My old Marantz receiver 2270 - and I got it for $200 ebay.
It takes a good 45 min. to fully warm up, but paired with the right speaker, it sounds good for classical music.
The color is neutral and natural, so unfatiguing. I can't lsiten to many upscale amps for a long time because of their unnatural electric quality they make, but the old marantz sounds like the acoustic instruments are in my room.
I think partially because it is so dead black in background noise that I can listen to it for a long time without a listening fatigue.
It does something to the sound that many amps don't - which is to give depth to the sound - 3 dimensionnal quality. Anyone who has taken classical music lessons heard that from their teachers - to make a "round" sound - and the Marantz does that.
I would recommend this to any audiophile on a budget - or for a 2nd system in the basement gym or for your office. Hunt one down on the ebay, but you probably should clean the volume pots with a spray cleaner (radio shack). Since you are buying an old piece (almost 30 years), make sure you are getting a fully functioning one (call and hear the sound first over the phone). Buying on the ebay is not as safe as here on the audiogon, but sometimes you can get bargains - and the Marantz will not disappoint.
