[Willieboy]

Here's a pic of the HM 801>Moon Audio Silver Dragon interconnect>NAD C316BEE>Senn HD600 with Cocon D2+ thrown in for good measure.
 

 

[BlackbeardBen]

Quote:

Here's a pic of the HM 801>Moon Audio Silver Dragon interconnect>NAD C316BEE>Senn HD600 with Cocon D2+ thrpwn in for good measure.
 

Fixed for ya.
 

 

[Willieboy]

Thanks for the repair Ben.  Don't know where I went wrong.

 

[BlackbeardBen]

Quote:

Thanks for the repair Ben.  Don't know where I went wrong.

If you put it in manually, you have to use HTML, not BBCode.

 

[palmfish]

Hey Willieboy, I hope you're still watching this thread.
 
I've been looking into getting an integrated amp/receiver for headphone listening and came across this discussion. Do you have any more opinions about your NAD now that you've lived with it for a few months? How do you think it compares to a dedicated headphone amp?
 
Do you know any details about the how the NAD headphone stage is designed? Discrete or opamp?
 
I'm also looking at vintage receivers and the Outlaw Audio RR2150...
 
Thanks in advance!

 

[pp312]

It's unlikely Willieboy will know how his Nad compares to dedicated amps as he bought it in place of a dedicated amp, but I could be wrong.
 
The Nad takes its HP output from the speaker output stage through resistors, so its output is discrete. Nads generally sound very good with headphones, as indeed with speakers, so long as you're not looking for extra sparkle, which they don't have--or didn't. Very tonally neutral. If you want a brighter, more etched sound, go Rotel. Also discrete output.
 
I wouldn't recommend vintage receivers myself. They may sound good, but for how long? Better to get something with a warranty.
 
Hey, all this free advice and you didn't even ask me. 

 

[palmfish]

Quote:

It's unlikely Willieboy will know how his Nad compares to dedicated amps as he bought it in place of a dedicated amp, but I could be wrong.
 
The Nad takes its HP output from the speaker output stage through resistors, so its output is discrete. Nads generally sound very good with headphones, as indeed with speakers, so long as you're not looking for extra sparkle, which they don't have--or didn't. Very tonally neutral. If you want a brighter, more etched sound, go Rotel. Also discrete output.
 
I wouldn't recommend vintage receivers myself. They may sound good, but for how long? Better to get something with a warranty.
 
Hey, all this free advice and you didn't even ask me. 

No, but I would have...
 
Thanks, I'll check out Rotel too.
 
What do you know about Outlaw? RR2150?

 

[fubar3]

Quote:

I've been looking into getting an integrated amp/receiver for headphone listening and came across this discussion. Do you have any more opinions about your NAD
 

Hi, I have a NAD320 which turns off the speakers when phones are engaged. Using only the NAD for phone listening would save money relative to buying a companion amp for the phones but there are possible pitfalls:-
- The NAD is designed for 4 ohm speaker load.  The headphone load might not enable best sound quality
- A home theater setup would mandate a long headphone cord.
- Relative sound quality might be lower because there is more electronics involved in the final sound production.
- The NAD is more bulky and less portable than a headphone amp.

 

[Sonic Defender]

I have owned a few NAD components in my day and certainly liked their vintage gear, first run power envelop designs to be specific. As for my current integrated amp, a Creek Evolution, they feed the headphone from the main amp section controlled by a 220ohm resistor and the performance is excellent with both my HF2 and DT880 600ohm model. I have a Schiit Valhalla as well which I like quite a bit as well. That said, if I didn't have the Valhalla I don't think my listening experience would be that effected. When I A/B the amps in truth I have a hard time noticing anything appreciably different other than the fact that my Creek can drive the 880s much louder if I so desire.

 

[palmfish]

Fubar - So, how does your NAD 320 perform with headphones? Would you say it's comparable to a decent (say, $350) headphone amp?
 
Sonic - I need to take a closer look at the Creek Evolution. Does it have tone controls? Also, I found a minty NAD 3400 on Craigslist. This is a 10 year-old integrated amp that seems highly rated in various forums. Are you familiar with it? I've also seen a few NAD 7220PE's for sale on eBay. These are Power Envelope amps, right? I am worried by mentions of reliability issues with NAD receivers. Have you had any issues over the years?
 
Thanks for the responses, I really appreciate the information!

 

[Sonic Defender]

The Creek Evolution doesn't have tone controls, but don't let that scare you. I spent all of my life with tone controls and EQs and I'm over 40 so that has been some years. The Creek sound signature is a very balanced and engaging signature, I have never once in over three years with it missed having tone controls. I was able to audition the amp before buying so I knew how much I liked the sound signature. When I made the move to the Creek I had a really well respected NAD set-up of seperates - a monster 2600A Power Amp and a fantastic pre-amp, forget the model number, but it was quite respected. Despite this I just knew there was a richer sound that I craved. I couldn't afford the super high-end stuff that the dealer carried, but the owner was a really decent guy and took a lot of time explaining to me why the Evolution was such a good piece of equipment. If you go to the stores website, planetofsoundonline.com he has an article that discusses the Evolution and I think it is a good read.
 
To this day I am totally glad I made the move. I like the Creek sound, balanced, fast, engaging, accurate, but not clinical, typical British gear. You can find a used Evolution very affordably now and for a quality integrated that pumps out 85 quality watts you can't go wrong. The headphone section is fantastic plus if you want to drive speakers well you have a really nice little amp. I remember being shocked that an 85 watt amp could produce a wider bass range, and more powerfully than my huge NAD amp which I think was 110 watts. If you do get a chance to audition the Creek go for it. I think you'll be surprised, I know I was.

 

[Redcarmoose]

This somehow is a very interesting thread for me? I spent the last 39 years powering different headphones with different recievers. One thing I did learn is there is much trail and error. Every reciever and headphone combo has a different sound. The key is lucking out and finding the one which fits your sound.
 
 
 
After seeing the photograph on the second page I got a better understanding of the OPs goals. 
 
 I guess with the amount of portable DAPs in use a clean powerful amp delivered to your door for  $349.00 usd is a hoot! I bet it sounds great. I guess that the mass production of NAD gets the consumer a nice rig by the economy of volume production plan. Overseas where I am this NAD is for sale too and one name I do know.
It would be interesting to see the sound difference between the Nuforce Icon at $178.00 with the headphones. For the OP this is a perfect fit, others may want other choices of  digital input. The Nuforce HDP offers USB, S/PDIF in coaxial and 3.5 mm optical which may be of use for some at costing $100.00 more than the NAD at $449.00 usd.
 
 
The best part of this rig is that you could power some nice speakers if you ever wanted to.

 

[Sonic Defender]

Forgot to address your NAD questions palmfish. I purchased all of my NAD stuff used, except for a cd player and I never had any trouble with my equipment, but I did hear some tales of unreliability. Both of my amps were 80's products and considered very good-stellar performers for their price. My first NAD was the 3040PE which I just loved and wished I had never sold it. I remember an electronics technician trying to get me to trade my little 40watt NAD for a big bad Harmon & Kardon 100watt amp, but the NAD kicked it's ass silly so I didn't trade for it. The only issue for you if you go vintage is age and that there are less really qualified technicians who know how to repair older gear well. If you can find a good old 3040PE that is working well I think you will like it, but the age thing is always there.
 
I purchased a decent Techniques New ClassA amp from ebay a few years back to drum to, but it failed and finding anybody to repair it was hard and it would have been expensive so I say put your money in new/newer equipment if you can. Truthfully that was also part of the reason I decided to sell my NAD seperates, age. I was worried about getting hit with a big repair bill so I cashed in my chips and went current-state. No regrets from me. Even my brother who has a huge collection of vintage audio stuff and a few good newer pieces really respects what my Creek brings to the table.

 

[blacknile]

I used to own a NAD C370. Great powerful amp and it had an excellent headphone out. I now own a Creek Evolution. It drives my Beyerdynamic DT880 600ohm better than the Little Dot MKIII I used to own. 

 

[palmfish]

Thanks for the info Sonic. now that you mention it, I think spending $300 for a 20 year-old NAD 3400 (100WPC) is not as smart as spending $500 for a brand-new NAD 326BEE (50WPC). I suspect the 326 is more than capable enough to drive my speakers to reasonable levels (this is a living room 2nd system, not my primary). I'm actually more interested in the quality of the preamp because that's where the headphone stage is found. I need to do more research on the NAD preamp hierarchy to see if 326 is <, =, or > than a 3400...
 
I love the idea of using vintage gear, but even the highly regarded Japanese monster receivers from the 70's are overrated, I believe. There's a feeding frenzy for them, and they certainly are dynamic and powerful, but I doubt if they have any nuance or subtlety in their sound. I don't think they would be any different or better than the Carver Receiver I'm currently using.
 
Blacknile, I did find one article that said the C370 is basically a newer progression of the 3400. The 3400 was highly regarded in it's day, but it's age scares me (I originally thought it was 10 years old but I now know it's more like 20 - 25 years old). The 370 is about 10 years old and a monster! If I could find one of those, it would be an easier decision. Then there's the C375BEE, which is the current version. $1300 new at Crutchfield.
 
On the other hand, the Creek Evolution is looking good to me. If I'm going to enter 4-figure pricing, might as well look at the boutique stuff too!
 
BTW, this is to replace my 27 year-old Carver Receiver (MXR-130) that I bought new in 1985. I had it completely refurbished by Rolland at Hi-Tech Audio in March, but the more I think about it, the more I realize that I'm looking for something more refined and elegant for my living-room system. I'm wasting my time looking at vintage gear. It's cool and fun to relive my youth, but from a fidelity POV, it's not what I'm after.