I bought this NAD 3020A from a member on the AV Forums South Africa for R300.00 He was selling it as spare parts, other members described it as scrap😀
It has no top or bottom cover plates and some knobs are missing.
After a good clean up, I noticed that one of the OT's had been de-soldered and from there I saw that there had been quite a bit of work done on this amp.
Motivated by poundy's post https://www.diyaudio.com/community/...t-ever-modified-and-complete-nad-3020.411511/
I was going to try and get this piece of scrap in a working condition.
It has no top or bottom cover plates and some knobs are missing.
After a good clean up, I noticed that one of the OT's had been de-soldered and from there I saw that there had been quite a bit of work done on this amp.
Motivated by poundy's post https://www.diyaudio.com/community/...t-ever-modified-and-complete-nad-3020.411511/
I was going to try and get this piece of scrap in a working condition.
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I realised that it will not be worth the time and expense to fix this amplifier, so I decided on another use for it.
I tested the pre-amp side and everything was working 100% except for the balance pot. My plan is to strip out the OT's and heat sink to make space for my Linn LP12 Valhalla power supply.
All I need from this "scrap" now is the phono stage and pre-amp.
I tested the pre-amp side and everything was working 100% except for the balance pot. My plan is to strip out the OT's and heat sink to make space for my Linn LP12 Valhalla power supply.
All I need from this "scrap" now is the phono stage and pre-amp.
Attachments
I don't need any inputs other than the phono input. No need for the signal to go through all the switches before getting to the pre-amp, so I made a direct connection.
The front panel was not in a good state, sanded it flat ready for a new face.
I also fitted a power socket and done some power wiring alterations.
The front panel was not in a good state, sanded it flat ready for a new face.
I also fitted a power socket and done some power wiring alterations.
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I wired the power, switch and LED leads to a 6 pin connector mounted to the back panel of the NAD.
The front panel had to have a change and needed to include Linn, as this will no longer be a NAD only unit. I had a few ideas and asked friends and relatives for their input. I finally decided on my own design 😉
As for the TT, I made a board to accommodate the input from the power supply, basically a copy of the Mose Hercules kit.
The front panel had to have a change and needed to include Linn, as this will no longer be a NAD only unit. I had a few ideas and asked friends and relatives for their input. I finally decided on my own design 😉
As for the TT, I made a board to accommodate the input from the power supply, basically a copy of the Mose Hercules kit.
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I had a NAD tuner from the same series as the 3020, so I used the top cover and base for my new NAD/Linn power supply/pre-amp.
Added some vents top and bottom and all in all, worked out quite nicely.
Finally put everything together, and now I have a fully functional separate LP12 power supply with a NAD phono stage/pre-amp all in one unit.
Sounds fantastic as well, which was the main reason for this project in the first place.
Oh, not finally! I have ordered capacitors from the UK to replace all the caps in the phono stage and pre-amp section. They arrive next weekend (8th June)
After recap, then I can say, Finally!!
Added some vents top and bottom and all in all, worked out quite nicely.
Finally put everything together, and now I have a fully functional separate LP12 power supply with a NAD phono stage/pre-amp all in one unit.
Sounds fantastic as well, which was the main reason for this project in the first place.
Oh, not finally! I have ordered capacitors from the UK to replace all the caps in the phono stage and pre-amp section. They arrive next weekend (8th June)
After recap, then I can say, Finally!!
Attachments
If you recall I did ask you about this amp, you said that you did not have of the MJ2955's https://www.diyaudio.com/community/goto/post?id=7677211, and I could not find any matched pairs. Apparently it's impossible?
Anyway, too much trouble to get it back to original, so now I have a "not original" but works for me amp.
I do have a 3020 series20 amp that I bought new in 1982, recently recapped and 100% functional, so no big deal.
