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Comments please on: NAD M23 vs c298 vs. other newer Class D

I'm interested in comments about the new-ish NAD M23 amp. It gets rave reviews on the Absolute Sound channel, by Doug Schneider and by the review at Sound Stage, and by others. Reviews describe not only an even response across frequencies, but layering of the soundstage (left-right and front-back) as well as excellent measurements. Some describe the sound as somewhat tube like in the mids and upper range, others as neutral, but all agree it does not have the harshness which typically characterized reports about earlier amps with this design.

I am not giving up my Pass XA 25, nor my QS Mono 60 tube amps. Or my ST-35 Dynaco. What I'm interested in is a another amp in the stable that can play nicely among different speakers (not all are as sensitive as my main 97db ones), and that might bring that snappy dynamic speed to the sound but without making me cringe from the highs.

If you have some opinion of this Eigentakt design, especially in comparisons to Atma-sphere's Class D or other amps with similar technologies inside, please comment. (PS Audio, Bel Canto, et al.)

If you have some opinion of the NAD M23 vs. the cheaper-but-still-Eigentakt NAD c298, I'm interested in that, too.

I'm NOT interested in super pricey amps. Say, above $8k

hilde45
hilde45's avatar
hilde45 OP
5,994 posts
 

@jimmy2615 Thanks. I have read the c298 is a bit lightweight in terms of both casework and the internals are different by a bit, too. I'd trust the m23 more, I think. I'm considering buying it from The Music Room and then seeing how I like it for a month. But the comments about Atma-sphere have me pausing; I'd love to try that one, also, but there are none at TMR at the moment. Perhaps someone in my audio club has one.

decooney
2,564 posts
 

@kirkwallace ... “snappy dynamic speed” is not what it is going to give you. (I sold my M33 to move to a better streamer and separately bought a CODA CSiB V2.)"

Kirk - did you have comparison time with both the NAD M33 and Coda CSIB V2 comparing back and forth? Likes?, dislikes?, differences?  Is there anything more you can share about the comparison and change, and why. Thanks in advance for your reply.  

mark200mph
831 posts
 

Apos audio  has some class d gan fet that mono into 500 watts, 600$  the only problem is soft start is not so soft .so this is one amp that I just leave it on. I do like the new gan fet because the switch much higher leaving less time in off mode than other class d . Happy hunting.

kirkwallace's avatar
kirkwallace
283 posts
 

@hilde45 nice use of the Stein quotation.  Thank you for that.

@decooney , i did not A/B the 2, but @mgrif104 ‘s comments capture my experience with the M33, and also my caution that the issues may stem more from the M33’s streamer and DAC section than the amp module.  As @hilde45 is looking at only the amp, those experiences may not be all that concerning to him. 

atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
12,403 posts
 

how were you able to make a Class D module that competes with companies like NAD, Purifi, et al.? It seems like the kind of thing that teams of engineers and iterations of product development would require and you did it alone? That's astounding.

Second, will there be another iteration of your class D amps? The ones you have now are the first generation, while other amps in this class seem to have gone through a number of "evolutions." Is there a new Atmasphere Class D amp version in the works?

@hilde45 A lot of people think we're a tube equipment manufacturer. We are, but really we are an engineering firm. As to how we did it, it took time, patience and an understanding of math. There's not a new version in the works. The amp has met our expectations out of the gate. 

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