{"id":17648,"date":"2025-11-22T11:05:33","date_gmt":"2025-11-22T10:05:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/audio-2g.com\/?p=17648"},"modified":"2025-11-21T12:54:12","modified_gmt":"2025-11-21T11:54:12","slug":"musical-fidelity-nu-vista-600-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/audio-2g.com\/en\/musical-fidelity-nu-vista-600-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Musical Fidelity NU-Vista 600.2"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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In February 2023 we had the opportunity to test the Flagship model of Musical Fidelity<\/a>‘s revamped Nu-Vista line, namely the four-frame PRE\/PAS<\/a> amplifier system. On that occasion we were anticipated by the manufacturer that two more integrated amplifiers of the same line were being finalized. The first of these, the 800.2, actually made its debut a few months later. Now it is the turn of the NU-Vista 600.2, which was announced to us as the “low-power” Nu-Vista. Indeed, the claimed power of 2×160 W into 8 ohms is lower than the 330 W into 8 ohms of the 800.2 and the Nu-Vista PAS. Nevertheless, I do not think it can be considered “small,” and this is also because of its size and mass. With a weight of 36 kg, it is in fact only 5 kg lighter than its big brother and has the same dimensions. <\/i><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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NU-Vista 600.2:a bit of technique<\/b><\/h2>

First, I want to point out that Musical Fidelity has taken a decidedly purist approach for this new integrated amplifier as well: there is no DAC, phono stage, or any digital components inside the cabinet that would contribute to the increased internal noise that could risk limiting its performance. Similarities with the 800.2 start with the sturdy aluminum cabinet, available in black or silver, which I found to be entirely identical. According to Musical Fidelity, this material and the entire structure are designed to act like a Faraday cage, protecting the internal components from external electromagnetic fields and preventing electromagnetic fields generated by the Musical Fidelity NU-Vista 600.2 from reaching surrounding components <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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The image only partially hints at the solidity and mass of the 600.2<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The amplifier under review shares some key technologies with the 800.2 including, of course, the nuvistor 6S51N triodes used in its Class A line preamplifier stage. I recall that these particular tubes were introduced by RCA in 1959 presenting substantial improvements in performance and reliability over the classic glass vacuum tubes. The coincidence in time with the overwhelming popularity of transistors meant that these ingenious compact metal-bodied devices are now virtually “extinct.” However, Musical Fidelity says it has acquired a gigantic stock of them that will enable it not only to make this series of amplifiers and additional models in the future, but also to ensure the availability of spare parts for many years to come. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Section of a NuVistor tube.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Just as the 800.2 is an update of the Nu-Vista 800, the Musical Fidelity NU-Vista 600.2 is also an evolution of the previous 600. However, in this case the changes were far more radical making it very similar to the current more expensive models in the Nu-Vista line. The improvements concern components such as higher quality polypropylene capacitors and the use of switching relays in the input section instead of the integrated circuit control of the previous model. This expedient, according to the company, ensures better separation and dynamics. The class AB power stage, similar to that used on the 800.2 and the PAS, makes use of Musical Fidelity’s Titan architecture, where each of the Sanken transistors in the two complementary pairs per channel has a corresponding high-current power supply capacitor. According to the manufacturer, this “allows more immediate access to stored energy<\/i>” due to a “much lower impedance path<\/i>.” <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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The amplifier architecture is of the dual mono type. Note the power sections mounted in contact with the side heat sinks equipped with four power capacitors corresponding to as many active devices. <\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The preamplifier board is mounted on a kind of \"tray\" placed superior to the power supply sections, improving their isolation. Near the rear edge the four NuVistors can be seen. <\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The layout of the various PCBs has also been completely revised and simplified, and now includes a kind of shielded tray for the preamplifier circuits to improve noise isolation. The amplifier section with a fully balanced, dual-mono layout uses a pair of large toroidal transformers. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Connectivity<\/b><\/h2>

On the rear panel there are two balanced XLR line inputs, in place of the one present on the 800.2 model. I suspect that this was done to ensure simultaneous compatibility of the NU-Vista 600.2 with the Nu-Vista DAC and the Nu-Vista Vinyl 2 phono preamplifier, thus going to constitute a complete and also very interesting system. Also in balanced (XLR) format we find a variable output, in addition to the four RCA line inputs and fixed\/variable outputs (both XLR and RCA). The large (4 mm) speaker terminal sets are split so as to allow for bi-wired<\/i> configurations. The front panel is dominated by the large display for which there is a choice between light and dark modes. Each mode has a VU meter option or one where the name of the selected input and the volume value are displayed. On the sides are two large rotary controls, one for source selection and the other for volume control. The latter is quite similar to that found in the 800.2 since it is a laser-tuned unit that, according to Musical Fidelity, guarantees a gain error of only \u00b10.5 dB even at the lowest volume levels. <\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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The range of inputs and outputs is very wide and can solve any need in terms of connectivity.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Deserving a mention is the large remote control that matches the amplifier beautifully by being both large and heavy. Its buttons are well spaced and cover almost all functions, lacking in fact only the “Lighting Mode” button that is on the front panel of the NU-Vista 600.2. This implies the need to operate on the amplifier’s panel in case you want to choose that the display goes into screen saver mode or that the four nuvistor 6S51N tubes, visible through a grid on the top panel, are illuminated (orange during “warm-up,” blue at “full thermal balance,” red when the amplifier is muted). <\/p>

Included in the package are one set of spike feet (Spike) and one set of flat feet.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Handsome metal remote control allows control of inputs, volume, muting and display brightness<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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NU-Vista 600.2: listening<\/h2>

I listened to the Musical Fidelity NU-Vista 600.2 integrated amplifier pairing it with components we know well for being our longtime references. As digital source our ever-present Aqua La Scala MKII DAC in turn connected to a DIY Audio PC with JCat components on which runs Audiolinux in MPD\/UPnP mode. To drive it I resorted to an iPad with the JPlay app installed of which you can find a comprehensive review in this article of mine<\/a>. As speakers we used the Vivid Audio Kaya S12<\/a> and Kaya 90. The analog signal and power cabling, as well as the power supplies, were Neutral Cable Reference Series.
I begin by saying that, despite appearances, this 600.2 is a gentle soul, much more versed in introspection than in the display of brute force of which, moreover, it is not lacking. What is interesting is to reason about how this gentleness is expressed, and to do so we need to extrapolate some distinctive characters from it. One of these is the sense of cohesion that the 600.2 manages to instill in the reproduction. In contrast to some amplifiers that make analyticity their flagship, this Musical Fidelity seems to favor an approach devoted to the search for a sonic continuum<\/i>. This is not to say that it cannot extract detail, far from it! It’s just that, having done so, it manages – I don’t know how – to achieve a skillful amalgamation that allows you to lose yourself in the music. I listened for a long time to a live recording at the Verbeier Festival of a string sextet (performers included L. Kavakos and L. Batiashvili), in a performance of P. I. Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir de Florence <\/i>Op. 70, trying to focus on the part of a single instrument. This succeeded for a while but then I was seduced by the overall beauty of the sonic impasto of the six instruments and ended up listening to the whole and no longer just the detail.
Another interesting aspect is the low range, which has the peculiar ability to be fast and accurate but, where needed, also visceral. Here I experimented by listening to some tracks by Dream Theater and Liquid Tension Experiment (same drummer Mike Portnoy). The drum kit may not be among the best in terms of timbral accuracy, but its capacity for emotional involvement is second to none and it moved the four + four woofers of the Vivid Audio Kaya 90 in a seductive dance accompanied by the rhythmic movement of the VU Meters on the display. Moreover, in that context I also appreciated another peculiarity of this integrated amplifier, namely the excellent overall timing<\/g> that is expressed in lightning-fast transients and credible releases free of unnatural tails. Even brought to expression at condominium lite sound pressure levels, one always gets the feeling that the Musical Fidelity NU-Vista 600.2 is going souplesse<\/i> without exerting any<\/span> effort whatsoever<\/span> . Which allows me to link back to what I wrote at the beginning of the article, namely that the power output, although lower than that of its big brother 800.2, is probably sufficient for most people who live in normal-sized homes, have normally efficient speakers and listen at normal pressures.<\/span><\/p>

What about the valves? Can you hear the tubes? At first listening and not knowing that there is a NuVistori Class A preamplifier section on board, one might be tempted to consider the NU-Vista 600.2 a very good Solid Stage amplifier, but then listening to voices, male or female makes no difference, one realizes that there is something, a flicker, a warmth, a something of humanity that makes you mentally reconnect to the sounds of a vacuum tube.
One last one thought concerns spatiality: the Musical Fidelity NU-Vista 600.2 is capable of building very wide spaces on the three axes and does so with great mastery in depth scanning and focus. Some flaws, wanting to look for the proverbial hair in the egg, I could find in the tendency to a certain approximation in the harmonics of acoustic instruments, such as violins or pianos, but also in certain acoustic guitar recordings where the instrument sounds slightly different and less articulated than in my references which, however, I must state for intellectual honesty, are much more demanding from an economic point of view. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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The Musical Fidelity NU-Vista 600.2 integrated amplifier cannot be considered a fallback choice for those who lack the capital to purchase in the Nu-Vista 800.2. I write this because I would not want it to be mistakenly considered in such a way, not doing justice to an amplifier that instead stems from a well-defined and coherently developed design idea. If the expense approaching ten thousand Euros does not scare you, if the overall dimensions and aesthetics are compatible with your listening room and, above all, if you are looking for a well-built integrated amplifier, full of interesting technical content but also with a “soul,” this Musical Fidelity NU-Vista 600.2 deserves to be listened to carefully. Personally, I found it to be the most balanced of the two integrated amplifiers in the Nu-Vista series, both in terms of input equipment and sonic personality. <\/p>

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Specifications<\/b><\/h2>