Amp Dilemma

[GautamB]

Ballcocks!
All amps will eventually fail but there are plenty of NAD 3020s still going strong, and they are from the 80's

My 355BEE was going strong without an anxious moment. However I thought that it may be worth a while to switch after 12 years without pushing my luck. I loved it😊

 

[GautamB]

I think I get your point, but that would be somewhat self-defeating, wouldn’t it? In my experience voicing tends to be broad brush, like smooth or forward. I don’t think it extends being ‘a little temperamental about rock’ as suggested above!

I may be wrong, however having tested the 851A and the NAD 355BEE side by side, I feel the way the two Amps handle different genres of music is different. There is some music like that by Kelly Clarkson that sounds better on the NAD...even Billy Idol is better on the NAD, however Bon Jovi is leagues ahead on the 851a...maybe it's just my imagination and aging ears

 

[nopiano]

I may be wrong, however having tested the 851A and the NAD 355BEE side by side, I feel the way the two Amps handle different genres of music is different. There is some music like that by Kelly Clarkson that sounds better on the NAD...even Billy Idol is better on the NAD, however Bon Jovi is leagues ahead on the 851a...maybe it's just my imagination and aging ears

I’ve got ageing ears too, so I understand the dilemma. But seriously, I don’t doubt what you’re perceiving, I’m simply saying that it’s pretty hard to attribute it direct to the design of an amplifier. That’s not to say that amplifier/speaker interaction isn’t a complex issue, but speaker/ room interaction is far more varied, and that ultimately you decide on your system.

 

[insider9]

Ballcocks!
All amps will eventually fail but there are plenty of NAD 3020s still going strong, and they are from the 80's

Absolutely! And if anything the older the amp the longer it should last. My 1988 Sony during service (late last year) had a volume pot replaced. That was it. Good clean otherwise and it sounds sublime.

 

[Surly Sid]

Ballcocks!
All amps will eventually fail but there are plenty of NAD 3020s still going strong, and they are from the 80's

BALLCOCKS, LOL. That's my new favorite word!

As for the NAD 3020: that was made under older ownership. Today's NAD has a new owner and all of their stuff is made in China. Junk.

You can't compare the new stuff with the old.

 

[rainsoothe]

BALLCOCKS, LOL. That's my new favorite word!

As for the NAD 3020: that was made under older ownership. Today's NAD has a new owner and all of their stuff is made in China. Junk.

You can't compare the new stuff with the old.

I've said this several times, I got a lot of made in China stuff that's still going strong, however had plenty of trouble with UK made stuff, like Rega. These generalisations are rather pathetic, imo. How do you know it's manufacturing and not design flaws? How do you know that whatever reports you get on the internet are just part of what is called "the vocal minority"?

Although, to be fair, a Nad 316bee I got for my dad on the SH market did give up the ghost within a year, and it would've cost as much as I paid for it to repair (if at all possible), so there's that...

 

[GSV Ethics Gradient]

I've said this several times, I got a lot of made in China stuff that's still going strong, however had plenty of trouble with UK made stuff, like Rega. These generalisations are rather pathetic, imo

The notion that some countries can't make stuff as well as 'us' (whoever us is) is pretty much a definition of racism. I'm not saying Sid is racist, just that the statement is perhaps ill-judged. Anyway, back on topic....

 

[RoA]

BALLCOCKS, LOL. That's my new favorite word!

As for the NAD 3020: that was made under older ownership. Today's NAD has a new owner and all of their stuff is made in China. Junk.

You can't compare the new stuff with the old.

You do come out with some questionable statements, that's being kind ...

However, one can now buy a home made amplifier with remote and phono stage for less than 400 quid from a renowned brand. That's a first as far as I know and does make a case for buying local for a first decent amplifier and support factory UK.

Other than that, I have and am using very good PRC hifi.