Gaston Posted December 22, 2022 Report Share Posted December 22, 2022 Not at the same time, even though as far as I understood the attached technical specs it allows 2 pairs of 4 Ohm speakers. The question is - "NAD and AR - is this a good symbiosis?" I read somewhere on this forum that NAD, the founding of that company was actually initiated(?) by AR? NAD 7080 is made from 1978 - 1980 and not much info can be found on the net, but it seems that it does not lack power. But how does it sound with AR's? Should I buy the receiver or skip it? The price is fair (290$), the condition is 8/10 (scratches on the edges of the faceplate, everything else seems to be factory original and perfectly working). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aadams Posted December 22, 2022 Report Share Posted December 22, 2022 46 minutes ago, Gaston said: Should I buy the receiver or skip it? Short answer. Skip it. There isn't any evidence it was rated for continuous output below 8 ohms. Also it is old, really old, and my experience at least has been that such amps are not to be trusted without careful examination by a trusted tech. There are a lot of amplifiers but the supply of AR speakers is fixed. Happy Holidays Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaston Posted December 22, 2022 Author Report Share Posted December 22, 2022 34 minutes ago, Aadams said: Short answer. Skip it. There isn't any evidence it was rated for continuous output below 8 ohms. Also it is old, really old, and my experience at least has been that such amps are not to be trusted without careful examination by a trusted tech. There are a lot of amplifiers but the supply of AR speakers is fixed. Happy Holidays Now that popped my balloon... but thanx While I completely agree about the age, that is my main concern, why you say that there's no evidence for 4 ohm speakers? Here: this says: Output: Speakers: 2x2, 4 to 8 ohm This review here attracted me to this NAD: https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/review-nad-nad-7080-receiver-amplifier Happy Holidays to you, too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aadams Posted December 22, 2022 Report Share Posted December 22, 2022 Page 37 https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Audio/Archive-HiFI-Stereo/80s/Stereo-Directory-1982.pdf I am saying that you cannot find an explicit statement in english saying it is rated for continuous operation at 4 ohms. I know of only one receiver from that period that would operate 2 or even 3 sets of 4 ohm speakers simultaneously and safely. There must have been others but not many. and a Happy New Year! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
genek Posted December 23, 2022 Report Share Posted December 23, 2022 The specs do appear to say that you could run 2 pairs of 4 ohm speakers, except that the impedance of 4 ohm speakers can drop to as low as 2 ohms at some frequencies. Which means that 2 pairs of 4 ohm speakers at the same time would present the amplifier with a nominal load of 2 ohms that at certain frequencies could become a 1 ohm load. Very bad. What the 2/4/8 ohm power rating is probably meant to tell you is that you could run 1 pair of 4 ohm speakers whose load could be as low as 2 ohms or 2 pairs of 8 ohm speakers whose combined load could be as low as 4 ohms. The person credited with starting NAD was for a time the president of AR, but left to launch NAD. AR the company did not do it. https://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/nad-founder-martin-borish-1927-2017/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKent Posted December 23, 2022 Report Share Posted December 23, 2022 On 12/22/2022 at 4:46 PM, Gaston said: Should I buy the receiver or skip it? Although I have never personally owned NAD gear the brand has a very good reputation. Personally, I like vintage American amps with vintage American speakers so I'd say if you like the NAD receiver, go for it. BUT I agree with Aadams that any amp that old should be thoroughly checked by a qualified tech. I've used vintage amps by AR, KLH, DB Systems, Hafler, Adcom, McIntosh, Dynaco, Sylvania (don't laugh--check out this site https://www.vintagesylvania.net/?page=components&category=recv ) and others in my systems but always after complete and thorough servicing. One leaky old cap could spell disaster. I also agree that running 2 pair of 4 ohm speakers would be a bad idea but you stated in the OP "not at the same time" so I think you're safe. Just my 2 cents.... Kent PS: I "thought" the NADs were American made but a Google search showed the 7080 was made in Taiwan. Still a nice unit but I have to ask why that particular unit? The Audiogon article you linked did say it was TOTL and pretty much raved about it. If you want vintage there were also lots of nice Japanese models. Over on AK there's a thread "most beautiful receiver" or something like that. https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/best-looking-vintage-receivers.293186/ or https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/best-looking-receiver-of-all-time.127469/ If you want new, the Crown professional amps are very powerful and very reasonably priced. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoyC Posted December 24, 2022 Report Share Posted December 24, 2022 I think an old NAD receiver is a bad idea. Until its very recent closing, I was repairing speakers for a local shop for many years, and old NAD products were not popular among those tasked with repairing them. The shop was in business for over 45 years, and apparently NAD products were among the most frequent visitors. They were also troublesome to diagnose and repair. In fact one of the old-timer tech's referred to NAD as Nasty Audio Devices. 3a's are not speakers you should play chicken with. In the past 3 months I've repaired KLH 17's and AR-3a's with fried voice coils due to faulty "vintage" amps (they weren't NAD) passing DC to them. It should also be noted that in both cases they were being operated at low to moderate volume levels. I agree with Kent. A pro amp brand like Crown connected to a nice preamp (vintage or otherwise) would be a safer bet, especially for low impedance loads. Along with being new, these amps have excellent protection circuitry. For some reason I thought NAD equipment was always designed in the UK and manufactured in Asia. Roy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaston Posted January 3 Author Report Share Posted January 3 Ok, thank you all I have abandoned the idea... and this is the second unit of this age that I am skipping so far. It was a Sansui AU-717 previously because of "Sansui dreaded glue" issue and now this Nasty Audio Device... It seems that I should save some money and go for a brand new unit. The question is - which one; how much money will I need to gain that sweet, mellow sound that amps of aforementioned age provide. I cannot even think about a McInthosh even they all speak highly of them, their price is insane. I will get back in a year or two when I have money enough to talk about this subject On 12/24/2022 at 5:11 AM, RoyC said: A pro amp brand like Crown connected to a nice preamp (vintage or otherwise) would be a safer bet, especially for low impedance loads. Along with being new, these amps have excellent protection circuitry. How good a pro amp sounds? I have one preamp - semi vintage. It's a Kenwood Basic C2 preamp (that I have no idea how it sounds), OR, I can use a real vintage Sansui AU-5900 amp as a preamp - that sounds nice, but lacks power to drive those speakers satisfactory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidR Posted January 3 Report Share Posted January 3 On 12/22/2022 at 4:46 PM, Gaston said: I read somewhere on this forum that NAD, the founding of that company was actually initiated(?) by AR? I think you might be thinking of NHT (Now Hear This) by former AR engineer Ken Kantor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaston Posted January 3 Author Report Share Posted January 3 8 minutes ago, DavidR said: I think you might be thinking of NHT (Now Hear This) by former AR engineer Ken Kantor. That's not it. I know about NHT. In the article by @tysontom here: when talking about the development of powered AR-9's he mentions this on page 14: The amplifier design that was to be used in the “9D” later became the NAD 3020, one of the best-selling integrated amplifiers in high-fidelity history. The concept was to allow the speaker operate at normal levels with low or moderate power, yet accurately reproduce high peak levels by using a dedicated high-peak-current amplifier for each driver section. Before it started on its own, NAD was known as “New Acoustic Dimension by AR.” At NAD—essentially spun off by Teledyne AR—the company developed many innovative electronic designs by Erik Edvardsen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKent Posted January 3 Report Share Posted January 3 I haven’t tried them myself but I think it’s the Crown XLS series that folks recommend. The first reference I saw was a post by Tom Tyson, who knows AR. IMHO the “sound” of amplification comes mostly from the preamp. That’s why many people like a tube preamp with a solid state power amp. If you like the sound of the Sansui (and many people do) you could certainly use that as your preamp. Or try the Kenwood and see what you think. There are lots of options and lots of opinions. I use DB-1a preamps in two systems and like them but it’s a personal choice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason4300 Posted January 4 Report Share Posted January 4 Looks like I'm a little late, but I'll comment anyways. I have a NAD 7030, a lower watt equivalent of the 7080. I wouldn't dismiss the NAD because it's old or built in Taiwan. It's a well built and great sounding unit. On par with the other vintage amps I've owned. It's also extremely easy to work on should you ever decide to recap, which wouldn't be a bad idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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