NAD C 399 Hybrid Digital Amplifier

Description

C 399 Hybrid Digital DAC Amplifier

As the new flagship of NAD’s Classic series of integrated
amps, the C 399 HybridDigital DAC Amplifier takes NAD’s commitment to lasting
value and sonic excellence to a whole new level.

The C 399 employs NAD’s Hypex HybridDigital nCore amplifier
circuitry, which until now has been available only on Masters Series
amplifiers. Its digital section is built around a 32-bit/384kHz ESS Sabre DAC,
the same chip used in NAD’s acclaimed M10 and M33 Masters Series amplifiers.

The C 399 is the first amplifier to incorporate the latest
generation of NAD’s Modular Design Construction (MDC) technology. MDC2 lets
users add optional modules that provide functions such as BluOS multi-room
music streaming and Dirac Live room correction.

NAD’s new classic amplifiers. Intelligent. Powerful.
Efficient.

Introducing the NAD C399

Perfect Power

Trickled down from NAD’s Masters Series, the C 399’s
HybridDigital nCore amplifier can deliver 180 Watts per channel continuous
power, and 250 Watts per channel instantaneous power. Highly efficient and
remarkably powerful, the HybridDigital nCore amplifier can produce musical
transients effortlessly. The design is renowned for its wide bandwidth, flat
frequency response, clean clipping behavior with instant recovery, high current
capability, and stability into demanding low-impedance speaker loads. Noise and
distortion are vanishingly low under all operating conditions. The minute
levels of harmonic distortion are dominated by sonically benign second and
third harmonics. The Hypex nCore design enables the C 399 to produce neutral,
distortion-free sound even at very high listening levels, with exquisite
detail, superb portrayal of space, and thrilling dynamics.

Also trickled down from the Masters Series is the ESS Sabre
9028 high-resolution DAC, a design noted for near-zero levels of clock jitter,
ultra-low noise and distortion, and wide dynamic range. This premium DAC
enables the C 399 to reproduce all your digital sources with amazing
musicality, stunning clarity, and precise soundstaging.

Future Proof

In 2007, NAD introduced Modular Design Construction, an
innovative architecture for adding new functions to existing components. Many
NAD products have rear-panel slots for MDC modules that perform HDMI switching,
BluOS multi-room music streaming, Dolby Atmos surround processing, and other
functions.

The C 399 is the first product to feature NAD’s new MDC2
architecture. By enabling two-way communications between the module and
component, MDC2 opens up the future for new upgrades.

Equipped with Wi-Fi and Ethernet, the optional MDC2 BluOS-D
module lets listeners play music from their favorite streaming services through
the C 399, using the acclaimed BluOS Controller app for Android, iOS, macOS,
and Windows. Like all BluOS-enabled products, the MDC2 BluOS-D has integrated
support for dozens of streaming services; and supports Apple AirPlay 2, Spotify
Connect, and Tidal Connect. Two-way communications also enable the MDC2 BluOS-D
to stream music from sources connected to the C 399 to BluOS-enabled components
in other rooms.

The Dirac Live function lets you measure your room’s
acoustics using a supplied microphone and intuitive app, and then upload
correction curves to the MDC2 BluOS-D. By compensating for acoustic anomalies
in your listening environment, Dirac Live dramatically improves bass clarity,
imaging, and timbral accuracy. Thanks to its two-way architecture, the MDC2
BluOS-D performs room correction for all sources connected to your C 399.

Everything’s Connected

The C 399 can accommodate all your digital and analogue
sources. Its MM phono stage delivers ultra-precise RIAA equalization, extremely
low noise, and high overload margins. The phono preamp also features an
innovative circuit that suppresses the infrasonic noise present on all LPs,
without compromising bass response. There are two sets of line-level line
inputs, with low-noise buffer amplifiers to prevent sonic degradation. The C
399 has two optical and two coaxial digital inputs, plus an HDMI-eARC port for
playing audio from a connected TV, while controlling amplifier output with the
TV’s remote control.

In addition to two sets of speaker outputs, the C 399 has
preamp output jacks and dual subwoofer outputs. Two-way apt-X HD Bluetooth
allows 24-bit streaming from mobile devices, and high-quality output to
Bluetooth headphones. Also built-in is a dedicated headphone amplifier with low
output impedance and high output voltage capability, enabling the C 399 to
drive demanding high-impedance studio monitor headphones.

A Timeless Classic

As with every NAD amplifier ever made, the C 399 gets the
basics right: a precise volume control with accurate channel balance, low-noise
circuits, and correct input and output impedances. But it goes far beyond the
basics. With its HybridDigital nCore output stage and high-resolution ESS Sabre
DAC, the C 399 can reproduce all your digital and analogue sources with a level
of excitement and refinement that is unprecedented for a Classic-series
integrated amplifier.

Thanks to NAD’s innovative MDC2 platform, the C 399 will
keep pace with future developments. Essentially, MDC2 makes obsolescence
obsolete. The C 399 can serve as the hub of a world-class music system today,
and for years to come. With NAD’s C 399 HybridDigital DAC Amplifier, the legend
continues.

Features & Details

• Hybrid
  Digital nCore Amplifier

• Continuous
  Power: 180 Watts per channel into 8/4 ohms

• Instantaneous
  Power: 250 Watts per channel

• Vanishingly
  low harmonic and intermodulation distortion

• Dual
  MDC2 Ports for expanded functionality

• Optional
  MDC2 BluOS-D module adds BluOS multi-room streaming and Dirac Live room
  correction

• Jitter-free
  32-bit/384kHz ESS Sabre DAC

• Ultra-low-noise
  MM phono stage with infrasonic filtering circuitry

• Two
  optical, two coaxial digital inputs

• HDMI-eARC
  input

• Two
  pairs of line-level analogue inputs with low-noise buffer amplifiers

• Speaker
  A/Speaker B outputs

• Two-way
  aptX-HD Bluetooth

• Dual
  subwoofer outputs

• Dedicated
  headphone amplifier

• IR
  remote

• 12V
  Trigger in/out

• IR
  in/out

• RS-232
  Serial port for control integration with home automation systems

• Control4,
  Crestron, RTI, URC, AMX, Savant, Elan certified

 

Amplification
Line In, Speaker Out (Analog bypass on)

Continuous output power into 8 ohms and 4 ohms
>180W (ref. 20 Hz-20 kHz at rated THD, both channels
driven)

THD (20 Hz – 20 kHz)
<0.02% (250 mW to 180 W, 8 ohms and 4 ohms)

Signal/Noise Ratio
>95 dB (A-weighted, 500 mV input, ref. 1 W out in 8 ohms)

Clipping power
210W (at 1 kHz 0.1 % THD)

IHF dynamic power
8 ohms: 217 W
4 ohms: 400 W
2 ohms: 506.4 W

Peak output current
>26 A (in 1 ohm, 1 ms)

Damping factor
>150 (ref. 8 ohms, 20Hz to 6.5kHz)

Frequency Response
±0.3 dB (20 Hz – 20 kHz)

Channel Separation
>90dB (1 kHz)
>75dB (10 kHz)

Input sensitivity (for 180 W in 8 ohms)
Line In: 201 mV
Digital In: 10.25% FS

Preamplifier
Line Input, Pre Out (Analog bypass on)

THD (20Hz-20kHz)
<0.002 % at 2 V out

Signal/Noise Ratio
>106dB (IHF; A-weighted, ref. 500 mV out, unity gain)

Channel Separation
>100dB (1 kHz); >90 dB (10 kHz)

Input Impedance (R and C)
56 kohms + 100 pF

Maximum Input Signal
>4.6 Vrms (ref. 0.1 % THD)

Output Impedance
Source Z + 320 ohms

Input Sensitivity
65mV (ref. 500 mV out, Volume maximum)

Frequency Response
±0.3 dB (20 Hz – 20 kHz)

Maximum voltage output – IHF load
>>5 V (ref. 0.1 % THD)

Phono
Phono Input, Pre Out (Analog bypass on)

THD (20Hz-20kHz)
<0.01% at 2 V out

Signal to Noise Ratio
>84dB (200 ohms source; A-weighted, ref. 500 mV out)

Input Impedance (R and C)
46 kohms/100 pF

Input Sensitivity
1.08mV (ref. 500 mV out, Volume maximum)

Frequency Response*
±0.3 dB (20 Hz – 20 kHz)

Maximum Input Signal at 1kHz
>80 mVrms (ref. 0.1 % THD)

Headphone
Line Input, Headphone Out (Analog bypass on)

THD (20Hz-20kHz)
<0.005% at 1V out

Signal/Noise Ratio
>107 dB (32 ohms loads; A-WTD, ref. 1V out, unity gain

Frequency Response
±0.3 dB (20 Hz – 20 kHz)

Channel Separation
>62 dB at 1kHz

Output Impedance
2.2 Ohms

General Specifications

Supports bit rate/sample rate
up to 24 bit/192 kHz

Frequency band
2.402G- 2.480G

Maximum transmit power (dBm)
7 dBm ± 2 dBm

Weight & Dimensions

Gross dimensions (W x H x D) **
435 x 120 x 390mm (17 1/8 x 4 3/4 x 15 3/8)”

Net Weight
11.2kg (24.7lb)

Shipping Weight
13.6kg (30lb)