Stereo Receivers from the past...


Perhaps a useless question, but even though I am not a politician I have the right to be useless sometimes! 
In thinking about a second bedroom system...If I were to use a receiver any toughts on good sounding ones you have had.  The best I have had, in the past, were the original Magnum Dynalab 208 and the Nakamichi SR-3a.  I had sold both.  But now with thinking of a bedroom system those do come to mind, but wondering if you have experienced a stereo receiver that you feel is better.  I am not much into compressed streaming but do enjoy a local/public classic Jazz station and the Jazz and female vocals music I own.   Thanks 
whatjd
I’ve heard a lot of receivers over the years. and the Nakamichis were some of the best.

Hard to come by these days though.

What speakers will be used?

I've had two, both Marantz. Model 25 was my first, and I remember it fondly for its warm, rich, and clear sound. It was stolen, and I replaced it with a #2230. It was good too, though I liked it a little less than the 25. The 2230 is certainly more common today on the used market. I can recommend either.
i still have my marantz 4300 4 chanell reciever. it stll works but is it worth giving it a 'tuneup'???
I will be using some two way bookshelf spekers for Quad, I am not remembering the model as they are in storage....is a 1.2 a model? I enjoyed them when I used them in the past.  If I were to let the nostalgia bug bite me the old Tom Holman Advent Receiver would be a possibility, but my sister still has one and the last time I was at her place I was not overly impressed...she was using it with some older small Advents, the 3?.  
If ur looking for a small room system, get any descent receiver, Yamaha, onkyo etc, bookshelf speaks.
  It will sound fine, allow 2 weeks break in for amp and 4 weeks for new speakers.

 My third system is great.  
Yamaha receiver BIC v630’s and a  technics sl1200.  

Which i I use to record my LP’s to my computer to burn on disc.
smlal, inexpensive and a nice 3rd system.
The Naks were good, the NAD Monitor series were good, etc. 

If you had a Nak and liked it, just go get one. 
those speakers are very low efficiency, so consider desired volume before picking your amp's power wpc

General Description: 2-way bookshelf speaker
Enclosure Type: Bass reflex
Midbass Driver: 125mm woven Kevlar cone
Treble Driver: 25mm fabric dome
Magnetic Shielding: No
Crossover Frequency: 2.4kHz
Frequency Response (+/-3dB): 48Hz - 23kHz
Sensitivity (2.83v @ 1m): 87dB
Nominal Impedance: 6Ohm
Minimum Impedance: 3.8Ohms
Recommended Amplifier Power: 50-150W
Net Weight: 15.7 lbs.

you will hear the speakers, no big difference from any decent amp, so go for enough power and features, ease of operation, looks.

hook those speakers to an existing system, see if you really still like them.
I had a Marantz 2270 back in '76 - '77. Bought it new from Rabson's on 57st, NYC. Paid $380 + sales tax! Used it for less than 2 years before buying separates - AGI 511 preamp and GAS Son of Ampzilla. Wish I'd have kept the 2270 just for its tuner - NYC FM radio was quite good then!
Nostalgia calls! I bought a Marantz 2235 from an eBay auction with my sole bid of $135 + shipping! Not bad, eh!
Good call on the antenna.  I have used a Magnum indoor model and a Finco and Winegard outdoor antennas. 
Sansui 1000a all tube receiver. Lush sound, plenty of power and great 60s style. Sound great streaming wdcb jazz every morning. Great way to start your day. 
I'm the original owner of a Kenwood KR-8010 receiver bought new in 1978 and after a tune up a few years ago it is still in use and sounds great 135 wpc and made in Japan.
Sansui, Concept, Philips and Grundig are some that I've had experience with. The Grundig and the Concept were the best sounding to my ears. One may want a unit with the pre-out and main in inputs/outputs. Provides more flexibility in the future. 
Just search vintage receiver in Facebook marketplace and take your pick. Or go to local vintage hifi shop. There’s a huge market for this stuff right now. If your handy or have a tech that you like it’s fun to restore some of these old beauties. 
Nothing wrong with new stereo receivers and integrated amps.   Vintage stuff is OK but not as massively superior as vintage fans like to believe.  I am 62, been there, done that.  I have a garage system based on a vintage receiver and a different garage system based on a new Pioneer SX-N30.  The Pioneer is more convenient due to all the digital streaming and playback functions and can be full controlled via wi-fi from my phone.
I put a Pioneer SX-205 in the garage and liked it so much I picked up a used one for the shed pushing 1 to 3 sets of speakers. Fed from the house feed via Chinese FM transmitter.   They both chased out a cheap Sherwood that didn't like 4 seasons of weather. Yamaha is good enough for my bedroom, I got better things to do there.
@roberjerman....+! on the 2270....*S*  I had a new one decades ago...stepped up to a Kenwood L-07T, C, and a pair of the 07M's'....

...and I let them 'get away'....*dope-slap-self*

Life is best lived 'sdrawkcab' sometimes...;)
A lot of guys brought back Sansui from Nam in the day.  It was not bad...

Nak's break; Marantz items were mostly pretty good.  Pioneer, not so much.  Tandberg made a decent one, as I remember.

Cheers!
I loved my jvc Rx-40 from 1983....super class A with built in graphics equalizer. It sounded great with my old jensen system 400 acoustic suspension speakers.... 
If you are willing to go with two pieces of gear instead of one it is generally better to go with an integrated amp plus a separate tuner. Integrated amps were built to be more robust than receivers and will often handle difficult speaker loads better.

An example would be a Denon PMA 2000R or 2000IVR. I have the latter and it is an incredible amp. It puts out 80 watts into 8 ohms and 160 watts into 4 ohms. It is a brute of an amp (nearly 60 lbs) and has all the features you could want. It runs my desktop system where I've matched it with a Denon tuner and a Denon CD player of similar design and vintage. It's an attractive stack. I paid $500 for my Denon PMA 2000IVR in pristine condition with remote.

One advantage of going with a separate amp and tuner is that if you are seriously into FM listening you can get a better tuner than you would typically find in a receiver.

I've had several vintage receivers including a Pioneer 1010 and a Marantz 2325. These were beautiful pieces and I wish I had kept them. They now go for ridiculous prices - especially the Marantz 2325, but my Denon combination certainly outperforms them.
8th note

That is a good thought.  I worked in the music and audio business at one time..then high-end Scandinavian and Italian modern furniture.  I had a pretty stable system for some time and my new accomidations have me thinking of a bedroom system.  Thanks for the input.  Seems like Audio Research pre/power, the big Magnepans and a couple of high-end sources are, likely, too much for my bedroom...but then again, if I get rid of the chest of drawers and the Hans Wegner rocking chair...they just might....................
I love the Sherwood’s, 60s-1981. I still have my 1981 S9600 CP.  it’s my daily driver. Superb analog tuner, great phono preamp, all discrete components. 95 Watts/ch. 

They fly under the radar, so prices are excellent.
I had a sweet sounding 20 watt Pioneer long ago,1975 I think.I kick myself now for giving it away.
Dating myself a bit, but I had a Harman Kardon 730 (Twin Powered).  Incredible sound, surprising headroom, and a great tuner for its time.  
I recently got the vintage receiver bug, mostly Sansui's.

Check out Sansui 5000X, Sansui Eight/Eight Deluxe, Sansui 8080/9090... these were all TOTL for their time and sound amazing.


I still have my TOTL at the time Sansui AU9500 from 1973.  A monster of a piece of equipment.  Had the caps replaced a few years back but never listened to it.  A great integrated.  Still have the JVC separate tuner also.

Sansui 5000X, Harman Kardon 330, Marantz 2230 or 2270 (if you can afford it).  Pioneers are problematic with the protective relay cutting in and out due to undersized power supplies and marginal parts. Not a big fan of Yamaha either.
I agree with Shoff. I have a beautiful Luxman R-117 paired with Norman Laboratories Model Nine and it sounds amazing. It drives my Dyns effortlessly too. Not a bedroom setup exactly, but it will certainly pair well with any bookshelf speakers.
I have a small collection of the Monitor NAD receivers.

The 7600 model is robust, still highly sought after.

The lesser models 7100, 7300, 7400 have less power.

All add in a remote with volume control, 7600 even balance. They also have pre-amp outputs so you could upgrade amplifier section if you wanted.

I have a 7600 with a matching CD player and some old school original B&W LM1 speakers. Amazing sound from small sturdy package. 
My first was a Rotel entry level stereo receiver from Tech Hifi. My friends would tease me about the Rotel thinking it was junk. Little did we know.............
Upgraded the speakers to the new hot Bose 301's.

Later bought a beast of a receiver from Akai. It had Dolby NR built in. Loved the blue lights and meters. It was two feet wide but only 30watts per ch!

In college bought a Advent 300. Kept it for decades.
I used to own and love Yamaha Natural Sound receivers and integrated amps. The ones that were switchable into Class A on the front panel. I thought they sounded exceptional in Class A mode. They would only output about 20 watts in Class A, but sounded very sweet with the right speakers. In the early 80's, I had Yamaha integrated,(forget model number), that I used with Infinity Qa speakers, and a  Rabco ST-7 table with Ortofon HOMC. 18-20 watts in Class A, was just enough in my small living room, to really enjoy my Pink Floyd, Zeppelin, and Who LP's.
Had a Marantz 2270 and added the Quad adapter with the built in amps..  SQ-2 was the decoder module as I recall..  all powering 4 Fisher XP7 speakers, super heavy sand ballast jobs with 12" woofers and dual mid-range and tweeters ..  4 way I think.   Add in a Dual 1219 and a Shure V something or other cartridge and it took a long, long time to get better sound with different gear and digital.  The better sound came from Marantz PM500 series gear which has been replaced by now also vintage Sumo Andromeda !!A amps, Acoustat 1100 speakers, Audio research LS2 MKII  R pre and a vintage Sansui 9900 max modded tuner.
It appears the speakers are of moderate efficiency, but a low impedance load that varies a bit across the spectrum.  These speakers will require current and an amp that is stable into low impedance loads.  Listening space is of small to moderate size, so absolute power may not be an issue.

NAD receiver.  Monitor series, or the original 7200 (receiver version of the well regarded 3020 integrated amp).  At 40yrs old, have it restored before use.  While rated for 20wpc, it is capable of 80wpc+ in short bursts and can drive low impedance speakers without breaking a sweat.

Just about any McIntosh receiver if you want to go in that direction.   1500 is tube tuner and amp, with a SS preamp.  1700 is tube tuner, the rest SS, and all models from the 1900 forward are SS.

Early Marantz receivers are very well regarded, and have a nice warm sound with plenty of drive.   

Under the radar-  Heathkit AA-1500.  60wpc at 8ohm and almost doubles into 4ohm.  Very sensitive tuner section, quiet and clean preamp section.  Plenty of power and current.   Even the cleanest example will be 45yrs old, so it WILL need restoration.    I inherited one from my father (he built it), and I then used it through HS, College and early adulthood...about 20yrs of hard use before it needed service.   It drove a pair of AR3a and AR5 speakers to great effect.  The former is a demanding 4ohm load.
I don't know how it would stack up to the many other receivers mentioned in this thread, but I love my Rotel RX-855 for a budget receiver.  Nice pre-out maini-in feature than can be useful, built like a tank.  Rated at 50 WPC, but feels like more ...  
+1 for late 70's early 80's Sansui,  Luxman, Accuphase. for Japanese anyway. built like tanks very good parts and a very good rep. the Sansui AU series were stellar but prices are climbing fast in the used market. The higher end Luxmans are all good (up to 1985) and if you can find a Class A unit grab it if you can stand the heat they are stellar. All the Accuphase stuff is a great buy, maybe their earlier stuff is a little on the homely side but inside they are up there with the best. 

glen 
I’ve never owned a receiver, having been advised early on that separates were the way to go, but my 45+ years in the HiFi business has given me a lot of perspective. Some favorites: the Pioneers of 1974-5 (SX-737, 838, SX-750 and up), Sansui 7 and 8, Marantz 2250 and its kin, Yamaha CR-800, 840. IMO, you can keep Kenwood, although their integrateds were great, ditto the Sansui AU/TU. I sold all the Nak receivers except their first model. The ones with Nelson Pass circuitry are probably the best sounding mid-fi receivers of all. I disagree with whoever said they break...the first 55 wpc model maybe, but from the SR series on they were solid. H-K had reliability issues, but the 930 was a beast. 
You might also want to consider Kyocera. Often overlooked because they were made only for a short time. I own a R-461 that has served me quite well. Although only rated at 50 watts/channel its MOSFET circuitry gives it a lot of headroom. Very sturdy and well built.
I used an Advent receiver for a while when I got rid of my Crown IC150 preamp.The receiver is only 15 wpc, so it will not drive 3 much.