NAD Electronics has introduced a new affordable integrated amplifier, the C 328, which is designed for the music lover searching for a superb sounding amplifier that can master music sources, past and present. The NAD C 328 has a U.S. MSRP of $549 and will be shipping in November 2017.
The company’s latest amplifier continues NAD’s “simple is better” design philosophy. This approach contributes to ease of use and maximizes performance. The C 328 features 50W x 2 continuous power into 8 or 4 Ohms and provides a deep reservoir of power that allows your speakers to reveal every nuance of musical detail.
NAD designers have shunned conventional power hungry linear power supplies and Class AB output stages that waste nearly half of the energy consumed producing heat rather than sound. Instead, they have developed even better performing circuits based on switch mode power supplies and Class D output stages. Once thought to be inferior to traditional topologies, NAD’s advanced engineering in this area has created some of the best performing amplifiers regardless of basic design principle. These new designs are very linear over a wide bandwidth, providing dramatic advances over previous models and provide consistent performance into all speaker loads.
The C 328 HybridDigital amplifier design uses a customized version of the proven Hypex UcD output stage. This allows for massive power output with nearly unmeasurable distortion and noise in the audible range. Every detail of this design has been carefully crafted and perfectly executed to wring out every last drop of performance.
As a nod to the importance of streaming, the C 328 comes with support for Bluetooth. So, the user can connect instantly to the C 328 with Bluetooth allowing them to easily stream music wirelessly from their smart device. Because of the high performance digital circuitry included in the C 328, Bluetooth can sound much better, according to NAD.
Despite the amplifier’s clean panel design and overall simplicity, the C 328 provides a variety of important inputs for MM Phono, Analog Line In and SPDIF Coax, and Optical. The amp also features Bass EQ and IR Remote Control.
“Anyone who is familiar with NAD’s proud history knows that an affordable high performance integrated amplifier is what launched the brand 45 years ago.” explained Greg Stidsen, director of technology and product planning for NAD. “With the C 328, the design goal was to produce the best sounding amplifier in its class, incorporate meaningful features while retaining the simplicity that NAD is famous for. This amp is all about performance for the money and we believe NAD fans, new and old, will be delighted with the result.”
