Full marks NAD for developing amps that genuinely move with the times. With their digital inputs and app-capable control, but especially with their MDC modules giving the possibility of 4k HDMI inputs and Bluesound streaming modules.
As my main musical source these days is Tidal, one of these amps with the Bluesound MDC module would do everything I want. And with the analogue inputs, I could use the pre-outs from my AV receiver to marry them together for multi-channel purposes.
These amps make Arcam's SR250 seem expensive. The whole point of stereo amps having HDMI inputs is to maximise the performance versus cost, but Arcam's 2-channel amp is actually MORE expensive than its multi-channel sister the AVR550, which itself is firmly in high-end budget territory. So these offerings from NAD are really the first serious attemps at offering 2-channel performance with AVR type features at reasonable prices.
Agree Leeps,
It will allow BluRay Audio to be played through a stereo amp and, with effectively a built in Bluesound Node 2 and BluOS, be one of the first HiFi integrated streaming amps to be MQA ready - should Tidal ever get it's act together.