"Product of the Year Award" 2009 - SoundStage

"You Can't Go Wrong" Says Stereophile

Sitting proudly at the very top of NAD's Classic Series product line, The NAD C 565BEE boasts performance that is very close to the company's vaunted Masters Series M5 CD Player. Yet it only costs half as much!

"You won't go wrong with the C565BEE," says Sam Tellig in his Stereophile review for October 2009. "I loved the USB input."

"One Of The Best Values In High-End Audio"

"I'm not sure I knew exactly what to expect when I inserted the C 565BEE in my system, but I sure didn't expect it to sound much like my reference CD player, a Simaudio Moon Evolution SuperNova ($6500)," observes Doug Schneider in his December 2009 review for SoundStage, which honored the NAD with its Product of the Year Award for 2009. "Right now, it's one of the best values in high-end audio."

"A Two Channel Enthusiast's Dream Come True"

"It's a two channel enthusiast's dream come true at very affordable price," reports Andrew Robinson in Home Theater Review.com for February 15, 2010. "It's one hell of a player, one I could live with for years and not think twice about. Highly recommended."

The C 565BEE applies the very latest in semiconductor design to deliver performance that must be heard to be believed. One of the major shortcomings of CD playback has always been the relatively low 44.1 kHz sampling frequency.

The sampling frequency is how many times the analog sound wave is measured or 'sampled' creating a staircase like replica of the original waveform. This is what is stored on the CD disc.

Later these digitized waveforms are smoothed out by the circuitry of the CD player. But if the number of steps could be made much smaller - twice as many or even four times as many - the waveform would be much smoother to begin with and the processing in the CD player could be simplified and improved.

Advanced Sample Rate Conversion Circuit

This is exactly what NAD has done with the C 565BEE by adding a Sample Rate Conversion circuit that bumps the 44.1kHz sampling frequency up to 96 kHz or even 192 kHz. This higher sampling rate allows NAD's engineers to take full advantage of the latest state-of-the-art DAC from Wolfson Microelectronics.

Although the signal-to-noise ratio of this DAC is specified at a very high 128 dB, NAD uses two of them in a Dual Differential configuration for even better performance.

Incredible Internals All Around

NAD uses ultra-clean multiple regulated power supplies to feed the different types of circuits and mechanical parts that make up the C 565BEE. Careful circuit layouts, short signal paths, and rigorous attention to every detail insure that performance is maximized. Because the Sample Rate Converter pushes the sampling frequency very high, NAD can use a better sounding digital filter with less group delay. This filter also has a user selectable roll off slope to allow fine tuning by ear.

The analog circuitry is also at the cutting edge of performance. NAD uses the best quality FET audio OpAmps selected for their very wide bandwidth and low noise. Able to deliver ample current and with a very low source impedance, the C 565BEE is less sensitive to cable capacitance.

Front-panel USB Input

The C 565BEE's superb digital and analog circuitry makes other types of media sound great, too. The front panel USB port allows MP3 music files (up to 320kbs/VBR) stored on a USB Memory Key or USB Hard Disc Drive (FAT 16/32 format) to be played back using the superior performance capability of the C 565BEE. The rear panel optical digital input caters to a wide variety of digital playback devices such as digital tape or mini-disc. Source inputs are easily selectable from either the front panel or via the supplied IR remote.

CD Text and Metadata from MP3 files is displayed on the front panel two-ine display, along with time, track, and other program data simultaneously. Display icons indicate selected input, filter slope and sampling rate.

Friendly Front-panel Controls

NAD designed the front panel controls to make it faster and easier to browse large collections of music files. A rotary knob that controls both 'skip' and 'play / pause' functions. Twist the knob clockwise and you skip forward; counterclockwise skips back. Push the knob to initiate play. It is so intuitive to operate that you'll soon wonder how you lived before without it.

Green Engineering

NAD has responded quickly and responsibly to the new awareness of environmental damage caused by human activity. The C 565BEE is manufactured without the heavy metals that have been identified as harmful to the environment and manufacturing processes meet the latest stringent international standards. Standby power consumption is best in class at <1 watt.

Installation Manual(1mb PDF)

• Dual differential Wolfson DACs
• Optical and USB inputs
• Selectable digital filter slopes
• Upsampling to 192 kHz
• MP3 / WMA / WAV playback
• 'Greener Than Green' <1-watt standby consumption
• Premium quality FET audio OpAmps
• Ultra-clean multiple regulated power supplies
• Careful circuit layouts, short signal paths
• Front panel two-line display (CD text, MP3 metadata, input, filter slope, sampling rate, etc.)
• Large, multi-function rotary knob
• IR input, 12V trigger input, and RS-232 interface
• Full function remote control

• Frequency response: ± 0.3 dB (ref. 0 dB 20 Hz-1 kHz); ± 0.5 dB (ref. 0 dB 1 kHz-20 kHz)
• De-emphasis error: -3.73 to -5.33 dB (ref.0 dB 5 kHz); -8.04 to -10.04 dB (ref.0 dB 16 kHz)
• THD (at 0dB, 1kHz): 0.01%
• Dynamic range: 95 dB
• Linearity: ± 0.01 dB (at -3 dB); ± 0.02 dB (at -6 dB); ± 0.05 dB (at -2 0dB); ± 0.15 dB (at -60 dB)
• S/N ratio, A-weighted: 110 dB
• Channel balance: ± 0.5 dB(ref. 0 dB 1 kHz)
• Output level: Analog 2.2 ± 0.1 V; Optical -22.5 ± 3.5 dBm; Coaxial 650 ± 150 mV
• Dimensions: 17-1/8" wide, 2-3/4" high, 11-1/4" deep
• Weight: 11.4 lbs.

"The C565BEE is one of those players that flows with the music. It has finesse, and lots of precision when required, particularly when placing instruments on the sound stage."

- What Hi-fi? Sound and Vision, April, 2009

"I'm not sure I knew exactly what to expect when I inserted the C 565BEE in my system, but I sure didn't expect it to sound much like my reference CD player, a Simaudio Moon Evolution SuperNova ($6500). The SuperNova is of reference grade for both its build (massive, all-metal construction) and its sound -- the latter is basically beyond criticism. These two players weren't similar in how they were built but in how they sounded -- when I closed my eyes and listened, I could swear that they weren't just siblings, but identical twins."

"But as rich in features as the C 565BEE is, I was most taken with its sound -- very full, richly textured in the mids, and able to unravel a lot of detail. In fact, it sounds a lot like Simaudio's Moon Evolution SuperNova ($6500), which in many ways represents the state of the art. So if you want a new CD player and, like most people, can't afford the SuperNova -- or, for that matter, the Zandèn 2500S (who can?) -- head straight for the C 565BEE. Right now, it's one of the best values in high-end audio."

- Doug Schneider, SoundStage, December 2009

"It's a two channel enthusiast's dream come true at very affordable price."

"You can't look at the C 565BEE as just a CD player, for it truly is a CD player / DAC combo in one chassis with a USB input thrown in for convenience. The internal Wolfson DAC alone may be worth the price of admission, not to mention NAD's Sample Rate Converter. Toss in an incredibly capable CD player with the convenience of being able to play back MP3 files via its front mounted USB input and the C 565BEE begins to make a lot of sense for those looking for an "all in one" solution.

"I would have no qualms about inserting the C 565BEE into a reference rig with cables that cost more than it nor would I slight the audiophile that put it into an office or den based system with his or her laptop as the primary source versus the CD player itself. While it's sonic characteristic is a bit laid back and you have to push the volume just a bit to make it truly come to life it's one hell of a player, one I could live with for years and not think twice about. Highly recommended."

- Andrew Robinson, Home Theater Review.com, February 15, 2010