Apropos old equipment, I have noticed a significant interest by the younger folk in older stereo equipment. Some old folks too. But take a look at this site: https://reverb.com/brand/marantz?product_type=home-audio&category=receivers That's Marantz receivers, only. Some of this stuff is 400% more than original price. Some is inflation, but folks, this is *used* equipment.
I have one of these: Quadraphonic, baby. I was with my older brother (now deceased) when he bought it. Also had the quadraphonic turntable, and his JBL L-100 speakers (4 of them.) I got the receipts for the whole shootin' match.
One better. Long time ago, I got up to make the fam breakfast. At dinner, things in the fridge seemed warmer. I called a repair store and they sent someone out. Nice young guy came in and said, Before I look at the fridge, I will tell you I charge $? amount of money minimum service charge. Check to see if the appliance is plugged in and turned on. It was plugged in but when I opened the door, the dial was turned off. I forgot I had cleaned it a couple days ago. Should have been a momentous, memorable occasion as I do it so seldom. I called the store and told them nevermind. I hope that kid did not get fired after doing that to help a lot of people to save money.
Hah! An honest man! But you are right to be concerned, because nowadays no good deed goes unpunished,
The funny thing is, that brother who bought into quadraphonic also chose BETA over VHS. From a specs standpoint, it was the right decision.
My first one was BETA. The lesson was valuable: maybe relative quality is not all-important, depending on context.
I had to replace my 35 year old refrigerator a few years ago. The delivery guy could tell it was very old. He asked me, "How old is this fridge?" I said "More than 35 years old." He said, "Well, just don't expect this one to last that long." I said, "How long should I expect it to last?" He said "About 6 years." And brands don't mean as much as they used to. Appliances are made with various parts from all over the world - wherever labor is cheapest.
Yup. I had the same experience with my older fridge, and the same experience with the new one..."Expect it to last 7 years." Stupid me left my old fridge at the house I sold when I moved in 2010, thinking I would "upgrade." I am on my second "modern" fridge. I learned my lesson, but there's no way to apply it.
It certainly used to be the case and, as you said, not sure about now. Our house was built between 92-94 and we still have the plain Jane heavy duty Maytag washer and dryer. I made the first ever service call (for either of them) on the dryer about a month ago. The service guy replaced two rubber wheels for the drum and the drive belt and said it looks great, should be good do another 20 years. It irks me to no end that so few seem willing to make products like that anymore. I’ve heard it said Speed Queen makes some models similar to the old Maytags.
I hope you are not correct about ALL brands. I bought a new refrigerator in 2011, brand Samsung and it is still going strong.
When I replaced my old washer & dryer 10 years ago, I chose Speed Queen because of their durability & 25 year warranty.
We have a Speed Queen washer and dryer too that is about 10 years old. I agree, Tony. It's very durable! I got tired of all those water saving front loaders that baptized the clothes instead of washing them. It would take about 60-90 minutes to do just ONE load of laundry.
I also read about problems with mold in the door of front loaders. And those computerized lights & gadjets; when they fail, the whole washer stops until you call a repair man.
I purchased a new Frigidaire on 4/28/01, 22 yrs ago coming up. It's great and I purchased it from a local store here in my town, which is gone now... Hold on to your appliances if you can. I may have paid low $500's for the fridge but I'm not sure...today I'm hearing $1,000 or so. Larger cities may have "used" appliance stores and good products could be found there... I Miss America.... The original stove when my apt bldg was built is a Merritt Okeef and it's over 80 yrs. YOUNG....Love you stove -- you've been a great pal.