Features
The C 375BEE is fully remote controlled and comes
supplied with the NAD SR 8 system remote control.
The remote control features an ergonomic form, with
large buttons that are differentiated by shape and
position, to make operation intuitive and enjoyable.
The SR 8 will also operate many other NAD products
such as CD players, tuners, etc.
Flexibility is another NAD strong point. The C 375BEE
has 7 line inputs (including 2 tape in/outputs with
dubbing facility) and the pre-amplifier section can be
separated from the power amplifier for easy upgrades
or adding ancillary equipment. Thus the C 375BEE
can be expanded to meet future system needs. The
C 375BEE sports pre-amp outputs: Many systems
benefit from the use of multiple power amplifiers
for “Bi-Amping” (using separate power amplifiers to
drive the bass and treble section of a loudspeaker).
The first Preamp Out includes a level trim control to
allow matching of amps or speakers with different
sensitivities. Additionally there is a second Preamp
Out to connect to powered subwoofer, an increasingly
popular option. Another option is to ‘bridge’ the
C 375BEE and add the matching C 275BEE (identical
except without the preamp and source switching) for
one of the most powerful home audio systems you’ll
ever encounter. Power goes from 150W x 2 to over
400W x 2!
For remote on/off switching of ancillary components in
a system, such as power amplifiers or active speakers,
the C 375BEE is equipped with a 12V-trigger system.
When switching the amplifier on, the 12V-trigger
output is also activated which in turn can activate a
12V-trigger input, switching on the remote devices.
Besides the 12V-trigger, the C 375BEE also has rear
panel IR in and out.
It is fashionable to omit tone controls nowadays:
However, provided that the tone controls are properly
designed, they can be really useful tools in making
improvements to the overall sound. The C 375BEE
tone controls only work at frequency extremes
leaving the critical mid-band essentially unaltered.
The tone control circuits can be completely bypassed
using the tone defeat switch. The C 375BEE also
incorporates NAD’s acclaimed switchable “Soft
Clipping” circuit, which significantly reduces the risk
of damage to loudspeakers due to prolonged high
power operation.
Design: PowerDriveTM
The C 375BEE also benefits from NAD’s proprietary
PowerDriveTM circuit topology, now well established
and used throughout the NAD product range. The
PowerDrive topology allows the C 375BEE to
deliver maximum performance under virtually any
circumstance, independent of the loudspeakers it
is driving. The circuitry automatically senses the
impedance characteristics of the loudspeaker and will
then adjust its power supply settings to best cope with
that specific load. PowerDrive topology is a practical
approach to enable an amplifier to easily deal with
musical dynamics and difficult speaker loads. Thus
we have the highly desirable characteristics of high
dynamic power and low impedance drive capability in
one affordable package.
Getting high dynamic power from the power supply to
your loudspeaker requires a fast wideband amplifier
stage rugged enough to pass and control high peak
currents without premature protection intervening.
The safe operating limit for the C 375BEE has 4
times the capacity of the typical amplifier in this price
range by using 4 pairs of 220W output transistors
per channel.
The C 375BEE has the lowest levels of distortion and
noise available in its price class and is easily capable of
embarrassing far more expensive products. To prove
it NAD uses Full Disclosure Power (FDP), the most
demanding criteria for performance measurement. FDP
specifies distortion under the most extreme conditions
of low impedance loads and frequency extremes
rather than the simple and easy 1kHz @ 8 Ohms test
quoted by many of our competitors.We use this stricter
performance criteria because it more closely matches
the demands of real music and real loudspeakers.
Maintaining specified distortion at 4 Ohms and at
20Hz and 20kHz is several orders of magnitude
more difficult to achieve than the simple 8 Ohms
and 1kHz test.
NAD also takes a stand against the meaningless
“brochure power” touted by many of our competitors
by offering Full Disclosure power specs. We specify
minimum continuous power, across the entire audible
range of frequencies, at rated distortion, for both 8
and 4 Ohms with all channels driven
simultaneously
.
Perhaps even more importantly, we also specify
Dynamic Power at 8, 4, and even 2 Ohms, which better
describes the way the amplifier will perform in the
real world, with musical signals and reactive
loudspeaker loads.
Less Distortion = More Music
Noise and distortion mask the fine details of a musical
recording robbing musical texture and dimension and
replacing them with non-musical artifacts. NAD has
spent the last 35 years perfecting our designs to have
the lowest distortion and highest power in its price
class. This cannot be overstated! Our competitors
often rate distortion at only 80% of rated power, and
even then can’t match our very conservative spec of
0.009% at any frequency within the range of human
hearing. Our noise spec is often 10dB (100 times!)
less than that of competing amplifiers. This is far
from a trivial difference as fine detail and nuance
(micro dynamics) are often obscured by noise in lesser
amplifiers, robbing a performance of that illusive sense
of ‘realism’. It is that exciting feeling of being there at
the live performance.
But even the most carefully reported specs cannot fully
describe the sonic performance of an amplifier. Only
your own ears can finally judge our achievement. We
urge you to listen and compare NAD to other products
in its price range, and even higher. We don’t think
you’ll find anything that comes close to offering the
C 375BEE’s overall musical satisfaction, well-rounded
performance, and stellar value for money.
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