NEC AVD-700E (1988)
Little is documented about the NEC AVD-700E beyond its March 1988 Equipment Profile in Audio. By that account it was a surround-sound processor for A/V systems. The box sat between your sources and amplifier and generated delayed signals for the surround (Out 2) channel while the main signal (Out 1) passed through. The crossfeed level between channels could be varied and its polarity switched. Volume and other settings were remembered for each mode.
Audio's reviewer was impressed. He called the unit's flexibility, sound quality, and well-thought-out switching capability a very appealing combination (Audio, March 1988, p.90). He praised the interlocking logic among modes, which made it impossible to leave echo or mix accidentally engaged (p.80). He also checked the front-panel delay readouts against a timer and found every one within 0.1 mS of the displayed time (Audio, March 1988, p.86). For music he listened only to CDs. Even an old monaural Lassie movie sounded better to him with the AVD-700E in the path than without.
The published specs are below.
- Digital delay section with 44.1 kHz sampling frequency
- Dynamic range: 90 dB
- THD at 1 kHz: 0.02%
- Frequency response: 10 Hz–20 kHz, +0.5/−1 dB
- Video inputs/outputs: 1 V peak-to-peak, 75 ohms
In bypass mode, Audio's lab measured the analog section down 0.2 dB at both 20 Hz and 20 kHz, with -3 dB points at 3.3 Hz and 89 kHz.
Beyond that profile, the record thins out. No original price, production years, or NEC promotional material for the AVD-700E have surfaced in the archive. Nearly everything known about this model comes from that single Audio review.
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