Sansui?


I have a brother-in-law, retired Navy, who is interested in a nostalgia system.  When he served in in Pacific in the 80's they could get great deals on Sansui equipment and is of the opinion that Sansui was top of the line.  He asked me what I would get but I'm clueless about 80's receivers.  I doubt that he wants separates.  I'd greatly appreciate hearing your opinions.  My brother-in-law is partial to Sansui, but should I suggest something else?  He's got good ears even though he's not an audiophile.  Thanks.

Ag insider logo xs@2xtreepmeyer

I also had an AU717 and TU717. Both were great pieces. The tuner lost a channel and I never looked into getting it fixed.

I would take a look over at TMR. The Sansui pieces show up there once in a while for descent money and they make sure everything they sell works as it should..

An AU-9500 pushing a set of JBL 4311s in a vintage setup is a killer pairing. As mentioned, vintage Sansui & JBL were considered soulmates back in the day - still look and play with all the business!

I bought a Sansui  G-5700 (I think) for my kids. I was very impressed with the sound. Sansui of that era was very good, and to this day bring a very high price. In mainstream low end electronics, I think Sansui was very tough to beat. I would stay from anything that wasn't fully serviced including a recap. Receivers were quite good, but an integrated might bring a higher level of sound quality.

Highly recommend an AU-717 integrated. I have one bought new in 1980 and recently had it restored. A stunning piece that rivals many modern integrateds…and a classic well respected by many. Although not in use currently, having owned it for 40+ years, will never part with it. But they’re out there and not terribly expensive. 
 

My very first receiver was Sansui back in the late 60's. I had that thing for 20 years I would guess. No clue which model but it was a great receiver.