Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
This integrated AMP has shaken my beliefs about the impact and preamp and/or amp can make in the performance of a stereo system. I do not change my equipment frequently and am rarely prone to highenditis. I was content with the sound of prior amp and preamp; a B & K Pro10mc and a NAD 208THX. I was driven to make a change, for ergonomic reasons. I purchased the M3 because of prior personal history with NAD products and customer service, consistently good reviews and the opportunity to purchase a demo unit at a good price. Upon installation, I was flabbergasted. I did not expect to hear any significant changes and simply hoped to equal/maybe slightly better my prior components. Here is what I heard:

Tighter, deeper and more detailed bass.
Broader and deeper soundstage.
Rock solid center image.
Greater detail and resolution.
Greater realism.

Since I admit the possibility of being influenced by reviews, personal attachment to a purchasing decision, etc. I asked both my son and my wife to independently listen to the music of their choice and tell me what they thought. I gave them no preparation and they did not know my opinion, prior to listening. I made sure I was not in the room while they listened. Neither of them is into the audio side of things and they simply like to listen to music on a regular basis.
Both reported back that they heard significant improvement in the system and when asked for details listed the same/similar comments as mine above. Although a perfect test, I am comfortable that I am truly hearing most/all of what I have listed above.

My other components are:

PSB Goldi speakers, Sony DVP-s7700 DVD/CD player, HK turntable, Shure Ultra cartridge, NAD PP3 phone pre-amp.

Your mileage may vary, but I am delighted with the improvements this product has brought to my music system.

trichardlin

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
3.67 of 5, 3.00 votes

Price Paid:  $2000.00 from Audiogon

Summary:
This is the best amp I've had. My previous amps included Cary (tube, still have it), Plinius, Audio Research, Parasound, etc. I'm using it to drive my Diapason Adamantes III. My front end is a modified Denon DVD 3910 multi-format player. The sound of this amp is articulated and refined. It might be a bit 'inward,' but just a bit. It is generally very engaging and enjoyable. Others already comment on the excellent build quality, and I certainly agree with them.

Unlike many high end amps, this amp is not afraid of including convenient features. It comes with enough inputs (5+1) to accommodate modern music lovers. So in addition to your usual sources, you probably still have rooms for your iPod, PS3, etc, etc. There are many other handy features, such as a programable display, tone controls, two sets of speaker connections and two remote controls.

What's not to like? Only one small thing: the display is too small to be legible from across the room.

All in all, this is an excellent amp and is a great value.

Strengths:
Refined and powerful sound. Excellent build quality. Lots of convenient features. Great price.

Weaknesses:
Display characters are too small.

Similar Products Used:
Plinius 8200 Mk II, Cary SLI-80, Parasound separates, Audio Research separates.

martinp24

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Price Paid:  $2000.00 from Krazy Kat

Summary:
I had many integrated amps in my life and this one is a particular one. At first sight, the idea of spending big bucks on a NA, wich was for me, a good mid-fi product, wasn't tasteful. When i heard it, you have to understand that this NAD master series have nothing to do with the old NAD that we were used to listen before. First of all, the physical side of the amp is top notch, very solid built and very good looking. For 2000$, there is nothing in that world that can compete with it. You would have to pay at least 6000-7000$ to see a reasonnable difference. I tried it with very good equipment. I have paradigm reference studio's 40, very good cables all around and a CEC cd player wich is very nice also. The bass are deep and very strong, the medium are very present, the voices sounds like they are in the room. When NAD made the master series, they wanted to compete in the HIFI section and they didnt miss it!

Strengths:
solid construction, deep tight bass, very good medium, excellent price/quality, balanced input, RS232 connector.

Weaknesses:
seriously, i do not know... For 2000$, finding a SERIOUS weaknesses is very hard at this point!

Similar Products Used:
Sim Audio I3, Sim Audio I5

stephen_fitts

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
3.50 of 5, 2.00 votes

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
This is an exceptional product. The build quality is second to none and the features are useful and easy to access. Fundamentally, this integrated is simply an exceptionally engineered product that easily competes (beats?) Levinson and Krell, etc. The measured performance by Stereophile was nearly flawless. Although the reviewer took issue with a certain "inward" character of the sound, and a tubey top and bottom end, I have not found those traits to hold true with all loudspeaker pairings.

What I have found is that with certain speaker designs the amplifier exhibits the noted tendancies (which also seem to manifest as dynamic compression). For instance, when used with a pair of Tyler Acoustics Taylo Ref Monitors, I was always cranking the volume and wondering where the dynamics and brilliant top-end went.

However, when I pulled out my cult-classic Sound Dynamics 300Ti, they perked right up and shined brightly. Dynamics were much improved and a brilliant top-end was clearly apparent. I dont know if this is due to impedance load, sensitivity or what. But clearly this amp can sound very different with different speaker pairings. Never did it lack power with the Taylos, it was just more polite and had less swing.

Overall, I continue to be impressed with this exceptional product. I intend to hold onto it for years and immediately begin shopping for a suitable full-range speaker mate. Its characteristics are: warmth, bounce and rhythm, exceptionally solid and deep bottom end, clear and smooth top end without any grain or harshness, satisfyingly high inner detail and inky dark background. Etc. I could go on and on.

For anyone willing to spend the coin, this product should be placed at the top of the list. My PS Audio HCA-2 paired with Audio Alchemy DLC paled in comparison.

Truly a worthy introduction to the top-tier of high end audio! It takes much more $ to better this product.

Strengths:
Speed, detail, deep and solid bass and smooth airy highs.

Weaknesses:
Inward character when paired with certain speakers.

Similar Products Used:
Too many to mention. Superphon, Pass Labs, Proceed, Creek, Naim, PS Audio, etc. etc.

kugs22

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
4.50 of 5, 4.00 votes

Price Paid:  $1900.00 from Audiogon

Summary:
You will notice that despite all the audio press raves about this piece, there is, at this juncture, only one enthusiastic review posted. I bought the M3 because I was enamored of the NAD 372 sound (see my separate review) and thought this would just be "more better." Instead, I got a completely different presentation.

Between the 372 and the M3 I tried a Red Wine Sig 30 and a Musical Fidelity NuVista m3. I reverted to the 372 with all its warts both times, for different reasons. I had high hopes for the M3, but in the end, it wasn't to my liking. Yes, it is extremely and naturally detailed, and has the same slightly warm presentation as the 372. It can play small scale classical music in a league with the big boys. But there is something...I don't know..."wussy" about it with most music that volume alone won't cure. I think the Stereophile review hit on its two weaknesses correctly: it has an "inward" presentation despite the fact that all the information is there, and it has push-pull tube sounding bass (read, overly warm at 100-200 hz), which is unexpected and (in my case, anyway, as a recovering push-pull junky) unwelcomed. The biggest detraction from an involving musical experience is the "inward" thing - the treble info, etc. is all there, but the amp doesn't seem to get microdynamics quite right, and it doesn't "bounce" well from note to note. In a word, "polite." The 372, on the other hand, is a bit rougher - more like your good natured beer buddy; lots of life, lots of laughs, a good time. Impolite, but forgiven for his sins. I find the bass balance much better on the 372, even if a little woolly. The stage depth is as good, but the "up front" part is more "up front," i.e, there is a bit more presence with the 372. To me, this was a good lesson in "more $ does not necessarily = better sound." It was different, and better in some technical ways, but ultimately unsatisfying. I wound up shipping my 372 up to Chris Johnson at the Parts Connexion for upgrades to the op amps, caps, and other key parts. Although fearful I would get in return a completely different sounding amp, I was pleased to find that I got what I was hoping the M3 was going to give me: "more better." Except for a bit of residual wooliness in the bass, my 372 is now laughably better than the M3 in every standard, objective audiophile way, including inner detail and dead-on tonal correctness. Notes fly, and they decay properly - microdynamics are great. And the amp is still fun - still beer, but now it's a micro-brew $10 six-pack. I have a $1300 wunderkind. I have owned much more expensive equipment, and better equipment, but I have never come close to this price/performance ratio in the amplification arena. I wish I could say the same for the M3, but I can't. On the other hand, if a restrained, polite presentation is your goal, and you listen primarily to small scale classical music, the M3 is hard to beat. But if you include so much as small scale jazz in your listening ensemble, I just can't recommend it. It won't "swing." At least it didn't for me, in my room, with my other gear, which is all I have to go on.

Strengths:
Wonderful and natural detail, stage size, fatigue-free treble, fleshed-out mids, no "transistor" sound (neutral, slightly warm presentation)

Weaknesses:
Microdyamics, inability to "throw" notes, lack of PrAT, "fat" bass

Similar Products Used:
See review above