--D--

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
3.57 of 5, 7.00 votes

Price Paid:  $400.00 from Local AV Store

Summary:
I've been in this hobby for several years now and this is one of the components that hasn't left my shelf over those years. Though I have only used it in my secondary (music only system), it has been VERY reliable. Before I bought this player, I returned 2 Sony XA1-ES CD players (Stereophile recommended component). The sound was so-so from them. The only thing I remember it having going for them was a detailed and fairly delicate top end. Midrange seemed accurate, but with no life. Bass was non-existant. CDs kept getting stuck between the disc drawer and the inside roof of the unit (on both of them). I asked the sales people if they had a NAD 515 (also Stereophile recommended component), but they were out and weren't getting anymore because newer models were on the way. They then pointed me to the 514. They said it had similar electronics to the 515, but was actually even more tuned toward the audiophile. Being that it is a single disc unit, it is probably more stable, than the multi-disc 515. While I'm not sure that the DAC in the 514 is better than the highly regarded Bit-Stream DAC in the 515, the 514 has a true 75 ohm coaxial digital output, further suggesting it be used as a transport feeding to an outboard DAC. While I highly enjoyed the sound of the unit by itself for a long time (leaps and bounds better than the SONY units), I later attached it to an MSB Link DAC 1, and that's when things really came together. Every aspect of the sound had improved. Of course, this is attributed much to the DAC, but a good transport is necessary to feed the signal in the first place and the NAD did a GREAT job. I read some old Sound Stage reviews recently and one of the reviewers was using a 514 as his CD transport (probably his budget reference system). Kind of solidifies my perceptions of it being a good transport as well. It's now almost 2005 and my CD player still works like the day I brought it home. Though I baby all my equipment, I've moved 4 times with it and sold many of it's accompanying components along with those moves. If this isn't a testament to how good this product is, then I don't know what is.

Strengths:
Good transport for the money. Can keep up to date as far as DACs go with it's 75ohm coaxial digital output. Has been VERY reliable. As a CD player alone, it still has very good, clean, dynamic sound with a respectable midrange and decent bass.

Weaknesses:
Top end can have that digital glare nobody likes which is noticeable mostly with poorly recorded rock / pop music. Well recorded music sounds pretty darn good, however. Track access is rather slow as is the disc drawer, and scanning function, but hey, what do you expect from a player which I believe is a 1997-1998 model. I always felt the remote was a little flimsy, but it still does the job. While I like the look of NAD components especially when I owned my NAD integrateds, I don't like that you pretty much HAVE TO buy NAD components to make your system LOOK like a system. I'm sure NAD fans can concur with me on that!

Similar Products Used:
Sony XA1-ES Older Sony 5 disc Carousel (don't know model). Bought it before I knew what I was getting into. 2nd generation Sony DVD player. Pioneer DVD player. As you can see I haven't ventured into getting another CD player since I bought this.

Price Paid:  $300.00

Summary:
I have been very disappointed in this CD player. Two trips to the repair shop (both under warranty) and I am told nearly the entire "guts" of the unit have been replaced. My next CD player will NOT be NAD!

Weaknesses:
Very, VERY poor repair history. No shuffle-play mode, no programable mode.

Price Paid:  $400.00 from Great Metropolitan Sound

Summary:
Am I wrong to expect a $500 (Can) single CD player to last more than 3 years???? At these prices I would hope that longevity would be a part of the unit's "features". I have heard that the same problem I'm having (dead laser) is also occuring with other owners. I treat my gear with the utmost care, in fact I don't think ever moved the unit since I bought it... so why does it just break for no apparent reason? Really now... I've had mass market low-low end equipment last much longer... and given that it's a problem across many of these units... I find this unacceptable. NAD - Never again.

The rest of my gear:

Sony DISCMAN D-121
Bryston 3BST - now there's build quality!
PSB Stratus Silver
Kimber 8TC
Kimber Hero

Strengths:
Aesthetics

Weaknesses:
Lasted only 3 years

Similar Products Used:
My Sony Discman has been kicked around for 8 years and it still works!

Price Paid:  $450.00 from S.Petersburg

Summary:
I've been using it for more than 5 years, repaired it twice, and now it is developing some problems with it's laser. So, some words before saying farewell to my old friend I used to listen to for so long. Oveall it is a very good machine for the money since it almost stood up for much more expensive gear I used it with, such as Exposure amp and B&W P4 speakers. Try it if you like accoustic, strings, cool jazz and vocals. But be ready to put aside your collection of good old hard rock, as this player is too soft for strong bass lines and does not reproduce drums correctly enough. You simply won't be enthrilled with that kind of music. This NAD won't deliver the slam and drive even when helped by such a hard-driving amp as Exposure XX. NAD 514 is a good introduction into real Hi Fi (or even Hi End, if you please) but it gives you only a glimpse of it, since it honestly tries to bite more than it is capable of. But for that money, who dares to criticise? Use it with hard hitting amp and lean sounding speakers, put some Nina Simone and enjoy.

Strengths:
wide freq. range for the price, musical

Weaknesses:
too soft and unclear on complicated music

Price Paid:  $400.00 from Ottawa-Canada

Summary:
You may find my previous review of this product in August 1998. You will notice that I sounded very enthusiastic and happy. But let me update you now. This CD-player (NAD 514) worked fine till July 2001 when the playback was interrupted every few minutes to resume as if nothing had happened. The problem was not my CDs. Then last month, the cdplayer played only a few minutes of a CD then stopped. It was not skidding. Just totally dead.

I took it to a dealer in my town. He said it was the laser and it may cost me over $200 US (parts and labour) and I better buy a new one. I was saddened. I told the guy that I have bought this cdplayer to avoid a situation like this. He said a few years ago people with NAD would take at least 5 to 8 years after purchase to come see him. Now he is seeing a lot of customers who want to fix NAD after two years. What do you make of this? I still have the NAD double tapedeck and the receiver and they are still excellent. I like my cdplayer and I am going to fix it but I don't know if others had similar experiences.

Strengths:
It was the best product I ever had till...

Weaknesses:
It borke on me two months ago..