NAD Announces C 359S Integrated Amplifier And C 569 CD Player

All Image Credit: NAD

NAD has announced two new Classic Series components; the C 359S integrated amplifier that combines a re-engineered power amplifier with built-in BluOS streaming, HDMI eARC and subwoofer integration, and the tray loading C 569 CD player that resides between the C 538 and C 589 in NAD’s CD player range.

Surprisingly the C 539S has stepped away from NAD’s extensive use of Class D power amplification. In this model the amplifier is Class AB but powered by a switched mode power supply derived from NAD’s Class D amplifier platform, rather than the more conventional toroidal transformer based linear designs. This design approach said to provide low noise and high current. Quoted output power is listed at 76wpc, 144wpc and 210wpc into 8, 4 and 2 ohms respectively, peak output current above 20 Amp and a damping factor above 210. The design uses a multi-layer circuit architecture separating power conversion, signal processing and amplification.

BluOS is built in with network connectivity available over Gigabit Ethernet or Wi-Fi 5. Streaming includes Apple AirPlay 2, Spotify Connect, TIDAL Connect, Qobuz Connect, and Roon Ready, plus everything else in the BluOS app, including multi-room playback with other BluOS players. File formats supported include; MP3, AAC, WMA, OGG, WMA-L, ALAC, OPUS plus Hi Res; FLAC, MQA, WAV, AIFF. BluOS hi-res maxing out at 24-bit/192KHz. 

Other signal connectivity is quite standard supporting; HDMI eARC for a TV, a TOSLINK input, Bluetooth aptX HD 5.0 (receive only), an MM phono input, two line-level inputs, one subwoofer out, one pair speaker binding posts and a front panel headphone output. Control is available via the front panel physical buttons and rotary controls; bass, treble, balance and volume, with no large display and no menu system.  The subwoofer output has a switchable high-pass filter, fixed at 80Hz and next to it sits a switch for NAD’s Soft Clipping circuit. An IR remote is also included.

The C 569 tray loader slots between the C 538 and C 589 in NAD’s CD player line-up. It uses an NXP-based servo system and a DAC circuit built around a 2 channel 32bit ESS SABRE ES9039Q2 DAC plus improved op-amps and a refined power supply. Lenbrook’s QRONO d2a technology handles digital filtering that NAD says improves timing accuracy for both PCM and MQA encoded music, while NAD’s Dynamic Digital Headroom (DDH) manages any inter-sample clipping.

Control is again available via the front panel buttons and the include IR remote. A 3.7″ colour LCD shows CD-Text where available, and the C 569 also supports gapless playback and MQA CDs.

Rear panel signal connectivity includes; 1 x stereo RCA line out , 1 x coaxial and 1 x optical TOSLINK digital outputs, allowing the player to act as a transport with external DAC.

Features At A Glance:

C 359S (Partial) – Please see the NAD web site below for full details:

• Line in/Speaker out:
  • Rated output power into 8 ohms: 70 W (20 Hz-80 KHz at rated THD, both channels driven)
  • Rated output power into 4 ohms: 120 W (20 Hz-80 KHz at rated
• THD, (both channels driven)
  • THD (20 Hz – 20 KHz): <0.03 % (250 mW to 120 W, 4 ohms)
  • THD (20 Hz – 20 KHz): <0.03 % (250 mW to 70 W, 8 ohms)
• Signal-to-Noise Ratio: >90 dB (A-weighted, 500 mV input, 1 W out 8 ohms)
• Peak output current: >20 A (1 ohm, 1 ms)
• Damping factor: >210 (20 Hz to 1 KHz, 8 ohms), >120 (10KHz, 8 ohms)
• Frequency response: 20 Hz – 20 KHz (±0.3 dB)
• Channel separation: >75 dB (1 KHz), >70 dB (10 KHz)
• Input sensitivity (70 W in 8 ohms): 510 mV
• MM Phono Input:
  • THD (20 Hz – 20 KHz): <0.05 % at 70 W out 8 ohms
  • Signal-to-Noise Ratio: >82 dB (10 mV in; A-weighted, 1 W out)
  • Input impedance (R and C): 46 kohms/100 pF
  • Input sensitivity: 3.95mV (60W out 1KHz, 8 ohms, volume maximum)
  • Frequency response: 20 Hz – 20 KHz (±0.3 dB)
    (Note: The RIAA response is consistent with a pre-emphasis that is rolled off at 50 KHz by a second order filter, such as used in Neumann cutting lathes.)
  • Maximum input signal at 1 KHz: >63 mVrms (0.1 % THD)
• Optical Input:
  • Signal-to-Noise Ratio: >90 dB (-13 dBFS in, A-weighted 1 W out)
  • Input sensitivity (70W 8 ohms): -12 dBFS
  • Sample rate: 44.1 kHz – 192 KHz
  • Channel separation: >75 dB (1 KHz): >70 dB (10 KHz)
  • Frequency response: 20 Hz – 20 KHz (±0.3 dB)
• Power consumption, standby mode: 0.5 W
• Dimensions (W x H x D): 435 x 100 x 400 mm, 17.25 x 4 x 15.25 inches
• Weight: 8.9 Kg (19.6 lbs)

C 569

• Output level:
  • Line Out: 2.2 ±0.2V
  • Digital Audio Out – Coaxial: 0.5 – 0.8 Vp-p 75 ohms
• Frequency response: 0 dB, 20 Hz – 20 KHz (±0.5 dB)
• Total harmonic distortion: ≤0.006% (1KHz, LPF 20KHz)
• Signal/Noise ratio: ≥110 dB (1 kHz, A-weighted LPF 20 KHz Play)
• Channel balance: 0.5 dB (0 dB 1 KHz)
• Channel separation: ≥110 dB
• De-emphasis:
  • -3.73 to -5.33 dB (0 dB 1kHz, 5 KHz)
  • -8.04 to -10.04 dB (0 dB 1 kHz, 16 KHz)
• Linearity:
  • -3 ±0.1 dB (0 dB 1 KHz at -3 dB)
  • -6 ±0.2 dB (0 dB 1 KHz at -6 dB)
  • -10 ±0.25 dB (0 dB 1 KHz at -10 dB)
  • -20 ±0.25 dB (0dB 1 KHz at -20 dB)
  • -60 ±0.5 dB (0dB 1 KHz at -60 dB)
• Standby power: <0.5W
• Idle power: ≤ 20 W
• Dimensions (W x H x D): 435 x 83 x 294 mm, 17 1/4 x 3 3/8 x 11 5/8 inches
• Weight: 4.2 Kg (9.2 lbs)

Pricing (C 359S/C 569):

• UK: £1,099/£749
• US: $1,299/$999
• EU: €1,199/€949

For more information visit the NAD website:

• C 359S
• C 569

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