Vintage Integrated Amp or Receiver

Willis927

Willis927

Enthusiast
I'm looking for some advice on a vintage integrated amp or receiver. Quick breakdown...

Small space 14 x 12
KEF Q100 speakers (got a super deal on them, $199 for the pair)
Project Carbon Debut Turntable
Listening to vinyl 99% of the time...mp3 (android) 1%
Rock, Blues, Folk, Early alternative (REM, Pixies, etc)

More than likely, I won't add on to this set up in the future.

Any opinions on Marantz, Pioneer, etc? Favorite models??

Thanks so much for your help...
 
AcuDefTechGuy

AcuDefTechGuy

Audioholic Jedi
For 99% Vinyl, probably any of those integrated (whichever is cheapest) since AVR might be more expensive for Phono Input. I don't even see a Phono input on the Denon X3100 ($1000 MSRP).
 
KEW

KEW

Audioholic Overlord
The obvious problem is you don't know how hard the vintage amp has been driven. If you have the time to look for one and enjoy the gamble, it is certainly possible to find a great deal for a song. However, I have always felt insecure about the vintage gear I have bought. At twenty plus years old, the electronics are not what they originally were.

If you are after the look, Yamaha has a series of nice amplifiers which look like units from the 1970's with MSRP ranging from $400 to $8,000:
http://usa.yamaha.com/products/audio-visual/hifi-components/amps/#page=1&mode=paging

I'm not sure all of them have phono preamps.
Some models also have the classic Yamaha Loudness knob.
My A-S700 has both and is a nice amp.
 
M

markw

Audioholic Overlord
I love vintage. I've got two Marantz 2270's, a 2230 and a Pioneer SX-1000. I've got some vintage stuff that was new when I bought it and either of those brands you mention are superb.

BUT...

Remember, you're dealing with equipment that could be round forty years old, and things can change over that period of time. Capacitors can die or change value, tuners can need alignment and all sorts of odd things can happen

unless you can repair this stuff yourself, be prepared to pay a good tech to do what's needed, particularly if your purchase includes a tuner.
 
highfigh

highfigh

Seriously, I have no life.
The obvious problem is you don't know how hard the vintage amp has been driven. If you have the time to look for one and enjoy the gamble, it is certainly possible to find a great deal for a song. However, I have always felt insecure about the vintage gear I have bought. At twenty plus years old, the electronics are not what they originally were.

If you are after the look, Yamaha has a series of nice amplifiers which look like units from the 1970's with MSRP ranging from $400 to $8,000:
http://usa.yamaha.com/products/audio-visual/hifi-components/amps/#page=1&mode=paging

I'm not sure all of them have phono preamps.
Some models also have the classic Yamaha Loudness knob.
My A-S700 has both and is a nice amp.
ANYTHING from the '70s has a phono section. Also, if it was more expensive, there's a good chance it wasn't treated like a farm animal.
 
highfigh

highfigh

Seriously, I have no life.
I'm looking for some advice on a vintage integrated amp or receiver. Quick breakdown...

Small space 14 x 12
KEF Q100 speakers (got a super deal on them, $199 for the pair)
Project Carbon Debut Turntable
Listening to vinyl 99% of the time...mp3 (android) 1%
Rock, Blues, Folk, Early alternative (REM, Pixies, etc)

More than likely, I won't add on to this set up in the future.

Any opinions on Marantz, Pioneer, etc? Favorite models??

Thanks so much for your help...
I still have a Sony TA-F500 ES integrated amp and it has a lot of features that are useful, among them a MM and MC phono stage, useful tone controls (the turnover points are at frequencies that help, rather than just cause a big hump in the response) and one thing that was a surprise- passive volume & tone controls. I had mine modified so I could have a preamp output and the music continued to play after I shut down the integrated amp before the power amp (not the proper order, BTW), so I tried using all of the controls and they all worked, as well as the source switching. It has two AV inputs with a composite video jack and the video is active, but the sound didn't change when with the power off. It's a good sounding piece and it's extremely quiet. The phono section is good, for a mid-priced integrated. The amp it replaced is the TA-F6B, which was also a very good sounding piece and that had MM and MC input, as well.

I always liked Sony's integrated amps more than Pioneer and since we didn't sell Marantz, the experience I had came when we took something in trade or it came in for service (not very often). Pioneer's Elite line was definitely better than their regular models.
 

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