So what's wrong with NAD

[RochaCullen]

Just something I've been wondering. I haven yet come across one person on this forum with any NAD gear. I've heard one or two of their amps and they seem pretty good. Are there any reasons for the prejudices I see?? :scratch:

Nathan

[kininigin]

my very first 'proper' hi fi amp was a nad 302 from the early 90's.It was ok in a small room as it didn't have much power but was fairly clean and on the warm side which back then i liked.I have no idea how there kit sounds today though.

[jantheman]

Nothing wrong with it per se. Difficult to answer without coming over all snobby and sounding like 'my gear is better than yours' type of thing.
Thinking about your comment (ouch!...that hurts) leads me to the conclusion that a lot on here tend to go with the less run of the mill gear. Any thing that could be considered run of the mill is likely to be modified in some way, the Techie 1210 is a classic example.
It's just the way the forum members have decided to spend their hard earned. No prejudice, just preference.
Other forums exist where the likes of NAD, Cambridge et al rules and you will rarely see anyone with the sort of gear that gets mentioned regularly on here.

[John]

Well I use a NAD 3130 as a preamp in my system. It works well as a preamp, but the phono stage is not great

[RochaCullen]

Thinking about your comment (ouch!...that hurts) leads me to the conclusion that a lot on here tend to go with the less run of the mill gear.

Oh I only used the word Prejudice to evoke a reaction. I know the guys on this forum like it strange/exotic/elaborate/wonderful. I've just heard really good things about some of their 'higher-end' cd players and power amps, and I wondered if anyone on here had any experience of their newer kit.

[MartinT]

The NAD M2 has a good reputation, but otherwise they've kept to entry/mid level components and, as Ray pointed out, are a bit mainstream. Nothing wrong with that but it obviously doesn't attract the average AoS member :)

[slate]

I guess it also have to do about how visible and available the brand is; In Denmark NAD and Denon have been the main brands in the http://www.hifiklubben.dk chain since they started 30 years ago.
As their first stores were situated in the larger cities their amps were quite common among the male student population.

Today their silverline and M series have a good reputation on danish fora. I also see boxes from their "normal" product lines in various setups.

However they were a bit late when the surge came AVR amps with all the new gimmicks - HDMI 1.3, Highdef sound formats, HD-DVD/Blu-ray.
Back when I went looking for components for my basement cinema; Onkyo had been ready for months, Denon almost there, but for NAD it took maybe another year.

[Beobloke]

My brother-in-law bought a NAD 'VP' system brand new back in the late 80s, consisting of the 5120 turntable, 3020e amplifier and 8020 speakers which, if I recall correctly, were made by KEF. To this he has added the 4225 tuner, 6040C cassette deck and 5420 CD player.

In twenty-odd years of ownership it has required a handful of new stylii and two LCD illumination bulbs for the CD player. More importantly, every time I hear it I still think it sounds great.

You'll hear no bad words regarding NAD from me!

[Spectral Morn]

The NAD M2 has a good reputation, but otherwise they've kept to entry/mid level components and, as Ray pointed out, are a bit mainstream. Nothing wrong with that but it obviously doesn't attract the average AoS member :)

Just what I was going to say.

I opted for Rotel when I first got into HiFi but I did seriously consider NAD too at the time. No prejudice from my corner either.


Regards D S D L

[Rare Bird]

Just something I've been wondering. I haven yet come across one person on this forum with any NAD gear. I've heard one or two of their amps and they seem pretty good. Are there any reasons for the prejudices I see?? :scratch:



:scratch: you missed me ;) both a NAD '160' Reciever & '60' Intergrated...

The NAD '120'/'140'/'160' were one of the best looking Recievers in the 70's imho.

[Techno Commander]

I used a "lightly tweeked" NAD 208 power amp for many years.

http://avforum.no/forum/attachments/receivere-forsterkere/47897d1237566600-nad-208thx-manual-nad208thxfront.jpeg

Most excelent it was too and when I did finally sell it, it was almost snatched from my hands by a very happy chap.

[sparrow]

I bought the cheapest NAD bee cd player last year..great wee machine and for £160 it sounds superb.

[Welder]

NAD M2, best amp I’ve heard ;)

[Stratmangler]

C320BEE powering my speakers at the moment.
Currently working as a power amp only. The power amp being fed directly from the variable outputs of my Caiman DAC sounds very nice indeed.

[jbloggs]

Used a NAD C320BEE a few years ago with a pair of Wharfedale Diamond 9.1's and was a pleasing budget setup (to my ears anyway)...

[freefallrob]

I use a NAD C315BEE, it's fantastic IMO. The NAD C326BEE pretty darn good to, that's my Dads, we used it to run some B & W 705's at this years Scalford show and it did a great job.

[DSJR]

Good stuff and some of their mid period CD players make huge bargains as they look tat but are well designed inside, as is much of the range to be fair.

[Marco]

How can you mention NAD if you're into valves? ;)

Seriously, though, like others here, I have a healthy respect for the brand, considering that they make mostly good quality 'no nonsense' gear (rather like Rotel), and ocassionally the odd hi-end gem.

If I were putting together a budget separates system, using new components, brands like NAD, Rotel, Yamaha, Creek, Onkyo and Harman Kardon, would all be considered :)

Marco.

[Canetoad]

I have a C372 in my system and it was definitely a step up from the Marantz I was using. I even have a C350 in my second system. Future plans are to get a dedicated preamp and use just the power amp circuit of the NAD.

Anybody got any ideas about what might be compatible?