NR-1219 Receiver disappeared-what to buy?

[DoneThat]

Well, after the move from Seattle, my Nikko NR-1219 receiver is no where to be found. I loved that animal. It drove my side speakers plus sub-woofer. All my gear is 20 to 30 years old(I never got a CD player!) So, anybody have suggestions for a replacement receiver? Must provide 100 watts/chan with 2 separate speaker outputs I'm really not into the Home Theatre stuff at all, just sound..

[dean_martin]

have you checked eBay for another Nikko? I see Nikko preamps and tuners regularly but I haven't looked for Nikko receivers.

If you want to stay with older gear, maybe a Marantz or Pioneer receiver or Sansui receiver. I like the Sansui integrateds too. I have an AU-5900 that's a fun piece.

If you're looking for something new, post with a budget. There are only a handful of manufacturers making new stereo receivers - Harman/Kardon, Marantz, Denon, Music Hall still make stereo receivers and maybe Yamaha. Magnum Dynalab makes a really nice one. You'll have more choices if you consider integrated amps too. Here are links to the Magnum and the Music Hall receivers:
http://www.audioadvisor.com/store/productdetail.asp?sku=MAGMD208&product_name=MD-208%20Stereo%20Receiver

http://www.audioadvisor.com/store/productdetail.asp?sku=MHMAVEN&product_name=Maven%20100%20WRMS%20Stereo%20Receive r

[DoneThat]

Thanks for the info. But-what is an Integrated Amp ?

[dean_martin]

Thanks for the info. But-what is an Integrated Amp ?

The simplest explanation is that an integrated amp is a receiver without the tuner section. I'm not that technically inclined, but I break it down this way:
receiver - amplifier, preamplifier and tuner in one box
integrated amp - amplifier and preamplifier in one box

Each one of these sections can be made separately. You can get just an amplifier that will drive your speakers when fed a signal from a source component (cd player, tuner, turntable, etc.), but the signal usually must go through a preamplifier first. The preamplifier section in your receiver allows you to control the volume of the signal that goes to the amplifier section. It also allows you to switch among inputs and adjust treble, bass and sometimes midrange. If there's a headphone amp in your receiver, it is usually controlled by the preamplifier section.

You can have five or more "sections" in a stereo receiver - amplifier, preamplifier, headphone amp, phono amp and tuner. You could get each "section" in its own box (separates) and have a 5-box system. Or, go with some other combination. Many of today's integrated amps will not have a phono section. If you have a turntable, then you would need the integrated amp, a separate phono amp which would be plugged into one of your line-level inputs on your integrated amp (like the "aux." input) and a separate tuner if you listen to radio. You can even get a separate headphone amp if the integrated amp you choose does not have a headphone jack.

Your Nikko receiver probably had "preamp out" and "amp in" jacks that may have been connected with jumpers. Take out the jumpers and you've "separated" the preamplifier section from the amplifier section. You could still listen with headphones, but not with your speakers. At that point, you could connect the preamplifier section of your receiver to another (separate) amplifier to drive your speakers, or you could connect a separate preamplifier to the amplifier section of your receiver.

I'm sure others here could answer your question more precisely. I hope this was helpful. Of course there are many other issues that come into play like the convenience of a "one box"/receiver based system vs. the sonic benefits, if any, of separates.