What did you end up doing?
NAD M22 V1 versus M22 V2 or M23
Looking for folks with experience on 1 or more these amps - especially comparisons between any 2. I’ve already gleaned what I can from search (I think).
Recently acquired an M22 (V1) that I’m pleasantly surprised with. It pairs especially nicely with a VAC tube preamp and warm-sounding Hagerman tube phono stage. This amp was meant for "non-critical" duties alongside M12 in a movies & streaming system, but ended up liking it enough that it’s now got a fighting chance in my smaller 2ch + vinyl system. Incidentally the M12 preamp didn’t fare nearly as well here - it has been mildly reprimanded and banned from the 2ch + vinyl rig lol.
I absolutely LOVE the power, killer dynamics + bass, and overall transparency of this amp. I’m less thrilled by what I discern as a little bit of listening fatigue coming from the upper treble region. And its midrange is certainly not supplying any added "sweetness". BUT it’s still good for a rollicking fun listen, and certainly wakes up my 10" Tannoys to a degree I’d not thought possible.
I’m looking specifically for a sense of what sonic gains could be expected from either the V2 revision (same nCore as V1) or an M23 (Eigentakt). I don’t really care for a technical discussion of why the new modules are better - I’m looking for subjective impressions. I also know about the lower-cost C298 - it looks sweet, but the aesthetics and build quality of Master series are important to me (however, I am still interested in C298 vs. M22 impressions).
If there’s hope of improvement from either upgraded model, I’d love to get that and put the M22 V1 back in my movies / streaming rig. I listen to my 2ch quite loud (~ 90+ dBs average), so the power of these NAD units seems to be a decisive advantage over the ~ 100 Watt class amps.
Don’t need to hear from haters of the M22 / M23 / Class D amps - I know they’re out there. Obviously I’m not one of you 🙂
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@jared_adams Didn't take a chance on the M23. Ended up going in a TOTALLY different direction, buying my dealer's old demo VAC Statement 450S (predating the iQ feature) tube amp. Put KT120 in place of the stock KT88 (huge change in sound here), and have been SUPER happy with the amp. I've also had VAC Master 300 in my main rig for a while now - these are both a large cut above the lower line VAC amps, like 200iQ. I still really like the M22; amazing performance for the $, but soon realized the rest of my system was beginning to lean heavily on the dark side to balance it and meet my sonic preferences. In particular, VPI turntables (which are very dark sounding, especially with the 3D arms) were a good match to M22. Even then, the M22 still needed a tube preamp to round it out, IMO. |
@mulveling Im having a very similar experience regarding the NAD M22. I have a Parasound P5 with the M22, and using multiple sources including CD, Technics 100C turntable, and a Lumin streamer. I’m finding the M22 a bit “steely” “colder” and “thin”. It proves excellent in HT applications, but with 2ch I keep wanting to turn the volume down because it sounds a bit sharp. I tried it with a McIntosh C8 tube preamp, and actually found it to be worse and much more in my face, compared with the Parasound P5. That was surprise— I expected the tubes to smooth out the hard edges a bit. It’s didn’t. I thought perhaps getting a hold of a classic AB amp, instead of the M22 to see if it’s the amp. Did you ever try that? Or, did you just abandon the solid state train for tubes? Any comments or thoughts on the matter are appreciated. |
Funny, I’ve also ended up with my M22 on a mixed tv / movies / streaming setup - where its "crisp" sound does great! I still think it’s a sweet amp for the money with a ton of power, but for 2ch it did best when I had a decidedly dark sounding source. When I moved on to a more neutral source, the M22 had to move on as well. It was really nicely balanced system for a time, though. And I just did not like it with the matching M12, at all. Other SS preamps were better. A good warm and smooth tube pre was best, by far. That is strange about your C8 - not familiar with that model, but occasionally I’ve encountered tube components that are (inexplicably) bright and lean - it could be done purposely to balance a warm tube amp. I’m a bit of a gear collector, so yeah I’ve got a few other class AB amps here. I have one SS (a nice Phison A2.120SE from Denmark) that I quite like - it’s warmer and sweeter than the M22 while still being great at bass like a SS should - of course, at a higher price. Really nice midrange on that one for a SS, but of course good tubes can do mids even better. I have high-end VACs but recently picked up a Rogue Hera II pre and ST100 power for fun and nostalgia of missing past Rogue gear (used to have their top Apollo Dark tube monos), and honestly it’s blown me away a bit. Mainly because I can tube-roll the hell out of that amp (only a quad of power tubes versus a dozen in Apollos) and affect sound drastically from stock. Biggest difference is going from big KT power tubes (KT120 stock) to Tung-Sol 7581A (like a KT66 or 6L6GC but with a bit more power handling) - and that tube just brings in all the classic tube tone and sweetness, paired with the Rogue’s typical bass prowess. When stock, Rogue amps are kind of like halfway to SS, with a drier midrange, neutral tone, and better bass response than other tube amps (also their preamps are a bit noisier than you’d get with VAC or ARC). But with 7581A the ST100 is kind of giving the best of both worlds. It’s making me think, maybe I just prefer sweeter tubes like 6L6 / EL34 over KT88 / KT120+. Of course the latter are ubiquitous in the tube amp market once you ask past ~50 Watts. |