Here are a couple of pics... Like I said, this unit appears to be working very well, but I will be sure to check it out before putting it into full time duty. I agree that I wouldn't have paid as much as I did, but unlike an ebay purchase, I got to see and hear this firsthand. I also get to hand carry this back to the States in a box that I packed- I dont have to trust anyone elses judgement attention to detail. I feel this is a good deal even if I have to do some "work" to it. I have

I went back and took a closer look, and had him hook it up for a listen. Sounded great even on the crappy test speakers, and with zero hum or other other issues. Walked out for $400US. I cant wait to get her home next week and try her out with some more deserving speakers. I'll post pics when I have some time to clean it up, but it really is a nice piece. Thanks to all for the input! Paul

Long story short, I am currently in New Zealand and will be returning to the States soon. While walking around downtown I stepped into a used stereo shop and asked out of curiosity if there was any vintage tube gear for sale. The gentleman pointed to an apparently very well cared for US spec "Stromberg-Carlson Stereo 24" integrated amp. He says it plays wonderfully and needs absolutely nothing. His inital asking price is about US$420, but I could probably get him down a bit. Now, to this

I did not run the amp for very long, just a few minutes. I was just surprised as heck that it worked at all, and wanted to hear it. I know its in no shape to be operating right now. Yes, I have been lurking long enough to have a very clear idea about Craig's capabilities and reputation, and was glad that replied to this thread. I am leaning towards building my own chassis so that the integrated has the fit, form, and function that I would like for it to have. I am pretty "handy" and have a good background

last pic for now

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Nice kitty, don't eat my amp!!!

Hey folks, not a big poster here, but more of a professional lurker, but felt that I now have a topic worth posting about. I picked this ugly duckling up for a pretty fair price on eBay last week- Total: $300 shipped 2nd day. I didn't really expect to receive anything that actually worked, but I gently powered it up on a variac and whadaya know, it started passing a signal at about 70 volts. Then I actually hooked it up to my Fortes and surprisingly sounds fairly decent, despite the medley of different

Dakayus- Wow, about 2 years ago I was asking almost the very same questions that you are asking now. The only difference is that I had a set of KG4s that I wanted to sound their best on a budget. I have heard an A/B comparison between Denon's current stereo models (the 295, 395, and 685) and one of thier multi-channel units, configured for stereo use (it was a 380x - cannot remember the specific model). My opinion was that even the 295 sounded a little bit better than the 380x, and the 685 was much

Just thought I'd update you all. We decided on shipping via Greyhound. They were each packed in a new, large wardrobe box, with plenty of protection. Each box cost about $70 US to ship. It took 5 days to get from Dallas TX, to Tacoma (near Seattle) WA. We picked them up at the local Greyhound station with no problems whatsoever. The boxes really looked untouched with no marks, holes, or dents. As a bonus, and much to my surprise, the Fortes are in better condition than the pictures on the auction