The NAD is dead! Long live the Marantz!

[twelvebears]

Well it’s official. My very fancy, very expensive NAD M2 is officially dead and unrepairable.

After oh, about 7 years, a fault on the main board has consigned my M2 to the recycling bin. The board was no longer available from NAD and the complexity and surface mount nature of the board means a component level repair was impossible.

This has been a salient lesson for me in the potential issues of pure digital amps.

I’m am making myself feel better by enjoying sounds on a Marantz PM-11S1 which
I picked up in minty condition for a very fair price.

It’s big, heavy, analog and makes the reassuring sound of clicking relays when I press buttons.

Going forward, DAC duties will be handled by something which won’t render me amp-less and crying over a massive financial loss if it goes tits-up.

If ever there was proof to me that something can be too clever for its own good, this was it.

Despite all that, it is good to be back chaps!