Hi Peter thanks for the reply!
I could be wrong, but I don't think the original owner had had the original caps etc changed when I received the system circa 2001. Of course, for any hifi equipment of this vintage, that is not an ideal situation - thus my suspicion that they may be at the heart of the problems I am experiencing.
As for the fuse, I had one blow on the amp shortly after I got it, and after replacing the amp ran daily for years, so for the sake of 30 pence I figure it's worth trying.. :-) Can you tell me where it is located (might be pretty obvious I haven't looked)?
Yes it is very good stuff. I'm still blown away by some of the technology involved (for 1980.. wow!!). Some of it is unique. I don't think I've ever seen another amp which fades between inputs (really nice touch), or a tuner that roams and locks onto the signal, rather than being constrained to the frequency units.