Emile Posted September 26, 2018 Share Posted September 26, 2018 Was looking for some new receivers to play with OK; the "usual" ... Marantz 2285B, etc. But they all are now in the $1000 range. Found an Optonica SA-5605 receiver. Delivers a very conservative 85W/ch with great specs. Supposedly very good build quality with very good (Yamaha like) sound. Local; $200 on CraigsList ... yeah; about 1/5th of the Marantz/Pioneer ones. (Optonica was Sharp's unsuccesful entry in the mid/high strereo maket in the late 70's.) Any thoughts on these? Thanks and cheers, Emile 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KlipschFan61 Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 A roomate of mine had one and it almost sounded as good as my much less powerful Pioneer SX-737. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvu80 Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 On 9/25/2018 at 11:41 PM, Emile said: Any thoughts on these? I would suggest sticking to name brands. Older receivers don't come with a warranty and if it ever needs repair you won't find anyone who knows how to fix it, and even if they do parts would be hard to come by. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avguytx Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 My 50 year old completely rebuilt Macintosh MC250 amplifier is way out of warranty but I still use it anyway. Optonica was owned by Sharp which was quite a large brand back then. Older speakers that are used here don't come with a warranty either but people still seem to use them and spend money on them even though they're out of warranty. And even Klipsch isn't really a name brand to a great many people out there these days. None of the above really holds true for me personally, for the most part. But, finding a Service Manual for some of the long gone brands is tough and it can get expensive for a tech to reverse engineer them. I'd much rather have an older rebuilt receiver or amplifier than most any new "surround sound" receivers running my speakers. @Emile, before I went off and bought an older receiver to run on something, I'd research and see if the Service Manuals were still available and then be prepared to sink some money into it to get it up to snuff. Otherwise, stay with something that manuals are available for with older things. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvu80 Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 2 minutes ago, avguytx said: My 50 year old completely rebuilt Macintosh MC250 amplifier is way out of warranty but I still use it anyway. Well, of course. The Mac is a well known brand which MANY techs know how to work on and the company is still in business. Parts are readily available, its quality and reputation is firmly established. For $200 there are better and safer places to put your money for electronics IMO. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avguytx Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 Older Mac parts are NOT readily available for a reasonable amount of money. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvu80 Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 4 minutes ago, avguytx said: Older Mac parts are NOT readily available for a reasonable amount of money. A "reasonable" amount of money? If I had your millions I wouldn't worry about it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avguytx Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 Yeah. I'm working on my 3rd million now. The first two didn't pan out. 1 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave1290 Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 Just buy a new Marantz or something. Less grief! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MEH Synergy Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 Late 80s Kenwood. Super cheap, reliable, sound great, almost for free. You didn't state what your application was.... I figure, considering what you are into lately, it is probably turning a tree into an outdoor sound extravaganza 👍. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave1290 Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 Welllllll, think about it! Life is simple so keep it that way! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finallygotmyheresies Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 On 9/25/2018 at 8:41 PM, Emile said: Was looking for some new receivers to play with OK; the "usual" ... Marantz 2285B, etc. But they all are now in the $1000 range. Found an Optonica SA-5605 receiver. Delivers a very conservative 85W/ch with great specs. Supposedly very good build quality with very good (Yamaha like) sound. Local; $200 on CraigsList ... yeah; about 1/5th of the Marantz/Pioneer ones. (Optonica was Sharp's unsuccesful entry in the mid/high strereo maket in the late 70's.) Any thoughts on these? Thanks and cheers, Emile I'm a fan of vintage Marantz receivers too. I've had quite a few but I got tired of dealing with issues like noisy controls and very finicky volume and tuning knobs. I've since moved on to a PM-8004. These sound awesome, have great build quality and can be found for $500 give or take. If you have a chance give one a whirl and I would expect you to like what you hear. I have not heard any of the lower model #'s in the PM line. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MEH Synergy Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 For $500, you can get quality modern gear used... Just the way my mind works. My mind strangely thinks that 30 years of technology MAY make stereo equipment sound better.... Surely I'm wrong 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MEH Synergy Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 Don't be confused. Just try modern gear for yourself. You might be even more confused after doing so. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emile Posted September 27, 2018 Author Share Posted September 27, 2018 Thanks for all the feedback. Was planning on using it in my "vintage stereo console." But ... don't really like the "black" look for that So .... no clue what I'm going to do. Haha; just send an eBay guy an offer (outside of eBay) for a Sansui G-7700. 120W/ch which would blow my "console" speakers and probably also my Forte's in the stereo room but think they would match very nicely with my KPT-904's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MEH Synergy Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 You went against ebay.... SHAME ON YOU.... They will be sending their people to your house soon. Hide. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emile Posted September 27, 2018 Author Share Posted September 27, 2018 2 minutes ago, Westcoastdrums said: They will be sending their people to your house soon Haha ... I've got some protection ... a couple of F&N P90's. Bought those to keep hurricane looters (and the eBay police) away 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MEH Synergy Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 You lucky dog.... I would LOVE to own one of those. I won't tell you where I live, but I will say that I am not able (in theory) to own 80+% of the firearms currently available for sale in the US. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emile Posted September 27, 2018 Author Share Posted September 27, 2018 4 minutes ago, Westcoastdrums said: I won't tell you where I live Haha; I can guess where. Too many "crazies" in your state ... have to keep firearms away from them 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MEH Synergy Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 Don't get me started. This is one of the most violent states in the nation with the strictest firearm laws (I work in an EXTREMELY VIOLENT CITY) . Research shows, the strictest states in the nation when it comes to firearm laws have BY FAR the HIGHEST violence rates. Get rid of the drugs, violence Will drop accordingly. OK I'm quiet now... Who said 2A? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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