I hear what you guys are saying and you make some good points. Mark - I don't think the 70's As are that bad. Of course the 50's era cymbals do sound very nice. I think after Ringo came along they lost that. Having said all that I would much rather spend the money on a 70's A than a modern (insert brand name here) cymbal of similar weight / size. I think what I always get with these Zildjians is that unmistakable sound that I'm very fond of. I wouldn't mind paying for that. I can get away with using my Avedis Zildians in just about any musical situation. I've played better, don't get me wrong, but old Avedis are just great, let's face it. And that's why I think they're so undervalued.
They are not undervalued for a simple economic reason. Things cost what the market will bear. The price of old A's is the proper price because that's what people who buy them are willing to pay for them. If anything, other cymbals are ridiculously out of proportion. Old Ks are, or were. in sharp demand and many are bought up by collector/drummers with other jobs, not by full time professionals like my son. There is nothing wrong with that, but old K's too are worth what they are worth ONLY because people are willing to pay the money. Of course this is also a result of their superior sound, but their limited availability is mostly what drives the high price. Old A's, on the other hand, are readily available.
Your thinking that the 70's As aren't that bad may be a valid statement. But "not bad" is not the same as great. My son and I are only interested in superior sounding cymbals and have passed up on dozens of mediocre vintage A's and even some K's over the years that did not possess the sound we were looking for. Modern A are generally way too bright, way too pingy and have a one dimensional wash. They are certainly usable, but they are not special. We want special!
Between the two of us we have some 35 -40 ride cymbals. If they aren't special we don't want them. In fact we will shortly be culling the herd and selling off around around fifteen or so cymbals including 7 or 8 old A's and an old K along with several other newer Bosphorus cymbals and a couple of K Cons. Most sound pretty good but they are simply not getting played. This is partially as a result of the recent acquisition of a set of the new Zildjian Keropes which are incredibly old K like at a fraction of the cost. Other than K Cons I never thought I would ever buy new Zildjian cymbals again. This series is remarkable.