LUXURIOUS DESIGN
The design brief reads: “The industrial design must create a
physical presence that is powerful, dynamic, and solid, yet
refined and elegant”. We wanted a design that will still look
fresh and new a decade from now, a design with classic
proportions and understated details.
Intelligent use of aluminum extrusions, zinc castings, and
heavy gauge steel results in a chassis that is as rugged as
it is handsome. Innovative use of specialized coatings and
plating results in a product that will retain its good looks for
many, many years to come.
Since the high-density data recorded on DVD must be read
with absolute accuracy, vibrations from outside or from
internal sources, such as the power supply, will adversely
affect sound and picture quality. A variety of special measures
have been incorporated in the NAD M55 to suppress these
unwanted vibrations, from the carefully engineered heavy
gauge steel chassis, to the vibration isolating silicon rubber
foot design.
AUDIO PERFORMANCE
Separate signal paths for the DVD and SACD audio maintain
the highest possible levels of DVD, CD and SACD sound
quality. Digital audio outputs are available in both coaxial,
and optical (TosLink) SPDIF formats, as well as digital format
via the HDMI output. DVD-Audio uses the Dolby licensed
MLP lossless compression to produce PCM formatted high
resolution signals with 24 bits and up to 192kHz sample
rates. MLP perfectly shrinks the very high data rates of DVD-
Audio – up to 13.8 Mbps – to the DVD limit of 9.6 Mbps
without losing any data. This compares with data rates of
approximately 1.5 Mbps for CD, and as little as 0.03 Mbps
for MP3 encoded audio.
Dolby Digital and Dolby ProLogic decoding is also included,
as is support for MP3 and Windows Media Audio. The NAD
M55 uses professional grade 24-bit, 192-kHz audio D/A
converters. These premium devices are well protected from
noise caused by even minute fluctuations in current from
the power supply. The level of quantization noise within
the frequency range is uniform for all frequencies and very
well suppressed. This D/A converter ensures that all the
sound you hear is as clear and noise-free as possible. High
speed FET output devices keep all the detail present in high
resolution SACD and DVD-Audio formats, perfectly intact.
Digital Bass Management is available for all surround sound
formats. This prevents bass frequencies from overloading
and distorting your speakers by ‘redirecting’ them to
your subwoofer which is specially designed to handle the
lowest octaves. When playing DVD-Video, DVD-Audio or
Super Audio CD sources, it is possible to preset speaker
configurations. The crossover point is selectable with 12 dB
high and 24 dB low pass filter slopes.
VIDEO PERFORMANCE
The M55 features a Dual Discrete Video Circuit (D.D.V.C.)
for the highest possible picture quality via the Component
Video output. An extremely high-speed video D/A converter
is a very critical component in generating a superior quality
video playback from DVD. The NAD M55, therefore, uses
the highest quality 10-bit, 27MHz individual video DACs for
Composite and S-Video from Cirrus Logic and 12-bit, 216MHz
individual video DACs from Analog Devices for Component
output. Independent video DACs allow simultaneous feed to
zone 2. These ensure highly accurate playback of delicate,
low-level video signals. This produces a vivid picture that
is faithful in every detail. Over sampling of 4x is achieved
for Progressive and 8x for interlaced video signals, allowing
more detailed D/A conversion. Higher quality picture
reproduction is also possible thanks to a filter with flexible
‘shutout characteristics’ that is used for the analog filter
in the latter stage. Furthermore, the NAD M55 uses two
separate video D/A converters to process Progressive and
Interlaced signals. This eliminates mutual interference
between the Progressive and Interlaced signals and allows
both an Standard Definition and a High Definition picture to
be output simultaneously – a great feature for sending video
to a second viewing zone (available on the M15 Preamp
Processor).
Progressive Scan features the DCDi processor by Faroudja.
Progressive Scan technology represents a vast improvement
over the interlaced scanning method used in normal TV
broadcasts and other conventional applications, as it can
process around twice as much video data to produce a
sharper, noise-free picture with finer details. Video images
are faithfully displayed with optimum naturalness and
beauty.
A wealth of picture quality adjustment functions, including
Contrast, Brightness, Hue, Sharpness, Black Level and
Gamma, can all be adjusted using the intuitive On Screen
menu.