NAD C 3050 Integrated Amplifier Review

[Haslar]

Is there no bypass feature for this to keep it in the analogue domain? Does the C399 do this also?

I don’t think there is.

 

[dougi]

Is there no bypass feature for this to keep it in the analogue domain? Does the C399 do this also?

No, there is an analog bypass in the C399 it seems, going by the manual. Tone controls still active with it on as well, it says.

 

[Chanur]

I love the look of this. Was comparing it to the Leak 230 which I thought sounded great. I want to keep a streamer out of my amp though. So would buy with out the module. The performance is disappointing for the price. Yet the looks are still trying to pull me in.

 

[ZolaIII]

I love the look of this. Was comparing it to the Leak 230 which I thought sounded great. I want to keep a streamer out of my amp though. So would buy with out the module. The performance is disappointing for the price. Yet the looks are still trying to pull me in.

May be a Yamaha A-S 1200 silver then? If you are lucky in EU you can catch it for 1800€ (up to 2.2K still lot less than over 3K) new.

 

[Chanur]

May be a Yamaha A-S 1200 silver then? If you are lucky in EU you can catch it for 1800€ (up to 2.2K still lot less than over 3K) new.

I love Yamaha but I'm a bit concerned they might be fatiguing. My wife is very sensitive to that. It's why we got rid of our Klipsch Reference Premiere speakers. Maybe going to lean towards a slightly warm sound.

Also if I were to get a NAD I think it would be the C389. I would hope it tests better , though looks much worse.

 

[ZolaIII]

I love Yamaha but I'm a bit concerned they might be fatiguing. My wife is very sensitive to that. It's why we got rid of our Klipsch Reference Premiere speakers. Maybe going to lean towards a slightly warm sound.

Also if I were to get a NAD I think it would be the C389. I would hope it tests better , though looks much worse.

It's flat regarding frequency response and there is little rise of distortion with frequency (A-B class) so if speakers aren't bright on their own (and space is minimal treated so that highs are focused) it won't. If you don't aim looks and VU meters you can get A-S801 for lot less money (800 $/€) or perhaps aim at R-N 800A or R-N1000A for room correction integration (YPAO) those do come with streamer (which will probably work and be suported far longer than competition). On A-S 801 just plug WiiM Mini trough Toslink. Of course A-S 1200 is full analog and with quite one of the best in industry input unbalanced line SNR. I settled down with A-S 700 which has same input stage but I don't believe you will find a new one. All mentioned Yamahas have both tone controls and ELC (by hand or automatic in newer ones with YPAO starting from R-N 1000A up). So you can fiddle regarding that as you want.

 

[Ropeburn]

I love Yamaha but I'm a bit concerned they might be fatiguing. My wife is very sensitive to that. It's why we got rid of our Klipsch Reference Premiere speakers. Maybe going to lean towards a slightly warm sound.

Also if I were to get a NAD I think it would be the C389. I would hope it tests better , though looks much worse.

Is that the old rumor you heard, "Yamaha sounds bright"?

If yes, disregard. All of those Yamaha amps are perfectly neutral in terms of frequency response, and so is the C389, which uses a Hypex nCore power stage.

All clean amps that can't "fatigue" on their own. That comes from speakers and how they interact with the room.

 

[Chanur]

I'll give the Yamaha a serious look. Been considering integrated amps vs going Separates. Love all my experiences with Yamaha in the past.

 

[Randolf]

I'll give the Yamaha a serious look. Been considering integrated amps vs going Separates. Love all my experiences with Yamaha in the past.

Last year I tried to replace my Yamaha R-N803D with the NAD C389 but finally gave up:

• Too high residual noise for high sensitivity speaker
• Broken headphone output
• Preout hum

BTW the C3050 seems to have the same headphone output problem, my cousin owns one. To me the C 3050 looks rather cheap than vintage. I would only consider any of these NADs if the above problems are not relevant and you are looking for an DircaLive enabled 2 channel amplifier.

 

[Chanur]

How are these holding up? Saw another thread where one was getting pretty hot and there were comments this design won't last the test of time because of it.

 

[Haslar]

How are these holding up? Saw another thread where one was getting pretty hot and there were comments this design won't last the test of time because of it.

Mine is working nominally.

 

[dougi]

How are these holding up? Saw another thread where one was getting pretty hot and there were comments this design won't last the test of time because of it.

I mainly use mine as a pre, but I will say that the modified (?) UCD modules they use have external FETs with heatsinks, so should be getting rid of the heat well. I might be more concerned with dust ingest over time onto all of the SMDs. Might be worth opening up and vacuuming every few years.

 

[MonkeyKing]

How are these holding up? Saw another thread where one was getting pretty hot and there were comments this design won't last the test of time because of it.

Meh. The BluOS module is hot garbage. As it turns out, even with that, there is no way to do something as basic as stream your music collection in a hi-def format over hdmi/usb to this unit. Its a nice looking unit and sounds ok in traditional uses. But this whole unit is unequipped for the modern world.

 

[LesterHiggins]

Just a little accessibility note for @amirm - people who are deutan (red/green) colorblind can't see the red line of the NAD's place in the chart when it's surrounded by ... I almost said "other" green lines LOL ... I can't see the red line when it's surrounded by green lines. Color doesn't even have to change, a pattern or border or some contrast in saturation would work, or perhaps some flying toasters or a dancing baby on top of it.