Finally got one!!!

 

I just picked up a NAD T742 at a local dealer. I couldn't resist the C$649 (approx US$485)closeout price. It sounded excellent in the store hooked up to a pair of paradigm bookshelves and a small 8" sub, of course I watched the obligatory matrix elevator scene. Stereo music was very clear and strong. Even with the sub turned off the bass was decent on music. So it should be awesome with my AR towers at home.

Thanks Hawk, GT & others for your helpful advice. I'll post a mini-review back here again after I've had a few days to play with it.

Smitty :) :) :)
 

GT
Congrats on your new purchase. I know you been looking for quite some time. Hey, and you even got it locally so no warranty issues.

Let us know how you like it. Which AR towers are you using?
 

Hawk
Smitty:

Congratulations. I am looking forward to hearing your impressions.
 

Brad C.
Still enjoying my NAD T752...


http://members.cox.net/bcraig36/Image014.jpg

^ here is a pic of it in my AV rack


I'm mainly a ht buff also and this baby roXXors

I just had a chance today to mess around with my dad's new Denon 2803, and my Nad does circle's around it...

Look forward to a mini-review considering I got a friend who is interested in a NAD T742...

Also where did you get it from ?
 

John A.
Well done, Smitty. It is natural to complain when something does not work, and generous to take the time to say you are pleased and everything is OK.
 

anon--eee-miss
Nice rack Brad---hah
 

Thanks guys. I had a little time last night to set 'er up. I'll post back again in a week or so but this is my experience with setup and initial impressions...be forewarned that they may be heavily emotionally biased at this point :).

Equipment:
I have AR 310HO main speakers [ approx. 3ft. tall, 10" side-firing woofer, 2 x 5 1/4" mids and a 1" tweeter, 95db sensitivity, 200W max.] and an AR AR2C center [2 x 5 1/4" mids, 6 1/2" down-firing woofer and a 1" tweeter, 94db sensitivity, 250W max.], matching rear bookshelves are still in the box until I get the basement finished :(. Sony 5-disc DVD/CD player ( I don't recall the model).

Physical setup was fairly straightforward. Three speakers connected to the T742 with AR banana plugs & 16ga AR speaker wire (7ft length), DVD connected with digital coax, TV audio output connected with RCA audio cable. I'm not doing any video switching on the receiver. I noticed that there is plenty of space between the left and right posts for each speaker connector.

Setting speaker settings was somewhat cumbersome, you have to press a setup button on the front of the unit in quick combination with the volume/setup dial. It took me a few tries to get FR/C/FL set to Large and RL/RR & sub to off, I just wasn't quick enough and the display kept timing out. A bit irritating but certainly no biggie as this is a one-time setup.

I did a test tone test by ear and adjusted the centre volume up a bit(+4db), mainly because the centre is on top of the wall unit above the TV and the seating position is really too close (7 ft) for this to work well. These adjustments were all quite easily done on the remote this time. I plan to pick up an SPL meter and set it up more precisely in a few months when I move the audio/video setup into the basement.

On to the important stuff...sound. I expected the DD/DTS playback to be impressive but I was nervous about how stereo music would sound compared to my existing HK AVR30 pro-logic receiver, which I have grown very fond of. Well, I was a bit pressed for time but played a few tracks from a mixed pop/rock CD. Initially the T742 selected DPLII music mode and the sound poured out of the centre speaker with more bass than I had ever heard out of it, impressive but I wanted stereo. So, I switched the audio mode to stereo, this was also easily done via the remote which cycles through the various stereo/dpl/ears modes via consecutive pushes of a single button, the name of the mode is clearly displayed. I restarted the same track and sat back and listened...and listened...then I started grinning...and kept grinning. Ahhh...I thought...this does sound better. My nervousness changed to delight...I didn't make a mistake...this receiver was made for my speakers I thought. Back to being objective...the volume setting was at -18 of a possible max of +18 and it was loud. What struck me right away was the placement of the vocals which was dead centre between the speakers and very loud and clear, I could have sworn the centre speaker was on and had to check to make sure...it wasn't on, all the sound was coming from the two main speakers. This placement of the vocals was accurate even as I moved around the room, my previous receiver had more of a sweet spot area where everything sounded good. Then I started hearing sounds from some instrument that was definately not there before in a very precise location to the front right. At about this time the bass kicked in, very full and tight, definately 'heavier' than with my older HK. I've never been really big on bass, I'm more into guitar riffs and vocals but I could certainly appreciate the difference. I haven't listened to many of my favourite CDs yet, but so far it looks like a significant step up from my previous receiver.

On to DVD playback. I had rented the new Matrix movie. The T742 auto-selected Dolby Digital mode and displayed 'Dolby Digital'. A little more feedback on the display would have been nice. Most other receivers have a letter/icon for each channel and show which ones are active & set to small/large. It just adds a bit more reassurance that the DVD player has been configured to send the right signal and that the speaker setup is correct. Another minor gripe is that the digital coax input is labelled CD (the other digital coax input is VCR) and can't be relabelled. It would have been nice to re-assign this input to 'DVD'. Certainly no biggie though, the optical digital inputs are labelled 'SAT' and 'DVD'. The sound from the movie was extremely impressive, dialog was very clear, no lip sync problems, but I thought it would be a bit louder, again this may be due to my centre channel placement. The placement and accuracy of sound effects was incredible, this is what struck me the most. The highway chase scene was extremely enjoyable, I didn't think I could sit through that long of an action scene without getting a bit 'exhausted' but I did, ...btw, the volume was up to +15db at this point.

So far I'm very pleased. The wife was initially skeptical and a bit grumpy since I had agreed to finish the basement before buying a new receiver, but after the highway scene of the Matrix (she didn't really like the movie either) I did get an 'it sounds better' admission out of her and the $650 price was a lot better than the $1000 that I had been preparing her for. I may have to rent and sit through ...ahem... Chicago to win her over completely and of course say nothing of a little unrestrained spending spree of her own...oh well, small price to pay :).

Oh, I did listen to a recorded TV program via the VCR in DPLII Movie mode. Even this was somewhat impressive in that the inflections in the British/Scottish/Welsh accents seemed far more apparent and clearer than before.

I'd like to especially thank Hawk for continually mentioning the T742 and it's sound quality...now I get it. Had it not been for your continual praise I may been more eager to dismiss the T742 on the basis of the lack features. All of those features are easily quantifiable and comparable but sound quality is something you just have to go and listen for. Not to say that I wouldn't have been equally as happy with perhaps an H/K AVR325 or AVR525, but I certainly wouldn't have been able to purchase one for anywhere near the price I paid for the T742, even the AVR125 is more expensive locally than what I paid.

My advice is if you're looking for a 5.1 receiver that sounds great in stereo and you have efficient 8ohm speakers...buy one.

Brad, I picked mine up at Sound Advice in Ottawa, excellent helpful non-pushy staff, they've got quite a few left and the T752 is on sale as well for C$999.
 

Johnny
Smitty,

Thank you very much for your extremely detailed review. I have a NAD T762 on order (it arrives tomorrow...I am so excited) and was going to do the same once I received it and had time to set it up. You have reaffirmed my choice. By the way, for any of you out there that may be even in the slightest bit considering an NAD, check out the Saturday Audio Exchange (www.saturdayaudio.com). Hawk steered me to this site and the staff there was unbelevable. I purchased the 762 for $899. It was originally $1300. They are about ready to receive the newer xx3 models and are practically giving these things away. They have the 742, 752, and 762 all on sale. I will share more about my experiences with them when I write my "full review" at a later date, but needless to say, they were very helpful and willing to bend over backwards to help me obtain this receiver. They were actually willing to hold one for me over a busy weekend of selling, even though I did not put down any sort of deposit and had never talked to them in person (I was cooresponding via email). I don't know of many intelligent businessmen that would do that sight unseen. Thanks again Hawk for all of your input into my decision.
 

Oops...

Quote:

...btw, the volume was up to +15db at this point.




That should have been -15db...I don't think my ear drums could handle +15db :).
 

Anthony
Awesome review Smitty. I can't wait to head back to the local NAD dealer this weekend to listen to their NAD & Dynaudio combo. :)

Johnny you're right. I emailed Sat Audio & asked for 6 quotes (752/762 w/ 512/532/562) & shipping cost to Canada. They responded in no time & answered all my questions.

The only drawback is NAD discourages dealers from selling out of their region, and if I buy from a USA dealer, they will not honor any warrant in Canada. :(
 

John A.
Yes, Smitty, thanks!
Indulge you wife. "Chicago" is a great movie and will test your sound much better that the Matrix Recycled (at least on the discs we hired).
What's the best dvd to test out my new system? is an interesting thread that has some good recommendations; please consider posting your own. With your new system, you can evaluate DVD sound as well as anyone!
 

Hawk
Smitty:

Great review. It is hard to get people to look at that receiver since it is so plain looking and does not have 40 some odd "listening modes" (a la Yamaha). Yet, the sound is incredible, clean and precise, as you so richly described.

However, the best part is the grudging admission by the wife. Now, that is incredible! I don't think my wife would ever admit it even if she thought it!
 

John A.
Hawk,

Yes, grudging admission is high praise from that source. But eventually she may hear a lesser, flashier system somewhere, and realise what a good deal SHE got.... !

Smitty,

Tell her you bought "Chicago" to test the DTS sound....
 

GT
Great review Smitty. Sounds like you made a very good decision. It took a long time but you picked the best receiver for your needs. My only complaint about the 742 would be the lack of assignable digital inputs. Does it have an optical out? I have a mini disc deck with a optical input. For my needs the 752 would have to be the way to go.

Question about your speakers, you said your center channel has a downward firing subwoofer? So does it block the sub when sitting on a shelf? I guess I've never heard of a center speaker with a built in sub. I'm guessing there are little feet for the center speaker to give it some room?

Chicago is actually pretty good, you may actually enjoy it too. Plus it does give your system a better workout than Matrix.
 

Thanks for your comments everyone. I'm really looking forward to watching Chicago on the weekend now. Say, does anyone have an opinion on whethere a receiver should have some sort of break-in period?

GT,

The T742's inputs aren't re-assignable but there are 2 digital coax inputs and 2 digital optical inputs. There are no digital outputs ( the 743 will add these ). I was going to hold out for the 743 since it adds a few features that I might have a use for someday [basically all the switching features of the 752 + adjustable sub xover + 6.1 decoding], but the price was just too tempting. To be honest I think NAD went a little overboard with their 'keep it simple' philosophy on the 742, but I certainly can't complain about the sound.

My centre channel has about a 2" gap at the bottom of the speaker enclosure below the sub. There aren't feet but a sort of 'shelf' at the bottom of the speaker to give it some room. AR's parent company got purchased earlier this year and their website has been down for a while but you might be able to see what I mean from this link:
AR2C Review
It weighs about 35 lbs...the T742 really likes this speaker :).
 

everyone is talking obout the 742 but what's the differnt between the 742 and the 741? someone offer me q 741 and i can't found any review of it.
please help
 

John A.
Marcel,

You can product data sheets and even full user manuals from http://www.nad.co.uk/support/

Scanning those, it looks like they are the same in all important respects (power; DACs; everything really) except the T741 does not have Prologic II and probably a friendlier remote control. Also the 741 has three digital audio inputs instead of four. It seem a bit lighter, too, but that is from the sheet "provisional spec". Progic II was a probably a selling point a couple of years ago but I would not rate it as a significant factor now: they both have the same true 5.1 mutichannel (DTS and Dolby Digital) and that is more important.

I am sure they will sound exactly the same, and that is the main reason to get one of those. Also, my opinion: Prologic II is no big deal, EARS for recreating surround from stereo is better anyway, and they both have that.
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