Review: NAD C-541 CD Player

Category: Digital

My taste in listening runs the gamut of musical genres, with the exception of opera, country or pop. Primarily, I listen to small combo jazz, world/ethnic, and classical, with a strong preference for primarily acoustical instrumentation. No turntable or vinyl; I like that separation of instruments so central to CDs!

Having played in bands, my primary requirement in reproduction relates to the realism in imaging and soundstage. It drives me crazy to hear a drum as a "thump" or a bass as a "pluck" or a sax as a "bleat", when I know the sound is rich and varied, even over less than a second. Volume is not an issue for me, but clarity is critical. My pet peeve in digital is when the HF of brushes or cymbals sounds like radio static or water spraying.

I purchased the NAD C541i (improved version) within the past month with some trepidation. Auditions were clearly a winner in showrooms and the reviews were outstanding for this price range, but I had my doubts. It replaced an old TEAC changer, that had done well in my system, and I was additionally uncertain I could convert to single disc mode after having the choice to skip around 5 discs and upwards of 100 tracks. As it turns out, I had not reason to fear the change.

The sound is so well matched to my NAD amp that I am astounded. The detail, imaging, etc. are all strongly enhanced. Beyond the cliched, "I heard things I never heard before", I liked them all better! To my sensitive ears, the improvement in representation of each instrument and of multiple instruments simultaneously is wonderful. The full spectrum of sound seems very well represented; it handles rapid sound changes with applomb. No artifacts that I can detect of any note.

It's clean, clear, realistic for my purposes. In fact, I'm rediscovering my whole CD collection and finding some that I thought were so-so are actually musically rich and far more interesting than I remembered. They don't rate NADs as "musical" for nothing! Here's the clincher: I have to put down the book I'm reading (my usual listening habit is to read too) so often, simply because the music is so beautiful or sublime that it commands my attention foremost. No kidding!

Oh, and that single vs. multi-disc issue? Forget it! I enjoy so much more of every CD that I don't feel the need to skip around anymore. What I do feel the need to do is buy ever better recorded versions of the music I love, at whatever the price, because the NAD can pull more delicious detail out of the CDs than I ever thought I could afford.

The only weakness (and I still suspect that it's a matter of recording engineering as opposed to reproduction) is that large, massed orchestral sound isn't quite as detailed as I would like to satisfy my penchant for realism. Having heard the same CDs on systems costing tens of thousands of dollars, however, the level of improvement isn't so great over this little NAD that I would pay that much readily if I had it to spend.

The C541i does the job of CDPs "more than twice their price" according to all the reviewers; my vote is for several times their price!

Associated gear
NAD C740 receiver/amp
Energy XL15 bookshelf speakers