NAD 7020 Receivers

NAD 7020 Receivers 

DESCRIPTION

Excellent tuner and pre-amp

USER REVIEWS

Showing 1-10 of 18  
[Apr 26, 2024]
chaples19


Strength:

Simple to use, reliable, doesn't take up much space.- mobile auto mechanic

Weakness:

none . . .

OVERALL
RATING
5
[Sep 06, 2023]
cecelia


Strength:

these amps disconnected from all and any components or speakers will set the lites glowing and fried a test speaker while trying to diagnose failure.these amps played flawless until that moment and happend to both at the same time.preamp tested ok with another amp.all wireing also tested ok. as for the quality and sound of these amps they are great. this misshap will be a discussion topic on other forum to see if this is an isolated case or what may have happened. Christmas net lighting

Weakness:

None . .

Purchased:
New  
OVERALL
RATING
5
[Apr 15, 2022]
alexchiriac


Strength:

Old school NAD sound: fast, detailed and not fatiguing. Outstanding difficult speakers control despite the declared power

Weakness:

The "military" look doesn't make it the first thing you'd place in your living room

Purchased:
Used  
OVERALL
RATING
5
[May 27, 2020]
newmarko


Strength:

Hello everyone. I have bought NAD 7020i stereo reciever recently. I see that here in Audio Review , review for this little monster doesn't exist. I am very satisfied with NAD 7020i pre/amp . It's rated at 8 ohms 20 watts 40 watts at 4 ohms and 50 watts at 2 ohms. Here is the thing. I have one pair of floorstanding ,8 inch , 1.2 meters high ,handmade in Serbia speakers. They are in transmission wood boxes. AND THEY ARE RATED AND MADE TO WORK AT 2 OHMS. By far, I have used many hifi amps,car amps, recievers rated at this ohmage regime.Also, i have germanium amplifier at 1 and 2 ohms also handmade, and it's perfect All i can tell you is that this NAD stereo reciever works very ,very well ! It's bass response is very warm sounding (which i like). Mids are detailed and flat up to 1500 khz.Which is good for critical listening. Highs from 2khz to 20 khz are quite ok and does not harsh or hiss at any moment. I use NAD only directly with it's amp sector to my firewire soundcard. Amazing sound from the nineties components.

Weakness:

Year of production (1991). Nothing else.

Price Paid:
65
Purchased:
Used  
Model Year:
1991
OVERALL
RATING
5
[Oct 27, 2018]
shorewalker


Strength:

This is one of the great old pieces of 1980s budget hifi gear. It's basically the legendary NAD 3020e amplifier plus a NAD 4020 tuner in the one box. It creates the typical NAD sweet, warm richness that everyone talks about in these models. ---- My own 7020e is the last of the line, with the "e" denoting digital tuning that ended the tuner's previous station drift problem. It has been in use since 1988 and outdoes the capable 10-year-old Cambridge Audio Azur 540R V3 AV receiver we use with the TV. I'm not alone in thinking it has lasted ridiculously well. Steve Guttenberg at Cnet recently put the 3020 amp - with the same circuitry - up against an Audioengine N22 amp and reported that "at 30 years of age, the 3020 clobbered the N22 on every count". ---- Output is notable for a stated 20 watts (into 8 ohms). Reliability is downright remarkable: not a thing has gone wrong with it in three decades. I used to think about what I would replace it with. I no longer do that. ---- It's still paired with the two 1988 NAD 8020e speakers (made by KEF) that I bought with it. Nowadays it connects to my main computer and plays music off a Synology NAS, Google Play and other online sources. After three decades, I've added a Dragonfly DAC; that gives it a small additional lift, but nothing transformative. I'm toying with buying a little REL T3 powered subwoofer and hooking it up to the B speaker circuit. ---- Reportedly the power source and components on this generation of budget NAD gear were over-specced compared to rivals. I'm ready to believe so. It seems possible that this lot can make their half-century. The return on investment has been extraordinary.

Weakness:

It's not as beautiful as my dad's old Yamaha receiver. The aesthetic is minimalist and almost military. The tuner doesn't perform that well when positioned next to a stack of computer gear. Pricier gear can give a more detailed sound, of course. Speaker inputs are just spring clips. Yes, I'm reaching to find flaws.

Price Paid:
$A500?
Purchased:
New  
Model Year:
1988
OVERALL
RATING
5
[Jul 23, 2017]
Terence
AudioPhile

I bought 2 NAD 7020's in 2016, one being shot was a parts unit (a black 120V/60Hz), the other was a working unit (a beige 220V/50Hz). Unfortunately, the beige unit stopped working after half a year of intermittent use in my bedroom as a radio/CD source for leisure lsitening.

My 7020 drove two pairs of speakers, an AR3a pair, and a Celestion SL 700 pair. Occasionally, I moved it to my main rig and used it to drive my two pairs of stacked JBL 4320 (which BTW to me is intrinsically far superior to any 4333/4344/4345 due to its simple two way design).

In all these pairings for the 7020, I heard very convincing sound, life-like, vivant, quite detailed, and three-dimensional. It lacks some sparkle in the top end but its bass is quite warm and well controlled. Paired with my 15" woofer JBL 4320 fours, it gave very good sound compared to my usual tube combo (Audible Illusion 3D preamp, and four Ampex 6973 mono blocs, which together has the best bass and the sexiest top end in my rig). For the money I paid in 2016 ($150 for two 7020, and a parametric EQ unit), it was a no-brainer to decide to buy a 7020.

The 7020 really surprised me when I first heard it. It sound a bit better to me than the 3020 did coz the 7020 sounded a bit more vivant and detailed. The 7020/3020 would be my every-green go-to HiFi hardware for any type of music to listen to.

BTW, its FM section drifts quite a bit. Best would be to use the tuner after about 1 hr of warm-up. Then it will behave quite stably.








OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
5
[Mar 11, 2014]
Carey
Audio Enthusiast

I continue to use my Nad 7020 daily. The tuner is excellent picking up many radio stations, with little drifting of the signal. The sound is full, and imaging very good. After all these years it continues to work well. I bought it 4 years ago from a person who cleaned the inside and calibrated the tuner.

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
5
[Dec 23, 2003]
Asellus
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Warm, sweet rich sound.The you use as reference to compare all units you use after. Simple to use, reliable, doesn't take up much space.Looks a simple design inside, hopefully should be relatively easy to keep going! The tuner is sensitive (just a wire dangling off the back!) and sounds good.Haven't had the tuner drift problem reported by others.

Weakness:

Age, no remote.Getting a bit crackly now due to wear on front input switches.Right channel clicks a bit too.Only becoming apparent after comparing it to the new Marantz, we have noted that the NAD has an either "too loud or too quiet" characteristic. Quiet notes seem buried in the music, while loud segments come on too strong. Maybe this is inherent in the design of an essentially low power output of the unit and the NAD "Power Envelope" system which gives additional power the amp when it needs it? But still a great product.

Helped my Dad purchase a receiver, speaker and casette system in 1990. Compared a Yamaha receiver of similar price at the same time and there was no comparison. The NAD sounded smooth, warm and sweet, the Yamaha thin and harsh.It is able to drive two, mid size Energy ESM 3s, has been very reliable apart from needing a new power supply some years back, but considering the use and age, this is acceptable. Now my Dad has upgraded to a Marantz Sr4300, and I now have the NAD in my bedroom driving two Sony "micro system" type speakers, and it sounds great, much better than the Micro System it replaced (no shocks there!)

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha receiver of same age and price.

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
4
[Feb 07, 2003]
jon bridgman
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

excellent while sipping fine bourbon,love the cable connection for antenna

Weakness:

ahh yes...the bourbon is one

wow,im really amazed at the beautiful crisp,sound this reciever produces through my vintage JBL4311 studio monitors.was listening to some old link wray vinyl played on my thorens,in preparation of the upcoming show at the montage,and am relly blown away by the crisp highs and smooth bass,nice separation,and inaudible distortion.awesome!!!

Similar Products Used:

nikko 1050 reciever circa 1970

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Jan 29, 2003]
Will Simmering
Casual Listener

Strength:

Clear, rich sound whether used to play tapes, LPs, CDs, MP3s or just to listen to the radio.

Weakness:

Age can cause the unit's components to occasionally be troublesome. My system sometimes produces a less than clean sound out of the right channel when using the AUX setting possibley due to poor contacts. As well, the light on the tuner dial burned out soon after beeing replaced.

While not as sexy as new, digital turbo-charged home theater systems, the NAD 7020 still manages to produce much the same sound quality as it did when it was an audio-phile component in the late 70's early 80's. My system is hooked up to a NAD 6050C Cassette deck and an old set of Polk Audio model 5's, which, most of the time, produce clear, clean sound that comfortably ranges from back-ground music to filling a room, and at a rated distortion of only 0.02%. And this despite an average power output of 20watts per channel average, 40 watts max at 8 ohms. Old promo material boasts that "for the student or first-time stereo shopper, the 'no frills' design and moderate price make the NAD 7020 an ideal choice; for the music-music lover seeking uncompromised performance, few receivers at any price will sound as good in everyday use." Despite its age and occasional crankyness, the NAD 7020 sounds just as good as many, more modern systems.

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
4
Showing 1-10 of 18  

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