Help! Cure for transformer hum?


I've had a 1987 vintage NAD 7600 Monitor Series receiver that I've loved for 30+ years. It finally began to show various signs of age and, at just that moment, another that had been stored for most of its life, in the original packaging no less, came available on eBay. It wasn't cheap, but it seemed to be in "like new" condition, so I bought it. 

Well, it's pretty all right, "like new" in appearance, all the circuits work as they should, even the pots are quiet--but the transformer makes a 60 Hz mechanical hum. As I understand it, transformers contain plates that are stabilized with glue which becomes brittle over time and can crack or loosen. In any case, my old, semi-functional but otherwise identical unit, didn't hum. So, after consulting various knowledgable friends, I contacted an authorized NAD service dealer about 200 miles away, took both units to him, and he swapped out the "old" transformer for the "new" one. 

Maybe it was the 400 mile round trip in the car that caused some kind of break in the old, brittle glue bonds of the previously silent transformer, but installed in the "new" 7600, the unit still hums; not as loud as before, but we audiophiles are perfectionists, and it bugs me. It is, fortunately, a mechanical hum, as I mentioned, so I don't hear it in the speakers--although it does get picked up by the tuner.

Is there anything I can do to solve this problem? The transformer is securely mounted to the chassis, and I've tried putting additional damping materials under the feet of the unit. No improvement. I've tried different wall plugs, both with and without a power conditioner. No improvement. 

Of course, it seems likely that the only solution is to replace the transformer with one that doesn't hum. But where would I be able to find that? And is it even worth doing, given what I was told about the time-degraded glue that keeps new transformers quiet?

The repair guy told me (and showed me) higher-cost transformers that are entirely encased in metal; those will never develop a hum, he says. Is it possible to encase one of these original transformers in some way in order to silence it? If so, who can do that?

Sorry for this probably futile plea. Obviously, one solution is to eat the $1,000 I've already spent on the "new" unit and just buy something else that's really new. But I don't want more than two-channel stereo, I don't stream, there are various smart features of the NAD that I would not want to sacrifice--and, best of all, it sounds great in every way except for this damn hum! I've had the option to replace it with a couple of different, and presumably better, devices, most recently a Primare A30.1 integrated amp, which a friend owns and is willing to sell. I had the Primare in my listening room for a month, and liked the sound of the NAD better. Plus, of course, it has a great phono circuit, a tuner, very useful semi-parametric tone controls, a powered balance control, and several other wonderful features. 

Thanks for any advice you can give me.
128x128snilf
If you don’t mind upsetting your good lady (assumption mad here) you can buy the 555 varnish and do it yourself. The oven only needs to be 80 to 90 degrees to thin the varnish when dipped to allow it to penetrate. Then leave to drip and bake at 80 to 90 degrees for an hour or so. Do it on a fine day as you will need the windows and doors open 555 is smelly stuff :^)
Great question, well answered above.

Hate chasing those ghosts in the machine...

I had a similar problem with my transformers humming. I replaced the capacitors in the power supply and went to home depot, hot some appropriately sized rubber washers and mounted them between the transformer and chassis. Hum gone.

Curious to see if it goes away when plugged into the stove outlet. I use that one for testing stuff myself. 
Items that can cause DC on the mains are, Dimmers, Hair Dryers, portable electric heaters, LED lights, CFL lights, electronic ballasts, and cheaply made switch mode power supplies.

Here is a quote from Nelson Pass:

Nelson Pass

If you are experiencing mechanical hum from your
transformer, it is often caused by the presence of
DC on the line. Usually this comes from some appliance
using current asymmetrically, such as a lamp dimmer.

The hum comes usually from toroidal transformers, which
saturate easily with DC, and when they recover, they
draw an extra pulse of current, causing the noise.

You can put a pair of back-to-back electrolytics in series
with the AC power line to block this, and it works fine.
Makes sure the current rating of the electrolytics is
high enough, and the they are joined at a like polarity,
such as + to +.
https://www.diyaudio.com/forums/solid-state/2080-dc-filter.html#post15973



Don't know if anyone is still looking at this thread, but just in case:

I tried the kitchen wall outlets; no change in the hum. What does this mean? Does it mean that the problem is not "DC offset"? That I would not therefore benefit from a DC Blocker? (I notice that the "Humdinger" site says that device will NOT cure a hum caused by a faulty transformer, although it might reduce it.) Remember that the "old" unit never hummed in 30+ years of operation, and none of my other audio devices hum even now. So the problem does seem to be in the transformer, and not in the wall power. Still, I'd love to believe a DC blocker would help; that would be the easiest, and cheapest, solution.

chris_w_uk: thanks for your suggestion! I think, finally, it's my best bet here: a DIY "re-potting" with 555 varnish and an oven. But the link you provide is not, as far as I can tell, to a business that could do this for me. For one thing, it's in Mumbai! No way I'm sending this very heavy, and apparently vulnerable transformer to India. 

OP,  when troubleshooting my subwoofer amp, I connected it to a dedicated microwave receptacle in the kitchen and got the same hum. I still purchased the Emotiva cmx-2 like I mentioned above and the hum went away.
I’m not sure if components in the house have to be on and running fir the interference because it would happen to me during the quietest time of the mornings, when no lights were on, certainly no blow driers etc...
Anyway, I couldn’t pinpoint the cause but the cmx-2 worked for me.
Good luck.