Recommendation please...NAD 7100 or Nakamich TA-2A?

[Confusilated]

I recently acquired two receivers strictly for listening to music, but I really only need one. Which would you keep? The NAD 7100, or the Nakamichi TA-2A? The Nakamichi has the original remote, but that's not a big issue for me, just a dealbreaker in the event of a tie. Anybody have a thought on these two?

Thanks much

 

[xero-D-hero]

Most here would likely give the nod to the Nak.
Me,I've sorta been collecting NAD Monitor Series gear,so I'd likely go for the 7100.

Probably not much help for you there,sorry.

JM2¢

BTW welcome to AK !

Bret P.

 

[bimasta]

I have a NAD 7100. Great sound. Until suddenly the volume pot stopped working below 11 o'clock. It's either blasting or silent. I looked inside, and the pot is totally surrounded by various pieces of metal, no way to get near it to spray or do anything else. If mine failed "for no reason", yours might.

Reliability was always an issue with NAD. A tech friend used to have the NAD warranty-service contract for an area of about 6M people. He serviced many other brands, and was a 'high-end specialist'. He made more money from fixing NADs than the rest combined — yet he gave up the contract because he hated fixing NAD, and seeing all the shoddiness inside. He said N-A-D stood for "Nasty and Dangerous."

That was years ago, maybe it's changed.

 

[teal'c]

I would keep the one I like best...

 

[darkblue94]

I have a Nakamichi TA3A and I really like it. It does a terrific job in my bedroom system. I'd go with the Nak.

 

[Freddymac2]

We do not know what speakers you are driving, which may make a difference. Do you use vinyl as a source? If you listen critically you will be able to answer your own question quickly. The bias should be set right to get the most out of these units sonicly.

 

[SoCal Sam]

I had a 7100 and a TA3A. NAD build is a problem. The 7100 is 30 years old now (!) so if it has survived, it might have been one of the good ones to come off the line. If you like upgrading, changing the DC offset and bias trimpots to Bournes would pay dividends. I can't say the Nak is any better. Although I liked the sound, the tuner on mine was broken and the selector buttons kept falling off. The NAD gets the nod if you change the trimmers.

 

[SoCal Sam]

I have a NAD 7100. Great sound. Until suddenly the volume pot stopped working below 11 o'clock. It's either blasting or silent. I looked inside, and the pot is totally surrounded by various pieces of metal, no way to get near it to spray or do anything else. If mine failed "for no reason", yours might.

Reliability was always an issue with NAD. A tech friend used to have the NAD warranty-service contract for an area of about 6M people. He serviced many other brands, and was a 'high-end specialist'. He made more money from fixing NADs than the rest combined — yet he gave up the contract because he hated fixing NAD, and seeing all the shoddiness inside. He said N-A-D stood for "Nasty and Dangerous."

That was years ago, maybe it's changed.

Oh no, not another defect. Cleaning the 7100 is not that difficult. Put a 90 degree bend at the tip of your straw and you can get around corners. I use MG Chemicals residue free which is twice the can for half the price of brand D. This makes the flush method economically possible. More importantly, it does not leave a mess like some brand D variants.

 

[bimasta]

Oh no, not another defect. Cleaning the 7100 is not that difficult. Put a 90 degree bend at the tip of your straw and you can get around corners. I use MG Chemicals residue free which is twice the can for half the price of brand D. This makes the flush method economically possible. More importantly, it does not leave a mess like some brand D variants.

Thanks Sam, I'll try that. But I'l have to work up to doing it — it took so long to take it apart, achieve nothing, and then put it back together. The 90° bend might work — but I don't even know that cleaning the pot fixes the problem — half the entire track goes mute, it'd take a lot of crud to do that. And if it doesn't work...

 

[Confusilated]

Thanks to all who have responded thusfar. Upgrading components for me is another way of saying ruining them, because invariably that what happens when I try to do even the simplest modifications. For speakers, I actually have 4 pair with a switch depending on what I'm listening to...Cerwin Vega D7, Kenwood LS-890, Technics SB-X700, and Miller Kreisel S-1B. Don't bag on the Kenwoods...they made a few great speakers, and I believe the LS-890's are amongst them. I do listen to vinyl, but unfortunately my hearing ability is not what it used to be, so I was kind of relying on someone else's ears. I'm not the only one who is listening here, so I'm trying to keep what would be best for everyone who uses the system. The NAD looks busier which is cool, but its made in Taiwan which makes me skeptical, and the buttons feel cheap. The serial number on it ends in X, and I heard that this may be a later model which was a 7100X, but I don't know if that means its a better 7100 or worse. The Nakamichi has a cleaner look but seems to run hotter. I don't have an easy way to A/B them, so it's difficult for me to compare. Maybe I'll just keep them both and have one as a backup. I hate indecision, but I'm a pro at it.