Retoast, go get laid.
No, but seriously, lighten up a little. It's a given that not everything should be coveted simply because it's "old school" or even because it's "uber-rare". There were some really great pieces of gear and some really awful pieces of shit, always has been, always will be. Some guys are just trying to get a hold of what they couldn't afford back then or wanting to try it because they weren't alive yet, lol. Some just collect the old gear because they want to, don't even use it. Reminds them of their youth and happier times? I don't know.
Some of that gear does sound better than what can be had today and will stomp the shit out of a few others. It won't be very efficient in doing it but it's not always about efficiency or how much power you can squeeze out of it, sometimes it's just about how it sounds - and please, let's not go down the RC challenge path. Some will put up with low power limitations and relatively high amounts of THD simply to enjoy a certain signature or character that a particular amplifier has. I'm one of those people. I actually have an amplifier that allows me to remove the negative feedback loop from the output circuit, which raises the amount of even order harmonic distortion but man does it sound glorious. Reminds you that it's all about enjoying the music!
On the other hand, years of progress and innovation have given us new offerings that truly do embarrass "old school" gear and some people are not willing to acknowledge that fact. Maybe the build quality lacks the love and attention to detail that the older stuff clearly had but I'm not sure how much that matters in the long run. Economies and business practices aren't what they used to be when some of these companies were at their peak. Whatever. I've heard amplifiers that I once scoffed at either for the build quality or for the name, only to be completely impressed by the sound of it.
I'm of the opinion that no matter what generation the amplifier is, no matter what name is on it or what buildhouse it came from, as long as the circuit design is good (meaning it sounds great) and it's reliable, enjoy it! Enjoy the music! That's the point of it all anyway. If you really want to get up in arms about something, how about low resolution and high compression recordings? Now that's something worth getting irritated about. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif