Nad M33 vs Hegel H390... old question with a bit of a twist (ethernet and headphones)

I agree with your assertion that none of these amps really sound like the others.  I think that delta grows, even more, depending on speaker choices and that the amplifier/speaker match is what's really important here.

As far as the videos, the Audio Excellence crew have always been more or less Hegel fanboys to some extent.  I get it, the Hegels are excellent amplifiers and AE sells a ton of them.  I hear them all the time and enjoy them as well. 

I don't think you can draw anything from their discussion about the M10, however.  The M10 has a Hypex nCore amplification stage while the M33's Eigentakt amplification stage is just at a completely different animal.  At some point, I'll borrow my local dealer's H390 to compare with the M33 but based on what I've already heard I would be very surprised if the Hegel throws a larger soundstage than the M33, just to pick one of the points they made about the M10 in the video.

I've already mentioned that the M33 drives my Studio Electric M4s as well as anything I've heard, equal to the giant Bryston that I first heard them with, but it's also light years ahead of the Hegel in both feature set and appearance.  The NAD M33 won Stereophile Product of the Year for 2020 so you might surmise a lot of other people with a lot of experience listening to gear also think that the M33 is pretty special, so I'd be careful with assumptions about how NAD's digital amps sound because this one is quite a bit different. 

no doubt the m33 > m10 due to the new amp module used - as i said in an earlier post here, the wide chasm sq gap relative to hegel has closed some for sure with nad moving to purifi and better voicing

ae in toronto like hegel for a reason, leave aside they sell it, they sell naim and nad too (and parasound and ps audio) ... they have plenty of time to listen and assess and on excellent ancillary gear, with proper set up in proper rooms ... but of course, everyone’s taste is different so this is not at all knocking the m33 -- it is a very good piece for sure, esp. when factoring in all the features like dirac etc etc... does stuff that hegels just do not do

now, as for stereophile product of year... ok... i am sure that accolade makes it sound even better to many, good investment by nad in ad dollars without a doubt 🤫

many paths to musical happiness... hegel > nad on sound quality, but all gear is on a spectrum - amps out there better than hegel too...

@badgerdms and @jjss49 funny you should mention AE because I do watch their videos and have no doubt been influenced. When I rang my dealer in Vancouver yesterday to tell him that I want to listen to the M33, he was hesitant and told me that I would be happier with either the H190 or H390. But I am certain that I want to listen to the M33 as well. Partly based on the excellent review of Hans Beekhuyzen.
I have actually not heard my new speakers and neither has the dealer as the KLH model 5 (new not vintage) literally just shipped. But I am confident that they are fairly neutral and do not have a party sound anyway. What I wanted to get away from - in my price range - was the sound of JBL 100s. 
I honestly am not attracted by the Dirac feature as it is just an extra piece of fiddly electronics. I can move the speakers around the room and listen...

A former AE guy's video on the M33 seems pretty reasonable.  He compares it with both the Hegel H390 and the Naim Uniti Nova, which I think are the right comparisons for this.  While I generally agree that the Hegel is usually better than NAD on sound quality, I think that when it comes to the M33 that comes down to personal preference and I don't think there is a "better".  The important thing is how it does with your speakers (and in my case, it lights up the M4s).  As a reference for you, my main rig is a pair of Volti Audio Rivals with a Linear Tube Audio Z40i, so one might think that the M33 is pretty far from that sonic signature (which it is).

I actually listened to a pair of the KLH Model 5s last weekend when I was picking up my M4s.  Only spent about 30 minutes with them but they seem like they do everything really well at that price point--I think you will really enjoy them.  My dealer was running the Gold Note IS-1000 with them, which was excellent.  That particular dealer doesn't carry Hegel, NAD or Naim so can't add anything there.  Just to throw out another thought, based on two different YouTube Model 5 reviews, they both seemed to end up on the Yamaha A-S1200 as their favorite integrated with those speakers.  Never heard it and I have no idea, but you can Google Zero Fidelity and Andrew Robinson if you are so inclined. 

My entire point with posting was a) that the M33 is really good so don't dismiss it and b) if it's at all possible to hear any of these with your speakers before taking the plunge, make every effort to do that.  Ultimately the only person who needs to like the combo is you :-).

BTW, very jealous if you are living in or near Vancouver, it's my favorite North American city.  It just wows me every time I'm there.  Here's the link to Jay's video comparing all three that I mentioned above.  Good luck!  Come back and let us know what you decided and how you like it when it's all set up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_A3g2ZpgiXA

a very big part of this hobby/pursuit is to try things that are of interest, that to a user promises a level of performance that is enticing

you can post here and other forums, read and research, watch youtube videos, till the cows come home -- there are characters on this board, and others, that seem to do just this, and only this - maybe they listen to an ipod or a boombox, but they post here, hundreds, thousands of posts to their name... ad nauseum... it is absurd

you won’t know how good something is, how good it is for you, if A is better than B, to your ears, till you try it in a well sorted system you know very well, in a well sorted room you know very well -- if you really want to know, you have to own it, hear it at length -- spend the money and make the effort and be honest about what you hear and what you like (and don’t)