[SodaBoy]

About the spec of the NFB-1 AMP

It claims 8 watt @ 40 Ohms , but ist that 8 watts per channel or total continues power for both channels ( 4 watt / channel) ?

And does the NFB-1 AMP also got the jumper switch to make it warmer or + 6 db at the lover range option?

It's 8 watts per channel, I was wrong apparently. The NFB-1AMP does not have the warm jumper settings, of the amps listed only the C-2 does. I don't have any quantifiable info on the warm setting of the C-2 though, so I suspect the effect is subtle.

 

[Currawong]

My NFB-1AMP has arrived and out of the box the sound is pretty fantastic. I'm used to running in Audio-gd gear for 2 weeks first most of the time. I was most concerned if it would hold up the level of detail the Chord Hugo is capable of but it seems no concerns there at all.

 

[lukeap69]

My NFB-1AMP has arrived and out of the box the sound is pretty fantastic. I'm used to running in Audio-gd gear for 2 weeks first most of the time. I was most concerned if it would hold up the level of detail the Chord Hugo is capable of but it seems no concerns there at all.

Nice. Will wait for your impressions? Which HP are you going to pair this with?

 

[Currawong]

 

My NFB-1AMP has arrived and out of the box the sound is pretty fantastic. I'm used to running in Audio-gd gear for 2 weeks first most of the time. I was most concerned if it would hold up the level of detail the Chord Hugo is capable of but it seems no concerns there at all.

Nice. Will wait for your impressions? Which HP are you going to pair this with?

MrSpeakers Ethers, HD800s, HE1000s and LCD-X. 
 
It's going to sit for a while in the living room system as a pre-amp while it has some hours put on it. There was plenty of the usual Audio-gd spacious, get-out-of-the-way-of-the-music signature. A brief A/B with my Studio Six had the big tube amp besting it for micro and macro dynamics, but considering the vast difference in prices the smaller amp wasn't at all put to shame. What was nice was how it delivered the bass with the Ethers, especially given how I've rolled warmer tubes into the Studio Six.

 

[douce]

I have a question for you gentleman, I just received my nfb-15 which I'm using as my HPA, DAC, and pre-amp to power an emotiva xpa-200 to some psb image b6's. Now that the nfb-3amp is available I'm considering getting that to use as my HPA and pre-amp and allow the nfb-15 dac to use its own psu, also to take advantage of the class-A and additional rca inputs. But I'm curious, will I really notice all that much in performance? 

 

[Stillhart]

  I have a question for you gentleman, I just received my nfb-15 which I'm using as my HPA, DAC, and pre-amp to power an emotiva xpa-200 to some psb image b6's. Now that the nfb-3amp is available I'm considering getting that to use as my HPA and pre-amp and allow the nfb-15 dac to use its own psu, also to take advantage of the class-A and additional rca inputs. But I'm curious, will I really notice all that much in performance? 

 
I haven't heard the NFB-3 so I can't really say.  But if I had to guess I'd say you probably won't notice a ton of improvement.  The amp in the NFB-15 is already pretty decent for the price (I found it to be extremely similar to my Matrix M-Stage at the time) and the NFB-3 is probably not a big step up.  
 
the NFB-15 is a pretty damn good value for the money.  I have a lot of more expensive gear these days and I still really enjoy using it at work with my PM-3.

 

[douce]

I felt similar about the idea but worth asking, mostly it was to relieve the DAC from whatever current was drawn to run the preamp at higher volumes. I too enjoy the nfb-15, its been a GREAT little unit for the price.

 

[Kingwa]

In my experiences, except the some few AV power amp had mark the SUM power specs of the  all channels in total.
The hi fi amps always mark the power specs of per channels.

 

[SodaBoy]

I just received my NFB-1AMP today here are my initial impressions of it with a Sonarworks calibrated HD650.
 
Very holographic soundstage, excellent instrument separation. This is a very resolving amp, especially in the bass region where many amps struggle. The bass is textured, well extended and very clean even on bassy brickwalled tracks. The overall presentation is neutral and is very unfatiguing. I feel like I could listen to this amp for hours without ear strain. It's a quality that is hard to explain, but the lack of fatigue is due to how uncompressed everything sounds, like there is proper sense of space in the recordings instead of everything being crammed together. Very smooth presentation, no hint of harshness.
 
On to more physical impressions, the unit itself is built like a tank with all metal construction and heavy as hell.
In terms of design, the aesthetic is utilitarian but the build quality is definitely high.
 
With the volume control, Audio-GD has listened to feedback and introduced a rotary encoder (volume knob) to control the relay attenuator. If you have been around long enough, you would know what I'm talking about with the old button volume control and all that. Implementing a volume knob makes the user interface a lot more intuitive and familiar, especially for people who are used to volume pots (AKA everyone). So now we get a relay volume control along with a rotary encoder, we can have our cake and eat it too.
 
The relay volume control itself is noiseless on adjustment other than for a very soft click physically emanating from the relay itself (not part of the signal) which is completely inaudible during music. In contrast, typical brushed volume potentiometers become noisier with age, and the noise itself is passed onto the signal and increases proportionally with gain. Relay attenuators also have lower crosstalk and distortion along with near perfect channel balance, but since volume pots are cheap and turnkey they have become ubiquitous even in high end equipment, but I digress... Back on topic, the volume control steps are very granular, and I have fine control over the volume allowing comfortable listening levels on all music.
 
And that sums up my thoughts for now...
 
More impressions when my HD800 arrives, hopefully Monday with pictures of the whole setup. But damn, this amp impresses me.

 

[gto88]

mine is in house too.
I use to listen to dr.dac2 dx, but it is no comparison to this amp.
However, I am experiencing a problem of losing left or right channel once a while.
I am using RCA connection from iFi iDSD nano to NFB-1AMP.
I changed RCA cable, but both have same issue in 10, 15 min of listening.
 
Any idea?

 

[gto88]

I am using dr.dac2 as DAC connecting to my NFB-1AMP, it seems no problem now.
Is there such thing as dac-amp matching issue?
 
EDIT: I figured it out - my iDSD is out of power at the time of connection.

 

[Beolab]

Have you connected your headphones through the 4 pin XLR or the 6,3 mm outlet?

It could be something in the conversation from SE RCA input to 4 pin XLR maybe

 

[SodaBoy]

  I am using dr.dac2 as DAC connecting to my NFB-1AMP, it seems no problem now.
Is there such thing as dac-amp matching issue?

No such issue should exist. Even if DAC was outputting below line level, you would not lose a channel. If polarity was inverted you would not lose a channel.
 
Check that all connections are secure, including your headphone cables and interconnects. Check that all cables are functional. You have already tried different sets of RCA cables, the RCA cables can be safely ruled out. If all connections are secure, then the headphone cable itself may be damaged. Damage at the TRS/XLR jack or cup jacks can often cause intermittent sound drop out on one or both channels, depending on cable flex and electrical contact.
 
In the future avoid double posting, it crowds up the thread. There is an edit button available to modify your previous post.

 

[Beolab]

SodaBoy:

Have you tryed to go from SE RCA input and let the amp convert it to 4 pin XLR balanced output and it works flawless?

 

[SodaBoy]

SodaBoy:

Have you tryed to go from SE RCA input and let the amp convert it to 4 pin XLR balanced output and it works flawless?

No, because he has already tried the RCA out from his Dr.Dac2 and the NFB-1AMP was able to output stereo. The fact that he is getting both channels from the Dr.Dac2 means that the SE-BAL conversion on his NFB-1AMP is functioning properly, and that the problem lies elsewhere. It helps to go through the usual checklist, since the majority of electronic gremlins can be tracked down to faulty connections.