I lusted after Mac and many of the Samsun and Marantz stuff for years. But for real beauty, I had an Olsen tuner and an amp. This was all my parents would let me spend. They did have the thinnest wood cabinetry I have ever seen. Had to use them until I built a Dynaco SCA80Q at college, and then moved up. No money then but all the time, all the money now but no time.
This thread makes me realize what really tremendous equipment has been built over the years. How did we all decide which to use....a question probably at the heart of any audiophile disagreements, i.e. Why did you chose a component, and, be honest, how much did the look and not the sound influence your choice.