NAD M66 - finally someone makes a decent 2-channel preamp!

[pogo]

I blame dealers also

This could be the real problem.
It is not clear to me whether NAD has already given the OK for delivery to the end customer.

 

[Sokel]

This could be the real problem.
It is not clear to me whether NAD has already given the OK for delivery to the end customer.

Seems highly unlikely to me also.
The "client should feel like king" mentality of HEA is absolutely trashed here but even not in HEA,as it's maybe decent priced (really decent if it was working properly) but no cheap.

 

[MingChops]

If I had done it that way in the past, I would have had to pay extra when I bought a new one. The M33 has never been as cheap as it was in the beginning.

Depends on regions, in the UK the M33 had a £500 increase during the 'fun' of the last few years - but it dropped a while back to it's launch price of £3999. I'd have hoped that would have been the case elsewhere but I don't know the global price books.

Incidentally, with a clearer understanding of timelines then one could actually assess the risk of a delayed purchase or not, with respect to things like price rises and availability

Personally for me I am prepared to risk an increase in cost and wait for a fully sorted and ART enabled product - and when those features are out properly I can fully evaluate against the then current landscape of products. That said, if there's isn't any real commitment to dates from NAD, they run the risk of losing a sale as I could end up with a Nova, or an Anthem STR Pre v2 if that comes out for example. Maybe Lyngdorf will come out with a replacement for the DPA-1.... and Primare are looking at DLBC pre's too. The market won't sit still.

YMMV, but any decision is simply made harder without a little transparency. (And yeah I do also wish the other manufactures would state their future product intentions, but that is never the case in business typically and would be naive for me to expect that. That is however different to promising something and keeping it on simmer for 2 years).

 

[Cpopovic]

This could be the real problem.
It is not clear to me whether NAD has already given the OK for delivery to the end customer.

I received my preorder last week , and I'm based in Switzerland.

 

[pogo]

Congratulations
Which BluOS version is currently installed?

 

[djn04]

I also received my M66 last week. BluOS 4.2.105 is currently installed. It updated when I set it up so not sure what version it shipped with.

It's been working well for me. Is still shows as "uncertified" in Roon, which is disappointing.

Does anyone know if there is way to turn off the touchscreen and volume knob functionality? I have a two year old that has already taken an interested in both.

 

[Cpopovic]

Congratulations
Which BluOS version is currently installed?

BluOS 4.2.105 also here, and the auto-switching feature (e-arc) is still not showing or functioning. For example today whilst I was out, a guest wanted to watch live TV and turned the cable box on. He didn't get any sound from the amp. I returned home 2 hours later later and I manually changed the input and showed him the preset on the remote, but I felt sorry for him. My NAD M10V2 changed the input automatically so still dont understand why this is still not implemented.

 

[Nocko!]

@pogo:
Like MingChops I would really like to know why are you are doing marketing for NAD?

I appreciate your postings, I love the concept of the NAD Masters series and would buy a M66 at once without thinking about the price but the really poor service for my M17V2 (bought before there was an V2i) and the permanent "babble" about BlueOS is daunting me. At the moment there is nearly no preamp in the M66 but only a mediocre streaming device. And the published manual is a joke.

If you are a dealer: Can I buy a M66 at your store and give it back if there is
- no cinema bypass or
- no subwoofer output with analog input / cinema bypass or
- no time out for the display or
- no DLBC or
- no ART or
- no functioning trigger input/output or
- no HDMI video out

within the next six months, 12 months or 24 months?

Sorry, don't want to offend you. But we should be careful. A lot of people just read something here or in other forums and will believe your promises and could be deeply disappointed if NAD fails.

Nocko

 

[pogo]

I am an end customer like you
BluOS 4.2.105 still appears to be a development software. There is no official changelog for this version online and the 3 digits at the end also indicate this.
Why are these devices already being delivered???

 

[MingChops]

I am an end customer like you

A winky smiley used at the end of a statement like that of course implies the antithesis is true. So you have a commercial presence or relationship in the HiFi space I presume?

 

[markrubin]

I did receive some info via my dealer:

-M66 will not turn on/off via trigger inputs on rear: M50.2 does
'This could be a setup issue – there is a deep sleep mode that will prevent things like the IR remote from waking the unit.'

-M66 is NOT ROON Ready even though advertised as so: M50.2 is
'It is with them for certification it should be done very soon.'

-M66 does not output cover art via HDMI: M33 and M50.2 do
'The M66 uses a different (higher performance) chipset and will not do album art via the eARC input… so not possible. A compromise which some do if the OSD is important is to screen cast your device to your TV to see the artist on screen. This is definitely a get around, but the performance benefits are pretty hard to deny of the M66.'

 

[MingChops]

-M66 does not output cover art via HDMI: M33 and M50.2 do
'The M66 uses a different (higher performance) chipset and will not do album art via the eARC input… so not possible. A compromise which some do if the OSD is important is to screen cast your device to your TV to see the artist on screen. This is definitely a get around, but the performance benefits are pretty hard to deny of the M66.'

That’s a huge shame, casting may not be a viable alternative either as if you only have one device and intend to use your device whilst listening then obviously casting won’t work for you. Which means you need a second device to sit on the side that you don’t intend to use whilst you are listening, and of course that depletes the battery/needs to be plugged in.

I raised a feature request to Bluesound just over 4 years ago in Feb 2020, about doing Android and Apple TV apps for BluOS. Lots of users agreed and other posts were made in that time also asking for it.
I was told it was being developed and nearly working, this was 4 years ago……! I don’t want to sound like a broken record but that is another egregious case of poor management around setting user expectations. Obviously Bluesound isn‘t directly NAD, but under the same group of course, and the apple doesn’t fall far as they say.

I tried side-loading BluOS onto my Sony Android a few years back but it didn’t work properly, maybe worth another try since the BluOS 4 update.

 

[pogo]

So you have a commercial presence or relationship in the HiFi space I presume?

No.

 

[pogo]

but the performance benefits are pretty hard to deny of the M66.

It's also a question of whether you need it and whether it has audible advantages. The M33 also has a preamp mode and the measured values for this were not bad. And not everyone needs 4 sub outs.

 

[Hephaestus]

Got my unit today. First impressions are positive with the exception of the display quality: It is trash, but it was not surprise. (My previous toy had OLED...)
Build quality is fine but cannot compete with Linn´s mid or high tier bling bling.

Setup was a breeze and very easy - no manual was needed. Device is very responsive and I have not experienced any bugs so far. Knocking the wood.....

This thing has almost everything in one package:
+Streamer
+Preamp
+Dirac
+Bass Management
+Decent Phono stage and Headphone amp
+Server mode for USB music library
+Modular design (MDC2)

I wish they will add later:
DIRAC ART (This was "promised" as a paid upgrade...)
Dynamic Loudness (may never happen...)
EQ for Headphone out (same as above...)

My first amp was NAD. Bought it over 25 years ago and it still works. I have negative experience as well: C658 sucked extremely hard - had it for a short period after release and returned it. (It has hardware design faults and software was far from ready out of the box)

UPDATE:
After some testing following observations:

-LCD edge light leakage due to poor assembly effort; improper sealing of the LCD panel
-Inconsistent colour theme when dark mode disabled, no true light theme available - annoying due the above mentioned edge light leakage
-Lowest display dim setting is too bright (see again above)
-No Gain trims for inputs
-After initial DIRAC filter upload inconsistent volume levels between Dirac on vs Dirac off. Seemed to fix itself after device was in standby mode. After reboot the volume difference is back
-Renamed new DIRAC filters require reboot to show correctly on device display

I will update if I have further "findings". Device firmware is still beta x.x.105

 

[pogo]

EQ for Headphone

Will be possible in the same way as with the M33, as the DL corrections also pass through the headphone output: Link

 

[pogo]

-No Gain trims for inputs
-After initial DIRAC filter upload inconsistent volume levels between Dirac on vs Dirac off.

Gain trims should be available for the analog inputs over the front display.
DL volume differences are normal.

 

[markrubin]

M66 now listed as ROON Ready/ROON tested

Title of Page

roon.app

 

[emme]

I guess the issue with using a streamer like say the A8 to control volume with its analogue circuits, is you’re adding extra DAC/ADC stages than neccessary when going back into the Nova. Or, if say using the A6 or Node and are coming digital out, then you’re doing digital volume attenuation - which of course anything like the Nova is also doing, but at 64bit the Nova is probably a lot better than your average streamer which probably isn’t 64bit.

Certainly I have tested using variable volume on the Node 2i vs full volume out and using my Freya S to control volume (same external DAC both times). And there’s a noticeable difference between the two, the Node being the worst for sure. It actually made more of a difference than I’ve ever heard when say trying to compare DACs - which most of the time I can’t genuinely hear any differences between DAC’s! But the Node botches variable out IMO, so I’d be very hesitant to use a streamer to do this.

I reckon given the price of an A6, you can probably man maths the La Remote anyway you can program things like bypass and what not on it, so even for HiFi usage you can probably get some useful utility from it more than just a snazzy volume and source switcher!

I can’t believe there’s so few devices out there catering to this market though - I’d have thought if miniDSP could come out with a DLBC SHD at around £2k ish they’d clean up?! I actually thought the A8 was a big swing a miss because it didn’t include any sort of proper sub out/bass management….perhaps an A10 might come out with it!

i contacted eversolo trying to find out more about how they implement digital volume control , here is what the answered:

Digital Volume Control (DVC) achieves volume control by adjusting the amplitude of the digital audio signal instead of adjusting voltage through analog circuits. Digital volume is adjusted through registers inside the DAC. This adjustment process does not reduce the bit depth of the digital audio signal, as it only adjusts the amplitude of the signal without altering the original encoding of the signal.
In short, digital volume control does not result in a decrease in bit depth because it simply controls volume by modifying the amplitude of the digital audio signal rather than altering the signal's encoding. Therefore, even with volume adjustments, the integrity and quality of the digital audio signal remain unchanged.

 

[markrubin]

M66 now listed as ROON Ready/ROON tested

Title of Page

roon.app

ROON updated just now: M66 is now ROON Ready/ ROON tested