Best used amp for around 500

You have a lot of great recommendations. Sonograph SA 250, Dynaco St 70 and Complete would be my choices. Interesting mix that would depend on the rest of the system. Integrateds have come a long way and there is more you can do with them. Go after one that has main in and pre out and then upgrade as time and money allow. Counterpoint is good too. Now here is a diferent option. Look for a Adcom 5200 or 5300, which can be had for 2-300 and send it to Stan Warren at Supermods for one of his make overs. If you do not want to go this route, the above suggestions are great. Select 3-4 and see if you can listen to them or get a consensus. Good luck.

If you want to cheap out and still sound good try a used B&K ST140. TG

I went from B&K to Jolida and man was I happy. The B&K was a 4420. Come to think of it, that would be selling for around $500 now.

Here's one other option. Stan Warren modified Adcom 5200 or 5300. Give Stan a call and check it out.

Dklap, I'm also using a Denon receiver (AVR-3801) as a pre-amp for two channel music. I recently bought an Acurus A150 ($340 used here) to bypass the Denon's internal amps. I highly recommend doing this. The sound is much more dynamic and detailed. I also use an AudioPrism WaveGuide on the power cord to the receiver. This is a nice tweak in lieu of replacing the captive power cord. Highly recommended by a SoundStage reviewer for just this application.http://www.soundstage.com/revequip/audioprism_waveguide.htm.

The Audiogon member I bought the A150 from has another one for sale. If you're interested, email me and I can put you in touch with him. Whether you chose this amp or one of the others recommended here you won't be disappointed.