Class D is just Dandy!

NAD D 3020 sound quality

This is a good performer, a huge step up fro my $20 Lepai 10W/ch digital amplifier. It is extremely quiet and smooth, without grain or harshness but also without warmth.

The bass boost is a huge help as my desktop speakers are pretty lean sounding. My previous experience with NAD DACs was pretty negative, but this is pretty easy to listen to. Tons of air and detail.

But zero warmth. In this sense it kind of goes towards the Emotiva/Asian processor sound qualities. Kind-of, but not nearly as bad as the worst of them. There's just no sweetness or warmth at all in the sound quality. "Stark" may be a good way to describe it, but without the thin/limited range effects I get from the worst of the Asian designs.

Reminds me a lot of the 1990's digital sound, if you took that and cleaned it up a lot.

So, killer, top of the pack? No. Quite enjoyable, space saving and feature packed is how I would put it.

Best,


Erik

As I mentioned before I have a Primare I32 and a Topping TP30 mk2 that I connect to the tape out to drive a Stax headphone system. I have a pair of old BA T-830s connected to the Stax adaptor for the hell of it. Sometimes, when I want the best sound from the Stax, I connect them directly to the Primare, which I did tonight.
After a while I reconnected my 'big' speakers, Canton Ergos, to the Primare and popped I Robot SACD into the BDP-95. It sounded really good. I got to a loud passage and turned the volume down with the remote. Still too loud, so I turned it down some more. And more, and..
I finally put my glasses on and saw that the Primare was down to 0 volume and I'd left the TP30 on. I had been listening to the BA T-830s being driven by a 10 Watt (generous) class T amp the size of a sandwich in a 38'x28' room with the volume less than half way up and it was still too loud! 

mains167 posts04-15-2017 4:52amNord One SE  uses the same components as the Nord One UP,  Hypex NCore NC500, twin SMPS1200A700 PSU’s in our beautiful sleek Japanese Mono Block or Stereo Chassis.  SE comes with Nord Class A Discrete Input Buffer board with choice of discrete Op Amps, Sparkos SS3602 or Sonic Imagery 994 +£30 and Sparkos discrete Voltage Regulators. Choice of Dual Mono Stereo or Mono Block chassis 
these are what i use in the UK driving my soundlabs they sound amazing prices start around  600gbp up to 1700gbp for the top reference monos which are what i use
i have heard nothing like them , very detailed , dynamic , powerful but so musical and natural sounding , i have tried half a dozen class D before these , no amp i have heard betters the nord
they ship all over the world

Do you compare to Bel Canto Ref600 also ???
Bye

Does anybody compare NORD ONE NC500UP to Bel Canto Ref600 ???

Picked up a Calyx class d integrated over the weekend. Have to say I'm pretty impressed. Like it way better than the Rogue Sphinx I had for a short while. Lots of power, very smooth, good body to strings and voices, quiet as a mouse.