How to make a 20th Century Nakamichi rig sing...?


Hello, It's my first post, so thanks in advance for any thoughts... I've recently come into a very handsome pair - Nakamichi 630 receiver/preamp and 610 stereo control preamp, both from the late 70's. I'm told they're in great condition. So... now, onto a power amp and speakers... Not very audiophonically cool or quality conscious of me to admit that space is an issue, but it really is for reasons i won't get into. And I might as well add here that while I'm willing to make smart investments, money is a consideration as well.

If the amp is to sit with the Nakamichis (again, it should for space reasons), it needs to be compact. I've been looking at Parasound's Zamp Quattro, which I like because it fits perfectly next to the Naks and has four channels. Would that be a quality match here? ("The rated output of 50W per channel x4 into an 8 ohm load and 90W per channel x2 into a 4 ohm load - 20Hz-20kHz - is quite impressive given the size of the chassis it's shoehorned into")

The room has wood floors and bookshelves, plaster walls, and is about 22 x 15' with 9' ceiling, not huge, not tiny. I'd like to fill it with a warm bright sound with plenty of beautiful bass. I listen to music and watch films at a fairly low to medium volume, but occasionally have friends over to tear up the floorboards, so it would be nice to have the ability to crank it now and again.

I'd like to put four small speakers in the room because I project video on to one wall and listen to music all over the room, so essentially I'm trying to create a four speaker "sound bath" effect that fills the room and also makes sense when you're sitting and watching a movie. Using the corners, I imagine two would sit on top of built in bookshelf at about 8 feet and two would get mounted high on the wall at same height. That seems like logical placement, but I'm no expert. Again major space concerns. Small is key. A friend tells me to consider old school KEF 101/2 and/or 102/2... both have an impedance of 4ohms.

Feeling unsure about what to do here... Could use wise words from people smarter than I in these matters. Many thanks...
gazpachot

Showing 2 responses by mapman

Those Nakamichis are very cool and unique pieces!

I have never heard those but most Nakamichi gear through the 1980's or so at least was very good indeed and worth holding on to if in good working order. One of teh best value lines ever!

FOr the speakers, if wanting to listen from all locations in the room, I can easily recommend a pair of OHM Micro Walsh speakers or something similar. Two alone rather than 4 might do. See my system pics for an example. I have slightly larger OHMs running off a mix of vintage and new gear in my 2 channel A/V system.
The amp to buy will depend on what speakers you decide to go with. I'd decide on speakers first and then look for the best amp to match.

The Parasound is probably a very good choice. Might be just a bit short on power though to really drive some speakers to their maximum potential. That's why you should pick the speakers first so as to be able to find teh right amp that can max them out. Many people buy good speakers then skimp on the amp and end up with a decent sounding system but one that is not reaching its full potential.

Or just go with a similar vintage Nakamichi amp if you can find one in good working order and you will be sitting pretty for not very much these days I would say.

If you need max bang from an amp but small size, consider a newer Class D amp, which is much higher efficiency and smaller than others generally and also sounds great these days. Wyred4sound and Dsonic are two place to start looking for those.

I use Bel CAnto ref1000m Class D amps in my main rig. See my system pics for how small these 500w/ch gems are. These amps are teh bomb IMHO but there are other Class D amps like those I mentioned that are also big hitters and might cost less.