NAD C658 Preamp/Streamer/DAC: $2000

I predict C658 will spur a whole new world of preamps. C658 absolutely has the jump on EVERYBODY! It is the best preamp buy in our biz today. And it’s a lot more than just a preamp. Read on.
C658 isn’t the first preamp with a few cool features. C658 is dynamite in that it’s the first piece to have arguably all the RIGHT features AND sound like an NAD, which denotes great bang for your buck.

*Stereo Preamp/DAC
It starts as a stereo preamp. It has an edge of the art DAC on board. So far, so good, but a lot of other companies have done this too. It has one set pre outs (R&L analog) and a single sub out, and XLR outs! Yessir! BALANCED!
To buy a super preamp (like NAD’s venerable C165BEE) runs $1200 by itself. Toss in a fine DAC that has MQA- another grand!

*Streamer
It STREAMS. Hmmm. Now it gets much more interesting. With a Bluesound Node on board, you just saved $600. And yep, it has a full MQA decoder on board!
You get a preamp, with a great DAC, that streams services like Tidal that support CD & MQA quality. Yup, full MQA (not just rendering) decoding is built in! Think about the other streamers out there. There are some good ones. They all run $2-5k and they don’t all do full MQA processing.
The above is enough to make C658 a winner- A? Yes. But there’s more.

*MM Phono Preamp
C658 has a high quality MM phono preamp built in. NAD pays attention to the prescribed RIAA EQ circuit. It ain’t generic. With outrageously fine MM carts like Ortofons from Denmark, MM is all you need. Really.

*Headphone Amp
It has an excellent headphone amp built in, not a generic. That’s it right? NOPE!

*BALANCED OUTPUTS!
C658 has BALANCED OUTS. NOW we’re talkin’! We have officially gone to another level of performance when we’re talking BALANCED. The noise floor is lower. The background is blacker. You can hear space in between the notes more clearly. But the biggest improvement, is that the upgrade in dynamic range is palpable.
With the intro of NAD’s C298 power amp, which can run in stereo or monoblock form, you have performance right there with the most prestigious names in our biz for a scant fraction of the price!

*Room Correction
It has Dirac room correction. McIntosh charges $6k for its stand alone room correction component. C658 has Dirac on board. I guess you just saved another $6k.

*MDC Modules
It has more. C658 has room for two NAD MDC modules to accommodate future technology.
Such as?
Well, let’s use current technology as an example. One of the MDC options is an HDMI board. You can run the sound of one of your video sources right in. Cable/satellite, Apple TV, Roku, Blu-ray- they can all shake hands with C658.
And the sound? It’s extremely quiet and dynamic. Even single ended is good. But BALANCED makes C658 a slam dunk winner for $2000.

In Summary.
In C658 you get a stone cold quiet preamp worth about $1200.
In C658 you get a DAC competitive with the other guys for about a grand.
In C658 you get a streamer worth $600 plus. Competitors are $2-5k!
In C658 you get a quiet phono preamp, easily worth about $350.
In C658 you get a punchy yet quiet headphone amp, worth about $300.
In C658 you get Dirac room correction circuitry worth real money. $6k?!
In C658 you get optional MDC modules which vanquish the other guys because you are reasonably future proof.

As you tally it all up, your math might reach $10k! It certainly reaches $5k plus.
But NAD’s C658 just runs $2000!

Now that you have C658, just run it into a great power amp and you’re good to go!
NAD, not surprisingly, has the best options.

C268 $1000 (80×2 or 300 monoblock)
C298 $2400 (185xw or 620w monoblock)

Yep. I’m recommending you get C658 and a C298 (or two) so you can spend the motherlode on new speakers!