PS Audio vs NAD M12

I’d go with the PS Audio DirectStream DAC. The designer, Ted Smith, is a genius. Moreover, PS Audio provides exemplary customer service, and Paul McGowan, the sole proprietor AFAIK, is a true mensch, a real good guy!

On the other hand, NAD is an international corporation owned by the Lenbrook Group. So, I imagine it’s going to be quite impersonal, as is most often the case with corporations. Look at what happened to Infinity after it was acquired by Harman Kardon. It lost the personal touch, customer service was crap, and audiophile values were supplanted by bean-counter values. I wouldn’t buy a NAD product. But YMMV.

The DSD day can also be used as a digital source preamp as you have volume control. If you install the Bridge ll you have MQA compatibility. PS Audio customer service is excellent as jburidan has already stated.

Thanks for the info...The PS Audio does sound better in terms of Tech and Warranty Support.  Wondering if anyone has experience with the sound quality of both?

+1  Jburidian

Another thing about the NAD M12 that's a huge red flag IMHO is that there's no information about which D/A chip is used. The NAD website doesn't mention it, and none of the reviews mention it. It's a pig in a poke AFAIK.

razorbraun, the NAD M12 looks nice, but the sound is prolly mid-fi at best. My advice is don't waste your money,