NAD C545BEE - Anyone happy?

[matthewpiano]

I want to buy the NAD C545BEE. My old C521BEE is still the best CD player I've ever heard but its had so much use in various different system in both lounge and study that its getting flaky now. I'm listening to it now and it sounds wonderful.

My ONLY reservation about the C545BEE is some of the comments I've read about reliability. I'm interested in comments from any owners out there, positive or negative, to help me decide how much of a risk I'd be taking. I should add that I have absolutely no doubts about its audio quality.

Answers on the back of a postcard.

 

[Anonymous]

only cost 300 odd quid new ... you will get a guarantee ... in the unlikelyhood of it breaking after 2 years, you will have had good use so if you are very happy with the sound, I'd go for it

 

[Anonymous]

It was the worst electronics purchase I've ever made. Developed a fault in 3 months time had to send it back twice to armour home. Still not fixed. And they expect me to send it a 3rd. Hopefully my dealer will swap it as promised for another make/model, but as others have suggested you really have to be prepared for a long run if it develops a fault.

I also noticed at least 2 - 3 more people on these forums having the same problems with me and also the same after sales crappy service.

Sound is nice but I'm sure other brands could have sound & reliability.

 

[Anonymous]

for less than an extra £150 you can get get a Rega ... if your cdp is working fine and you are happy, don't rush and save up a bit longer

 

[izpuuteejs]

Certainly yes.

I am using it for 6 months, everything is fine - good product for money!

 

[matthewpiano]

Thing is, there are plenty of owner reviews stating reliability issues with the Rega as well and personally I think the NAD is every bit as good, sound wise.

 

[izpuuteejs]

I think we should worry if there would be hundred of bad reviews.

I've heard Roksan also has a part of faulty models. Nobody is perfect

 

[matthewpiano]

izpuuteejs:
I think we should worry if there would be hundred of bad reviews.

I've heard Roksan also has a part of faulty models. Nobody is perfect

Very sound point. Thank you.

 

[Anonymous]

if you are buying new, buy the one that sounds the best to you ... chances are slim that it will give probs in the near future, and if so, you will be covered by a guarantee

 

[ear]

matthewpiano you are always changing...not happy now with the Pioneer 9800? 650A better?

 

[Anonymous]

"there are plenty of owner reviews stating reliability issues"

A lot of the time only the people with problems tend to write the reviews or post on the forums.

I've had mine for a while now and think it's great. No reliability issues to speak of.

Sound is excellent and I happen to like the understated style of it.

Try to make sure it has the latest firmware though. This will get around the minor issue with the player adding a gap between the last two tracks.

 

[the record spot]

Guess you have to add up a few things here - are the numbers of people on here representative of the number sold? Do three or four on this forum carry any weight as a result? My take, no. That said, I'd be as concerned over this as I would the Cyrus SE loading mechanism. SOunds like Cyrus are a little more on the ball than Armour have been.

Have you considered, for the same money, Onkyo's new £350 player? WHFS&V were lukewarm over it, but Patrick Cleasby in HFW was far more positive. Sounds like it might be worth a listen if you're in that £350 range. Might be a player that splits opinions or just hit Patrick's sweet spot.

 

[John Duncan]

matthewpiano:izpuuteejs:
I think we should worry if there would be hundred of bad reviews.

I've heard Roksan also has a part of faulty models. Nobody is perfect

Very sound point. Thank you.

Hey, my Neutron Vs broke, and he-who-shall-not-be-named helped me fix them. The internet is strewn with tales of things that don't work, but nobody tends to start threads saying "My NAD Isn't Broken!".

 

[the record spot]

Ummmm.....

 

[matthewpiano]

ear:matthewpiano you are always changing...not happy now with the Pioneer 9800? 650A better?

Erm.... I never had a Pioneer SA9800. That is dim_span and as far as I know he is very happy with it.

I chose the 650A after extensive auditioning of NAD C326BEE, Marantz 6003, Rotel RA-06SE, Rega Brio 3, and an Arcam A85. I also listened to a Naim Nait 5i again, and a Roksan K2. To my ears the 650A was the best all-rounder very closely followed by the NAD. The Nait 5i is excellent but it doesn't stand out against the CA and NAD. I wasn't taken with the Roksan.

 

[izpuuteejs]

Nobody starts thread "My NAD/Roksan/Krell/Classe doesn't work

 

[the record spot]

matthewpiano:ear:matthewpiano you are always changing...not happy now with the Pioneer 9800? 650A better?

I chose the 650A after extensive auditioning of NAD C326BEE, Marantz 6003, Rotel RA-06SE, Rega Brio 3, and an Arcam A85. I also listened to a Naim Nait 5i again, and a Roksan K2. To my ears the 650A was the best all-rounder very closely followed by the NAD. The Nait 5i is excellent but it doesn't stand out against the CA and NAD. I wasn't taken with the Roksan.

Any chance you can give a bit more detail on what the sound was like on each? What the strengths of each were....don't need a massive review, but it would be useful to know a bit more on the tonal qualities of each if possible.

 

[matthewpiano]

Marantz PM6003 - Very natural sounding for simple accoustic music but when things start to get more complex the Marantz loses control and the sound becomes a mess. The bass is on the slow side as well - rhythms don't have the attack and pace that a lot of music demands.

NAD C326BEE - Rhythmic, well balanced sound. Open and detailed and with loads of drive at the bass end but never over-blown and it avoids the muddiness that the C325BEE could occasionally suffer from. A superb amp and will probably end up with one for the study.

Rega Brio 3 - Open, natural and quite 'breezy' sounding, occasionally veering on being overly bright and steely at the eop end when the going gets tough. Would be lovely for simpler music at low levels but not flexible enough for my needs.

Cambridge 650A - Very revealing of the original recording but it somehow lets the music breathe. Slightly warmer than the old 640A but very dynamic. Orchestral music has wonderful attack and the amp keeps superb control in the most complex passages. It never seems to get flustered in any genre of music. Better than the 740A I used to have.

Rotel RA-06SE - Much of the flexibility of the Cambridge but somehow more detached sounding and not as involving. A very competent and well designed amp but it doesn't quite have the same sense of ease and can sound slightly grey with some material.

Arcam A85 - This was a used amp that a friend of a friend demonstrated to me. Very controlled but very 'hi-fi'. Superb with closely miked vocals but not involving enough with the more complex stuff. I can see why people love it, but it wasn't for me.

Naim Nait 5i - A superb amp. Detailed, pacey and enjoyable, and it never veers into brightness. Only problem for me is that I didn't think it was worth paying double the price of the Cambridge for.

Roksan K2 - The hardest to describe. It just didn't do anything for me. It was a bit cloying in the bass and lower mid-range and somehow the overall sound just didn't hang together properly.

 

[Anonymous]

and were all these amps auditioned using the same speakers and same cdp's?

 

[matthewpiano]

dim_span:and were all these amps auditioned using the same speakers and same cdp's?

My Quad 11Ls were the reference speakers but CD players varied (usually the matching player for the amp). I used the Quads because I know them better than any other speaker.

 

[Anonymous]

ok ... was just enquiring, because if the amps were not hooked up to the same speakers etc, your reviews would not be accurate ...

but saying that, my limited experience has shown me that certain amps or cd players or speakers perform better when used with specific seperates and cabling (synergy) ... they may sound bad connected to a specific speaker etc, but sound superb with different separates

thats the hard part about assembling a good hifi system (finding out what works well with what)

 

[matthewpiano]

Absolutely agree dim_span, and then there is the effects of a room as well. It is a minefield.

I've done enough listening and changing now to know that I'm going to struggle to improve on the 650A. I like the NAD amp very much and as I do like to run a second system in the study/spare room I can see myself ending up with one of those as well.

The big change for me is the acceptance that perfection just isn't achievable. There are simply too many variables such as my own mood, recording quality etc. to be able to guarantee the best sound at all times. Accepting that is the key to enjoying music. If I'd done that some time ago I would probably still have my 640A V2 in the lounge and my C325BEE in the study.

 

[ear]

will the 650 drive floorstanders well?

 

[matthewpiano]

ear:will the 650 drive floorstanders well?

I would imagine so but as not all floorstanders present the same load, and as I'm using it with stand-mounts, I couldn't really say in any conclusive way. With 75wpc on tap and a very large toroidal transformer I wouldn't anticipate it struggling to drive anything.

 

[ear]

pionner A6J sound good...seemed close to the 640a.heard the A6J with Quad L11 and celestion F20...must hear the 650.if it rings my bell...i might go for one