NAD 317 vs. C 326BEE

Protean, welcome to the forum.
I'm assuming that you own a pair of the Alpha LR1's with recommended input power of 15-80 Watts? Note the fine print:(RMS, Clipping <10% Time). So those are values for (root mean square)average input power.

Either the NAD 317 or the NAD 326BEE will work fine with your speakers. You never want to operate an amp at full volume anyway. Actually, one of the worst things you can do for speakers is to underpower them. Additionally, both of these NADs have a "soft clipping" feature that rolls off peak volumes if clipping is detected.

I owned a NAD 317 many years ago, and it was ok, but I recommend you spring for the 326BEE if possible. There are many refinements sonically and otherwise in this more current version.

Good luck with your new system.

Many thanks Sandstone. You diagnosed this exactly. Your comments reflect what I was reading about the 317, so I think the new 326BEE is going to be the way forward.

Cheers!

For half of what AA is selling the 326BEE I picked up a used Cambridge Azure 540 v2 (60wpc). I have had it for 5 years without issue and it still sounds great. The nad soft clipping feature reminded me of something I really like about the Cambridge. If you push the volume up into clipping, it automatically reduces it to a level just below. Always thought that was a clever feature.

C 326BEE......