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NAD Mesa Subway D-350 head

Norm Nelson

Norm Nelson

Aug 12, 2023
454
927
Santa Babylon
www.youtube.com
#1
As I mentioned in the 800D thread I got excited enough about this discussion I decided to pull the trigger on the head I will actually use -- the Subway D-350 that I've wanted ever since it was introduced. When I grow up I'll probably acquire the 800D but right now the gigs I'm playing don't need the wattage, and anyway, this will do me for now. Unfortunately I'm currently away from my cabs so I'm just dealing with the preamp right now ... maybe I'll update this when I get to actually move some air with it.

First impressions:
  • Wow. Sounds great. Controls are all logical and responsive and do exactly what it says on the tin. I love the "Voicing" control. It's just fantastic. The "Bright" control is a bit unexpected but it works. I'm a fan.
  • The build quality and the documentation are fantastic. I've never bought a component of this high quality end to end.
  • I really love the manuals. So well written and informative. Again, never seen, etc.
  • I'm appreciating the lack of a fan. I have to say my other Class D units all have fans, and sometimes that's a distraction. Kudos to the engineers for making this an utterly silent unit.
  • Only problem I've had so far is the headphone output. I was not able to set this up so it would not distort. For the moment I'm assuming that this is a problem with my cheap-ass Bluetooth headphones with auxiliary cable input, not the amplifier, but I'll check this out with my good studio headphones later.
  • I am currently using it with my (also, cheap-ass) Behringer interface on direct monitor and it sounds great. The balanced output is fantastic both on pre-and post EQ.
More to come as I explore the range of its capabilities!


IMG_9922.JPG
 
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#3
That is a super head and hits a lot of key needs and wants for many folks. I was shocked at how capable it proved to be during beta testing. I always had a more powerful head along with me and never even once thought about needing anything more than the D-350. I also like the "everything at neutral settings" voice of the head.

You may buy one of the other Mesa SW hads one day, but my guess is that you won't want to give up the 350. Congratulations on the new amp!!
 
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#4
Norm Nelson said:
As I mentioned in the 800D thread I got excited enough about this discussion I decided to pull the trigger on the head I will actually use -- the Subway D-350 that I've wanted ever since it was introduced. When I grow up I'll probably acquire the 800D but right now the gigs I'm playing don't need the wattage, and anyway, this will do me for now. Unfortunately I'm currently away from my cabs so I'm just dealing with the preamp right now ... maybe I'll update this when I get to actually move some air with it.

First impressions:
  • Wow. Sounds great. Controls are all logical and responsive and do exactly what it says on the tin. I love the "Voicing" control. It's just fantastic. The "Bright" control is a bit unexpected but it works. I'm a fan.
  • The build quality and the documentation are fantastic. I've never bought a component of this high quality end to end.
  • I really love the manuals. So well written and informative. Again, never seen, etc.
  • I'm appreciating the lack of a fan. I have to say my other Class D units all have fans, and sometimes that's a distraction. Kudos to the engineers for making this an utterly silent unit.
  • Only problem I've had so far is the headphone output. I was not able to set this up so it would not distort. For the moment I'm assuming that this is a problem with my cheap-ass Bluetooth headphones with auxiliary cable input, not the amplifier, but I'll check this out with my good studio headphones later.
  • I am currently using it with my (also, cheap-ass) Behringer interface on direct monitor and it sounds great. The balanced output is fantastic both on pre-and post EQ.
More to come as I explore the range of its capabilities!


View attachment 7329371
Click to expand...
If you are using this to a bluetooth transmitter via the headphone output, it's quite easy to overdrive the transmitters and you may have to turn down the master quite a bit.

If you are driving an interface first like it looks like you are doing in the picture, be sure you have the DI output set for mic level and you may need to turn the input gain down on the amp if using the DI in post eq mode. The XLR input on your Behringer interface is set up for mic level only through the XRL part of the combo input jack.
 
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#5
agedhorse said:
If you are using this to a bluetooth transmitter via the headphone output, it's quite easy to overdrive the transmitters and you may have to turn down the master quite a bit.
Click to expand...

Oh, no. The headphones have a regular cord jack as well as the Bluetooth receiver. I was going through the cord direct to the phones from the amp. Have to have the input gain and master down to almost inaudible in order to quell the distortion. Went to the balanced out to interface after that. And yes, I have the balanced out set to mic level. It sounds great through the interface on direct monitor!
 
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#7
Norm Nelson said:
Oh, no. The headphones have a regular cord jack as well as the Bluetooth receiver. I was going through the cord direct to the phones from the amp. Have to have the input gain and master down to almost inaudible in order to quell the distortion. Went to the balanced out to interface after that. And yes, I have the balanced out set to mic level. It sounds great through the interface on direct monitor!
Click to expand...
What headphones are they? That's not normal, but there's are a fair number of headphones that can fall out side of the range the amp is designed to work with. They are usually proprietary consumer audio types, not what we see in pro audio or music industry types.
 
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#8
Norm Nelson said:
As I mentioned in the 800D thread I got excited enough about this discussion I decided to pull the trigger on the head I will actually use -- the Subway D-350 that I've wanted ever since it was introduced. When I grow up I'll probably acquire the 800D but right now the gigs I'm playing don't need the wattage, and anyway, this will do me for now. Unfortunately I'm currently away from my cabs so I'm just dealing with the preamp right now ... maybe I'll update this when I get to actually move some air with it.

First impressions:
  • Wow. Sounds great. Controls are all logical and responsive and do exactly what it says on the tin. I love the "Voicing" control. It's just fantastic. The "Bright" control is a bit unexpected but it works. I'm a fan.
  • The build quality and the documentation are fantastic. I've never bought a component of this high quality end to end.
  • I really love the manuals. So well written and informative. Again, never seen, etc.
  • I'm appreciating the lack of a fan. I have to say my other Class D units all have fans, and sometimes that's a distraction. Kudos to the engineers for making this an utterly silent unit.
  • Only problem I've had so far is the headphone output. I was not able to set this up so it would not distort. For the moment I'm assuming that this is a problem with my cheap-ass Bluetooth headphones with auxiliary cable input, not the amplifier, but I'll check this out with my good studio headphones later.
  • I am currently using it with my (also, cheap-ass) Behringer interface on direct monitor and it sounds great. The balanced output is fantastic both on pre-and post EQ.
More to come as I explore the range of its capabilities!


View attachment 7329371
Click to expand...
You really make me want to try the D350 and the Bass 800D.
  • For my needs, I'm 100% certain that 350W is more than enough, I know for sure that I would never need 800W, but since there's no 350W version of the Bass 800D, I could choose it if I prefer the voicing even if it's too much for my needs.
  • Both have exactly the number of controls that I like. I would feel overwhelmed by the knobs on the WD800 and TT800.
  • I've had the Bass 400+ a very long time ago and I loved it. There's a little devil in my head that tells me I need a tube preamp, but it's fighting against another little devil who asks me to try the "voicing" knob of the D350, and tells me that I don't need real tube distortion, I just need the "heft (*)" of a great amp (* even if I hate this meaningless word).
  • Last but not least: I don't need any of them, I'm happy with the amps I have now, but I've been dreaming about a Mesa amp ever since I sold the 400+. So I could try both models, and if it sounds as good as I imagine, I would sell one of my current amps and buy the winner.
I live in Paris (France), so I suppose I could find a physical store that has both models…
 
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#13
friskinator said:
How does the D-350 do with an 8 ohm cab? I have a LDS 1x10 on the way loaded with the Faital 10FE300 woofer. It can handle up to 500w max. Maybe the D-800 is a better choice?
Click to expand...
I have the WD-800 and use one 8 ohm cab. Either one 210 cab or one 112. I always set the ohm selector at 2 which limits the amp output to 300 watts. I primarily play in a 12 piece Motown review band that have 5 apparently deaf vocalists each with a monitor pointed at their knees with a horn section behind me and I've covered rooms seating up to 700 with no FOH support.

I'm thinking 150 or so watts driving an efficient cab would cover a lot of applications, other than playing in a death metal band with a loud drummer and a guitarist with a multiple speaker open back cab driven with 100 watts or more.
 
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#14
friskinator said:
How does the D-350 do with an 8 ohm cab? I have a LDS 1x10 on the way loaded with the Faital 10FE300 woofer. It can handle up to 500w max. Maybe the D-800 is a better choice?
Click to expand...
It only depends on how loud you need to be or the size of the room you play in.

To me, it's more about the size and quantity of drivers than power. I play my D350 with two 112 cabs and never missed any power but with only one 12", I need a small room of less than 25 feet by 25 feet to fill the space.

A 210 cab is often good enough but a bare minimum IMO.
 
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#15
friskinator said:
How does the D-350 do with an 8 ohm cab? I have a LDS 1x10 on the way loaded with the Faital 10FE300 woofer. It can handle up to 500w max. Maybe the D-800 is a better choice?
Click to expand...
First comment is that I wouldn't recommend 500 watts into that driver, it won't last very long before deteriorating. About 250-300 watts is the realistic limits IME. Especially mechanically. The D-800 is too much imo.

The 175 watts of the D-350 is only ~2dB less output than the driver can safely handle. If you need more volume, a second cabinet would be a MUCH better approach imo.
 
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#16
The D-350 with two efficient 112 cabs (so running with combined 4 Ohm load) will surprise you for most styles of music. If you need super deep bass at high volume for things like reggae in an outdoor venue there are better choices in the SW line. I've played outdoor events (e.g., block parties and private parties) with the D-350 and two GK Neo 112II cabs and had plenty of volume with solid bass for rock and country with no FOH support.
 
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#17
gtirard said:
You really make me want to try the D350 and the Bass 800D.
  • For my needs, I'm 100% certain that 350W is more than enough, I know for sure that I would never need 800W, but since there's no 350W version of the Bass 800D, I could choose it if I prefer the voicing even if it's too much for my needs.
  • Both have exactly the number of controls that I like. I would feel overwhelmed by the knobs on the WD800 and TT800.
  • I've had the Bass 400+ a very long time ago and I loved it. There's a little devil in my head that tells me I need a tube preamp, but it's fighting against another little devil who asks me to try the "voicing" knob of the D350, and tells me that I don't need real tube distortion, I just need the "heft (*)" of a great amp (* even if I hate this meaningless word).
  • Last but not least: I don't need any of them, I'm happy with the amps I have now, but I've been dreaming about a Mesa amp ever since I sold the 400+. So I could try both models, and if it sounds as good as I imagine, I would sell one of my current amps and buy the winner.
I live in Paris (France), so I suppose I could find a physical store that has both models…
Click to expand...
To start with:



You really should get the Bass 800D, it will be everything you have ever wanted needed in a bass amp given what you wrote above. :hyper:
 
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#18
agedhorse said:
First comment is that I wouldn't recommend 500 watts into that driver, it won't last very long before deteriorating. About 250-300 watts is the realistic limits IME. Especially mechanically. The D-800 is too much imo.

The 175 watts of the D-350 is only ~2dB less output than the driver can safely handle. If you need more volume, a second cabinet would be a MUCH better approach imo.
Click to expand...
Thanks so much for the advice. Assuming I'm only going to be using this one cab, how much power should I safely plan on feeding it at 8 ohms?
 
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