Our Top 6 Entry Level Vintage Stereo Receivers from the 1970's!

Want to get into quality vintage audio but don't need the "bragging rights" you get with big watts? We have a great list for what to look for when you are on your search!

Let us know in the comments if you have one of these or if you have another one you would recommend.

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[archangele]

It is so great to see someone review these smaller lower powered receivers.
I remember listening to these at our local Lafayette and another locally owned hifi store
and used to drool over these receivers. People today seem to think that if a receiver
doesn't put out 150 watts a channel or more it isn't worth looking at. But these
vintage receivers are a good example of quality verses quantity with respect to
power. Also, the old Marantz receivers sounded a lot more powerful then
their specifications would lead one to believe. Back in the 70's we
used to say that there are watts and then there are Marantz watts.
Marantz rated their amps and receivers at 8 ohms and with a full
audio bandwidth of 20 - 20 Khz where as most others rated their
power at 4 ohms and 1Khz. All I know is that the 15 watts a channel
from my 4415 Marantz quad receiver sounds as powerful as many
so called 50 watts a channel modern surround receivers.

As for turntables, I have a Marantz 6300 I really like. It is well made
and very easy to use. I would have to say that it is my favourite automatic
turntable.

[bartjones]

I am still to this day enjoying my Realistic STA-42 that I purchased brand new back in 1977 for $149. It is starting to develop a slight hum, but it still has the original filter capacitors, and has never been serviced, other than to replace the lamps. The sound, and the tuner are great.

[marco]

Hi Guys! From South Africa, I so wish we had you guys in SA. Yours is truly a labor of love.Every time you fix a vintage unit you preserve TIME, HISTORY, INNOVATION, MEMORIES and Beauty that is so hard to find today. I hope you never stop fixing these time pieces.Thank you

[tombuehner]

DUAL 1229, one of the great automatic turntables. Loved mine for years.

[watsonstudios]

I had an SX-780 back in the early 80's and hope to get another one someday. Loved that receiver!

[Reflectiveness]

Thanks for your interview of Fix My Dual. I've sent them my 1219 for a tuneup. Using a Shure V15 cartridge with original elliptical stylus.
Also, thanks for leaving out the highfalutin audiophile jargon.
Skylabs does tremendous service for all honest retailers of vintage electronics.🎉

[jukingeo]

While I have known what is referred to as "The Marantz Tax", I never heard of that term until I came here. While Marantz had never been a favorite of mine (outside of their tube gear), I found it quite interesting when you mentioned that the lower powered units sound better than the higher powered ones. In past listening tests, I had found the Marantz had good mids and highs, but I wasn't impressed with the low end performance, which had Pioneer and Sansui easily edging them out of contention. Now, the one thing I have not heard yet, is a Harmon Kardon. It is a problem that I should rectify. In a nutshell though, these "entry level" receivers just lack meters, features and they generally look bland with the exception of the Marantz (and normally I am not fond of the Marantz look). Since I really do not listen to the radio anymore, I would be curious as to what "entry level" integrated amplifiers you could put together. I know you have a list of higher end units and that was interesting. I have to put a comment there on that. BTW, I only recently found this page and I have to admit, I am having a ball here! I too was an audio technician (late 80's and into the 90's), but for commercial sound equipment (Crown, QSC, EV, Altec Lansing, Shure, Tascam, Peavey, etc), so there are many parallels that I can relate to.

[bmboldt]

I like the Sherwood S-7100A. Sounds good and was pretty easy to recap. Yes, the power switch is a problem. Mine still works and I use a power strip to turn it on just to be safe.

[bkoestring]

I have a Technics SL 1300 fully automatic turntable. It has been in my family since 1974 when it was sold new. I bought it in 1979 and still have it. I LOVE IT! Built like a tank and works perfectly. I have an Audio-Technica ATS-14 ATS14 needle stylus for the Audio-Technica AT-14S AT14S phono cartridge featuring a Shibata diamond.

[VicariousYank]

While my garage sale Pioneer turntable was truly my first vintage item, my curb find Marantz 2248B is truly what launched me into a love for vintage.

[ethimself]

One would be surprised at what 20 watts of RMS power can actually do. Or for that matter 10 watts RMS

[BillyDenton-nxoy]

Another great show !

Some of these 'entry level' receivers have beautiful sound, and pack as much power as one will want.

I spent a few years buying and listening to every vintage receiver that I could find, and the vast majority of entry level receivers forfeit very little.

Btw, fell in love with and use the CR-620.
I had a 1020 previously, and have nothing but praise for it as well.

Enjoy your vintage adventure, mine was unbelievably cool !!

[canjo]

My favorite automatic turntable is the Technics SL-1300. I purchased this new for my wife in the 70's as she could just not deal with my fully manual turntables. Exceptional build quality and it just keeps going. Had a problem holding speed last year, had it serviced and cleaned and now going strong again.

[LA-dbxj]

I'm partial to the Kenwood KR-2400. It was my first real receiver. It has 16 watts rms, that beautiful Kenwood look and an excellent tuner. I bought mine new in 1974 and thoroughly enjoyed it's warm sound. My favorite automatic TT is the Technics SL-QD3. I grabbed one new in 1985 and still use it to this day. It's never given me a days trouble. These two pieces set the tone for the journey that I'm still enjoying!

[jimmydelux]

Great video. My favorite fully automatic turntable of all time is the Technics SL-1300. The original. I've had one for decades and it's like a tank. Indestructible, sounds amazing.

[trknoff]

Bought my 2015 in 1975, gave it away 40 some years later and the damn thing still worked without ever having it serviced. I still have my Technics SL 20 manual turntable that I bought at around the same time with only one belt replacement.

[raulcastellanosjr.]

My first vintage receiver was a Pioneer SX-636, closely related to the 535. It sounds great, is a breeze to work on, and parts availability is fantastic! I bought mine with some more serious issues - a dead channel that ended up being blown output transistors - but it didn’t matter much since I was able to replace all transistors with brand new substitutions that are still readily available from Digikey/Mouser. And the knob arrangement on the front with the blackout dial is pure class. Can’t go wrong with a SX-535/636! <3

[paulcrowder]

Favorite fully-automatic turntable: Technics SL-1301. Classic looks of the SL-1300 but with quartz lock, and dirt simple to repair with a tube of grease when the automatic feature stops working.

[passqualecaiazza]

One of my three receivers is my dads SX-626. Has 2 Phono inputs, 2 tape in and out inputs on both, Aux, and 3 speaker inputs. It did have issues. I had it serviced by 2 different people in my town. They could not fix it. Finally a friend took it 3 hours south of me. He recapped it and went through it. I love this receiver. I have a Dual 1229 and 1215S hooked to it. Cartridges Gado Silver on 1229 and Grado F-1 on the 1215S. The F-1 is the original cartridge on my Dads 1215S. I found a new old stock stylus 2 years ago. Speakers were made in my home town. I did upgrade the guts to Pyle 10"and 3". It could be entry, but it has enough power to not go above half volume and will move furniture.

[ditlefchristianjacobsen]

Thank you for another great video. My favourite automatic turntable is the Pioneer PL 505 direct drive which I bought new in 1985. It is still working fine. About receivers I love the entry level Tandberg Sølvsuper reciever from the early 70’s with 15 watts into 8 ohm. They are easy to work on with good built quality and have quite small footprint and fits easily into a narrow bookshelf. Have a nice day everyone.