NAD M5 User Manual

Masters Series – M5 CD/SACD Player

-  Plays SACD, CD, CD-R, CD-RW

-  AES/EBU balanced digital out for PCM sources

-  Coax and TosLink PCM digital audio outputs

-  Separate 2 channel and 5.1 channel analog 

outputs

-  Balanced 600 Ohm Stereo Outputs

-  HDCD, MP3, and WMA decoding

-  Bass Management for SACD

-  24 bit 192kHz DACs with DSD mode

-  NAD Pure Class A Discrete Gain Modules

-  Separate power supplies; switch mode for 

digital circuits, linear for audio circuits.

-  Composite Video Output (switchable On/Off)

-  RS-232 port

-  IR Input

-  12V Trigger  Input

-  Detachable AC cord

-  M5 Remote Control

-  Plays SACD, CD, CD-R, CD-RW

-  AES/EBU balanced digital out for PCM sources

-  Coax and TosLink PCM digital audio outputs

-  Separate 2 channel and 5.1 channel analog 

outputs

-  Balanced 600 Ohm Stereo Outputs

-  HDCD, MP3, and WMA decoding

-  Bass Management for SACD

-  24 bit 192kHz DACs with DSD mode

-  NAD Pure Class A Discrete Gain Modules

-  Separate power supplies; switch mode for 

digital circuits, linear for audio circuits.

-  Composite Video Output (switchable On/Off)

-  RS-232 port

-  IR Input

-  12V Trigger  Input

-  Detachable AC cord

-  M5 Remote Control

The Super Audio Compact Disc offers a significant improvement in 

sonic performance when compared with a standard CD. SACD uses a 

fundamentally different approach to transferring the analog musical 

waveform into the digital domain for storage on the disc. This is called 

Direct Stream Digital, and is widely considered to be a fundamentally 

better approach to digital encoding. This requires very high speed 

processing that simply wasn’t available at the birth of the CD format. This 

high data rate process avoids the quantization errors inherent in the Pulse 

Code Modulation process used for the traditional CD and DVD. Extended 

high frequency response, enhanced detail and a more analog-like sound 

quality are often stated improvements of SACD over CD.

Many of us still have extensive CD collections, however, and luckily the M5 

has sophisticated circuitry designed to also get the best possible sound 

quality from your existing CD recordings. In addition, the M5 includes an 

HDCD decoder which can increase the dynamic range of CD by 6dB with 

specially encoded and widely available CDs. CD-R and CD-RW recordable 

discs are fully supported, and even MP3 and WMA can be played on the 

M5 CD/SACD Player offering many hours of playback from a single disc.

The SACD format also offers the possibility of 5.1 surround sound 

playback, and the M5 is equipped to take full advantage of these exciting 

new multi-channel recordings. We have even included comprehensive 

bass management (redirection) for the 5.1 output. Several popular speaker 

configurations can be easily accessed from the front panel controls and 

navigated via the VFD display. A  higher level of fine tuning is available via 

the Composite Video Output using the M5’s On-Screen-Display. This video 

output is also useful for managing MP3 playback. Since we expect most 

M5s to be used in music only systems, the video circuit can be switched 

off to afford the cleanest possible audio performance.

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 SACD must be read with absolute 

accuracy, vibrations from outside or from internal sources, such as the