Another Nikko NR-719

[cgnman59]

I saw this Nikko advertised on the local CL. I then checked the threads here about Nikko since I had never really heard of the brand before. I'm pretty much a pioneer guy but thought I would check it out. For $50, I figured, "What the heck, why not?" I hooked up some speakers the guy had, played around with the tuning and ended up paying $35 for it. As noted in earlier threads it's not necessarily TOTL but it is in very good shape and the only thing wrong with it is a foot is missing in back which is an easy fix. I was surprised and impressed by the rich warm sound. My Pioneer HPM's suddenly acted as if they had just received a breath of fresh air! Other pluses:

--Everything works
--Uncluttered appearance
--Tuner does a good job of pulling in stations

Minuses
--Only one I've really noticed at this point and that is the tuner which is really twitchy. Once you get a station it stays but it's making the minute adjustment to get the darn thing tuned in! Maybe I'm just out of practice with analog.

I may notice more minuses but its fun to listen to an old vintage receiver after having been away from them for so long and at $35, its an inexpensive re-entry into the world of vintage gear.

 

[rickon66]

Nikko made some nice stuff!!

 

[gearhound]

Nikko gear is quite good...and under-appreciated.
My $10 yard-sale Nikko 5055 is first-rate IMO!
Hope you enjoy yours!!

Steve

 

[bully]

Yes, Nikko made some nice gear! The NR-719 is a solid 35 wpc.
I really like my NR-1015.

 

[cgnman59]

Thanks for the vote of confidence on the Nikko. What surprised me was the amount of low end "grunt" this receiver has. Like I said my HPM 500's really sat up and took notice. I also am impressed with the depth and clarity of the audio at even low levels.

I have a rather decent Pioneer 5.1 a/v receiver and while it is fine for movies, it sounds very thin with my music no matter how many adjustments I make. I remember how rich and full my Pioneer SX-D5000 sounded and knew that if I wanted to be serious about listening to my music collection again I would have to start looking into equipment made when the music was real and stereo was serious business and not the BPC made in today's "who cares if its stereo mp3 world."

 

[onepixel]

I had the same model. The tuner is average at best, otherwise it does sounds very good. It also has a very good sounding phono section too.

 

[ModernClassic]

I used to have this receiver too. Sold it last year. It has the touch sensitive AFC off feature, like those expensive Yamaha tuner and receivers.

 

[veloceleste]

Niko is very good and still under the vintage radar. My first receiver from 1975 is still in the family somewhere and my first seperates were a Nikko Beta 1 preamp and Gamma 1 tuner.

 

[JustinDanger]

I know this is an old thread, but I was searching for info on Nikko and the NR-719 because a friend of mine just gave me one she bought new in 1979. It even has the manual. Only things wrong are a missing power/speaker selector knob (the plastic is there but the knob isn't) and a dirty volume control.

Seems to be pretty decent for free.

 

[PeterFCassidy]

Nikko - The Outer Limits of Ultrabadness!

My NR-1015 had an insanely great tuner, clean amplification and a very nice phono section. Nice lower range power and handling. I've been told by reliable sources that this would require an arms importer license to bring into the US today. You are joining the pantheon of Nikko gods!

Peter

I saw this Nikko advertised on the local CL. I then checked the threads here about Nikko since I had never really heard of the brand before. I'm pretty much a pioneer guy but thought I would check it out. For $50, I figured, "What the heck, why not?" I hooked up some speakers the guy had, played around with the tuning and ended up paying $35 for it. As noted in earlier threads it's not necessarily TOTL but it is in very good shape and the only thing wrong with it is a foot is missing in back which is an easy fix. I was surprised and impressed by the rich warm sound. My Pioneer HPM's suddenly acted as if they had just received a breath of fresh air! Other pluses:

--Everything works
--Uncluttered appearance
--Tuner does a good job of pulling in stations

Minuses
--Only one I've really noticed at this point and that is the tuner which is really twitchy. Once you get a station it stays but it's making the minute adjustment to get the darn thing tuned in! Maybe I'm just out of practice with analog.

I may notice more minuses but its fun to listen to an old vintage receiver after having been away from them for so long and at $35, its an inexpensive re-entry into the world of vintage gear.

 

[PeterFCassidy]

Gamma I - Incredible Tuner!

There are lots of fans of the Gamma I out there. The closest I have gotten so far is my NT-950. Incredible by all accounts but the Gammas I and V are supposed to be the outer limits of tuna cool.

Peter

Niko is very good and still under the vintage radar. My first receiver from 1975 is still in the family somewhere and my first seperates were a Nikko Beta 1 preamp and Gamma 1 tuner.

 

[JakeAJ]

Long time lurker and figured I should finally register and pipe in. I love my 719. Was a goodwill find for $20 or so I think. The sound quality is very clear, and the components are well made. Mine was also missing a rear foot when I bought it. Easy fix. Replaced my Sansui R-30 because to me it just sounded better, particularly at lower volume.

 

[TnSquatch]

Working on a couple Dual 1229 tt’s for a customer who brought a Nikko NR-719 to possibly trade for a portion of my labor. Good solid 35wpc @ 8 ohm ‘70’s Japanese receiver. While it performed as well as it did the day of manufacture, it just did not sound good with my JBL L-80t speakers. I’m use to pushing them with my Yamaha CR-1020 @ 70wpc.
The Nikko @ 35 wpc just doesn’t have enough guts to drive my speakers properly.

 

[felixleg]

Got one for $20 CAD. It was clearly stored in horrible conditions. But despite that it was an easy fix : shorted output transistors that I replaced with modern equivalent (found thanks to this amazing site!) $3 a piece.

Sounds amazing, very low distorsion! Still very good looking, made just before manufacturers went for those ugly plastic fronts in the 80S.