The information on
this page is presented as an informal valuation discussion and should NOT be taken as an official price guide. In order make an intelligent estimation of the value of a particular piece of high fidelity equipment, four factors should be taken into consideration. 1. The current usefulness of the equipment 1. The current usefulness of the equipment Obviously a piece of equipment is more valuable to the purchaser if it can be used. As such, stereo components are far more desirable than their mono counterparts with the exception of mono power amplifiers, which can be used in pairs. In fact the "holy grail" of vintage hi-fi is the Marantz Model 9 (mono) power amplifier; a 70 watt high-quality brute of an amplifier which can fetch prices of up to $14,000 for a mint pair. Preamplifiers are rendered less useful by merit of their age. Early input sources were quite different than their modern counterparts and so older preamplifiers and control units needed equalisation and tone settings that are today quite inappropriate. This is also true of some very early stereo integrated amplifiers. Mono preamplifiers and integrated amplifiers are the least valuable in terms of usability; a matching pair would be needed to create a stereo set up. Added to this the input equalisation issue mentioned above and it is easy to see why vintage mono pieces (apart from power amplifiers) rarely command prices of over $150. 2. The original design quality and value of the equipment Like any product, hi-fi equipment was produced in all types of designs and qualities. As a general rule, the original value of equipment will be reflected in its current value. Example 1: Two 1960 35 watt stereo integrated amplifiers Example 2: Two mid-1950’s 30 watt mono power
amplifies 3. The current condition of the equipment This aspect doesn't really need much elaboration; like any 'antique' or collectable piece, the better the overall condition, the higher the value. Most amplifiers can be restored or modified to equal or better their original specification. Most parts, including tubes, are readily available. Transformers are very difficult (and expensive to repair or replace). Original trim items such as control knobs, fascia panels and metalwork can be difficult to source. A clean, complete and cosmetically sound but non-functioning amplifier may be worth more than a shabby working one which is has a damaged control panel with faded lettering and non-standard control knobs. 4. The collectibility of the equipment Certain pieces of equipment were produced in very low volumes (for example: the Futterman output transformerless amplifiers of the early 1960s). Others have obtained a certain 'cult' status due to a quirk of circuit design, styling or a particular 'sound'. These factors can all contribute substantially to the equipment's desirability and value. To conclude, below are lists of various types of amplifiers which have been recently sold on internet auction ( sampled randomly between June 2005 and September 2006) with the original price of the equipment when new for comparison. Only the sale price of units in 'good' to 'excellent' were collected and I must stress that this was done on a random basis, so some of the 'High Price' listings may in fact have reached higher levels but not recorded. Prices for shabby, incomplete or non-functional units can be as low as a quarter of the 'High Price'
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