Bells And Whistles Colour The Sound

FOR Well-equipped; Google Chromecast; smooth tone

AGAINST Short on expression, detail and rhythmic ability

You wouldn’t need to borrow a friend’s hands to count how many £600 stereo amplifiers are capable of streaming music from Spotify, Tidal and Google Play Music with just two taps on your smartphone screen. Indeed, the C 338 is not only NAD’s “most versatile amplifier ever” but among the best-equipped and most flexible we’ve come across from any brand at this price.

Features galore

For that reason, it would be unfair to overlook NAD’s ambition here. While some of the C 338’s rivals at this price forgo the inclusion of a DAC – Rega's Brio for instance – the C 338 appears to have more connections than Game Of Thrones’ Lord Varys.

The ample physical inputs (three RCAs – including one MM phono – and twin coaxial and optical connections) are boosted by the inclusion of Bluetooth and wi-fi, via two screw-in antennae. There’s also built-in support for Google Chromecast which, via the Google Home app, opens doorways to streaming from several music services straight from your smartphone or tablet. It’s quick, easy and, honestly, we wish more stereo amplifiers had it on board.

Clean and simple