Integrated Amp recommendation for $300 that will balance well with Vandersteen and NAD

It's your  $300 ceiling that is an arbitrary but severe limiting factor  in your quest and anybody offering up meaningful suggestions. At $300, the differences and improvements between choices are largely absent in a general "pick 'em" arena of contenders and pretenders.

I had the very same NAD C370 and C542 kit in a prior "B" system (With Totem ARROS and Chord cables) so I know the NAD component strengths and warts very well. IMO your C370 was among the better choices in your current price strata and will best most receivers hands down....full stop.

When it comes to that ethereal system synergy that you are currently lacking, the main non-fixable "wart" against them is their signature NAD sound (you already saw it .....amp AND cd ....) that does not marry well with a not-insignificant number of electronics, speakers, AND cable brands .

The second "wart" against the C370 that IS largely fixable was two mods:
(1) changing the stock uber- crap soldered-in "zip" power cord and
(2) changing the really crummy stock as-cheap-as-you-can-go preamp jumpers.


I had the stock power zip chord professionally dremmelled out in favour of a quality female IEC and external power chord . Big difference. 

Also I replaced those ultra-POS cheap metal jumpers with short run RCA terminated interconnects. Again, a step up.

These two mods together helped tame that "dark" overtone and sharpened the overall performance. ....the improvements  were not subtle.

IMO..... if you accept a higher price ceiling to  say, to a $500-$1000 range for an integrated amp (fuhgeddaboud any receiver with their crummy power supplies and dodgy stats that are already well publicized ) then the available integrated amp suggestion list becomes exponentially meaningful.

The degree of improvement in audio performance in this step-up price point strata that you are craving is not insignificant. These units are all built to a pricepoint and you only get what you pay for.

Postscript on the C370 price point as a comparison

let's not forget that this integrated amp new was $1000+ before taxes and inflation 10-odd years ago ...... The $300 suggested budget ceiling by the OP is at the extreme low end of this unit now in used condition before mods, and expecting "better" at $ 300 is a tall order IMO

Yes, $300 is tough, personally, id recommend to try to save to more like $500 and look at the likes of an Audio Refinement or a Myriad,  both can be had at that price and both are clearly Audiophile material... If not,  Teac makes a sumpin sumpin 301 that's decent... that will run $300 to $400.  If you don't care about a remote, there are several Chinese integrates that are tubes or hybrids that are pretty good too.
I hope this helps,
Tim

The NAD C317 is the best integrated that NAD has ever made up until that point. You should be able to pick one up for a few hundred bucks. My son uses mine (thankfully) so i know it's in good hands. A true classic.

I picked up a Marantz PM8004 for $425 and could not be happier with its detail, extension and dynamic range.

I agree you should stretch your budget a bit.

also try the older Onkyo A-9555,  still a great value

Perhaps used Rotel.

Rotel RSX 1055. 75 Watts per channel 5.1 receiver. $150.00 
You can locate it at Audible Elegance in Cincinnati. 513-793-3737
They currently have it on their consignment on their web page. Or you can go through Ebay. 

www.audibleelegance.com
I am not affiliated with them. I have used them for years.. Might not be open on Labor Day.

N

The weak point was the C370 in my opinion.  I owned the C372 and C326BEE and compared them extensively.  The C372 was indeed somewhat dark and laid back compared to the 326.  

NAD definitely made some changes with the BEE series stuff.  I'm assuming that the C370 was pretty close to the C372.  The Vandersteens are warm already, so the OP needs a neutral or even something on the brighter side, depending on taste.

For the budget, I'd suggest the C356BEE.

I was at audio connections in Verona New Jersey and John used a mad 326bee which sound great with ce sig 2. It was a beautiful combo but it wouldn't play rock well . For acoustic guitar femal vocals and jazz it was wonderful. 
brian

Hi Folks, 

Thanks for all the comments and suggestions. I decided to give the Acurus DIA100 a try. Glad I did... great sounding piece, and noticed an immediate difference compared to the C370. Both units are great... the choice just depends on the characteristics of the rest of the gear you're connecting it to. The DIA100 really opened up the vandies mids... and the bass definition and detail is quite remarkable. The rhythm, dynamics and "punch" of the NAD C542 cd player mates very well with the DIA too. But more importantly, the DIA100's brightness balances out the NAD's slight lack of high end crispness and/or airyness--at least in what I'm hearing. The Vandies might have been some of the culprit too--especially when using the C370. All in all, the DIA is a MUCH better match to this system now--especially for my budget! :-)    

Wow, those were not cheap new, and certainly a step up from the Nad C370 generation.  Congrats on a successful addition!

That hadn't crossed my mind... nice buy.  Buying used, you can only find so much,  that's a nice little  amp. Congrats

Very nice amp with the Acurus.  If like all the Acurus I have owned, it should provide plenty of punch, great detail, be as neutral as can be, and run cool.

Bill