NAD C399 Integrated Amplifier Review & Comments

What Dynaudio speakers did you try with the NAD C399?
I had the new Dynaudio Emit 30's and was thinking about getting this amplifier,
im currently using a Hegel H120 and it hasn't got enough power to control the bass, when i turn the volume up everything becomes quite boomy and quickly gets out of control, i tried a H190 and it was great but too much money.
I thought the C399 would be perfect with 180wpc?
I only listened to them for about 20 minutes at a demo, but the Confidence 20 seemed absolutely fine with the C399.

More than enough power and dynamics, never got close to maximum output.

Very neutral sound though, which might not be to everyone's taste.
 
I only listened to them for about 20 minutes at a demo, but the Confidence 20 seemed absolutely fine with the C399.

More than enough power and dynamics, never got close to maximum output.

Very neutral sound though, which might not be to everyone's taste.
I would say the dynaudio's sound slightly laid back and are on the warm side of neutral.
I expect the NAD C399 to give them a little boost in this area.
What amplifier did you go with in the end?
 
What Dynaudio speakers did you try with the NAD C399?
I had the new Dynaudio Emit 30's and was thinking about getting this amplifier,
im currently using a Hegel H120 and it hasn't got enough power to control the bass, when i turn the volume up everything becomes quite boomy and quickly gets out of control, i tried a H190 and it was great but too much money.
I thought the C399 would be perfect with 180wpc?
I have some older Audience 52 Dynaudio's which are 4 Ohm and 86db efficient (quite a few of the newer models are 6 Ohm). I thought the power of the C399 would be great for them as well but I think my ears have been spoilt by the tubes and power of my old Luxman, as the C399 just didn't sound "right" to me.

I'd still recommend you try the C399 if you're interested and can demo it. It's an interesting product and your ears might like the way they sound. I think that's key, we all like a slightly different sound, so that fact that the C399 wasn't right for my ears probably still means a lot of people will love it. The demo I had was using a Node as the streamer (no BluOs module).
 
I would say the dynaudio's sound slightly laid back and are on the warm side of neutral.
I expect the NAD C399 to give them a little boost in this area.
What amplifier did you go with in the end?

I have had the C399 since December. I took it to the dealer because I was trying to find some speakers that I really liked. :)

I'm generally very happy with the NAD. Like the overall sound, and it has plenty of power.

Many threads here about my "journey" for both amplifier and speaker choice. Probably not interesting after the fact. :)
 
Out of interest guys with the c399 what volume level do you have it on to get a good loud listening level? In db volume scale?
 
I have had the C399 since December. I took it to the dealer because I was trying to find some speakers that I really liked. :)

I'm generally very happy with the NAD. Like the overall sound, and it has plenty of power.

Many threads here about my "journey" for both amplifier and speaker choice. Probably not interesting after the fact. :)
What speakers do you have?
 
What speakers do you have?

Currently QAcoustics Concept 300, which from their specs don't demand much power at all, but absolutely come alive with a clean high-power amplifier they just get louder and louder without ever losing their composure.

I am (not so patiently) waiting for some ATC SCM40 which I have ordered.
 
The C399 has a good DF and rather shows the lacks of loudspeakers. According to STEREO:
4ohms, 63Hz/1kHz/14kHz:165/159/80

It is also a question of listening preferences. When I switched to a higher DF, I first thought of less output power. This is not the case, but the lower swing-out behavior of the chassis floods the room with less acoustic energy, which in turn stimulates my room modes less and brings more details to light.

If you have additionally installed Dirac Live, you can adjust your listening taste again while preserving the details!
 
Out of interest guys with the c399 what volume level do you have it on to get a good loud listening level? In db volume scale?

Obviously it depends on the track/mix, but in my room usually I can have an average of 85dB SPL with peaks over 95 on normal pop/rock tracks which is about as loud as I want for more than one or two tracks at -15dB on the volume dial.
 
Obviously it depends on the track/mix, but in my room usually I can have an average of 85dB SPL with peaks over 95 on normal pop/rock tracks which is about as loud as I want for more than one or two tracks at -15dB on the volume dial.
Thanks seems similar to the c388 then, need to get the dial cranked before you get substantial volume, I tend to listen at -25dB on the vol dial
 
It all depends on the room and speakers of course.

Normal listening volume is at around -25 too.

I've never been able to max it out. Once the average SPL was over 100dB I chickened out, worried that I was going to blow my speakers even though they were showing no signs of distress at that point.

I still had some room to go on the dial
however.
 
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Would anyone suggest how the KEF Q950 will perform when connected to NAD C399?
They are 200 Watts speakers?
The NAD will have no trouble at all driving them. If you've not bought them I'd be looking at the current R Series, especially now with money off at SSaV. Think the NAD deserves the far better R Series. The R5s, although smaller are just ÂŁ100 more than the Q950s but certainly much better.

How big is your room?

 
Would anyone suggest how the KEF Q950 will perform when connected to NAD C399?
They are 200 Watts speakers?

The Q950 are actually a fairly easy load. Generally larger speakers are easier to drive.

The Q950 have 91dB sensitivity and rated 8Ohm, so absolutely no problem with the C399, but actually a less powerful amplifier like the C700 would also have more than sufficient power and probably a more sensible match.

If going with the C399 I would recommend the LS50 Meta + subs or one of the R series floorstanders @gibbsy has pointed out are on sale at the moment.
 
The Q950 are actually a fairly easy load. Generally larger speakers are easier to drive.

The Q950 have 91dB sensitivity and rated 8Ohm, so absolutely no problem with the C399, but actually a less powerful amplifier like the C700 would also have more than sufficient power and probably a more sensible match.

If going with the C399 I would recommend the LS50 Meta + subs or one of the R series floorstanders @gibbsy has pointed out are on sale at the moment.
C399 handles the Elac Carina FS I have just fine. I don't think I've ever gone past -25 DB, my room is about 14 x 30 or so where we would ever listen. This was too loud working out. I tried the KEF LS 50 Meta and it also powered them more than suitably although the KEF wasn't my cup of tea soundwise. I think you would be more than fine with the C399.
 
My 399 was shipped today and arrives tomorrow. I'll be using it to drive a pair of Focal Aria 936 in stereo listening along with power amp duty for the L/R channels from my Denon 4500. Switching from a Roksan K3, so interested to hear the difference in sound. I'm running a Bluesound Node into the Roksan currently so also interested to see how the BlueOS card performs in the NAD against the Node.
 
My 399 was shipped today and arrives tomorrow. I'll be using it to drive a pair of Focal Aria 936 in stereo listening along with power amp duty for the L/R channels from my Denon 4500. Switching from a Roksan K3, so interested to hear the difference in sound. I'm running a Bluesound Node into the Roksan currently so also interested to see how the BlueOS card performs in the NAD against the Node.
Hi can you tag me into any "mini review" you write on this. I also have a Denon 4500 (currently coupled to a Audiolab 6000A for stereo music duties). The NAD is one of 2 possible upgrades I'm looking at. As you'll ne using it with the same Denon as me.... It should give me an insight!

TIA - for being my defacto guinea pig! 🤣
 
I have placed my order for NAD C399 few days ago and I requested to install the NAD MDC2 BluOS-D Module.
I am going to pair this with my old Q Acoustic 3050. Would be exciting to see the difference in sound fidelity.
 
Hi can you tag me into any "mini review" you write on this. I also have a Denon 4500 (currently coupled to a Audiolab 6000A for stereo music duties). The NAD is one of 2 possible upgrades I'm looking at. As you'll ne using it with the same Denon as me.... It should give me an insight!

TIA - for being my defacto guinea pig! 🤣
Haha, no worries! Yeah I'll let you know how it is after I have it all set up đź‘Ť
 
Hi can you tag me into any "mini review" you write on this. I also have a Denon 4500 (currently coupled to a Audiolab 6000A for stereo music duties). The NAD is one of 2 possible upgrades I'm looking at. As you'll ne using it with the same Denon as me.... It should give me an insight!

TIA - for being my defacto guinea pig! 🤣
Hey, sorry for the delay. Long story short, I sent the c399 back for a refund. It was a pain to set up and didn't play well with my system. Sub integration was off (low volume) and when integrated into the Denon seemed to have a weird echo effect on the front stage (which I'm sure could have been fixed with an audio delay, but I couldn't be arsed to find out). Ultimately though the sound was a let down. Really lacking in the low end and just felt a bit soul-less to me. I'm sure not a bad bit of kit in the right system, but it wasn't working for me.
 
I have purchased a new set. Bought NAD c399 with NAD MDC2 BluOS-D Module. Speakers are B&W 705 s3 + DB4s subwoofer. This compact set sounded very good during listening sessions. delivery in a few weeks, I'm curious about the home experience
 
Hi there! I got my hands on a C399 and I am experiencing a strange issue: My Nad cd-player is connected via a coaxial cable. The first half of a second of a song gets cut off. There might be a delay or threshold issue within the digital signal path. I took a small clip of the issue I am having to demonstrate. Can somebody look into it and maybe try to recreate with their unit?

In this example...the first syllable of the sung word "anyway" is not audible, gets cut...so you just hear "wayyy".
 

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