RSSNAD C545BEE CD Player Reviewed
- By: Jim Swantko,
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For those who have a pile of compact discs and think the idea of listening to MP3 files is somehow high-definition, NAD has made the highly affordable C545BEE disc player.
The $499 NAD C545BEE occupies a slot one notch below the top of the NAD Classic line. In typical NAD form, the player is filled with reference-level hardware and features which belie its modest price tag. Its hardware includes a large toroidal power supply with separate regulators for the digital and analog circuitry, as well as the latest Burr Brown 24-bit high-resolution DACs. The NAD player also accepts CD-R/W discs, even if they are filled with songs burned in MP3 or WMA compression algorithms.
Additional Resources
• Learn more about NAD components here from the HomeTheaterReview.com resource page.
• Read a review of the NAD T 577 Blu-ray player by Adrienne Maxwell.
• Check out more audiophile CD players, USB DACs and other audiophile digital goodies at AudiophileReview.com.
Internal flash memory allows you to program and store up to 40 of your favorite songs from your discs on the player for immediate playback. The programming features are useful, user-friendly and laid out logically. Programming is able to be controlled entirely by the included remote. The remote has a solid feel and all buttons seem well placed for easy access.
Listening to the player, it is obvious that the NAD philosophy of Music First is alive and well. The C545BEE creates music that is smooth, relaxed and detailed. The bass performance is exceedingly good. This is the type of player that is the equivalent of a gateway drug to the world of high-end. It is so affordable that just about anyone can own one, but it gives the user a big taste of just how good digital music can be.
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Comment on this article
I just bought a NAD C54Bee cd player. It fails in some transitions from track to track during continuous music getting short gaps that are extremely disagreable. I reported this to the dealer, where the failure repeated again in any NAD player. They told me that an interfase uodate was needed. Does ii fix that trouble?
I wish to ask you for a great "favour". I have recently bought a C544BEE NAD CD player here in Chile to a very kind and serious people. Well, shortly I have gotten a serious bug that consists in very short gaps, sometimes, during the transitions from one track to the next, inside continuous pieces of music (opera, for example). In the dealer store every NAD failed the same. When dealer and I reported this to NAD they said that it was needed an interfase update that would fix the problem and that they were sending it inmediately.
Please, be so kind to tell me: Have you listened or known about this bug? Is it really fixable by installing the above mentioned update?
If this is not so clear, I prefer to get the CD player back and ask the refund of my money, moving through another brand that can afford the obvious and elementary task to reproduce correctly mi CD library. And that is suposed to be done soon.
I am perplex, because I didn't expect such a failure from a NAD product.
Many thanks and friendly regards
In the review he dac's are burr brown. Nad lists the dac as
Wolfson WM8740 24bit/192KHz DAC.
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