[Sander deWaal]

"One4All" said:

Sander,

I don't question your knowledge or your goodwill, but an eBay search on
sold 1060's averages out to less than $100. Maybe closer to $50. Are
you saying these buyers are getting a bargain, that, like you, they
know the true worth of the 1060? FYI, based on what you've told me,
I'll not be in a hurry to sell my 1060, even if I buy a replacement,
which looks like will be a NAD C320 BEE.


I must confess to not have looked at what exact model you had, before
just now.
It appears the 1060 doesn't command the prices I thought they would.
I must have had another model in my mind. I'm sorry.

Nevertheless, it is a good amp, from an era when quality was still
king.
If I were you, I'd look out for a knowledgeable hobbyist who likes to
bring your amp back to its original state.
The cost of having this done by a professional wouldn't relate to the
actual value of the amplifier.

Like I said, I'm an old tinkerer, and I would love to overhaul this
amp for you. But alas, I'm in the Netherlands............


I'm going to get the 1060 checked out at a local shop, & if it still
performs (that is, the hum is negligible), I'll save the $600 the NAD
would cost. I just need another pair of trained ears to listen to this
amplifier. There's nothing like owning a performing classic.


Exactly. :-)
There are days I'm happy to be able to know what to do with a
soldering iron !


One other thing: There are audio components out there (esp. amplifiers)
running into the $K's. I even ran across a quote for a speaker system
at $85K. Is this just another example of conspicuous consumption? All
this "high-end" stuff? Are there that many human ears that are so
attenuated that a $10K or more amplifier will produce a more
satisfactory sound to those ears than, say, a NAD C320 BEE? It may be
that there are; there may be a price to pay for pristine sound. Yet,
how pristine is that sound at a live performance, which should be the
standard?


In my opinion, high end audio is a bit like the formula 1 in car
racing.
Most of these highly expensive units are handmade, with very special
parts, often thought to be the best of their kind.
That alone makes them expensive, especially when only a few are built.

Then there are designers who just want to add their own signature to a
certain circuit (I'm one of them, BTW ;-) ).
This is often where "hifi" starts to get separated from "myfi".
Hifi is referred to as "to reproduce as accurate as possible what's on
the source disk".

To me, this doesn't necessarily mean it sounds the best to my ears.
No one will dispute that speakers (and room, and positioning) is/are
the most important component/factor.
However, it is possible to alter the circuit of an amplifier, or a
DAC, or a preamlifier, to sound just a little different.
Formally, at that moment, the designer is no longer designing hifi
equipment, but myfi equipment.
Myfi = this sounds good to me.

In my opinion, there's nothing wrong with that.
It is no different than to fiddle with tone controls, equalizers of
even DSPs (Digital Signal Processors that emulate hall reverb etc.)

For $600, you will buy a very decent hifi component, that will preform
as good as modern technology will allow for.
In most rooms, the need for more than say 100 watts/channel is almost
never there (I know some people will jump on me for this!).

More money often buys you more power, but don't forget that SPL (sound
pressure level, the perceived loudness of the music) is a logarithmic
figure.
That means that 100 watts is 2 times the loudness of 10 watts, and
only 4 times the loudness of 1 watt.

Therefore, you'll notice that listening on average levels requires an
average power of 1 watt, in most cases even less.
The rest of the amp power is reserved for peaks in the music.

I could go on about things like crest factor etc., but I think you get
the idea.

There's also something like speaker efficiency, that is the rate
between electrical input power in watts and sound pressure level in
dBs.
Average speakers have a sensitivity in the range of 87...90 dB/w/m.
This means, for a loudness of 87...90 dB at a distance of 1 meter, 1
watt (or rather, 2.83 volts) is necessary.
I can tell you, 87 dB at 1 meter is loud, at least to these ears.

If you have speakers with say 97 dB/w/m, you will need 10 dB less of
amp power to reach the same loudness.

So, in my view, it is important to look at the system in its entirety.
If you have inefficient speakers, you'll need more power.
If you have a big room, you'll need more power.

Above I said more money buys you more power, in general.
In some cases, more money just buys you boutique parts, design cases,
blue LEDs and a lot of marketing.

To make an informed decision on what to buy is therefore not an easy
process, something the well-known magazines certaibly do not make
easier.


As you know, you don't need to get too technical, here, if you wish to
reply, at all.


I hope the above, which is just the tip of the iceberg, is of some
help with your decision.

If you want to hear more, just ask, and remember: the above is just
*my opinion*, it is no gospel, and I may well be wrong about certain
things.

I'm sure several other newsgroup contributors will fill in the gaps or
will correct me, even attack me for what I have been saying ;-)

--
"Due knot trussed yore spell chequer two fined awl miss steaks."