NAD T955 Mini Review

[Affejunge]

I have had my NAD T955 5-channel 100wpc installed for about a week now and I thought I would share some thoughts:

First, build quality. Wow, this thing is a tank. I am also really glad I did not get the Emotiva as the NAD peeks out about 1/2in from the edge of my shelf, and the Emotiva was 3 inches deeper!

I have banana plugs on my mains and the other channels are bare wire. First, plenty of room to get back there and slide the wire in. MUCH better than my experience with AVRs. Next, the nuts are tough suckers. Heavy-duty plastic and, man, could I torque down on that thing with no give in the case or the mount. Solid.

Second, it had to really push my Blue Jean interconnects on. But no worries, here the build quality showed itself again. Unlike all the AVRs I have used in the past, there was no give on the RCA jack. Very impressive.

It is finally nice to have all of my channel driven off the same amp. Before I had a the Adcom GFA-5200 50wpc driving my mains and another Adcom driving my center and rears. Though the second Adcom was rated at 60wpc, I had it set for +8 on my center and +5 for my rears, which are much closer than my mains..strange.

Anyhoo, now everything is much more tightly integrated.

For my first test, I played some vinyl. I figured this was the best test as it the source I listen to most and it runs two channels for a fair comparison. I must say at first I was not overwhelmed. There was no massive difference. I was a little disappointed, but then I listened more. I began to realize the music was much more detailed. There was less "smearing" of the audio and I could being to really hear separate instruments. Bass was much more crisp.

Then I popped over to watching Dish. I was sitting with my wife watching the Olympics. I could not believe how clean everything sounded. I am now really appreciating the joy of separates. Then we watched some American Idol. My wife complained about the new system. She said to was too revealing, she could really hear how bad some of the contestants are! (that's said, this year's Idol talent is really good).

I have also enjoyed some music and films. As of now, I have not had a chance for the amp to "stretch" its legs. As I like to listen to concerts at about 80db, my wife is a strong believer that music and film FX should be played exactly at just below audible.


That all for now, but the T955 for $799 is a great deal and I am very happy with the purchase.

 

[BudgetHT]

Thanks for the review Affejunge.
I'm in the same boat you were in. Emotiva or NAD, Emotiva or NAD...
I had two of the Emotiva UPA-1s on preorder, but backed out. Now I'm looking at the Emotiva XPA-3 or the NAD T955. I know the Emotiva amp has twice the power, but NAD has a long standing reputation.
I don't listen to music at ungodly high volumes so I really don't need all the extra headroom. I want an amp that sounds good at lower volumes for music, but has some punch for movies(which I do like loud)

 

[markw]

Glad you're enjoying the NAD.

I'm a bit of a fan myself.

I just have one suggestion:

Second, it had to really push my Blue Jean interconnects on. But no worries, here the build quality showed itself again. Unlike all the AVRs I have used in the past, there was no give on the RCA jack. Very impressive.

Instead of using brute force to "push" on RCA connectors, try twisting them as you insert then. That'll help relieve the stress on the physical units.

Lkewise, and perhaps even more important, try twisting again when removing them. Many RCA jacks have gone on to meet their maker by not.

 

[Affejunge]

. I want an amp that sounds good at lower volumes for music, but has some punch for movies(which I do like loud)

Due to my wife's listening preference, this exactly how I have been using my amp. I comes through. As I said, there is a "cleanness" there that I have never experienced before.

 

[3db]

I have had my NAD T955 5-channel 100wpc installed for about a week now and I thought I would share some thoughts:


That all for now, but the T955 for $799 is a great deal and I am very happy with the purchase.

Glad you enjoy it. I'm also a die hard NAD fan.

 

[GO-NAD!]

Glad you're enjoying it! As you might be able to tell from my handle, I'm what they would call around here, a "fanboy" of NAD. I'm very happy with my amp and tuner. But, I don't think you should be too surprised or disappointed that you didn't hear much difference between your new and old amps. You'll have much more headroom with the T955, but at low/normal levels I wouldn't really expect much, if any, difference at all.

 

[BudgetHT]

Due to my wife's listening preference, this exactly how I have been using my amp. I comes through. As I said, there is a "cleanness" there that I have never experienced before.

That's exactly what I'm looking for. A clean sound.
I was over at my wifes aunt and uncles house for dinner the other night and their boys are both musicians. One of them was playing the piano. I told my wife " you hear how that sounds when he strikes the key? That's what I want to hear through our speakers".
My wife likes music as much as I do and we were listening to the Nora Jones. Come away with me SACD last night. It sounds great on the RX-V665, but I know I'm missing some dynamics and I don't know how to explain it, but I can tell my receiver is struggling.

 

[rnatalli]

It sounds great on the RX-V665, but I know I'm missing some dynamics and I don't know how to explain it, but I can tell my receiver is struggling.

Usually I point to the speakers, but the newer Yamaha line really cut back on the amp section so that's probably what you're hearing when you're trying to turn it up. The 665 has full pre-outs so might be a good excuse to get an external amp

 

[BudgetHT]

Usually I point to the speakers, but the newer Yamaha line really cut back on the amp section so that's probably what you're hearing when you're trying to turn it up. The 665 has full pre-outs so might be a good excuse to get an external amp

Yeah, I know the Polk Monitor 50s are not that great. They will be next to get upgraded.

 

[Affejunge]

. It sounds great on the RX-V665, but I know I'm missing some dynamics and I don't know how to explain it, but I can tell my receiver is struggling.

Ha, that is so funny. It was my total dissatisfaction with the RX-V663 that lead me to separates. I have own three Yamaha models, so you could say I was a bit of a fan boy, but they lost me as a customer with the 663.

My major grip was not only did the 663 clip BTB and WTW, but it was doing something to the contrast of the HDMI video that made setting black levels/gamma, even with a light meter, impossible. I was so mad about this. Why mess with the video signal? Why not just pass along the ones and zeros?!

As for audio the receiver was "okay" I always felt something was missing. When I hooked up an external zAmp v3 (45wpc) to the mains, it actually made a big difference. That is what sold me on separates.

So, after trying many things, I am very happy with my modest separate system of:
Outlaw 970
NAD T955
Axiom M22 (mains)
Axiom VP150 (center)
JBL Northridge E30 (rears)
Oppo BDP-83SE
Rega P1
home built Phono pre-amp

So, my analog stage is now excellent with analog bass management. Since I have bookshelves as my mains, analog BM is key. Now I actually have no idea what to upgrade! (I cannot upgrade the main speakers until my kids are older)

 

[Seth=L]

I require pictures of the receiver's insides, I want to see the quality parts!!!

 

[DaleAV]

I had a 5 ch. NAD amp that lasted 3 days. This was new back around 2000.
I don't recall the model number. One channel went out and I thought it might have been the fuse. It required some major disassembly just to get to it.
So instead I returned it for a B&K 4330 (3 ch) and never looked back.

But I had a NAD receiver for many years and it was one of the best I've ever owned (or heard).