[CMacDaddy]

Its the dull after the holidays and i'm getting alot more time on my headphones than normal and am becoming anxioius to upgrade. (Plus having money around helps). So I'm looking to get an Amp. Right now I have a POS ministereo amp.

Is it possible for an Amp to do well with both Speakers and Headphones?

I'm going to upgrade to Sennheiser HD580s or 600s when i have the amp, so that would be the main purpose for the amp, BUT I'd also like to drive some budget speakers with them (hopefully PSB alphas or paradigm atoms, but I'm not gonna worry about those for awhile).

This is going to be only for at desk, so no need for portability.

I like to have a warm sound, so being absolutly nuetral is not neccessary.

I listen to all kinds of music. Classic Rock, Glam Rock, Country, Blues, Jazz, R&B, hip hop, and pop to name a few.

I really like the look of some of the older Vintage Models from 70's/80's amps, and I'd prefer to go vintage because of price too (I am a college student after all).

Any reccomendations???


Under $150 would be best, but going a over would be acceptable if justified.

::Note to all youngish ones out there - If your lucky enough to have a generous dad with vintage audio gear, DONT sell it unless your absolutley sure you're never gonna want to have it//use it.::

 

[Mr.Radar]

What about a Harman Kardon x30 vintage receiver? I've heard very good things about them (in fact I bought a 730 recently to use as a phono stage/tuner/secondary amp). I'm not sure how their headphone jack is (mine won't arrive for a few days yet), however an older thread seems to indicate it's decent.

 

[Aman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CMacDaddy ::Note to all youngish ones out there - If your lucky enough to have a generous dad with vintage audio gear, DONT sell it unless your absolutley sure you're never gonna want to have it//use it.::

I agree with this.

I am a college student as well, and my main speaker system consists of a Pioneer SX-450 (15 watts into 8 ohms) vintage receiver from 1976 and it hooks into a pair of Ohm Series B speakers, and the setup sounds incredible.

 

[mkmelt]

Many vintage 70s amplifiers and receivers can perform quite well as both an amplifier for speakers and for headphones. Synergy and proper matching of amplifier, speaker, and headphone components, however, should not be overlooked. You might start by first picking a brand of receiver or integrated amplifier you want to use, even if you base your decision on brand reputation or even if you just like the style. Next, select speakers that are a good match for the amplifier, and then do the same when selecting headphones.

I am a big fan of the low and mid power Marantz 22xx receivers such as 2220, 2230, 2235, and also the model 1060 integrated amplifier for use with speakers as well as high impedance headphones.

Although I have not heard how they perform with headphones, the Harman Kardon receivers from this period are highly regarded for use with speakers.

Other brands to consider include:

Kenwood
Pioneer
Sansui
Tandberg
Technics
Yamaha

For a small room, you only need between 20 and 40 watts of power to drive most any speaker. For headphone use the actual power available at the headphone output from these same amplifiers will be just a few watts. This is many times what is needed to drive most dynamic headphones.

My experience with vintage solid state amplifiers and receivers has been that these work best with high impedance phones such as Sennheiser HD-580/600/650.

Since you do not need a high power amplifier, no more than perhaps 40 watts, you should have no problem finding good clean working examples of receivers or integrated amplifers for under $150.

If that seems like too much money, if you have a thrift store such as Goodwill Industries in your town, you should be able to find a working example of a 70s/80s receiver for under $40. Integrated amplifiers are less common but they do show up at these shops too. I was able to purchase a working Yamaha CA-400 integrated amplifier for under $30 at a Goodwill store.

 

[rickcr42]

Some of the old "Luxman" gear is really nice as older JVC and the before mentioned Marantz stuff.

What you get with vintage solid state is actual designs.
What I mean by that is each section is damn near as good as separates and in fact are usually on indicidual boards.
You will find "honest" power supplies and REAL heat sinks on the output stages.The topology many times fully balanced from input to output and instead of I.C.s you will find fully discrete circuits.The same build quality today would cost thousands.



the "weak' point is the quality of the passive parts which is variable to put it mildly and capacitors are not something that age well so need replacing many times.

The "flipside" is the quality of the active parts,the transistors are some of the best ever designed even though now obsolete (and tough to find replacements for that are as good as the original devices).

 

[agile_one]

Some great responses already, particularly mkmelt, but I can't resist chiming in with recommendation for Sansui gear, particularly the n0n0 and G series.

One of the finest pieces of audio gear I ever owned was a Sansui G-33000 receiver. To call it simply a receiver is an extreme disservice - it was a two box beast with the Tuner and Pre in one section, and the Power Amp in the other.

You should be able to find 5050 or 6060 or G-3000, G4500, G5000 well within your budget.

 

[CMacDaddy]

Thanks for all the help guys.

Any more is always welcome.

Definatly sounds like I'll be stopping by a local pawn shop or 2 to see what's there.


**edit** i'm not even gonna try to repair/upgrade myself because I dont even have enough room in my dorm to do it.

BUT I have found a place that restores them ... thanks for everyones help.

The prices on ebay are crazy. Are pawnshops and yard sales the best way to go for deals on recievers?

 

[Jeff E]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CMacDaddy The prices on ebay are crazy. Are pawnshops and yard sales the best way to go for deals on recievers?

You might try Audiokarma.org. You can learn a lot about vintage receivers there as a lot of the regulars repair/refurbish/upgrade old audio and tv equipment. They toss out lots of useful factoids about dealing with old stuff. The vintage gear offered for sale is all over the map: parts to better than new. The site culture is very flannel shirt (Let's go drive around to garage sales in our '57 chevy, then go fishing and drink Miller beer.)

 

[mkmelt]

eBay is a good place to see photos of different brands and models of receiver. When you find a brand that is of interest, then you can do more research online to learn more about specific models.

Many nice examples of 70s solid state receivers go begging on eBay and can be purchased for under $40. The downside is you have to trust the seller and also pay for shipping. Sometimes the shipping costs as much as the purchase. Buying from a local seller is always better than trusting the seller to accurately describe the condition, to pack the item properly, and for the shipping company not to damage the equipment.

If you start looking for a receiver at a pawn shop or a thrift shop bring along your current headphones, also a walkman cassette player or MP3 player, and an RCA adapter cable. Use the portable player to test the receiver. Listen to the headphone output and make sure both channels are working and undistorted. To test the tuner section of the receiver a short length of wire can serve as an FM antenna. Noisy volume, balance, and other controls are common and can usually be remedied by an application of contact cleaner. Contact cleaner is available at Radio Shack or online (look for Caig products).

Unless it is a particularly valuable or desirable piece of equipment, I would pass on any component that has an audible hum or is not working properly on both channels. If you are not prepared to fix the unit yourself, even a modest repair will cost $50~$100. Consider that when negotiating a price. A $10 receiver that is going to cost $90 to repair is not as good a deal as a $50 receiver in working condition.

AudioKarma and the Vintage Asylum are good online sites to learn about vintage gear. AudioAsylum also has a classified board where asylum inmates list equipment and parts for sale. You may be able to make contact with an asylum member who is in your area. Chances are they have several pieces of excess audio equipment in their vintage inventory and would be happy to see it go to good use instead of the landfill.

The Vintage Audio Asylum is located here: http://www.audioasylum.com/forums/vintage/bbs.html

 

[rl1856]

Just about any amp or receiver made my NAD would be suitable for both speakers and headphones.

NAD pieces are available on Ebay and probably at many pawnshops. Prices are all over the place, but you should have plenty to choose from for under $150.

NAD pieces are characteristicly warm sounding and would be complimentary to inexpensive speakers and digital sources.

Personally, I use a 3020 for headphone use, have a 7060 connected to my computer and my daughter uses a 7020 in her room.

Best.

Ross

 

[mkmelt]

NAD equipment from the late 70s and early 80s can sound very good. A concern with any vintage NAD product is that NAD mounted the push button switches and other controls directly onto the printed circuit boards. This was done to save manufacturing costs, but at the expense of long term reliability. Over time, especially for the push button controls, repeated pressing of the button will stress the underlying circuit board, eventually resulting in a broken solder trace. When this happens, there is almost nothing that can be done to repair the unit as new replacement boards for most NAD equipment are not available.

 

[BigD]

I feel the same ways as many others here. Many 70's gears are excellent compromise and alternative since price, value, and performance exceeds expectation. These vintage receivers will provide you with radio, equallizer, preamp, power amp and headamp at the same time. GOOOOD VALUE and SOUND! ONLY downside is to find a proper working model. If you find a perfect cosmetic and functional receiver, I would even throw extra $50. Consider what you're getting at $200 with everything. All depends on the condition of the receiver though.

As many pointed out, my bet goes to Marantz and Sansui. I always had a soft spot for Marantz as I grew up with them in the house. Sansui is more of my adolescence equipment in early 80's. As mkmelt suggested, look around ebay for general ideas then try to allocate local seller. You definately want to check it out with your eyes and ears. I'd sell you my marantz, but it's at my father's house. Perhaps.....my dad's marantz, mint, perfect condition and looks like it came out of time capsule.

Check out www.classicaudio.com for general pricing.

 

[Shakey]

I've owned a variety of vintage Pioneer, Tandberg and Harman Kardon receivers and while they are multi-functional and cheap (more or less), the preamp stages on any 1970's receiver will definitely compromise sound quality. The 30 year old capacitors, carbon resistors and steel wiring found in many even TOTL receivers take a toll on sound quality and the best option is to bypass the preamp section altogether.

Many higher quality receivers from that era (the Pioneer SX-x2xx series, Tandbergs, higher end HK's) all have "main in" inputs that allow you to use the receiver as an amp only. using this input bypasses the preamp section entirely (tone controls, balance, volume pot, etc) and lets you jack directly into the amp section with any source that has a volume control such as a computer soundcard analog output, iPod out or output from a higher quality preamp. You'll find that the sound quality from this arrangement will match most any solid state amp made today.

I recently plugged my friend's ipod into the "main in" on his vintage Tandberg and he was pretty much blown away by the difference in sound quality. He had been using the aux in jack on his receiver and the unit sounded pretty horrible with this set up. Going into the "main in" made the old receiver sound really amazing. Clean, pristine highs, no more crackling speakers and loads of tight, tuneful bass. You should try it and give it a listen!