Great sound when broken in under load for 16 hrs over two days, and just cleaning RCA female connectors and headphone jack, and Volume and Balance control potentiometers with Stabil Rust Stopper or Deoxit can get rid of intermittent Right speaker static and cutting in/out after 24 years of use. I also now turn Volume knob to zero when I turn off system to prevent oxidation at the position I normally use. I live in Florida across from a brackish river, so high humidity and salt air may have contributed to the above. I finally reached out to NAD technical support about the static and cutting in/out on Right speaker, they got back quickly and said the problem was the Volume and Balance controls. And it looks like that was the final source of static. The Left speaker has sounded a little louder than the Right for a long time, but after cleaning the Volume control potentiometer with Stabil, the Right speaker sounds the same as the Left and stereo sound stage is now perfectly centered. Thought the Left speaker was a little louder because it was closer to a wall, not the case.

Update June 2024, started having intermittent static and cutting in/out on right speaker, replaced the preamp/amp metal links with RCA 6" cables (one metal link had rough raised edges on both ends, so sanded and polished, but did not permanently solve problem.. Used headphones to try to isolate the problem, did hear some static in right headphone but no cutting in/out. So thought the problem may be the headphone jack, since it has three switches in it. Sprayed Stabil into headphone jack, then inserted male plug into it and pushed in/out repeatedly. But after a week static came back, so then sprayed Volume and Balance control potentiometers with Stabil too, that appears to be the last source of Right speaker static and cutting in/out. Bottom line, old stereo equipment electrical contacts need to be cleaned periodically!

Update 2024: I was getting light intermittent static from right speaker after the amp warmed up for an hour, also got cutting in and out of right speaker, was noticeable on classical music with quiet sections. The problem was the U-shaped metal links that connected preamp to amp, the ends on one link were never finished, it had rough raised edges on both ends that made poor contact with preamp/amp female RCA connectors, the other link was beveled to a 45 degree on both ends, so better but not smooth. Sanded and polished both, cleaned out female RCA connectors with Q-tip (removed some cotton from Q-tip so it would fit) soaked in WD40, got black corrosion on Q-tip from right channel female RCA connectors, and now no more static or cutting in/out. The static was driving me nuts!, and it was because of poorly finished metal preamp to amp links. Bought this back in 2000 from a local store in Bethesda MD, listened carefully in their sound room and really liked the sound even though my ears felt irritated, was on sale for $500 so bought it. At home I noticed again my ears were irritated, I can hear unusually high frequencies, talked with a audiofile and he said it needed to be broken in under load, played music fairly lound for two days, 8 hr a day nonstop, and my eats were no longer irritated. It’s now 2020 and it is still sounding great. If I put my ear on the grill of my EPI A500C speaker’s tweeter in a quiet room I can bearly hear a hiss in the left and right tweeters, and changing the volume does not affect it. Guess I got a good one!

The remote control is highly directional, thought it was just weak when I could not control the speaker mute from 15 ft away, but started playing with it and realized I had to point the remote front left corner level and right at the sensor and then it worked fine. For those with the left channel hum, maybe it is a bad capcitor, cheap to replace, especially if it has been isolated to the preamp, just need a good tech to find it.

i bought this amp for 50 euros,not much for an amp this age and still working so i don t recognize any of the crappy quality discribed in some reviews here.
The amp sounds very powerfull and has a nice warmth as well but to bad its not very dynamic and can sound slow and compressed sometimes.

I purchased this amp about 14 years ago,(brand new) and it has'nt given me any problems.there is a slight buzz in the left channel, but i can barely hear it. yes it's been there since new... I have a pair of energy c4s, and a rotel cd player hooked up to it every since I bought the amp. about 8 yrs ago I purchased the nad 214 power amp on ebay, and bridged them. their working perfectly! i'm very satisfied with my system, all I can say for the people that are experiencing problems is that the past owner may have abused the amp, or maybe mine was built on a wednesday.....

Hiss in left channel is real and a very common problem from brand new. Good sound and punch for the bottom end but this amplifier is fragile. It has been serviced twice for the same problem but never really fixed. It now sits on a shelf because nobody seems to be able to fix the problem. I have several NAD products and like the quality but the price is high. Other NAD amplifiers do not seem to have the problem the 317 has. I hope to get it fully repaired and back to work soon.

Very powerfull, but little bit too rough sound for my taste. Articulation mid and high frequensies is good, but this amplifier lacks some clarity in bass. I think this is very good amplifier for watching movies, but only semi good for enjoying music records.

Despite all of the bad fuss about the "buzz" in the left channel this unit produces, I decided to buy one from a local seller at a bargin price. After spending a few days with this NAD 317, all I can say is that I am totally impressed with this little powerhouse.

This unit is combined with an entry level NAD 522 CD player and pushes my Polk Audio SDA-2B's.

Very smooth, detailed sound with great bass response. This one is a keeper and for the price I paid it is a real bargin.

NAD and Polk seems to be a great budget combination for a regular guy like me who does not like to spend too much cash on his audio gear.

Simplictiy, durability, value for money

NAD components do not share the same exterior appearnce. Different swithes, colors, displays, corners.

Connected to Piega P4 speakers (from Switzerland): excellent sound, no problems of any kind for the last 8 years.

Customer Service

Never needed

Similar Products Used:

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transparency, power, compares favorably to pre/power amp combos

slight buzz in left channel

I've been using my NAD 317 integrated for over a year now and it has performed flawlessly. I must confess that I became alarmed after reading some of the negative reviews on this website, but I can only relate to my personal experience. The hum in the left channel, as indicated by other reviewers, is real. Actually, for my unit at least, "hum" is really too strong a word. I would call it a slight buzz that is only audible when my ear is less than an inch away from my left tweeter. And my speakers, Paradigm Studio 40's, aren't exactly known for their treble reticence. Hardly much of a nuisance... I agree with the reviewer who asserts that the "hum" originates in the pre-amplifier section, which can easily be demonstrated by following his instruction.


Other than that, the 317 is one terrific sounding integrated amp, very open and transparent with terrific bass. The power on tap is amazing and comparable to a good pre-amp/power amp combo. I even compared my amp to the much lauded NAD C320BEE, which I borrowed and inserted into my system after reading all the positive press. The C320 didn't really seem any more transparent to my ears, but the loss of power and bass control was obvious. For myself at least, it was no contest. I can only theorize that the problems associated with the NAD 317 have either been greatly exaggerated, or both good and bad units exist. Judging by the fact that the amp was only manufactured for a relatively short period, I personally believe the latter to be true.

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NAD C320BEE, Sony ES, Adcom

None

Over-priced, badly designed,

This unit started out fine, but after 3 years started having intermittent right channel break up, distortion, and etc.. I did some research and found out many NAD models have these sort of problems. I proceeded to contact NAD customer service and they gave me the "it's out of warranty" talk and as i looked more into the issue I realized that this is a design issue that NAD should have been responsible for. Everyone knows that amps sound better through time, however the volume and balance controls on this unit are soldered to a small pc board very badly. this board is not secure, so when the volume controls is moved around it weakens the solder joints and after time one or the other channel will start to fail, not to mention the heat that runs through the board. NAD refused to take any repsonsibilty, or even mail out the small part so one would be able to fix it themself, it's just 2 screws, a nut, and 2 cable connections. I was opting for a Rotel but Dr John at Sound Factor, Encino CA persuaded me to buy this junk. I would stay away from NAD like the plague, they package badly designed junk and sell them as high value audio gear by cheap design hidden by behind an expensive looking unit. If you look at Ebay when this amp shows up the sellers usually desribe the inherint NAD flaws. There are many other better choiices than NAD and better priced untis. NAD's lack of any responsibility to stand behind their product for a $800.00 unit is another reason to not buy their products.

Customer Service

Very Poor, NAD lacked repsonisbility for their product and were condescending in communication.

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Rotel, Crown, Hafler, Pioneer Elite, Denon, Yamaha