New All-in-one amplifier

[Aslund]

Hello everyone

My name is Sebastian and I have an old system from my days as a student, which consists of and NAD 114 + 216 combo together with Dali 850 speakers. I have later added a Cambridge DacMagic for digital audio.

With age comes comfort and while I am still happy about the sound of my system, then it is a bother to use. No remote control of the sound. No streaming capabilities so I have to use the TV as medium.

Original I planned to change everything and get a smaller amplifier and bookshelf speaker, but when I was at the local hifi shop I really missed my Dali 850. So I have tried to come up with another solution. My Dali 850 is quite power hungry and needs a decent amp.
I also like HDMI Arc for connecting my TV and streaming capabilities.
The only product I have found that matches the criteria is Cambridge Audio Evo 150
https://www.cambridgeaudio.com/row/en/products/evo/evo-150

As an alternative I have also look at the NAD C298 poweramp but I have been unable to find a preamp that supports both HDMI Arc and Chromecast.
https://nadelectronics.com/product/c298-stereo-power-amplifier/

I must say I am really drawn to the Evo 150. It looks nice and have everything I need but it is a lot to pay. On the other hand will a NAD C298 + preamp properly be same or more.

I hope you can give your thoughts on this matter

Thank you.
Sebastian

 

[restorer-john]

Welcome to ASR Sebastian.

That CA EVO-150 sure looks like it has a lot going for it. Even I am a little envious and would like to give one a go.

There was a thread where a member was considering one, maybe do a search and see what he ended up doing.

 

[facefirst]

Welcome Sebastian. In terms of amps, I have a Naim Uniti Nova which is plenty powerful and has a decent interface / remote / amp. However, many here on ASR are quite sceptical of Naim stuff as it tends to measure averagely for the price. It does sound good though, probably due to some engineered-in EQing by Naim.

 

[Jim Matthews]

I'm a satisfied NAD BlueOS user.

The NAD M10 appears to support your requirements, also.

https://nadelectronics.com/product/m10-bluos-streaming-amplifier/

 

[Vict0r]

Maybe the Raspberry Pi4 platform is worth looking in to? It supports HDMI ARC and CEC. You could hook up whichever USB DAC and amp you like, and leave all the media/streaming to the Pi4. It'll be a bit of a project, though, but there is so much information out there that I'm sure you'd manage.

 

[outlookrt]

I have a Lyngdorf tdai 1120 arriving today for demo for the exact same reasons. New living room arrangement and newborn twins has me wanting something very convenient and discreet but without too much of a sq sacrifice. It’s ability to handle the crossover/eq/room correction for a discreet 2.2 system (like the speakers lyngdorf offers or something similar) is attracting me too.

I have a mini dsp shd and numerous Pi’s but in use neither offers the simple usability features I want like chrome cast, standby/auto-on, etc. And while powerful, the Mini dsp in day to day use is about as enjoyable to use and look at as a microwave oven. There’s more things important to me than Sinad I suppose you could say.

Happy to follow up on my demo experience of the lyngdorf if helpful.

Cambridge Evo, Nad m10 and m33 (over budget) and Naim atom also appeal, lack of room correction on Evo and Atom a turn off tho, especially as the Naim is converting input to digital via dsp anyways.

slightly less all-in-one (no streamer) the new Technics integrates are very interesting as well!

 

[facefirst]

The Atom is an interesting one in that loads of people look at the specs and say 'blugh' and then listen to one and really like it. On paper the M10 is better, yet there seems to be a consensus of option that the Atom is 'better' somehow.

 

[SMc]

The Marantz NR 1200 has HDMI ARC and network capability if you want a less expensive alternative, although the amp specs are less impressive than those of the NAD and Cambridge.

 

[Aslund]

Hello everyone

A big thanks for all your replies. How wonderful to see all the help.
One problem I have is determining how big amplifier I need. I know my speakers, Dali 850, are very very hungry. When I look at the many alternatives like Naim or Lyngdorf then I am unsure they can keep up.
One time, many years ago, 15 years I guess, as a student, my poweramp broke and needed repair after I failed to fix it myself. My roommate borrowed me his amp. I sadly can't remember the model but I am sure it was a 60W amplifier from a highend brand, and my speakers was dead, no power or life. The amp was nowhere near to provide the power needed for my speakers.

 

[facefirst]

Cambridge Evo 150?

Loads of Class D power

 

[Matias]

+1 to try the Cambridge Evo 150. It has an Hypex NCore NC252MP amp module inside which puts out 2x 250W in 4 ohms.

Personally I would have preferred more power, say NC502MP with 2x 500W in 4 ohms, but it is very rare to find integrated amplifiers using them. But then if you need more power you can keep it as a digital hub and preamp and use its pre-outs to a more powerful poweramp.

 

[Wes]

Hello everyone

A big thanks for all your replies. How wonderful to see all the help.
One problem I have is determining how big amplifier I need. I know my speakers, Dali 850, are very very hungry. When I look at the many alternatives like Naim or Lyngdorf then I am unsure they can keep up.
One time, many years ago, 15 years I guess, as a student, my poweramp broke and needed repair after I failed to fix it myself. My roommate borrowed me his amp. I sadly can't remember the model but I am sure it was a 60W amplifier from a highend brand, and my speakers was dead, no power or life. The amp was nowhere near to provide the power needed for my speakers.

search on here for a link to a speaker calculator - maybe add SPL to the search terms

 

[Aslund]

search on here for a link to a speaker calculator - maybe add SPL to the search terms

Is it really that simple? I am no expert in hifi, quite the opposit. But I have seen diagrams with the impedance of a speaker vary with frequency, so can you really determine the need size just like that?

 

[Wes]

you'll want to know if the speaker has any odd peaks/dips and the nominal impedance

modern amps shouldn't have too many issues tho

you also need your room size

 

[facefirst]

Anything with a Hypex or Purifi should be plenty.

 

[JonfromCB]

Hello everyone

A big thanks for all your replies. How wonderful to see all the help.
One problem I have is determining how big amplifier I need. I know my speakers, Dali 850, are very very hungry. When I look at the many alternatives like Naim or Lyngdorf then I am unsure they can keep up.
One time, many years ago, 15 years I guess, as a student, my poweramp broke and needed repair after I failed to fix it myself. My roommate borrowed me his amp. I sadly can't remember the model but I am sure it was a 60W amplifier from a highend brand, and my speakers was dead, no power or life. The amp was nowhere near to provide the power needed for my speakers.

Here's a calculator I like. http://www.hometheaterengineering.com/splcalculator.html

 

[Jim Matthews]

Background on the Dali 850 claims an input sensitivity of 92 dB/1watt at 1 meter - which is quite efficient for home audio.

I suspect the difficulty is our common pursuit, getting substantial bass response from smaller drivers. No amplifier will get a 30 year old speaker to play deeper than its first day.

31 hZ is respectable, in any home setting.

https://www.dali-speakers.com/discontinued/dali-150-850/dali-850/

 

[Wes]

in the US you can buy Cambridge with a return privilege - always a good idea

 

[Beershaun]

Background on the Dali 850 claims an input sensitivity of 92 dB/1watt at 1 meter - which is quite efficient for home audio.

I suspect the difficulty is our common pursuit, getting substantial bass response from smaller drivers. No amplifier will get a 30 year old speaker to play deeper than its first day.

31 hZ is respectable, in any home setting.

https://www.dali-speakers.com/discontinued/dali-150-850/dali-850/

+1 I recommend a powered subwoofer even with big speakers. You can place it in the room separately from the mains to smooth out room modes and you can get the physical size and amplifier power you need to play low frequency much more affordably. Your mains will also sounds better because you can offload the low frequency needs form the amp and speakers reducing the distortion of the smaller drivers and power needs from the amplifier.

If you go this route then I highly recommend getting a preamp or integrated amplifier that has a subwoofer output and true digital crossover to allow you to set the crossover frequency and only send the low frequency to the subwoofer. A simple lowpass filter output with full range mains is not going to give you the benefits of a true digital crossover.

 

[Matias]

Buchardt I150 also has high pass for mains and low pass for the sub out, plus Digital Room Correction built in.
https://buchardtaudio.com/products/i150-integrated-amplifier