I've had this for 39 years. Bought it new and I never took it easy (I do like to turn it up) the amp never gave me a problem. Today for the first time I have taken it to be cleaned. The wattage it was rated at has got to be 20 below what it actually is. The sound is clear and crisp. It is pushing CERWIN VEGA D-9 PAIR RATED AT OVER 300 WATTS EACH NO PROBLEM.

I can only think of 2 weakness. No treble ajustment and it has to be cleaned after 39 years.

I bought this nearly new in about 1979 and used it until about 1996 in my home system. I then “upgraded” and the Sansui went in the loft. After 22 years I have just brought it down, still in the original box. Dusted it down, fired it up and that great sound is still there. All knobs work smoothly and it is as new. Strengths: Great looks and not really dated even now. Sound as above.

Weaknesses: None I can think of

Sansui AU-307 is very powerful Integrated Amplifier, first, i was impressed with the knobs with its graded rotation its cool, second since it is only 50wpc,you will not believed, its sounds like 100wpc, i said that because i have HK990 150wpc a dual mono Amp thing, woohhh the Sansui AU-307 is way up big difference when its sounds, specially in Phono Sub sonic, Wow the fidelity is superb, the highs is very clear, the lows is like you have a sub woofer on when its sounds, drives my JBL ES80 very easy.

I want to sell it. Price 300US.
Wait for asks. ;-)

I've had mine since 1977 bought in Japan. It's been used for Being a DJ at dances to home usage. I have it hooked up to Kenwood KL-555 speakers and it can still rattle the walls of our house with fantastic sound! It's hard to find amps with specs that are comparable.

You can't beat the AU317 integrated amp. I love this model. It has plenty of guts for smaller rooms. Fidelity is clean and lifelike with just a hint of tube amp vibes (slightly warm sound). Volume is strong and clear, even at low levels. What a lovely little amp Sansui made in this one!

One source (classicaudio.com) shows these were made 1977-1979. That sounds about right to me. I bought a Sansui AU217 brand new in 1979 and owned it until it was stolen in 1990, so I am no stranger to Sansui sound quality or this line of amps. It was my first hi-fi amp/receiver. Now that I have had the 317, I like it better than the 217.

This is the first Sansui amp I have owned since 1990. I actually own three of these AU317 amps right now, so you can see I quickly developed a new affinity for them! I will eventually whittle it down to one, as I bought two of them to resell. I dabble in Technics turntable sales too.

I also own a Sansui G5500 receiver, rated at 120W versus this ones 100W. They both employ the DC technology that Sansui was touting at that time in their receiver and amp lines.

This is a good amp to use in conjunction with a turntable. It has the phono sub-sonic switch. It doesn't have a switch for cartridge type. The next generation of Sansui amps did have that feature, but it isn't the amplifier that this earlier one is.

Yeah, great sound in my opinion, fantastic design and build quality. Yamaha amps of this period may have had similiar sound quality, but they don't seem to age as well as Sansui equipment (more problems). This model is about bullet proof and immortal with a little TLC. Can't go wrong with it! It will probably outlive me!!!

This thing lasts longer than 2 average marriages combined. The rack handles were very cool and today bring you considerable respect. A mixing knob. Subsonic phono switch. Nice speaker leads, Nicely laid out in the rear (oops, did I say that?)makes connections easy for Americans with big hands (big hands=big- we'll you know the rest). Heavy, built like a tank- Superbly manufactured Beautifully crafted inside.

A small power on light, that burns out, and seems to be difficult to replace, is all that indicates the ole reliable AU-317 is powered-up.

Sansui- AU 317 The intro to this section stated this amp was produced during 1973- 1975. I bought mine new, in 1977 or 1978. (I believe it was 1978). I would like to see official proof of the production years. Don't accept those stated production dates without some fact-checking. This thing is more, or certainly behaves, and weighs more than the 50 watts advertised. I'll put it closer to 100 watts in term of the powerful sound it delivers. Today, I did a side by side comparison with a brand new 100 watt Audio Source Amp 2 (100 watt) power amp. The Sansui outperformed the brand new Audio Source amp with a more powerful, louder, richer, deeper, and clearer sound. Bose 161 surrounds were on the receiving end of the test. This is an amp that can be used to defend yourself. It weighs about 1/2 pound, or more, per watt! These things are really built- everything is sealed, knobs, switches, etc. If you have ever worked on an airplane, you'll get a familiar feeling when you start looking at the amp. Except with it's weight (did I mention this thing is heavy) it would never get off the ground, but is built with aviation-like quality. This piece had a phono(graph) sonic sub filter, which protects speakers from those horrible noises that eminate from phonographs and amps hate to push to speakers, and speakers strain to reproduce at their own peril. If you want to use this to power a CD player (this was built before CD's were invented) simply use the AUX outlets in the rear, and select AUX on the front panel. For a couple hundred bucks (a used AU- 317 is less thab $50, Pinnacle or Bose speakers, cheap CD player- don't spend a lot on these things, the sound between the new CD players that are cheap and the expensive CD players is nearly indistinguishable) you can have a very cool unit for a spare room, workshop, basement or garage. It's a conversation piece that's got a vibe that says, I could of had a B&O, but this units got more personality- and will sound better.

Similar Products Used:

Audio Source Carver Pioneer

Overall top sound

None, till it broke after 22 years

I used my AU 317 mk II for a lot of years (22 to be correct)not only for home listening but also for a drive-in disco (several 100's of hours on 80-95% of RMS power without any problems. High quality sound, superb long time output. Simply the best!
Unfortunately now it is down, so I have to search for something similar, will be dificult, so maybe I will find a new (old) AU 317 Mk II or maybe even an as good AU 417.

Great Amplifier

After 20 years, knobs don't work smoothly.

Still using this integrated amp. Hooked up with an original and very flexible surround sound system consisting of a Kenwood 100 watt per channel M1 Sigma Drive amp for the front speakers, an Advent Soundspace Control, Sansui AU-317 integrated amp for overall volume control and rear speaker amp. Now hooked up with small Energy speakers in the bedroom.
Used to be used with Polk RT7 Floor standing speakers, which I still use in the living room with a DD receiver system.
The AU-317, well, may it never die.

I've had the AU-317 50 watt per chan ( along with the TU-217, SR-333 direct drive turntable, and SP-2500x 5 speaker 3 way 100 watts speakers ) for about 22 years now. It still sounds fantastic. The clarity ( .03 thd )and depth of sound I have not heard elsewhere.The Sansui components of the late 70's were truly awesome. I wish I knew why a company that made such high quality stuff is (as far as I'm concerned) gone now only to be replaced by lesser quality brands.