old verses new ???

I'm still using my recently refurbished 1984 Sota Sapphire, and I'd stack my rig up against anything under $10K made today.

There is no "correct" answer to your question, the way you posed it, except to say, as Czarivey already did, that vintage tt's are generally less expensive than new ones, and MUCH less expensive than the most expensive class of current production turntables. Just because idler- and belt-drive turntables are simpler devices, you would tend to have fewer restoration issues with those types. Vintage direct-drive turntables require a certain amount of patience and knowledge, but if you like direct-drive, you probably should consider them. For DD and idler-drive tt's, you may also want to consider the purchase or construction of a new plinth, to get more out of them than was ever gotten out of them in the first place. That presents a whole new set of choices as to materials, mass, damping, budget, etc., for a new plinth.

Old is not necessarily better, by a long shot. Nor is new. You'd do better to ask for specific comparisons between a particular vintage tt and a particular new tt, for example.

Just to help you know where I am coming from, I own 5 vintage high-end direct-drive turntables, all restored electronically, all re-plinthed, except for my Kenwood L07D which was built and designed with a beautifully engineered plinth that I would never change. Still, keep an open mind. There are some great new products out there at reasonable prices, if you consider the $5000 to $10,000 range reasonable. I am thinking of Galibier and Spiral Groove, for two examples.

I am currently curious as to advances in turntable technologies, are they enough to upgrade from a maplenoll to a current table. What would be the advantages of this move?

I would be concerned with the age of the electronics of the motor controller on some older TTs. They are consumer goods.

And you may be hostage to people selling this stuff if any thing goes wrong.

Maybe a bit apples and oranges but I would take a 2010 BMW M, Porsche, Ferrari, Corvette...over anything built in 1980 as far as performance goes. And we are not that far from 2015.

If you are looking for nostalgia that is fine but from a technological standpoint things have advanced a long way since 1975 or 1980. Not to say there aren't some classics though.