m33 > hegel on features
hegel > m33 for sonic purity
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- 7 posts total
I've owned the M33 for about two years. I decided to simplify my system. I got tired of the amp/preamp/phono amp/streamer/CD player and all the attendant wiring. I looked at a lot of the better integrated amps. I settled on the NAD because it had ample power to drive my Acoustat 2+2's and everything it does is in the digital domain so very quiet. I also was interested in Dirac, though frankly I thought that I would never use it. That said, the M33 without Dirac is an excellent powerful and transparent amp with none of the nasty characteristics of earlier Class D. The amp is a great deal even without Dirac. Dirac, however, is a total game changer. I was always skeptical of equalization or "room correction." For every article I read that said it improved the sound, I read another that said just the opposite. I will put this simply. Dirac is superb. After having used it, I just can not see EVER going back to a non-corrected system. In the process of setting up Dirac, I saw that I had 15-20 db peaks and troughs in frequency response in my room. I realized that before Dirac, I was listening to my room, not the loudspeakers. I have been in this hobby for 45 years, and the NAD M33 is one of an extremely small number of pieces of equipment that for me have been a total revelation and game changer. I can't recommend this unit enough (and, no, I don't work for NAD!). Just don't overlook Dirac. It requires investing a Saturday to figure it all out, but once you learn it, you'll never go back to a non-corrected system. |
I remember the M33 on my wish list back in 2020... After having the M10, C658, M33, Evo150, Lyngdorf 3400, I’ll stack rank per @jjss49
3400>M33 > Evo150> M10. Can’t really throw in the 658 (not an all in one). Fast forward to 2023.... Rose 520 >>> M33 And I love Purifi. GaN based Class D gets me so much closer to my older Class A days... |
- 7 posts total