Importance of Amplifier versus Preamp?

R&R'er, those are not the model numbers you had indicated in your earlier post. Also, I can't find any indication that there ever was a Sony "ta 55e77s." Can you clarify, more precisely?

The comments in my previous post remain as stated regardless of whether the Nikko is a Beta 20 or a Beta II (Roman numeral "2"). However that may not be the case with respect to the Sony.

BTW, I had assumed in my previous post that when you referred to a "Sony TA77ESD" in your earlier post that you were actually referring to a "Sony TA-E77ESD."

Regards,
-- Al

Almarg,
here we go: SONY TA-E77ESD is my preamp working with the SAE 2101 amplifier.Sorry about that mistake.
I just bought another amp:Sony TA-E330ES for my office.
I probably will pair it with the Nikko Beta 20.
What bookshelf speakers would be a good choice? Thank you kindly.

I don't want to seem picayune, but it can be important to be precise about model numbers, in part so that others can research what you've got. So I believe a couple of corrections to your correction are called for:

SAE 2101 should be SAE 2401, as you stated earlier.
Sony TA-E330ES should be (I believe) Sony TA-N330ES.

I'm not particularly knowledgeable about bookshelf speakers, but among vintage speakers one brand I would suggest looking for is ADS, also referred to as a/d/s.

Good luck. Regards,
-- Al

The amps have specs that are likely not a lot different from high end amps.

The preamp however is a different matter- I would seriously look for a budget tube preamp for this setup- that would offer the most bang for the buck in terms of improvement in sound, if the tube preamp is in good working order.

FWIW, I just bought and set up a pair of stand mount monitors from Music Direct (Wharfedale Dentons at half price ($500). I used a tube amp and they sound far beyond my expectations. They are well reviewed in the English mag's. Caveat - they are rear ported and won't sound too good backed up to a wall.