There's yet another reason to buy an old receiver that no one's mentioned...or maybe I missed it. Beyond getting near-modern performance on the cheap, and beyond the nostalgia factor, there's the notion of lineage.
Everything we have today in terms of audio gear has decended from the stuff made in the 70's. In a lot of ways, the old(er) stuff represents the "forefathers" of high end audio. All our modern gear is produced by guys who designed, or grew up on, gear from the 70's.
So, why not go out and get one, just as a history lesson? As someone pointed out, we've all probably spent $100 on something far more frivolous. My dad gave me his old Fisher (no idea what model) when I was about 16-17 years old, and I loved it. The volume and balance knobs started cutting out really badly though, and I gave it to Goodwill. Still kicking myself for that one...
Everything we have today in terms of audio gear has decended from the stuff made in the 70's. In a lot of ways, the old(er) stuff represents the "forefathers" of high end audio. All our modern gear is produced by guys who designed, or grew up on, gear from the 70's.
So, why not go out and get one, just as a history lesson? As someone pointed out, we've all probably spent $100 on something far more frivolous. My dad gave me his old Fisher (no idea what model) when I was about 16-17 years old, and I loved it. The volume and balance knobs started cutting out really badly though, and I gave it to Goodwill. Still kicking myself for that one...