Recommendation for inexpensive integrated

xandr,
I owned the Nad C370 amp and I have recently upgraded to the Manly Stingray. I am now rolling NOS tubes as Rarl mentioned (good post Rarl).
The Nad has power but lacks the sophistication that drives most audiophiles to keep up the search. Also it struck me as a rather dry sounding amp. Ultimately, you just have to jump in and try tube vs SS to see for yourself. Talk will only take you so far (but informative).
I am much happier with the Stingray here. As an audiophile, I would encourage you to try tubes at some level if for nothing else the experience and education. Then you will have a truly informed decision (priceless).

I second the naim take here

Howdy. I just came from Spearitsound in Boston to demo an integrated for my 11 year old son for the holidays. I listened to the NAD320BEE, Rotel 02 and Cambridge Audio 540. To my ears the Cambridge was the best of the 3. The Rotel was the clear looser in this group while the NAD came in second. The CA amp was pretty good, smoother, more detailed and delicate, a little airy too. Not bad for around $300 bucks. I paired it w/ the 540 CDP, T500 tuner (older model) and B&W 303's. A nice little holiday gift to start off a young audiophile who's on his way up!

Hammer ...

Not surprised and hope your son enjoys the set-up ... it's a sweet one. Cambridge Audio (and Rotel for that matter) pair together very nicely with B&W and the pairing comes up frequently enough in the British hifi magazines. NAD tends to pair very well with PSB and NHT (amongst others ... obviously).

Regards, Rich

I would suggest the Audio Refinement Complete. I may be a bit over the $500 budget however. You should be able to pick one up used for about $550.

Paul