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Best Vintage Integrated Amplifier Recommendations?

The deal was a few months ago a rebuilt CA-1010 for 425 in barter town. but you need to drop a quarter to subscribe for a year to have access to the fun.
 
Isaac C. said:
Is there a lot of cool gear that comes up on bartertown? I've been thinking of subscribing.
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Yes! It's definitely worth the price of admission. Plus, you could place a WTB (want to buy) ad and probably get several offers.
 
Isaac C. said:
Is there a lot of cool gear that comes up on bartertown? I've been thinking of subscribing.
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There is a lot of cool gear that folks have. Some post it for sale at prices that range from the sublime to the ridiculous, but with all the gear folks are holding, you can ask for something and maybe someone needs just that nudge to get it out of the closet, test it and make it available to you. A WTB ad can frequently provide a long list of options. In your case, with your criteria, you would receive offered goods ranging from integrated amps to receivers of 20-120wpc and probably a turntable or two. Might even be able to locate something close to Local, Charlotte or Atlanta maybe so you don't have to let UPS handle it first. Heck could even meet some other AKers.
 
Akustic said:
Interesting choice of speakers ..
[snip]
Rectillinear's will rock and roll better with low power because they're more efficient, but they're much more colored and far less accurate than the other two.. .
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Interesting that you say that because the majority opinion is that the Highboys are very neutral, at least when recapped.
 
I've stick w/ my two McIntosh stalwarts for (respectively) 12 and 18 years:

- MA-6100
- MA-6200

Why one of each? It happened. Also have the MAC-4100, which is the MA-6200 squeezed into a receiver configuration, along w/ (IIRC) an MR-74 tuner. I have also a separate MR-78 tuner, but this thread's about integrated amplifiers, so never mind.
 
Freds.Bands said:
Interesting that you say that because the majority opinion is that the Highboys are very neutral, at least when recapped.
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Neutral compared to what ?? ... I think maybe it depends on how much gear you've actually owned or listened to ..
People like what they what like, and they're particularly popular on this board and with Vintage fans ..but the Rectlinears never have been, and never will be considered a neutral or high end speaker .. they're certainly not comparable to classics like the Vandersteens or Snells or any number of others ..

I bought the Rectilinears when they were new in the 70's, But I moved on before I was 18 .. and that was hard-working teen.. I earned it myself money, but there were a lot of better and mostly more expensive speakers ...
They used mid-grade drivers that suffered from early breakup if they were cranked and the 2.5" cone tweeter that they use was still common when they were new, but even then everyone was moving toward domed tweeters of a smaller size which were considered superior .. Their bass was plentiful, but peaky at certain frequencies .. They also suffer from significant baffle effects which were just becoming a consideration back in their day, and the idea of imaging hadn't quite even entered the conversation yet ..
Enjoy them .. I bought them, thought that were good speakers for the money, and obviously liked them, but recognize that they may be limited, compared to more expensive higher quality speakers.. ..
Mine got replaced by a pair of AR LST2's, once I had earned enough $$ to get my hands on them ..
 
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One had to pay a lot more money to get a lot better speaker than the Rectilinear III. They limited themselves to conventional drivers, though they did have choices offered to them, and the result was remarkably good. Bass smoothness depends so heavily on room acoustics that a lot of experimentation is required to make a definitive judgement. They are not efficient speakers but a 50 watt amp drives them to pretty loud levels. I play brass in concert bands and orchestras, so I know about loudness.
 
They were excellent speakers for the money ... especially money that I had to sweat for ..
They were the result of a lot of looking and nothing sounded better for the money that I had ..
4 or 5 times what I paid for them would have bought me a new Volkswagen at the time .. didn't buy a car til I was 26 .. I was to busy buying audio gear ..
 
Like many, our music taste is very eclectic and ranges from Rock and Electronica, to Acoustic, Classical and Jazz.
For your limited budget, I recommend the following (almost vintage) pieces:

MONITOR AUDIO R252 2-way Loudspeakers (8" Woofer...)
CREEK CAD 4040S3 Integrated Amp (Around 40W...)
TISBURY Passive Preamp (Volume and Source Selector, Upstream of CREEK. CREEK Volume at full...)

We stumbled upon this little combo - as we recently packed up all of our high-end gear, ready to move house. The last thing we need is little "visitors" poking things during our Open Home program.

In summary, this is some of the best SS sound I have ever conjured. Unbelievable!

CREEK 4040s3 with TISBURY Passive.JPG R252 Frontal Angle with CREEK404s3.JPG
 
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For vintage integrated amps around 60 - 75 wpc, here are a few nice ones:

Silver-faced:
Onkyo A-7
Yamaha CA-810
JVC A-X5
Kenwood KA-7300
Luxman L-480
Technics SU-8600

Black-faced:
Sansui AU-517
Yamaha A-1
 
The Kenwood KA-7100 recommended is a very schveet amplifier, the second amp I owned purchased in 1978. Nostalgia of this amp led to my purchase of the KA-7300 about 4yrs ago. Almost pulled the trigger on a 7100, but realizing the 7300 offered pre outs, true dual mono amplification, and similar power I was lucky enough to find one.

A bit more expensive with less availability means a little patience would be required, but they do show up on eBay often enough.

6debaf45375b391120f0064318b834aa.jpg
kenKA7300.jpg
 
I've had a lot of integrated amps that would for your description, and the Yamaha CA-810 is my favorite by a good bit. Great sound, features, and looks. Gotta love the meters.
 
With a little luck and some hunting, an Onkyo A-10 integrated amp can be found in your budget. It’s worthy of your attention.
 
That ADC I linked to clocks in at 100 WPC and is readily available. It is not, however, mid to late 70s but I don't think that should disqialfy it unless you want a certain look.
 
For about $380 shipped you could get you a factory recon Yamaha A-S501 with a warranty when they are in stock (accessories4less). That's 85wpc with a decent bit of headroom to boot. Classic Yamaha styling mirrors that of the late 1970s. Black or silver. I have not personally heard it, but others have commented on AK. If it compares favorably to a CA-1010, which I do own, it's a decent performer. Speaking of CA-1010, I think that my mentioned dollar figure might get you one in excellent cosmetic shape, but fully restored, not so much.

Not a bad ticket. Fully restored vintage this or that might come in at that number, but you have to trust someone who is selling. Doing the work yourself, well, there is an illusion of costing less, but that's really due to discounting your own work.
 
In my previous post, I omitted amps that are higher power or too pricey for the OP's budget. One of my favorites on that list is the Yamaha CA-810. It has great looks, is very musical and sounds way more powerful than its output rating suggests. Another fave is the Onkyo A-7 having previously owned an A-5 in college and an A-10 recently. Any of the Sansui AU amps from the 70's are great sounding. My AU-7700 is my favorite amp currently, but is too expensive to consider here.
 
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