Nord One Up Ncore NC500 amps, Class D ready for prime time .....

Hi!
I've been looking into Nord for some time, waiting essentially for budget reasons.
Now I'm wondering if an "MP" model should not be enough for my use case: for my ELAC UB5 speakers 250W should be more than enough, I don't think they eoukd really need 400W.
Does anybody have any experience to share?
How much would I loose sonically compared to the "UP" model with Sparkos?

And a question for Joeind: would you be able to provide a quck high level comparison of the Nord with the Job integrated?

Thanks!
Franz
 
Hi Franz,

It's always better to have more power than less or not enough power. As long as you don't drive the heck out of it, your speakers will be fine. I've used Bryston 28BSST2 amps which are 1,000wpc to drive Klipsch bookshelf speakers and it was absolutely wonderful.

I have not heard the MP series but have read they are 95% of the UP amps. Colin can help you determine what's best for your needs.

The following is based on my experience with the Nord UP monos and the 994 op amps (which I ultimately preferred with a tube preamp). The Nord will drive a wider variety of speakers. They will feel more powerful because I think the Nords actually are more powerful. Bass will be more pronounced with the Nords but not quite as delineated or articulate . Both are very quiet but the Nords are much quieter. Both have wonderful 3D and sound stage size. The Nords have a slightly thicker and fatter sound, but the Job will feel a little leaner but be sweeter in a natural way. The Job has a little more depth and air but the images are a little more well defined with the Nords. If your speakers are easier to drive, the Job will be awesome. If your speakers are tougher to drive, the Nord will absolutely have the upper hand and drive your speakers more easily.

It really comes down to personal taste and what you like given a certain speaker.


franz159 said:
Hi!
I've been looking into Nord for some time, waiting essentially for budget reasons.
Now I'm wondering if an "MP" model should not be enough for my use case: for my ELAC UB5 speakers 250W should be more than enough, I don't think they eoukd really need 400W.
Does anybody have any experience to share?
How much would I loose sonically compared to the "UP" model with Sparkos?

And a question for Joeind: would you be able to provide a quck high level comparison of the Nord with the Job integrated?

Thanks!
Franz
Click to expand...
 
Last edited:
joeinid said:
Hi Franz,

It's always better to have more power than less or not enough power. As long as you don't drive the heck out of it, your speakers will be fine. I've used Bryston 28BSST2 amps which are 1,000wpc to drive Klipsch bookshelf speakers and it was absolutely wonderful.

I have not heard the MP series but have read they are 95% of the UP amps. Colin can help you determine what's best for your needs.

The following is based on my experience with the Nord UP monos and the 994 op amps (which I ultimately preferred with a tube preamp). The Nord will drive a wider variety of speakers. They will feel more powerful because I think the Nords actually are more powerful. Bass will be more pronounced with the Nords but not quite as delineated or articulate . Both are very quiet but the Nords are much quieter. Both have wonderful 3D and sound stage size. The Nords have a slightly thicker and fatter sound, but the Job will feel a little leaner but be sweeter in a natural way. The Job has a little more depth and air but the images are a little more well defined with the Nords. If your speakers are easier to drive, the Job will be awesome. If your speakers are tougher to drive, the Nord will absolutely have the upper hand and drive your speakers more easily.

It really comes down to personal taste and what you like given a certain speaker.
Click to expand...

WoW, this is the best comparison done in written form.
Ncore on warmer side & Job on cooler (faster) side ?
 
Great job Joe!!! Most of what you say reflects what my ears are telling me.

joeinid said:
Hi Franz,

It's always better to have more power than less or not enough power. As long as you don't drive the heck out of it, your speakers will be fine. I've used Bryston 28BSST2 amps which are 1,000wpc to drive Klipsch bookshelf speakers and it was absolutely wonderful.

I have not heard the MP series but have read they are 95% of the UP amps. Colin can help you determine what's best for your needs.

The following is based on my experience with the Nord UP monos and the 994 op amps (which I ultimately preferred with a tube preamp). The Nord will drive a wider variety of speakers. They will feel more powerful because I think the Nords actually are more powerful. Bass will be more pronounced with the Nords but not quite as delineated or articulate . Both are very quiet but the Nords are much quieter. Both have wonderful 3D and sound stage size. The Nords have a slightly thicker and fatter sound, but the Job will feel a little leaner but be sweeter in a natural way. The Job has a little more depth and air but the images are a little more well defined with the Nords. If your speakers are easier to drive, the Job will be awesome. If your speakers are tougher to drive, the Nord will absolutely have the upper hand and drive your speakers more easily.

It really comes down to personal taste and what you like given a certain speaker.
Click to expand...
 
Do most owners use a Linear Power Supply with their Nord?
I've most probably come across Linear Power Supply products in magazines I've read but not really taken much notice so don't know that much about them.

I'm interested now as I'm thinking of buying the Lumin D1 which I can purchase with a MCRU Linear Power Supply, but I don't know if I need it or not, and if the D1 has a Linear Power Supply will I need to get one for my Nord aswell?

What I'm wondering, is once the sound reaches the Nord (which has no Linear Power Supply) will the sound degrade?

Another thought: Does any amps or cd/network players come with a built-in Linear Power Supply?

Come to think of it, I might need one for my Synology DS215j aswell!
 
tane0019 said:
WoW, this is the best comparison done in written form.
Ncore on warmer side & Job on cooler (faster) side ?
Click to expand...

Thank you for your kind words. I think "warmer" came through because of my choice of preamp with the Nords. They are a pretty clear window to the entire system. Small changes will reveal themselves easily.


nc42acc said:
Great job Joe!!! Most of what you say reflects what my ears are telling me.
Click to expand...

:heart:


Thanks!
 
I'm not sure you can use a Linear Power Supply with the Nord. I am a bit confused. They take AC power 120V/240V, not sure how to get around that.


Showroom Dummies said:
Do most owners use a Linear Power Supply with their Nord?
I've most probably come across Linear Power Supply products in magazines I've read but not really taken much notice so don't know that much about them.

I'm interested now as I'm thinking of buying the Lumin D1 which I can purchase with a MCRU Linear Power Supply, but I don't know if I need it or not, and if the D1 has a Linear Power Supply will I need to get one for my Nord aswell?

What I'm wondering, is once the sound reaches the Nord (which has no Linear Power Supply) will the sound degrade?

Another thought: Does any amps or cd/network players come with a built-in Linear Power Supply?

Come to think of it, I might need one for my Synology DS215j aswell!
Click to expand...
 
joeinid said:
I'm not sure you can use a Linear Power Supply with the Nord. I am a bit confused. They take AC power 120V/240V, not sure how to get around that.
Click to expand...
So the Nord can not use a Linear Power Supply - that's the information I needed. I don't have a clue with these sort of things.

I can buy Linear Power Supply by Sbooster, but not sure which one to buy (link below) but would not know if it is any better than the one that has been designed to work with the Lumin D1, as the MCRU has?

https://markgrant.co.uk/66-power-supplies

https://mcru.co.uk/product/linear-power-supply-for-lumin-d1-music-server/
 
Like most things in high end audio, there are few absolutes when it comes to power supply design. There are good and bad linear power supplies just as there are with switched mode designs, some very high end gear chooses to use properly engineered SMPS which can outperform linear supplies. It comes down to the level of engineering and how the technology is implemented rather than a given technology being superior regardless of its specific design. So just because you've heard of improvements to a particular product using an after market linear supply, don't assume that any other linear supply will perform similarly. It may or it could be worse than the standard SMPS, the only way to really know is to try the specific power supply being considered in combination with a given component.
 
When I had my D1, I had the Sbooster recommended for it. It was a superb combination. My friends still have their units and love them. If you are looking for specific recommendations, it might be better to start a new thread so it does not get buried here.



Showroom Dummies said:
So the Nord can not use a Linear Power Supply - that's the information I needed. I don't have a clue with these sort of things.

I can buy Linear Power Supply by Sbooster, but not sure of which one to buy (link below) but would not know if it is any better than the one that has been designed to work with the Lumin D1, as the MCRU has?

https://markgrant.co.uk/66-power-supplies

https://mcru.co.uk/product/linear-power-supply-for-lumin-d1-music-server/
Click to expand...
 
I agree with audio.bill, a LPS today is not guaranteed to be better than a SMPS. If you want to up your game to the next level I think you should look into a good power distributor and good power cables. I think I've already mentioned in the thread how well the Nord responded to some power cable changes I did, much more so than any other gear in my setup at the time.
 
There have been several class D designs that have used linear power supplies but to my knowledge the switched mode supply amps have received most of the acclaim. Just two different ways to get to a constant supply of DC voltage.
 
Showroom Dummies said:
Do most owners use a Linear Power Supply with their Nord?
I've most probably come across Linear Power Supply products in magazines I've read but not really taken much notice so don't know that much about them.

I'm interested now as I'm thinking of buying the Lumin D1 which I can purchase with a MCRU Linear Power Supply, but I don't know if I need it or not, and if the D1 has a Linear Power Supply will I need to get one for my Nord aswell?

What I'm wondering, is once the sound reaches the Nord (which has no Linear Power Supply) will the sound degrade?

Another thought: Does any amps or cd/network players come with a built-in Linear Power Supply?

Come to think of it, I might need one for my Synology DS215j aswell!
Click to expand...

Bruno Putzeys designed the NC500 to operate with a switched mode power supply and he designed the SMPS1200 to do just that which is what Colin uses in the Nords. The Nords work really well just as they are so I would leave well alone. Don't worry about mixing components with switch mode supplies with those having linear supplies, the mix will work just fine. I would buy the Lumin just as it comes then after listening to it for some time you could get the dealer to loan you a linear supply to try, you would then be in a position to better judge if the linear supply is worth the cost.
 
Does anyone know if the wattage values in Nord specs (200/250W at 8/4 Ohm for the MP252 and 400/700W for the NC500 UP model) are peak values or RMS?
I read on AVSforums that MP252 would be in fact 50W RMS, and UP model 100W RMS. Is this correct?
Thanks
 
franz159 said:
Does anyone know if the wattage values in Nord specs (200/250W at 8/4 Ohm for the MP252 and 400/700W for the NC500 UP model) are peak values or RMS?
I read on AVSforums that MP252 would be in fact 50W RMS, and UP model 100W RMS. Is this correct?
Thanks
Click to expand...

No, they are true RMS values.
 
I don't know so.
An audio engineer told me this: "The powers declared by Hypex are in peak watts. The NC500 delivers 100W RMS continuous with peaks that change depending on the load of the speakers (550, 700, 400)."

Bye
 
mrcrowley said:
I don't know so.
An audio engineer told me this: "The powers declared by Hypex are in peak watts. The NC500 delivers 100W RMS continuous with peaks that change depending on the load of the speakers (550, 700, 400)."

Bye
Click to expand...

He's wrong! The Nord's have the ability to drive very difficult speakers and 100W would just not cut it. If you want independent proof, check out the test measurements on any of the Stereophile reviews of NC500 based amplifiers.
 
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