What is discrete componentry?
Its resistors, transistors & no multi transistor chips at all. That makes it bigger (& easier to fix) and although on paper the boffins say it all sounds the same… A lot of people find discrete component audio sounds better. Q. Was the audio equipment from the 70’s & 80’s really that good! In a nut shell, the 70’s YES the 80’s sometimes. They didn’t make them for a mass market. Hey when I was a kid we all had was 3 in one radio grams & they weren’t exactly cheap but they sucked.