I just picked this up last week, which is what got me started on this new/old journey.
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The 1976 Pioneer SX-1250 set the audio world on its ears in 1976. I was a Junior at UC Irvine when I first heard about the SX-1250. And, I wanted one BAD! Thirty years later, that dream came true. I also got an SX-1280, but as you can see from the photos above, the SX-1250 is the better built of the two.
Pioneer's SX-1010 signaled the start of the legendary "Power Wars" in 1975, where most of the audio manufacturers of that time attempted to outdo each other with progressively more powerful receivers, reaching outlandish sizes. The 1010 was quickly topped by the Marantz 2325, then the Sansui 9090 and the Kenwood KR-9400. So, Pioneer, not to be outdone by its erstwhile rivals, struck back with the SX-1250. It was a big jump. The 1250's "all Silver" look quickly took hold and was shamelessly copied by all the other manufacturers. The "Blue Light" era of the SX-1010 and Marantz 2325 was officially over!
But, the SX-1250 was about much, much more than mere cosmetic ruffles. First, and foremost, IT WAS BUILT LIKE A TANK! It was, and still is, considered one of the best built Receivers of all time. The Toroidal Transformer power supply is still regarded as one of the best ever, with four massive 22,000 mfd Filter Capacitors. In fact, even though the subsequent SX-1280 was rated at 185 wpc, 20 wpc more than the SX-1250, the 4 Filter Caps in the SX-1280 were only 15,000 uf. And the 270 watt per channel SX-1980 had essentially the same power supply as the SX-1250, making the 1250 considerably over-engineered relative to its rated power.
The construction quality of the SX-1250 was simply superlative with heavy shielding over every section. This attention to detail had not been seen in receivers before. This was surely the height of Japanese construction quality.
And, the specifications of the SX-1250 were competitive with some of the finest separates of the time. All in all, the 1250 was a "tour de force". That's why so many owners swear by it after having owned it almost 30 years! And, I have to agree. My SX-1250 is now over thirty years old, gets played just about every day and has never had to be repaired.
The styling for the 1250 is very stylishly conservative and, for that reason it has held up quite well. In the rightmost photo, a 1250 sits atop an SX-1010 and beneath and SX-1280, 880 and 1980. The second photo form the right shows and SX-1250 beneath a D-7000, Pioneer's first digital tuner Receiver. The styling of the D-7000 came and went quickly and no one else went there.
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