So a few years back I picked up a
NAD 7225 stereo receiver at a garage sale. I know good amps aren't supposed to color sound, but this has been my go to amp for my near field stereo listening system and to me it sounds better then anything else I have listened to. I have experimented with a classic
Marantz 2238b, an onkyo stereo amp, and most recently a
Rotel Rb991. The current speakers I use are KEF LS50's, and I use them exclusively for near field stereo listening, and PC gaming when my headphones aren't on. The NAD is plugged into my PC via a
Schiit Magni 3 headphone amp, which I use as preamp. I keep the NAD at around 50% power. The headphone amp is plugged into an inexpensive external DAC, which is connected directly to the optical out on my motherboard. So it goes PC => DAC => Schiit => NAD. It's a complicated set up but I do this so I can hide the NAD on a shelf below the desk as it is larger and not super attractive. The Schiit doesn't color the sound much, I noticed this as it is a recent addition added because I wanted a more more powerful headphone amp that could double as easy access volume control on my desk top.
The reason I bring this up is, ideally I would love to have an amp with a smaller foot print for my desk. I am strongly considering one of the new NAD digital amps. The
D3020 v2, or possibly the
D3045. These would serve a few purposes in that I could get rid of my external DAC, plug the PC in directly, potentially lose desk clutter, and get the added benefit of a simple remote. Can I assume that NAD has a sound signature, and therefore it should be relatively safe for me to invest in one of these class D desk amplifiers. Or should I not mess with something that I enjoy, and alter my desk to better fit the receiver that I am already using?
I know I can do the Amazon thing and just return it if I don't like it, but at the end of the day sometimes that is a bit of a hassle, and I have a lot going on with the kids, work, life n' such.