Sansui AU 7900 Review

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Sansui AU 7900
4.4 stars
Average rating for this product is: 4.4 out of 5

From 8 ratings and 17 reviews

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PHemp.'s Review of Sansui AU 7900 Audio Amplifier

29th Mar 2003

Overall Rating

5 stars
  • Value for money
    5 stars
  • Features
    5 stars
Good Points

Flat clean sound, 2 speaker sets, 2 phono inputs, can be used as both pre/power,build.


Bad Points

Not too many out there anymore.


General Comments

I was looking for an amp about a year ago and came across this beauty at a used-audio market.(For 150 euro it was quite a steal anyway). This little monster is great.

Build :
It's built and weighs like a tank. At the back there is a large heatsink (kind of rough though)the inputs/outputs and speaker posts facing up. The knobs are great to look and operate (no plastic here) and the overall looks with the black fascia is great. Minor complaint, the power cord is fixed and could be better. Anyway it can be replaced easily.

Features:
It's full of controls (2 muting options, filters, loudness and triple!! tone controls (bass,mid,treble) to experiment with. Still I think the most neutral sound comes all filters and tones off. It also comes with 2Aux, 2(!) Phono Inputs(MM/MC),Tuner,and 2 tape and a headphone output.
By the way there are two speaker sets. Since there was no manual I am not quite sure about the output but I believe it to be rated at about 60-75W. Sound:
The sound is clean, realistic , full of rythm never edgy or harsh but without becoming blury or lean. Quite a piece of work.
A friend of mine owns a Sansui QRX6500 receiver (which as I recalled sounded great despite its years) and I really wanted to compare the sound so I had her to bring it over for a listen. What a friend (Ever tried to lift a Sansui?).
All in all the sound is quite similar with main difference in power (QRX definetely went louder). Another thing is that while AU-7900 sounded more clean,detailed , the QRX6500 sounded warmer, rounder but less analytical though (not foggy). I wonder if the QRX's wooden cabinet has anything to do with that. AU-7900's cabinet is completely metalic.What they do have in common is how great music they both play.(Still I'll miss the reciever part).
Sum up:
Great amp at a no cost price.Don't think twice, if you find one that is.. Equipment used: Source : Nad cd-541i Amplification: Sansui AU-7900 r> (Sansui QRX-6500)
Speakers : Quad 11l r>Stands : Atacama r>Speakerwire : Straightwire 'Rythm'r>Interconnects: VanDenHul D102 Mk III Eccose 'Composer'r>Cd's Used : 'Tous les mattins du monde' ,
'Legends of the 20th Century',
Duke Ellington
'Howlin' Mercy'
John Campbell
'Old Friends'
Simon & Garfunkel
'Remasters'
Led Zeppelin
'Soul of the Tango'
Yo-Yo-Ma
'Relaxin' with Miles Davis Quintet'
Miles Davis
'Rising Force'
Yngwie Malmsteen
'The mask and mirror'
Loreena McKennit'
'The Lady wants to know'
Laura Fygi

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Members' Comments onPHemp.'s Review

  • Mike Dinsmore. on 31st Mar 2003

    I also have the Sansui AU5900 AMP which is Identical with Aprox. 55 Watts RMS ( Very Conservative ) and it Sounds Incredible. My Older Speakers ( ADC and ALTEC ) have a Warmer Sound than the new Tweeters ( KLH ) which are Clean but a Little Bright ( Just EQ )Nothing Short of Fantastic Sounding

  • mark37. on 2nd Apr 2003

    I too own an AU 5900 (similar to 7900) and this baby rocks!
    As I can`t stand actual Digital surround A/V amps on the market (too poor sound), I`m planning soon to test a technic SH-AC500D digital surround processor to drive the 3 sansui amps that I own; the AU-5900 for the main front, an AU-5500 for the center and extra woofer (if needed), and an AU-2200 for the surround speakers. I can`t wait to see the result :-)

  • Ben7. on 9th Apr 2003

    I love mine too. I believe the vintage is circa 1978 and the power output for the AU-7900 is rated at 75w/channel. This, I'm told, is conservative.

    I bought mine in 1989 for $85, if memory serves. I've run it virtually 24/7 ever since then, for radio, CD, tape, TV, and now downloaded audio from the net. It's as good as ever. I should note that I don't push the unit anywhere near its capacity in terms of volume, though.

    The controls are very, very high quality, but they are mechanical and need to be cleaned once in a while if exposed to dust. And there is no remote control.

    I can now well afford to buy a new unit, but apparently this is as good or better than modern equipment.