Man...you're bringing back memories here.
Summer of 1989 and I'd just wrapped up my freshman year at UCSB. Out of the dorms and soon to be in a single bedroom apartment in I.V. Ol' Skool hip-hop and R&B (LL Cool J, Public Enemy, KRS-1, Big Daddy Kane, EPMD, and Guy) is really hitting it's stride. I need clean, distortion-free power to kick out the bass and speakers that won't "clip" when the low notes hit.
Dang! Can't remember the model numbers, but I essentially spent all the money I made from my summer job on an NAD tuner and tape deck (still a couple of years from CD's becoming mainstream). The tuner was only kicking out maybe 35 watts per channel, but that was a very conservative rating. It murdered Panasonic, Yamaha, Pioneer (not Elite), and Denon brands with twice the listed wattage. Had it hooked up to a pair of Klipsch speakers - the type with the horn tweeter and passive (i.e. rear-facing) 12-in subwoofer. No lie...there wasn't anything they couldn't handle at a volume high enough to rock the party.
(sigh!) Those were the days!
Very well-made electronics that never EVER suffered a failure or problem. Technology advances caught up with them, though.
First off, the tape deck had to go when I transitioned to CD's (that was the early 90's). The tuner, though lasted me well over 12 years before I moved on to an AVR with surround sound (even though I didn't have any rear speakers).
I finally sold the Klipsch speakers after 20 years. Again, not because they failed, but because I needed something slimmer to fit my family room for home theater. Tough to let go.
Literally THE BEST electronics purchase I've every made.
Great question/topic!
