July issue of AudioXpress.Where can I find it?
July issue of AudioXpress.Where can I find it?
But even this is no guarantee for a distortion-free reproduction!:If I was only listening with main speakers I would be perfectly happy with the M33.
I totally believe you, but I have tried this on levels that almost hurt my ears way above levels I usually use and can not hear it (DL ON, Sub OFF). So practically that is not the main issue for me.use Dirac filters with too levels too high.'
In my case, the second case occurs with main speakers only. I had already uploaded an sound example in this thread.
What level are we talking about here? Volume, or that you have set the target too high in dirac?'Clipping bug confirmed by NAD engineers. Bug limited to only those who use subwoofer and never run Dirac live or use Dirac filters with too levels too high.'
Yup and I don't listen to ultra-compressed pop either.Admittedly, I do not listen to ultra-compressed pop.
The unit I had was the same one @Kal Rubinson used for his review. He also apparently never ran into a distortion problem. Just to put things in perspective.
Ultra-compressed pop does not seem to be the only trigger for distortions. There is also the second case: 'use Dirac filters with too levels too high'Yup and I don't listen to ultra-compressed pop either.
This is pretty interesteing as I have been contemplating about Roon for some time now. What is the technical background of this, so Roon can pre-process tracks in a way that it generates more headroom? And this is not compromising the audio data?I added -1db headroom adjustment in Roon and it went away. I only use Roon so it's a solution for me and has no real impact that I can hear on the volume or general sound of the music, but appreciate for those not using Roon it's not great.
This is pretty interesteing as I have been contemplating about Roon for some time now. What is the technical background of this, so Roon can pre-process tracks in a way that it generates more headroom? And this is not compromising the audio data?
Thank you very much for the link. So Roon states that
"Headroom Management is at the top of the list because it's one of the most important things to pay attention to in Roon's DSP Engine. If things don't sound right, one of the first things you should do is make sure that the signal isn't clipping."
but NAD obviously dismissed this in their DSP programming?
So there could technically be a fix after all?
Hello Rene,
Thank you for your reply.
This issue is a high priority on the engineering team's list to resolve but not a simple fix, hence it has taken longer than expected to resolve.
The distortion does not affect all tracks, just a few that were recorded HOT with inter-sample clipping.
The distortion can be resolved by setting "Tone Controls - ON", or if one does not have subwoofers connected, setting "Select Attached Speakers - No Subwoofer".
Again I apologize that we do not have a more immediate solution for you now, but we will let you know when a fix is released.
Kind Regards,
Bob Moran
NAD Support Specialist
You are right Kaboo. The more I listen, especially with headphones (with Dirac off, obviously) I realize it was not just a reduction in decibels with Tone Controls on, it flattens the soundstage a bit. I mean, at least I think so, it's hard to tell if it is just the -6db affecting my perception or not. It's not dramatic, but the loss of dynamics seems to be there.
It's just your perception being affected by the significant 6 dB drop in output level. If you increase the output level by 6 dB using the volume control, then you should perceive that the soundstage will unflatten back to its original state. Our ears are nonlinear in their frequency response with respect to sound level, so a 6 dB change elicits a large subjective change in sound quality.
Please make a cross check with the old power chord. Possibly also plug in the connector differently (180° rotated), depending on the country.The only thing that has changed since yesterday is that I switched the M33 off and replaced the power chord with a shielded one from Chord (which of course should have nothing to do with it).
So all of a sudden the crackling on Lana Del Rey's track mentioned in this thread is gone.
I switched off my Roon headroom adjustment as I wanted to tweak it to the least adjustment possible to get the crackling to stop. Roon can adjust in small fractions of a dB... I got down to -0.05dB headroom adjustment and no crackling sound, so I just turned headroom off to make sure the crackling was still apparent - and it was not. It's literally gone.
The only thing that has changed since yesterday is that I switched the M33 off and replaced the power chord with a shielded one from Chord (which of course should have nothing to do with it).
Baffled.
I will probably just leave Roon headroom adjustment on at -0.05dB.
Are you also using Roon's level adjustment? That alone will eliminate the clipping distortion, since it will reduce about -6dB on all tracks on average
Please make a cross check with the old power chord. Possibly also plug in the connector differently (180° rotated), depending on the country.
The only thing that has changed since yesterday is that I switched the M33 off and replaced the power chord with a shielded one from Chord
Here we go.