Vintage Receiver for Turntable Setup

[moodyj2000]

First time post so don't eat me alive too much. I have done my research but to be honest I am all over the place and need some advice.

I have a cheap Audiotechnica turntable that I am looking to upgrade to probably a Fluance RT-85. I know there are better but for the price they are right where I want to be and I have listened to one.

I want to use a vintage receiver both for looks and for sound. I really like the idea of finding an underdog or lower priced unit that sounds good. I am not even afraid of tackeling refurbashing a unit. I am a mechanical engineer but have had some electrical circuit training in the past and I own meters, soldering/desoldering stations and an oscilliscope. Not an expert but if it was a lower priced unit then I would not be afraid to tackle it and chalk it up to lessons learned if I let the smoke out.

Pioneer and Marantz are the easy answers but I have looked at some of the Realistics, Technics and Sansuis. I want the tuner look with the lights but in the end this will be a dedicated turntable setup and I would like a better phone section.

Don't need monster power as it will be for a small dedicated bar and sitting area in my house. 25 to 45 WPC will do as long as I do my homework and pair the unit with the right speakers. Receivers are getting harder to find in Western North Carolina but old speakers tend to show up everywhere. I have gone through the local listings, Goodwills, etc. and nothing is turning up. I will probably go the ebay route. I have bought plenty of "projects" of there over the years so I know the risks.

Any thoughts or insights on a good phono receiver that could be had for $300 or less would be appreciated. I could stretch that for the right unit but the tinkerer in me doesn't want to drop $1000 for a full refurb.

 

[MegaGroove]

I'd probably recommend Marantz the most for what you want (lights and phono stage), but they will be difficult to find now because the prices have gone way up recently. You can probably get a "working" Sansui or Pioneer online for $300 or less with a little patience, but it might not be refurbished by a qualified tech. I'd recommend those brands as well, though. They light up nicely, too, and I enjoy their sound. Some Sansui tuner lights don't light up unless the tuner is actually in use at the time, so if you want to see those light up all the time, be sure to get a model that always illuminates them. That mattered to me when I first started buying, but once I heard a Sansui, I liked the sound a lot so I didn't care about the lights as much. I think I'd mainly recommend sticking with those three brands for your budget, although many folks might have good recommendations for other brands for you. Sony seems to get some love here, but I haven't heard one myself. Patience is the key, but that's very hard to do when buying your first vintage receiver.

 

[moodyj2000]

Yes, patience is not one of my stronger virtues. I have shown significant restraint already after only a week of looking at what is available.

any recommendations on a Sansui model to look for?

 

[rickb119]

Here are some (many) of Sansui's receivers, to give you an idea of what they look like. https://classicreceivers.com/category/receivers/sansui Always research before buying. A few had known issues that may (probably) or may not have been taken care of under warranty. Lot's of Sansui love here (I own 2). We even have our own forum. https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?forums/exclusively-sansui.39/

You might consider becoming a subscribing member (Upper right corner of the home page.) For $25.00 per year you get access to Barter Town (and other forums) where members buy, sell and trade with each other. You can also place a WTB (want to buy) ad for whatever you're looking for. The membership fee helps to keep this site going.

Also, you might ask a mod (click on report) to move this to the General Audio Discussion forum.

 

[Hoytis]

I have a Harman Kardon 330c in one of my systems and I can't say enough about it. Punches way above its 20 watts, warm yet detailed, truly sings. Strong tuner too.

 

[TheMarco]

You can get a nice low-wattage Pioneer for $300. I've seen them. Including serviced ones. Just not the big ones. But just like @Hoytis is saying about their HK, a lot of these smaller ones pack a nice punch anyway.

 

[Roypercy]

Kenwoods always have very nice phono sections in my experience. I also like the phono stage in Sherwood S-7100A (and other Sherwood models from the same era). Kenwoods don't seem to command the prices of Marantz and Pioneer.