I did get a home demo must have been in '82 or '83 comparing it to contemporary Naim (which looked home made and pretty poor) and I bought the Naim for superior sound quality despite aesthetic misgivings. It was the start of the Naim buying journey for me.
In fact the latest Cyrus integrated amps aren’t too shabby - this is the £3k Cyrus i9 XR. There really is something about shoebox kit that appeals
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Anyone remember the Sugden “ugly frog” in the 70’s? In my early years I had one driving Spendor BC1’s. For the Mk2 version they added colors making it look even more terrible.
“the Sugden A48 is crude & “An Ugly Frog” say Audio-T in their Aug 74 advert, that’s before the even uglier Nexel version”
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Industrial design at its most unappealing!
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One of my few ‘hell, that sounds good’ moments was Meridian M2’s fed via a 101 preamp from (I think) a Dias / Syrinx / Signet front end.
Not in my price range at the time…
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That was my first (and last) amp before moving to Naim as well. Did you ever upgrade it with the PSX power supply? It was a really good upgrade to an already very good amp.
That was my first taste of adding a separate PSU as an upgrade so I guess I was always going to end up at Naim’s door. 
I didn’t add a PSU but thought about it. There is a nice looking PSU in the new X-RAY range
he died in 1616
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I paid £300 for the amp (new) back in 1989/90 and luckily found a mint ex/dem from Billy Vee for £150. You had to remove two fuses in the amp to allow the PSX to work.
Looking back, it was a bit of a bargain for the sound on offer and it’s still In use via my brother in law. Just wish he’d put some bloody decent speakers on the end of it. 
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When I was transitioning from tapes to CD’s I was into the early 90’s Denon units and bought this purely on looks. Lovely.
Denon DRM 540.
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If I had the space (and the cash) I’d love to try a pair of these. I understand they sound rather good too.
B&W Nautllus
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I had that deck too!
Can someone post a picture of a Linn Axis deck so I can complete my first system hat-trick? 
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I wrote without thinking…just for fun. But thanks for correcting 
It was my last tape deck purchase, good quality and reliable.
And a couple of quite attractive Sondeks that have passed through my system my favourite was the Aformosa with the FR12.
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I prefer to do serious listening with the lights out, just concentrating on music, so appearance in an absolute sense is of minimal importance. Appearance that is distracting, such as too many or flashing lights, is a nonstarter. Naim’s black boxes are inconspicuous, particularly with display off. I also like their minimalist aesthetic, which conveys the impression that you are paying for what’s inside rather than out. That said, I have a pair of Spendor D7.2s in walnut finish, and they both sound and look wonderful.
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Sound quality, sound quality, sound quality! Never mind the appearance. It’s SQ that counts.
At least that’s what always I told myself until I decided to treat myself to an office system in Lockdown 1 and, well … it really had to be an Atom. Very pleased, but it’s the SQ I really value, of course. Except, except that moment of pleasure I get from the attractive box sitting at the end of the desk, just urging me to twiddle it’s gorgeous knob. Hmmm.
Roger
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I think a brand like B&O is a bit different as it’s obviously a compromise, as you pay for both the sound quality and design. Sure you could get better sq for the money, but it’s not bad. Then again the design is often great.
I wouldn’t describe it as all fur, no knickers.
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My Dad has one these in his loft which I keep meaning to get out. I think it’s stunning looking. It’s a Philips 22RH520 integrated amp. He also has a beautiful Nakamichi top loading tape deck, not sure what model it is.