Should I get NAD C370 repaired or buy a replacement?

Tjuice

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Sep 23, 2015
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Hello all,

First time posting here :)

I have a NAD C370, bought second hand many years ago, which has served me very well over the years (although I did have to perform the power protection circuit repair at some point during that time). Unfortunately, towards the back end of last year the amp stopped working. I checked all the fuses and they are fine, but a bit of further investigation suggests power is not getting to all the circuits it should, so there is clearly a fault somewhere (not the same as the power protection circuit issue). In addition, in its last few months the amp had begun to lose its crispness, clarity and bite and sounded a little woolly/sluggish. I think some of the main capacitors need replacement – they are beginning to look a bit bulgey.

I got a quick quote for getting the amp repaired, including capacitor replacement/refurbishment, etc. to bring it back to optimum working order, and the cost came in at £300-500. Given this was more than I paid for both the amp and a NAD C541 CD player that I bought with it as part of the package, I rather balked at this, buried my head in the sand, and got my Denon PMA-250III out of the loft as an interim solution. I didn’t want to spend up to £500 on this old amp if I could be putting that money towards something newer and better. The engineer who gave me this quote expressed quite strongly that repairing/refurbishing my amp would bring it back to the level of amps selling at in excess of £1,000 today and would be effectively ‘as good as new’. I have no idea whether this is true, hence my questions here…

I now want to take some action because while the Denon is okay, it lacks the energy and involvement of the NAD, especially since it is having to power a pair of floorstanders (Monitor Audio RX8).

So, some questions:

1. Is a fully refurbished NAD C370 the equivalent of a >£1,000 amp, or is that an exaggeration by the engineer (whose motivation is clearly to encourage me to repair the C370)?

2. Any thoughts on what would be an equivalent, or preferably upgraded, replacement for the NAD C370? I am completely open to second hand equipment, given my experiences with the NAD, so do not have to be restricted to 2015/2014 kit.

3. Is ~£300-500 a sensible price for a repair and full refurb of my C370?

4. Anyone know of good audio engineers in/near Oxford who you would recommend for amplifier repairs. No harm in me getting a second quote from someone who actually works somewhere near where I live! (I work in central London, so an engineer there would be a possible alternative.)

Thoughts or suggestions?

Many thanks everyone.
 

matthewpiano

Well-known member
I think you'd struggle to find many amps that could give the NAD any trouble. I'd happily have a C370 over a Roksan K3, for example. You've probably already seen that the modern equivalent of your amp is over £1k - http://www.sevenoakssoundandvision.co.uk/p-108165-nad-c375bee-gra.aspx.

If the work carries a decent guarantee (I'd expect 12 months at that cost), then I think it worthy of serious consideration, though it is hard for me to say whether that is a fair price or not. Getting another quote or two perhaps wouldn't be a bad idea, just to get a feel for the market average.
 

Tjuice

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Sep 23, 2015
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Thanks Matthew. That's really helpful and makes me feel a bit more comfortable.

Any other thoughts from anyone?

If I went for something second hand in the ~£1K range, what sorts of amps should I to look for?

Would it be worth me considering separating pre and power at that price point?

Any any thoughts on recommended hifi engineers close to Oxford/Bicester/Banbury/etc.

Thanks
 

MaxD

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Jun 15, 2014
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Tjuice said:
Thanks Matthew. That's really helpful and makes me feel a bit more comfortable.

Any other thoughts from anyone?

If I went for something second hand in the ~£1K range, what sorts of amps should I to look for?

Would it be worth me considering separating pre and power at that price point?

Any any thoughts on recommended hifi engineers close to Oxford/Bicester/Banbury/etc.

Thanks

i will absolutely buy a new amp. It will be a much more better investments and you will not risk after you got something fixed something other will break. It happened to me with ol Rotel and Nad and with many old hi-fi components.

In your case I will get a Nad C356BEE new replacement.
 

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