My old stuff sounds better than the new??

I was opening some old bundle files from around the year 2000 just for grins and to see if I could find some interesting stuff to work with and was surprised at the quality. I'm not saying that I know much about recording now, but I guess I must have known less back then, but the sound quality was great! 
Back then I was creating a lot of instrumental stuff using a decent custom made computer and an Echo Layla sound card with external modules (all 16 bit).
I tweaked one old song (using some tools in Sonar 8 producer), burnt a CD and stuck it in a couple of consumer stereo systems and, to my ears, it sounded almost as good as some commercially distributed indi stuff that I've purchased recently (still not quite as clear, defined and phat...but not too bad for a rank amateur).
So why now, with better gear and 24 bit etc. (but more reliance on soft synths), does my stuff not 'pop' quite as well as it did back then?
I think that there is a lot to be said for using external gear and external effects processing.
Sometimes it's good to reflect on and revisit the past, if for no other reason than to re learn the lessons we spent so much time learning and perhaps forgot?

  

I just ran some finished songs through a couple of pricey analog comp/limiters for mastering purposes (I used some digital stuff, too, on the way out).  Yea, hardware still works.  Transformers, etc. do add that analog essence which digital still doesn't do as well.

I still have to listen some more, but so far I like what it did.

@

It can be quite sobering to listen to older recordings.  A few years back, I listened to some stuff I had recorded on 1/4" reel-to-reel tape that sounded fantastic although I knew then about 3% of what I know now about recording.