.

KLH 9s. Artjur Janszen. 
David rebuilds them in 2021 and his modern  designs are fine too.