NAD vs. Cambridge Audio

[admin_exported]

I am a newbie and trying to buy an entry-level CD player. I listen to pop, rocks and extremely interested in vocal. I hate "muddy" sound and prefer a more dynamic details.

Here is what I have -

NAD C355BEE Stereo Integrated Amplifier (new)
Paradigm Studio 20v 4 bookshelf speakers (used)

I have auditioned for a few CD players, and cannot make up my mind. Grateful if you can give me some comments, either user expeirence or impression with the brand/made

1. NAD C 545BEE
2. NAD C 565BEE
3. Cambridge Audio 640 C V2
4. Cambridge Audio 740 C

Looking from brand(origin) perspective, NAD offers a
warmest sound - if I use NAD 545/565 + my Amp (NAD 355) + Paradigm
Studio speakers ~ a Full Canadian brand - will the overall output be
"too warm"

Or should I better off using the British sound (i.e. Cambridge) to neutralize a bit.Thanks!

 

[link]

system synergy speaking, i'd say go for 545.

 

[the record spot]

Brand synergy then you have your Cambridge, but it may be on listening that you think the better synergy comes from a mix of brands. The choice of speaker has an impact too in the overall combination. So, if you can try them out before buying, do.

 

[matthewpiano]

I'd be giving the Cambridge 640C a good demo, or the new 650C.

The NAD amps are excellent, but I'm less convinced about their CD players.

As Record Spot advises, an audition is vital particularly as you are clearly after a particular sound. I'm not familiar with your speakers so I don't know what effect they will have on the overall presentation.

 

[Anonymous]

Actually, at its current price the Harman Kardon HD 990 seems to be the bargain of the moment. Even has inputs so you can use its DACs for something like an Airport Express if you decide to move in that direction.

 

[jaxwired]

I have the same amp as you and I also own the NAD C545 CDP. I have not heard the cambridge CDPs so I can't comment on them, but I will tell you that I really like the 545 with the 355 because the 545 has a detailed attacking sound that is a very nice compliment to the warm sounding amp. I would not call the C545 CDP "warm" sounding at all. So the amp and CDP really balance each other nicely.

As a side note, my 545 is only 5 months old and is now being serviced. However, you really cannot draw any conclusions about quality from a sample size of 1...

 

[SteveR750]

From my own experience, I actually think the NAD CD players are better than their amps, certainly the 542 was more than a match for the 352 amp anyway. I also compared these two against the CA 640 azur pair, which I found simply too lean and light sounding, plus the CA CDP kepy skipping one particular track (and I tried 3 of them) whereas the NAD rocked straight through it.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks everyone. I will do more auditions and make up my mind.I am struggling between CA 740 and NAD 545...different price range though.

One thing with NAD (since the audtion was based on NAD amp too) - the sound for NAD is a little "muddy" to me. Could that be something due to the speaker wires?

 

[SteveR750]

sounds like you might prefer the cambridge sound, as it is clearer than the NAD signature sound which isnt the last word in detail, especially in the bass....

 

[Anonymous]

If you felt the sound from the NAD amp was muddy, why did you buy it? also as for suggestions, I feel that you would be much better off purchasing an external dac and a cheap cd player, the dac can be connected to the cd player and in addition if you should wish to play music from your computer, the sound will benefit massively.

 

[matthewpiano]

Good call hi-fi newbie. In fact its what I do - CA 340C through the MF V-DAC. I doubt I could improve on it without spending huge money and it gives me the flexibility to also play Spotify, lossless files etc. from my computer in the best possible quality.

The V-DAC is a brilliant piece of kit.

(Other external DACs are available).

 

[johnnyblue]

I used to have a Nad 521i, which packed up last year,paired with a Nad 314 amp, and acoustic energy evo floorstanders. I was unable to get a similar Nad locally to replace the 521i and so ended up getting a Cambridge Audio 640c v2 from Richer Sounds instead. My immediate impression was that the CA is definitely bassier than the Nad and I have had to turn the bass down about 10% otherwise I find it swamps everything else. Secondly, I also find the CA painfully bright at the top end on some older recordings, particularly at higher volumes. Unfortunately, when my cd player packed up Nad's new range was still in the pipeline and after waiting with a very erratic player for 3 months we gave in and bought the CA. If it had happened this year I would've bought another Nad. I much prefer the design look to the CA as well.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks guys (again).

hi fi newbie, let me clarify. The sound at hi-fi store was fine (i.e. NAD 545 + NAD Amp + CA S70 speakers). I admit that CA 740 C provides more details but a little dry (acceptable since it is clear). As mentioned NAD gives a warmer sound for vocal.

Since all auditions were demoed by the NAD Amp, I decided to bring it home. After hooking up with my Marantz CD player (about to retire) and Paradigm speakers at home, I feel that the sound was a little muddy. Not sure what causes that.

Any comments?

 

[Anonymous]

Another question for hi fi newbie, regarding external DAC. Are you talking about something like the Cambridge Audio Dacmagic?

Does it may I no longer need computer soundcard (i used soundblaster) and speakers, and I can connect my CD players, computer (PC) to DacMagic and then to my NAD 355 Amp and enjoy superior sound quality through my Paradigm speakers?

I am quite interested. How would you compare if I buy DacMagic, or buying NAD C565BEE http://nadelectronics.com/products/cd-players/C-565BEE-CD-Player/details

It seems to me that 565BEE allows digital input and USB input too. Can I hook up with my computer too? That would be a plus because I have lots of itunes media as well.

Please comment. Thanks.

 

[jaxwired]

Just want to post a "quick" thought regarding the comment about the muddy NAD sound and the detailed clean CA sound. Frequently people mistake light bass for more detail. Conversely, if not used to it, strong bass can seem "muddy" compared to leaner lighter bass output.

This is a very common perception. In fact, often speakers labeled as "bright" are simply bass deficient. Some people simply prefer leaner bass or bass that is rolled off prior to very low frequencies. This explains the popularity of expensive amp and source paired with mini-monitor speakers. There is a perception of greater detail without the bass content.

I'm not saying that this is necessarily the case in this instance, but it is certainly a possibility. I am a fan of NAD amps. I do not find them to be muddy, but they are bass rich which could be percieved as muddy with certain source material. I do agree that there are more detailed amps available for more money (if you can find them among the posers). I also think that many more expensive amps are not superior and are sometimes inferior. I've auditioned McIntosh Amps using CD's of profound familiarity and I was not in the slightest blown away by the improvement over my NAD costing one tenth the retail price. I was, however, blown away by the NAD over my previous Japanese mass market 2 channel amp.

Just my 2, 3, and 4 cents...

 

[Anonymous]

wow_music:Another question for hi fi newbie, regarding external DAC. Are you talking about something like the Cambridge Audio Dacmagic?
Either that one or the Beresford TC 7520 are considered the most popular at the moment. Is your computer in the same room as your hi fi? if it is, then you will be able to connect via either optical cable (if your computer has that connection), or via usb. If you don't, and your hi fi is in another room from the computer, then you will need something like the Airport Express to carry the signal from the computer.

wow_music:Does it may I no longer need computer soundcard (i used soundblaster) and speakers, and I can connect my CD players, computer (PC) to DacMagic and then to my NAD 355 Amp and enjoy superior sound quality through my Paradigm speakers?

Yep, a dac will bypass the soundcard so the computer soundcard won't be used. You will definitely enjoy superior sound from doing this, especially with lossless files and of course AAC.

wow_music:I am quite interested. How would you compare if I buy DacMagic, or buying NAD C565BEE http://nadelectronics.com/products/cd-players/C-565BEE-CD-Player/details

Well for me personally I no longer have a use for the cd player so I would definitely purchase the dac, if your existing cd player has an optical connection and works fine, then you won't need one, if not and you still feel it will get good use, purchase a cheap cd player to.

wow_music:It seems to me that 565BEE allows digital input and USB input too. Can I hook up with my computer too? That would be a plus because I have lots of itunes media as well.

I think that the 565BEE has no noticeable advantage and just means paying a lot more for the same end product really, remember, the cost of the 565 BEE will largely be down to those features.

 

[jaxwired]

hi fi newbie:

I think that the 565BEE has no noticeable advantage and just means paying a lot more for the same end product really, remember, the cost of the 565 BEE will largely be down to those features.

Have to disagree with this. While it's true that the 565 has some great features like USB input and Digital Input for use as a DAC, the rest of the unit is nothing like the 545. They use entirely different chip sets for the DAC. Not just different models, different DAC chip manufacturers. Also the 565 uses "upsampling" technology and the 545 does not. Additionally, the 565 uses 2 DACs in what is called "dual differential" mode. The 565 is definately not a 545 with more features. Not saying it sounds better, just saying it's entirely different.

 

[Anonymous]

Thx hi fi newbie. Yes, my computer is in the same room with the new system. I will also check out external DAC, cool

jaxwired - thanks for your comment. Do you mind giving me your opinion on this - does 565 (Wolfson 24/192 DACs) use a more enhanced DAC compared to 545 (Burr Brown 24 bit)? How would you compare the upsampling technology in 565 with Cambridge 740 C?

I do not need the USB/digial input fancy stuff from 565, but wondering if it is worthwhile to pay more for this.

Talking about the numbers, I believe Cambridge 740C uses the same brand of DAC (dual Wolfson WM8740 24-bit DACs) but they claimed a unbelievable upsampling rate - 24-bit/384 kHz, compared to 192 kHz in NAD 565.

Thanks!

 

[Cypher]

jaxwired:
Just want to post a "quick" thought regarding the comment about the muddy NAD sound and the detailed clean CA sound. Frequently people mistake light bass for more detail. Conversely, if not used to it, strong bass can seem "muddy" compared to leaner lighter bass output.

This is a very common perception. In fact, often speakers labeled as "bright" are simply bass deficient. Some people simply prefer leaner bass or bass that is rolled off prior to very low frequencies. This explains the popularity of expensive amp and source paired with mini-monitor speakers. There is a perception of greater detail without the bass content.

I'm not saying that this is necessarily the case in this instance, but it is certainly a possibility. I am a fan of NAD amps. I do not find them to be muddy, but they are bass rich which could be percieved as muddy with certain source material. I do agree that there are more detailed amps available for more money (if you can find them among the posers). I also think that many more expensive amps are not superior and are sometimes inferior. I've auditioned McIntosh Amps using CD's of profound familiarity and I was not in the slightest blown away by the improvement over my NAD costing one tenth the retail price. I was, however, blown away by the NAD over my previous Japanese mass market 2 channel amp.

Just my 2, 3, and 4 cents...

I had a Rotel RA-04. Now I have a NAD C326BEE............which sounds muddy compared to the Rotel. It's a nice amp but I want that open sound again. The NAD will be sold in the near future.

Just my two cents........

 

[Anonymous]

Sorry just to clarify, I meant that there is no noticeable sonic adavntage between that and the NAD C345 and therefore my personal preference would be a cheap quiet running cd player and a dac.I think the latter will raise the sound quality significantly in all respects.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks again to everybody!

Just an update to you guys. After spending the whole afternoon in the Audio store, I ended up with neither NAD nor Cambridge

I was surprised too - the winner is Rega Apollo ~ but it matches my taste. Not too bright, not too warm

 

[batonwielder]

Wow. Get back to us in a year if it still functions properly.

 

[Anonymous]

batonwielder:Wow. Get back to us in a year if it still functions properly.

Oh, don't scare me please

Did you have some bad experience with Rega? Please share. Thx

 

[batonwielder]

Yes, I was attracted by all the press and the unusual styling of the Apollo, and wanted to buy it even without hearing it.

I can tell you that I've listened to about 3 different units at 3 different dealers and even had one for home demo.

None of them managed to function properly. The dealers always acted as if it happened for the first time, but I grew very tired of it.

I even convinced myself that I could wait during the "initialising" process, but when the home demo unit went through the usual course of skipping between tracks and refused to read discs, even after unplugging for a while as prescribed by many forum members, I just gave up.

As far as I know, this malfunction happens some time into ownership and once it happens, it becomes more frequent and worse.

By then, you will have run out of warranty or have moved onto the Saturn.

If you read some of my older posts, I had almost bought an all Rega system. I just couldn't justify the price I would have to pay for such a headache when my Made in China CD player has been playing without a sneeze for some time.

Maybe they have smoothed out the problem by now.

 

[batonwielder]

By the way, you should find a better placement for your speakers.

Not only does it benefit from free space, the vibration caused by such a position will make the choice of your CD player quite irrelevant.

They are good speakers. Your choice of amplification seems to be right on the money.