I have had the Musical Fidelity a3.2 and a308 integrated, NAD c320bee integrated and 7175PE receiver. I have heard other NAD amps. The MF amps are in another league than the NAD amps. I am not down on NAD. I think they make fine equipment for the price points. I currently have two NAD receivers, an integrated amp, cd player and tuner in various systems around the house. The MF amps have much better resolution, soundstage, build quality, and resale value. As far as the a308 goes, it has all the power and muscle you need along with solid bass, alluring midrange, and airy highs. If you were to aquire one you will probably get the urge to further upgrade other parts of your system once you experience what it has to offer.
Agree with bill. I consider NAD to be entry-level hifi -- it offers excellent bang for your buck, and you have to spend a lot more to get substantially better sound. That said, quality gear like MF does deliver.
I have the NAD 162/272 and it's nice, but I'll be upgrading to Bryston in due time. Despite laws of diminishing returns, you essentially get what you pay for.
I have not been able to hear the MF and could not hear it with my stuff unless I take the Apollo and speakers to a dealer for a listening session (not out of the question). My best choice seems to be a used unit. That way if it is a bad decision sonically, I can sell with little or no impact.
One of my goals is to get an integrated with HT bypass so I can merge this into our HT setup. Currently I'm forced to physically change speaker wiring to go from HT to 2 channel (w/ the Rega and NAD). It's definitely worth the hassle with what I have today (to my ears).
I'm aware of the MF, Nait, and Krell kav400 for HT bypass. Of these, the Krell dimensions rule it out and I'm concerned that the Nait won't blend well sonically with the Rotel HT amp sound. From what I can read, the MF seems to be my best choice.
Do you guys think the A308 will be enough of an upgrade? I like the fact that it will drive two pairs of speakers (helps with other room options). But the 250 wpc (and >50% more current) of the A5 keeps calling to me.
snapcat, The MF a308 would be a very significant upgrade. I went from NAD to a MF a3.2 integrated. It was a upgrade in terms of clarity and soundstage. Then I went to the a308. The difference was drastic. There was a very noticeable improvement in every way. After a few months of using the a308 I then ran a dedicated line from the fuse box to the amp. Another noticeable difference for the better. As was stated by unbridled the a5.5 has the home theater bypass. The a5 does also. As far as comparison between the a308 and the a5 is concernered, I think the a308 is more musical. It does more than just put the music before you. It draws you into it. About a year ago I was thinking of moving from the a308 to an a5 or a NAD m3.I was at a dealer comparing the a5 with the M3 integrated. It was set up with the a5 cd player and Spendor s8e speakers. The Nad seemed to have a veil over the music compared to the MF a5. The a5, though having a noticeable improvement over the M3 in terms of clarity and resolution, was a bit too bright and forward in its presentation of the music. I went away with the conclusion that the a308 sounds better than both the a5 and m3. As I stated in my earlier post in this thread the a308, although rated at 150W compared to the a5 at 250w, has plenty of muscle. It has a superb dual mono power supply. I was driving Dynaudio Focus 140 speakers at the time.
This has been helpful. It may be a couple of months before I can make this purchase. Your discussion on the differences you heard between the A308, A5, and M3 help clarify some things. I recently moved from the B&W603s3 to the 683 and noticed an obvious change in a more forward sound (in additon to deeper & tighter bass), much to my liking. However, I don't think that an excessive amount of forwardness is what I want and may decide to choose the A308 over the A5. I noticed in one of your other posts where you purchased a Simaudio integrated. Can you provide any comments on it wrt to the A308?
I bought the Simaudio for a my bedroom system, a different set up from the one in my living room where I used the a308. The Simaudio does not have the power of the a308 although it has a wonderful combination of detail and warmth. I am using it with a pair of Vienna Acoustics Haydn Grand's. I may try it in my living room system where I have a pair of Dynaudio Contour s1.4.
The only thing I disagree with Bill is his saying the A5 was a bit too bright and forward. But I guess we all hear differently and with different associated equipment. I find the A5 digs out more detail than the NADs, it creates more space around instruments and allows vocals to sound very natural. The headroom created by the extra power really opens our Quads and while there's bass by the bucket loads, it's very controlled. With 70 amps peak to peak, this amp is quick and definite about how it deals with the music.
If the HT bypass feature is important, you can always consider the PS Audio GCC series. 3 choices from 100 to 500 RMS/channel and a pair of Balanced inputs for a future upgrade. They run very cool, indeed being class 'd'. When I previewed the Krell, I liked the sound but hated the heat output and the fact you can't run it hard for long as a result.
The GCC I own really plays well with my current hog Magnepans.
For me it'll probably come down to a choice between whether the ability to drive 4 speakers is more important than the extra current/power of the A5. I could likely check out the A5.5 at a dealer with my gear, but I don't know of any way to listen to the A308 other than to buy one....
Fun stuff huh? Either way, it appears I'll get a significant change in the direction I want.
