NAD M10 or Lyngdorf TDAI 1120?
- Thread starter 0rangutan
- Start date
Just a quick note on my experiences with the NAD M33.
I have had the NAD M33 since Sunday and did the Dirac measurement procedure this morning. It was, to be honest more of a faff than I thought it was going to be - I had to start again a couple of times. I have to say that I didn't particularly care for the initial curve Dirac created and was disappointed that nearly an hours work, I felt, had gone down the drain. I can see why some would like it - for me it robbed the sound of bass and energy and created a soundstage that was too far back for me.
I then uploaded NAD's own target curve and this was much better and brings M33 closer to being a keeper. I would really like to try the Lyngdorf 3400 against it but I would have to shell out nearly £5,000 for the privilege. From what I have seen Room Perfect room correction seems a little easier to set up - I could be wrong though.
I was going to do another measurement later but from what I have read (and watched) what I have found with the standard Dirac approved curve is typical.
I have had the NAD M33 since Sunday and did the Dirac measurement procedure this morning. It was, to be honest more of a faff than I thought it was going to be - I had to start again a couple of times. I have to say that I didn't particularly care for the initial curve Dirac created and was disappointed that nearly an hours work, I felt, had gone down the drain. I can see why some would like it - for me it robbed the sound of bass and energy and created a soundstage that was too far back for me.
I then uploaded NAD's own target curve and this was much better and brings M33 closer to being a keeper. I would really like to try the Lyngdorf 3400 against it but I would have to shell out nearly £5,000 for the privilege. From what I have seen Room Perfect room correction seems a little easier to set up - I could be wrong though.
I was going to do another measurement later but from what I have read (and watched) what I have found with the standard Dirac approved curve is typical.
Steve356
Member
If you live in the UK, you should be able to get a home loan of a 3400.
I do live in the UK but locally the only way I can get a loan of a 3400 is by paying 90% of the cost upfront to be able to try one out. I have already forked out for the M33 (with 30 day return Policy) and so I didn't really want to tie up nearly £4,000 to test something out for a week or two.
It is a shame as it would be an interesting comparison on lots of levels.
Steve356
Member
That's the first I've heard of paying such a high upfront cost. If you feel like it, why not give Rob Sinden at Gecko a call or email him. Rob is the UK distributor for Lyngdorf and may be able to help you.
ThELiZ
pfm Member
Personally, I’d keep the M33 if I had the opportunity. The M33 uses the Purifi amp modules, which are state of the art. The Lyngdorf, unfortunately, measures poorly: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...nts-of-lyngdorf-tdai-3400-amp-eq-part-1.6738/
Shame, as RoomPerfect does appear to be great.
Just to be clear, I’m not saying the Lyngdorf won’t sound good, it’s just that when I buy MY equipment, I like to make sure the engineering is as good as I can afford. Whether it makes a difference in what I can hear, I couldn’t possibly say.
If the Lyngdorf comes with the Purifi modules in the future... I’ll be first in line.
Shame, as RoomPerfect does appear to be great.
Just to be clear, I’m not saying the Lyngdorf won’t sound good, it’s just that when I buy MY equipment, I like to make sure the engineering is as good as I can afford. Whether it makes a difference in what I can hear, I couldn’t possibly say.
If the Lyngdorf comes with the Purifi modules in the future... I’ll be first in line.
Amber Audio
This is the Day
The new Lyngdorf power amps are going to use the NFB Purifi stuff, been delayed due to C19.
Not sure whether they will revamp the integrated amps any time soon or let them run a while, I'd guess the latter. Despite the AS review slagging I find Lyngdorf amps to sound excellent, have had a fair few popular makes.
He did seem happy with RP in part 2 of the review:
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...measurements-of-lyngdorf-roomperfect-eq.6799/
Not sure whether they will revamp the integrated amps any time soon or let them run a while, I'd guess the latter. Despite the AS review slagging I find Lyngdorf amps to sound excellent, have had a fair few popular makes.
He did seem happy with RP in part 2 of the review:
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...measurements-of-lyngdorf-roomperfect-eq.6799/
Overall I am happy to give a recommendation for Lyngdorf TDAI-3400. Its room equalization is a joy to use and makes a fantastic difference to your listening experience.
ThELiZ
pfm Member
That's really encouraging to hear. Should be some belting products coming out in the near future, hopefully.
Btw, I'm sure they (Lyngdorf) do sound great, as many people seem to have really enjoyed them. I wanted to make that clear that I don't believe the unflattering measurements equate to bad sound, it's just something I use to help me purchase.
Btw, I'm sure they (Lyngdorf) do sound great, as many people seem to have really enjoyed them. I wanted to make that clear that I don't believe the unflattering measurements equate to bad sound, it's just something I use to help me purchase.
I have installed both NAD and Lyngdorf for clients, of the two I preferred the sound and set up of the Lyngdorf, I have been selling and installing hifi for nearly 30+ years now and the sound of the Lyngdorf for the money (a not inconsiderable amount but not stratospheric either) was extremely good. My client is a DJ and producer who as well as a career in dance music, listens to everything from Dylan to Nick Drake to Can and more, so needed something to satisfy all musical genres. After 6 months of letting the system settle in I went back and set up some custom EQ settings for him, he then described one of the tracks we listened to after as being almost a religious experience. My work was done. The NAD is no slouch, but I find the DIRAC system less satisfying in it's implementation than Room Perfect, both amps are very, very good, but I would choose the Lyngdorf, to me it was very close to that holy grail of a straight wire with gain.
A quick update. I eventually let the NAD M33 go and have organised to have it sent back to the dealer for refund.
There were a few reasons. Firstly, from the first switch on the amplifier hummed (noise, not smell). It was relatively quiet but it was one those things that once you have heard it and know it is there you can always hear it. I have had issues with a couple of amplifiers in the past where transformer hum to varying degrees was an issue and spent many weeks trying different solutions including DC blockers expensive mains cables. Incidentally, there was no noise at all with
I have also found dealers to approach to the problem varies - some say "all amps hum" and it is something to live with and I didn't want to fall into this category. One dealer in the past even suggested buying longer cables to position the amplifier as far away from the listening position as possible. And, yes, I know that this is Class D with no transformers - which made the noise all the more odd to me - but I didn't want to be left with an amp I was unhappy with from this perspective or chasing expensive solutions.
I am sure I could have got the dealer involved, swapped out amplifiers to see if the one I had was unique with the hum problem (a couple of other owners I contacted said their M33's were silent) but I didn't want miss the dealer's 30 day returns Policy (and yes I have fallen foul of this before).
Secondly, the sound. Dirac just didn't do it for me. I spent a few fruitless hours doing different measurements - oh the looks I got! - none of which, to me, really offered a complete solution. As mentioned previously uploading NAD's own target curve was the best sound I got from the M33 but even then, whilst it sounded very good, it was difficult to connect with the sound it produced albeit I can see why some people would love it's presentation. It did, I guess, what it sets out to do which is reduce bass boom, improve sound staging, smooth out high frequency peaks. My frustration though was that it also seemed to strangle to sound too. I assume that in better hands - i.e. someone who knows what they are doing - the sound could have been tailored more to my liking.
I also had a couple of niggles with streaming which I am sure would probably be sorted by a firmware update. Also the phono stage wasn't fantastic but I had always anticipated buying a separate phono preamp anyway.
On more positive notes it is easily the best built amplifier I have owned and the touchscreen is an absolute joy to use. To be fair it is the best sounding Class D amp I have heard especially in the mid and high frequencies which were smooth and detailed.
So, I really had high hopes for a one box solution but it was not to be. I would still like to revisit something like the M33 in the future. If Dirac is the RC solution to be used I hope that the instructions improve and it becomes more user friendly to the layman.
There were a few reasons. Firstly, from the first switch on the amplifier hummed (noise, not smell). It was relatively quiet but it was one those things that once you have heard it and know it is there you can always hear it. I have had issues with a couple of amplifiers in the past where transformer hum to varying degrees was an issue and spent many weeks trying different solutions including DC blockers expensive mains cables. Incidentally, there was no noise at all with
I have also found dealers to approach to the problem varies - some say "all amps hum" and it is something to live with and I didn't want to fall into this category. One dealer in the past even suggested buying longer cables to position the amplifier as far away from the listening position as possible. And, yes, I know that this is Class D with no transformers - which made the noise all the more odd to me - but I didn't want to be left with an amp I was unhappy with from this perspective or chasing expensive solutions.
I am sure I could have got the dealer involved, swapped out amplifiers to see if the one I had was unique with the hum problem (a couple of other owners I contacted said their M33's were silent) but I didn't want miss the dealer's 30 day returns Policy (and yes I have fallen foul of this before).
Secondly, the sound. Dirac just didn't do it for me. I spent a few fruitless hours doing different measurements - oh the looks I got! - none of which, to me, really offered a complete solution. As mentioned previously uploading NAD's own target curve was the best sound I got from the M33 but even then, whilst it sounded very good, it was difficult to connect with the sound it produced albeit I can see why some people would love it's presentation. It did, I guess, what it sets out to do which is reduce bass boom, improve sound staging, smooth out high frequency peaks. My frustration though was that it also seemed to strangle to sound too. I assume that in better hands - i.e. someone who knows what they are doing - the sound could have been tailored more to my liking.
I also had a couple of niggles with streaming which I am sure would probably be sorted by a firmware update. Also the phono stage wasn't fantastic but I had always anticipated buying a separate phono preamp anyway.
On more positive notes it is easily the best built amplifier I have owned and the touchscreen is an absolute joy to use. To be fair it is the best sounding Class D amp I have heard especially in the mid and high frequencies which were smooth and detailed.
So, I really had high hopes for a one box solution but it was not to be. I would still like to revisit something like the M33 in the future. If Dirac is the RC solution to be used I hope that the instructions improve and it becomes more user friendly to the layman.
badlyread
pfm Member
I have had a Lyngdorf TDAI 1120 for just over a week now. We have moved to a small cottage and the living room is difficult hence the purchase of the Lyngdorf.
I have never let HiFi dominate the living space and the form of the 1120 meant that it would fit nicely on a sideboard. Straight out of the box it sounded good not the dry/thin sound I had been expecting from a digital amp. A few days later I spent 30 minutes setting up RoomPerfect (I did 9 readings -100%) and it just sounded fantastic. Never expected such a difference.
As mentioned by 0rangutan the only slight downside is the app UI. Perfectly functional but could do with a bit of work but I’ll overlook that for the amazing sound.
Highly recommended.
I have never let HiFi dominate the living space and the form of the 1120 meant that it would fit nicely on a sideboard. Straight out of the box it sounded good not the dry/thin sound I had been expecting from a digital amp. A few days later I spent 30 minutes setting up RoomPerfect (I did 9 readings -100%) and it just sounded fantastic. Never expected such a difference.
As mentioned by 0rangutan the only slight downside is the app UI. Perfectly functional but could do with a bit of work but I’ll overlook that for the amazing sound.
Highly recommended.
What speakers are you using? look like could be Guru's ?
I have had a Lyngdorf TDAI 1120 for just over a week now. We have moved to a small cottage and the living room is difficult hence the purchase of the Lyngdorf.
I have never let HiFi dominate the living space and the form of the 1120 meant that it would fit nicely on a sideboard. Straight out of the box it sounded good not the dry/thin sound I had been expecting from a digital amp. A few days later I spent 30 minutes setting up RoomPerfect (I did 9 readings -100%) and it just sounded fantastic. Never expected such a difference.
As mentioned by 0rangutan the only slight downside is the app UI. Perfectly functional but could do with a bit of work but I’ll overlook that for the amazing sound.
Highly recommended.
badger748
Former bacon enthusiast
@badlyread
I was considering one of these (the Lyngdorf) to go with some Neat Petite Classic/30th, again living in a small cottage with difficult rooms.
Initially I was thinking Naim Uniti Atom, as like you, I want a one box neat solution. Did you consider this or did you go straight in for the Lyngdorf?
Cheers
I was considering one of these (the Lyngdorf) to go with some Neat Petite Classic/30th, again living in a small cottage with difficult rooms.
Initially I was thinking Naim Uniti Atom, as like you, I want a one box neat solution. Did you consider this or did you go straight in for the Lyngdorf?
Cheers
badlyread
pfm Member
Yes, the excellent Guru Juniors. My second pair after I stupidly sold them a year back. New old stock from Tom Tom Audio.
badlyread
pfm Member
This is IMHO better than the Naim Atom (I owned one for over a year) due to RoomPerfect. The Atom is good but will not make the room better. I got a good deal on the Lyngdorf and could not be happier (PM if you want to discuss further).
camverton
pfm Member
Off topic: Just to say what a lovely picture on the wall.I have had a Lyngdorf TDAI 1120 for just over a week now. We have moved to a small cottage and the living room is difficult hence the purchase of the Lyngdorf.
I have never let HiFi dominate the living space and the form of the 1120 meant that it would fit nicely on a sideboard. Straight out of the box it sounded good not the dry/thin sound I had been expecting from a digital amp. A few days later I spent 30 minutes setting up RoomPerfect (I did 9 readings -100%) and it just sounded fantastic. Never expected such a difference.
As mentioned by 0rangutan the only slight downside is the app UI. Perfectly functional but could do with a bit of work but I’ll overlook that for the amazing sound.
Highly recommended.
badlyread
pfm Member
‘Making The Most of It’ by MD Sanders (original). Picked up in a gallery in Brockenhurst, Hampshire (‘Narnia’ where Mark Kermode lives) the county we used to live in.
Something akin to us walking our dogs. Sorry about the reflections. Much better in the flesh as with all art.
Something akin to us walking our dogs. Sorry about the reflections. Much better in the flesh as with all art.
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