IT'S PERFECT SO WHY DON'T I LOVE IT? NAD M33 REVIEW
NAD M33 Review by Andrew Robinson. Originally published July 25, 2021.
NAD MASTER SERIES M33 REVIEW
The funny thing about perfection in hifi, if there is such a thing, is whether or not we’d even realize it if we were to happen upon it. And if we did, would we even like it? It’s an interesting question; one that has kept me up more than once. Let’s chat about the NAD Master Series M33 integrated amplifier.
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NAD M33 SPECS
HybridDigital amplifier topology • 200 Watts into 8 Ohms/380 Watts into 4 Both Channels Driven
Music Streamer and DAC built in • BluOS • HDMI • Supports Two Subwoofers • DIRAC Live
Built-in Phono Preamp • Supports MQA & other streaming music formats • Color Touch Screen
Boy, this review has been a LONG time coming and I would be lying if I didn’t say I was looking forward to it. You guys have been talking this bad boy up for the better part of a year! The Master Series M33 is a stereo integrated amplifier utilizing NAD’s HybridDigital amplifier topology that boasts 200 Watts into 8 Ohms and 380 Watts into 4 --and yes that’s both channels driven. But more than just your run-of-the-mill integrated, the M33 is also a very capable music streamer and DAC solution built on the BluOS platform, which we just discussed a few weeks ago in our Powernode review. Like the Powernode, the M33 also has an HDMI input in order to connect it to your TV, making it the centerpiece of a hybrid hifi and two channel home theater setup. No home theater is complete with a subwoofer and the M33 supports up to two, and the bass is kept nicely in check thanks in part to its built-in room correction software, DIRAC Live. Throw in your usual analog and digital input/output options --which includes a built-in phono preamp -- and support for a majority of the streaming music formats, including MQA, two upgrade slots for future expansion and you have the M33 in a nutshell. OH! And it has a color touch-screen!
M33 DESIGN
The M33 design is a Master Series product through and through. While it still sports NAD’s traditional dark grey color scheme across its face, it’s accented by the amp’s polished aluminum chassis. At first, I will admit I liked it, but after several weeks, I sort of fell out of love with the styling, wishing instead that it had more of NAD’s classic utilitarian look but that’s just me.
FINALLY, A LARGE TOUCH SCREEN!
What I absolutely love about the M33 is its large touch-screen! I’ve been clamoring for a touch-screen on one of these all-in-one streaming amplifiers for months now and with the M33 I’ve finally gotten my wish. And the M33’s screen doesn’t disappoint. Minus some occasional lag, it is easy to navigate by hand, and the presence of the touch-screen DOES encourage one to interact with the unit itself. I all but forgot about the included remote control; between my phone and the screen there was really no need for additional control options. If you have other Master Series components in your system I could make a case for the remote, but if you were to just go with the M33 solo, I wouldn’t be surprised if you left the remote in the box.
While every aspect of the M33’s adjustability and control can be handled via the touch-screen, the BluOS app is also equally adept --maybe more so --giving you even more direct access to your favorite streaming music services and locally stored music. I’m a big TIDAL fan and think the integration of TIDAL inside of BluOS is equal to that of what you’ll find with NAIM, Cambridge and Bluesound. Likewise for the M33’s Roon integration.
EVALUATING THE M33 (PRODUCT LIST)
Integration is the name of the game when it comes to the M33. As far as setup and features go, it’s a modern audiophile dream come true. It possesses ALL OF THE FUNCTIONALITY I want in a piece of hifi gear! I connected the M33 to our 85” Vizio P Series Quantum X TV using its HDMI with eARC input. From there I demoed the M33 using both the Focal Grande Utopia Colour Evo speakers as well as the Dynaudio Evoke 20s. I did test the M33 with and without a subwoofer, that subwoofer of course being my SVS 3000 Micro. Analog sources included two turntables, first my Audio Technica LP140 with our Ortofon 2M Black cartridge to test out the M33’s built-in phono pre and the Alva TT turntable from Cambridge to test the NAD’s regular analog input. Bluetooth connectivity was tested using my iPhone. For more on these products as well as others used throughout this review please check out the links in the description.
M33 SOUND
About that idea of perfection that I raised at the start of the video and whether or not upon “achieving it” would we like it? I can see, on paper, that the M33 is incredibly impressive. It has very good specs and to be frank, those specs audibly carry over into its actual performance. Actually, the M33 sounds like how I imagine a spec sheet would sound. Exacting. Black and white. Not a lot of room for interpretation and for many, that is going to be music to your ears.
There really isn’t any one aspect of the M33’s performance that stands out in stark contrast to the next. Naturally that means the amp is likely neutral in its overall sound. There is virtually no coloration, flare or outright flavor that I can really attribute to this amplifier. Focal speakers still sound like Focal. Dynaudio, same story. These are all seemingly good if not great traits.
Drilling down further, bass is taut, with good, solid detail. The sound is well dampened and delivers not only the right amount of control but also the deepest bass the speaker connected to it is capable of. The Focal Diablo Utopia sounded lighter --weight wise --compared to the Dynaudio, but this is to be expected and not the fault of the amp.
Mids had solid detail, texture and intelligibility. There was one instance where I felt the mids weren’t as clear or as resolute as I’ve heard other amps, this was audible when listening to SEAL on TIDAL, but it wasn’t enough for me to write-off the performance as wrong, just not quite as clear as say my UNITI ATOM. But in terms of textural cues, inflection and all those subtle goodies that rest in the midrange, I could still hear them, but there wasn’t an extra sense of emphasis placed on them. Again, neutral.
Same with the highs. All the information was there including the extension and upper end detail. The M33 exhibited almost textbook control over the Focal’s Beryllium tweeter. If I turned things up, maybe the highs thinned a little, exhibited some graininess but honestly, it took a resolute tweeter like the one found on the Focal to notice. The Dynaudio didn’t really shine light on this trait too much.
So where am I going with all of this? It was all so strangely perfect that it felt a little...lifeless. It didn’t matter what I listened to, that energy, that spark, that Je Ne Sais Quoi --it just wasn’t there. I couldn’t for the life of me connect with this amp. It has an ability to be so utterly nothing, that in a lot of ways it’s impressive, but at the same time, I never got sucked into what I was listening to. I dissected it. I never tapped my toes. I took notes.
The analytical side of me is capable of marveling at aspects of the M33s performance, and yet the emotional side of me, well, it struggled. Soundstage-wise, the M33 is solid; possessing terrific separation throughout with solid detail and placement of performers and their instruments. Dynamics, ditto. Nothing overtly out of place. If I turned things up the M33 remained composed. But that’s just it. As I ratcheted up the volume, a rise in excitement didn’t really follow --and I kept waiting for that moment to rush over me and...it didn’t.
And before you go thinking, well it’s because you’re listening to digital music silly, this more clinical sound also carried over into its vinyl playback too. Regardless of whether or not I relied on the M33’s internal phono preamp, or the Alva TT’s, both, BOTH of my turntables sounded utterly the same which is unusual. While this is not the first integrated we’ve had that tackles vinyl playback in the digital realm --the Technics R1000 being the other --the R1000 did a better job retaining the signature of the table connected to it, the NAD was the polar opposite.
NAD T778 / NAD C388
Some of you may attribute this to the amp’s all-digital pedigree and to that end maybe you’re right, BUT I’ve raved about some of NAD’s lesser hybrid digital products in the past to which I say, I get why you may be confused by this review. I AM TOO. My guess is that the M33, with fewer budget constraints, is able to achieve a level of exacting performance from its topology that frankly --and in my opinion --makes it more perfect --but also (in my opinion) boring. Perhaps the T778 and C338’s lesser amp modules coupled with more budget internal components allow for some measure of imperfection to be audible. Maybe that imperfection is what makes them sound more interesting -or at least colored in some way. I don’t claim to have the answers, I just know that neither really sound like the M33 and I’m okay with that. Heck, I prefer it.
DIRAC LIVE AND THE M33
I cannot overstate how much I appreciated the simplicity of the NAD’s design and it’s overall ease of use. Even the implementation of Dirac Live, the M33’s room EQ software, was among the better implementations I’ve seen. There’s no denying the effects of Dirac, especially with respect to its ability to clean up the bass response of any speaker or sub in one’s room. As far as all-in-one music systems go, the M33 may be among the best. But the ease of use and sheer functionality of the amp is also one of its biggest drawbacks only because it's no different than any other BluOS device. Great news if you love BluOS but maybe not so great for the M33 considering you’re paying five grand for a user experience that has now trickled down to the less expensive M10, T778 and Bluesound Powernode just to name a few.
COMPARABLE ALL IN ONE BLUOS DEVICES
And when looking at these other comparable all in one BluOS devices, I have to say, if all of these products are largely neutral in their sound signatures --apart from slight variations in overall refinement most easily heard in the high frequencies and bass --then the NAD M10 at nearly half the price would likely be an equally great option to consider. Then you have the NAD C388 and C368, which are even less, have BluOS AND NAD’s hybrid digital amplifier topology. And let’s not forget the Bluesound Powernode we just reviewed, which has 80% or more the same functionality as the M33 and M10 minus Dirac and a touch-screen, only it'll run you $899. Like the 17K Focal speakers we just reviewed, the M33 once again asks the question; how much are you willing to pay for perfection?
Bringing it back to perfection, the NAD Master Series M33 is a great example of what’s possible when you quite literally throw the best you have to offer in the digital realm at the problem of high-end music playback. The M33 gives you a performance that I can only describe as exacting, which for many of you, is going to be perfection in and of itself. As for me? I’m afraid I find myself feeling differently. While I can appreciate the M33, even love its ease of use, I’m not 100% sure, I’d classify my time with it as musical.
