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best vintage stereo receiver

Hi, looking to step back in time for a vintage stereo receiver for my home office.
I have owned McIntosh, Marantz, Pioneer, Yamaha & Kenwood units in the past.
I need a moderate sized unit that has good turner performance and smooth sound. What would you people recommend? I have been told that Sony and Techniques are out due to cheaper parts used and Marantz units are getting pricey. I will need switchable FM muting and an Aux input for CD use. Thanks
jihley
tbromgard
814 posts
 
I had a used Marantz receiver and paired it with some old klipsch speakers and a linn turntable and got good sound. The Marantz is nice sounding and holds value. Plus they have a cool tuner and cool blue lights.
rlwainwright
1,904 posts
 
The Tandberg receivers were the best I've ever heard and had *very* good tuners. Look for the TR-2080, TR-2060, or TR-2045. The naming scheme indicates # channels and watts/ch. Most had very sweet rosewood cabinets, too.

I used to sell those and B&O, Yamaha, Denon, and H/K receivers. FWIW, the Denon DRA-600 and DRA-650 were very nice receivers, too. Also, the H/K units had outstanding amplifier section, lots of balls.
loomisjohnson
1,941 posts
 
i agree 100% with rlwainwright on the tandberg--excellent tuners. the slightly more recent kyocera (651/851 etc.) are also extremely well built and good sounding. my personal fave, however, remains the hk 730/930, which have a sweet, tube-like sound which just strikes me as right. enjoy.
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,179 posts
 
I wish I still had my Tandberg tr2080. IT was the best!
ths364
181 posts
 
I agree with the Harman Kardon recommendation, and would add Luxman to the
list. The Marantz 2015 is a cute little bugger and has some juice with efficient speakers. I was pleasantly surprised when I listened to it. I would consider Sansui also- I have a 5050 receiver which is good looking, sounds good and can be had cheaply.
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