I have what I believe to be a real bargain in audiophile terms - a first-class All-in-One Streamer/ DAC / Amplifier - the NAD Master Series M33. Recognised at least by Stereophile as a big step up from what NAD used to represent as they awarded it Best Amp of the Year, Best Component of the Year and Editors' Choice.
Be that as it may, I'd like to upgrade to something even better but I don't want a pile of boxes to achieve the end result for all-digital music.
Is there a better all-in-one than this NAD? I suspect not, so next option is a 2-box solution where the power amp is separate, fed by a Streamer / DAC / Pre. Again any suggestions welcome, but the streamer must have an intuitive and comprehensive control app that can be loaded onto a Windows PC as well as iPad and Android - I don't want to have to resort to Roon.
It needs to have AES3, coax and optical digital inputs and preferably a headphone output, HDMI ARC, a front panel volume control, a decent display to show what's playing, a trigger to power the amp and speakers, an IR remote, a maximum height of about 7" / 180 mm - and of course it must sound great! No need for a phono stage or any analogue inputs.
The power amp is of lesser difficulty as there are many to choose from but in fact I've recently purchased a pair of Ralph's Atma-Sphere Class D mono amps that I believe will do the job very well.
Speakers are Avantgarde Duo XDs so an easy 18 ohm load requiring relatively few watts.
I have Steamer / DAC / Pre units from HiFi Rose, Lumin, Auralic and one or two others on my radar, but I’m not convinced that any tick all the boxes. The forthcoming NAD M66 may be the ideal solution, but an up-market brand would appeal, but only if it actually offers better sound of course. What am I missing? Thanks Peter
Be that as it may, I'd like to upgrade to something even better but I don't want a pile of boxes to achieve the end result for all-digital music.
Is there a better all-in-one than this NAD? I suspect not, so next option is a 2-box solution where the power amp is separate, fed by a Streamer / DAC / Pre. Again any suggestions welcome, but the streamer must have an intuitive and comprehensive control app that can be loaded onto a Windows PC as well as iPad and Android - I don't want to have to resort to Roon.
It needs to have AES3, coax and optical digital inputs and preferably a headphone output, HDMI ARC, a front panel volume control, a decent display to show what's playing, a trigger to power the amp and speakers, an IR remote, a maximum height of about 7" / 180 mm - and of course it must sound great! No need for a phono stage or any analogue inputs.
The power amp is of lesser difficulty as there are many to choose from but in fact I've recently purchased a pair of Ralph's Atma-Sphere Class D mono amps that I believe will do the job very well.
Speakers are Avantgarde Duo XDs so an easy 18 ohm load requiring relatively few watts.
I have Steamer / DAC / Pre units from HiFi Rose, Lumin, Auralic and one or two others on my radar, but I’m not convinced that any tick all the boxes. The forthcoming NAD M66 may be the ideal solution, but an up-market brand would appeal, but only if it actually offers better sound of course. What am I missing? Thanks Peter