Rather than just pitch names and brands and all the rest at you, couple of things to consider instead; why vintage and what are you looking for when you say "vintage"? In the former, is it the appeal of some classy looking older kit that has the audio credentials to match, or is it that contemporary designs are leaving you a bit cold?
For the latter, caveat emptor! There's a stack of vintage kit out there that's masquerading itself as classic when it's as far away from classic as you'll find. The Japanese big names churned out TONS of silver stuff in the 70s and not all of it was brilliant, or even passable. Then you've got valve gear which is another area to consider entirely and some of that can be a pricey exercise in bringing up to spec if you fancy a project to work on. There are some fine examples out there however, but you really do need to read up as much as possible on what you can find for thebrands you're interested in. I rate the 70s Sansui gear very highly, but that on its own counts for nowt. Luckily, there's plenty of other sites out there that cover that period for the brand and likewise, there's plenty of owners who own and still rate some of that kit incredibly highly, so it's not too tricky to get an idea what a given amp may be like.
For all that, there is the risk element; you won't be able to hear the stuff before you buy (some might let you, but don't bank on that all of the time), so you do need to have a good idea of the kind of sound you like to hear against the object of your audio desire.
With all of that in mind, it's still highly rewarding to come by a gem of a piece, hook it up and let it sing. Right now, I've got a Charles Mingus album playing, it sounds divine to me - it's not perfect, but it'll do as a set-up for now. The CD player is just over a year old, the speaker at least 15 and the amp at least 30 years old. Together, this unlikely combination get on fine.
The key to it all is in the balance between components; one great piece alone won't rescue another two that let the side down. Synergy is all IMO, so resist the urge to just splash out ASAP, do some research, set the budget and draw up the shortlist. Revisit the budget (or the shortlist) as needed. Great sound isn't the sole preserve of the high end component vintage or modern, but don't be swayed by the blurb in Ebay listings and elsewhere.
Sorry for preaching and happy hunting. Let us know how you get on too.
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