I bought this NAD7020e a few weeks ago and I must say this is a very nice receiver with good reception and a warm sound. It makes a good impression with jazz and classical music. The capacity of the 2 power supply capacitors had decreased after all these years from 4700 uF to 3500 uF. Although this value is still within tolerance, I replaced them with younger versions of 4700 uF. When checked, these capacitors turned out to be around 5000 uF. All pontentiometers are free of cracking. The CD and AM selector switches make good contact, but when you press them you hear distortion. After pressing the buttons frequently, this distortion disappears, which indicates that the corrosion of the contacts that has arisen is gradually disappearing. The corrosion simply takes hold of the contacts due to insufficient use. So press the selector switches regularly and the cracking will gradually disappear.
Haydn Boardman serviced my Sony7015. Left the original caps in nearly 50 yrs old.. Crisp clear sound and the radio sounds better than vinyl.. Surprise surprise
Nice comparison, Mike! I tried out a 7020 a couple of years ago, and I drew much the same conclusion as you. It had a lovely tone, but a bit on the woolly side for my tastes so I passed it on to a friend. I wonder sometimes how much the 3020/7020 is responsible for the general perception of late-70s amps as 'warm', because I've found many exceptions to this so-called 'rule'. I'm guessing a lot of current reviewers who weren't around back in the day don't really have a great breadth of experience of vintage gear and pick the 3020 as 'typical' because everyone else does and there are plenty of them knocking around. Good job we've got you and your steadily widening experience of other brands, and long may you continue!
This mirrors my experience. There are many « unknown » amps from the 1970s on the used market. I picked up a Continental Edison PA9109 for 40€. I would describe the sound to be on the cooler side with some slight grain in the treble. The PA9109 isn’t much different from a modern entry-level A/B amp from Yamaha or Denon. I picked up a Creek 4240 recently and it hits the sweet spot for me. These vintage amps are a lottery.
Thanks, I am trying to keep them coming with enough varied brands as possible and hopefully I might come across a few stinkers to stay clear of and a few good ones that might be worth looking out for. More of the latter hopefully.
I bought this NAD7020e a few weeks ago and I must say this is a very nice receiver with good reception and a warm sound. It makes a good impression with jazz and classical music.
The capacity of the 2 power supply capacitors had decreased after all these years from 4700 uF to 3500 uF. Although this value is still within tolerance, I replaced them with younger versions of 4700 uF. When checked, these capacitors turned out to be around 5000 uF. All pontentiometers are free of cracking. The CD and AM selector switches make good contact, but when you press them you hear distortion. After pressing the buttons frequently, this distortion disappears, which indicates that the corrosion of the contacts that has arisen is gradually disappearing. The corrosion simply takes hold of the contacts due to insufficient use. So press the selector switches regularly and the cracking will gradually disappear.
Thanks for your comment and good infomation
Haydn Boardman serviced my Sony7015. Left the original caps in nearly 50 yrs old.. Crisp clear sound and the radio sounds better than vinyl.. Surprise surprise
I have the same one, yes it's very nice
Nice comparison, Mike! I tried out a 7020 a couple of years ago, and I drew much the same conclusion as you. It had a lovely tone, but a bit on the woolly side for my tastes so I passed it on to a friend.
I wonder sometimes how much the 3020/7020 is responsible for the general perception of late-70s amps as 'warm', because I've found many exceptions to this so-called 'rule'. I'm guessing a lot of current reviewers who weren't around back in the day don't really have a great breadth of experience of vintage gear and pick the 3020 as 'typical' because everyone else does and there are plenty of them knocking around. Good job we've got you and your steadily widening experience of other brands, and long may you continue!
This mirrors my experience. There are many « unknown » amps from the 1970s on the used market. I picked up a Continental Edison PA9109 for 40€. I would describe the sound to be on the cooler side with some slight grain in the treble. The PA9109 isn’t much different from a modern entry-level A/B amp from Yamaha or Denon. I picked up a Creek 4240 recently and it hits the sweet spot for me. These vintage amps are a lottery.
Thanks, I am trying to keep them coming with enough varied brands as possible and hopefully I might come across a few stinkers to stay clear of and a few good ones that might be worth looking out for. More of the latter hopefully.
Interesting, generally 70’s always trumps 80’s for me.