It has its limits, but NAD’s first network streamer is a good buy, says Tony Williams

At first glance, NAD’s £695 Digital Media Tuner seems to have one hand tied behind its back: there’s no AirPlay to keep Apple fans happy, no gapless playback for opera fans, nor a direct digital input to connect with an iPod, iPhone or iPad (there is a front-panel USB socket but it’s designed for USB flash drives and the like). NAD hasn’t even developed a control app to drive the unit remotely over a home network.

However, the C 446 does have a very good conventional built-in radio, able to access FM RDS, AM and – in the European version at least – DAB/DAB+, with presets storing up to 40 stations. It’s even able to digitise FM and AM broadcasts, and make them available for recording through the optical digital output it provides alongside the standard left-right analogue audio sockets.

It will also access the thousands of streaming radio stations and music services available on the internet, as well as music stored on a home network using UPnP/DLNA devices. It can also operate as a UPnP receiver under the control of an external device, playing whatever the device tells it to. This can be the ‘Play To’ option provided in Windows Media Player, which lets you assemble a playlist on the computer and fire it off to a UPnP receiver device such as the NAD.

PERFORMANCE
Those familiar with NAD equipment will know how the company manages to juggle a rich, warm, substantial presentation with detail in the treble and midband, and that’s exactly what the C 446 delivers: those who find some equipment of this kind a little brittle or ‘edgy’ will be much happier with the sound here, and with the way this player manages to deliver all the presence and atmosphere of a concert-hall recording while still delivering the kind of bass usually associated with very good CD players.

However, CD-quality playback is the best you will get here: unlike pricier devices, the NAD doesn’t go up into the rarified realms of high-resolution audio streaming.

It’s a highly seductive sound: easy to listen to, and rewarding close attention with a smooth yet vibrant presentation of everything from solo instruments to large-scale orchestral and choral forces. Piano has a beautiful sense of weight and attack, the notes decaying entirely naturally. The NAD gives away only a little to the best streaming players in absolute bass conviction and sparkle in the treble.

Sure, put it up against a top-flight streaming client and the sound stage is a little more congested, and large, reverberant acoustics slightly diminished. Arguably, though, this makes it better suited to the relatively modest amplification and loudspeakers with which it’s likely to be used, and flatters lower bit-rate radio streams or music files.

Like NAD’s other equipment, this unit presents a rounded, weighty view of a wide range of music, and is simple to use, making it a well-sorted midrange digital music player.

NAD C 446
Type Network media player/radio tuner
Price £695
Inputs USB iPod dock, Ethernet, Wi-Fi, antennae for FM, DAB and AM radio
Outputs Line stereo on RCA phonos, optical digital
Other connections RS232, 12V trigger in, IR remote
Presets 40, available across DAB, FM and AM
File formats  MP3, WAV, FLAC, AAC, WMA, at sampling rates up to 48kHz
Accessories supplied DAB, FM and AM antennae, remote handset
Dimensions (WxHxD)  44x10x34cm
www.nadelectronics.com