It arrived today. Very, very well packed. Dusty, but seems to be working pretty well - a dial light is out, and the tuning string is slipping some. Tuner seemed reasonably sensitive using the rabbit ears in my office. Controls are relatively noise free considering that I can't imagine this has ever seen any cleaner. My first impression of the sound is fullness, bordering on tubby - or tubey? Seems robust for 30 watts.
Big ass transformer for this size receiver. Don't know the number of gangs, as the tuning cap is fully shielded, as are the output transistors. Chrome is worn some, but the front panel is solid metal. The function lights are all working. The actual dial pointer is a bright red - very nice.
I think it looks cool in a mid-sixties sort of way, but then again I also like my Panasonic SA-4000 and Teledyne/Packard Bell (Dokorder 800x's quad sibling). However, similar to those others, the ergonomics of the design don't work - the flywheel effect of the rotary tuning dial is not very good, so it takes a lot of cranking on the tuning knob to get from one end of the band to another, and the big toggle switches for Muting, Loudness, Tape Monitor, etc. have their labels underneath, making them unreadable if your eyes are above the level of the toggle, or the toggle is in the down position. The high and low filters are selected via a single knob - off/high/low/both. Interesting.
I believe it was near or at the top of the line for Nikko at the time (1970 according to Orion, with a MSRP of $300. Overall, a nice, offbeat receiver, and a welcome addition to the collection. To me, the quirky ones are the most interesting!