Net Audio 405-3 Initial Review

Having auditioned the Net Audio 405-3 for the last fortnight, I thought it was time to publish my findings. For those of you that have not read previous posts, The Net Audio 405-3 is a revamped Quad 405 containing all new amplifier boards and dual mono power supply. All that remains of the original Quad 405, is the casing, transformer and mains connector/fuse. All the wiring has been replaced with superior silver plated cable from the Missing Link and the voltage switcher has been bypassed and is hard wired for 220-240v UK mains supply. In addition new high quality gold plated phono output and loudspeaker sockets have replaced the original rather naff din sockets and binding posts.

One of the major criticisms of the original Quad 405 amplifiers although technically very advanced was the use of poor components which most people blamed for the lack of detail in the sound. Net Audio for many years have offered upgrades for these amplifiers in the form of new audio-grade capacitors, output transistors and op amps. However a brand new circuit board allows certain elements of the original design to be improved or removed if not totally necessary and also ensures that high quality modern day components can be used throughout such as 1% low tolerance metal film resistors which sound far superior to the 5% carbon types found in the majority of Quad 405 amplifiers.

Having listened to a fully modified Quad 405-2 amplifier for the last two years as my main amplifier, I was very curious to hear whether these new boards could improve considerably on the Quad boards.

The Review System
Quad 99 CD Player
Net Audio 405-3
Custom Built Passive Pre-Amp
Quad 11L speakers on Partington Dreadnought stands
Interconnects: Custom built solid silver and silver plated loudspeaker cable
Mains: Custom built Missing Link silver plated mains cable and plugs

First Impressions on Sound Quality
The new Quad 405-3 was left to warm up for about an hour before first listening.

The first CD played was the Eagles "Best of Collection". Straight away there was evidence of more bass, more weight and more scale. The vocals of Don Henley seemed a touch more forward but this was not a criticism as with this came more detail and what I woud "call studio air". The Net Audio 405-3 was able to re-produce that little bit of extra realism that I had not previously heard. The track "Peaceful Easy Feeling" confirmed the extra level of detail, as the acoustic guitars sounded more realistic and each note was more believable. The riff at the start of "Life In The Fast Lane" sounded different almost as if someone had stuck a couple of extra notes in there for good measure and each one had a bit more growl about them.

The second CD I put on the tray was Michael Jackson's Thriller (remastered from the late 90's - not the new one). When I have listened to this album before I have found it quite difficult to listen to the vocals because Jacko's voice has a tendency to be very nasal and hard to follow. The title track "Thriller" was a revelation as for the first time I could follow every word as if the vocal track had clearly become separated from the backing track. The bass on this particular track was also more tuneful and provided a new listening experience.

This experience was pretty much the same with every CD I put in the machine, the new level of detail that this amplifier was able to produce was extremely impressive. In short I would just say the Net Audio 405-3 is less far coloured than its predecessors and as result more detailed. The only slight reservation I have is that I am not sure whether this extra level of detail will be to everyone's taste as there is a strong possibility the Quad 405-3 may reveal shortcomings in the rest of the system, something that the warm sound of the older Quad ampifiers is able to mask. I also think that the condition, age and quality of the pre-amp could play a big part in this, one of the reasons why I personal prefer a high quality passive pre-amp.

Conclusion
Personally I think David Pritchard at Net Audio is to be congratulated on these new boards as no-one can question the fact they are more detailed and offer far greater insight when listening to providing the rest of your system is up to the task. I am also curious to hear how this amplifier compares with the modern day Quad 909. If anyone is in a position to comment please do so.

The boards are available as an upgrade kit for £220 or you can send your old amplifier to Net Audio to be modified . There is also the option to convert the Quad 405 to a mono bloc type amp as well. Whichever option you choose, I think it is worth every penny and I will certainly be treating myself to a pair of boards as I don't think I could listen to my Quad 405-2 knowing there is something better out there for a small outlay.

Details on the Net Audio 405-3 can be found here

This entry was posted on Friday May 30th, 2008 at 12:30 PM and is filed under Amplifiers. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response.

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