Trying to take my mind off football until Sunday evening, so thoughts have turned to potential system upgrades.
Current set-up is:
Akurate spec LP12 w/Rega Aria phono stage
Unitiserve 2TB
272/200DR
Neat Iota Alpha
Fraim/Morgana interconnects/Phantom speaker cable/Chord C-Stream ethernet cables into EE8 switch
Listening room is 3.5mx4.5m
Also have a Muso Qb 2nd Gen in another room, wired to the EE8 with C-Stream
I’m lucky enough to have around GBP 5k to spend on the next step, so am thinking of adding second hand/ex-dem XPS DR and replacing the 200 DR with a 250 DR.
Many of you will have been down a similar path - the XPS DR seems a no-brainer, but is the 250DR a significant step up from the 200DR, or would I be better off spending the money elsewhere?
e.g. getting a dedicated consumer unit/spur installed or getting a Radikal PS for the LP12; also considering a 3rd party PS for the US, but that’s not for discussion here.
Any advice gratefully received, before it comes home on Sunday evening…
I haven’t listened to a 200DR but I didn’t get on with the 200.2 I had briefly years ago and I wasn’t happy until I got a 250.2. I’m currently using a 250DR with my 272 and doubt the 200 is doing it justice. I think you’ll notice a big improvement with a 250DR.
Hi, I would say that the dedicated mains, XPS and 250 are all very worthwhile in your system. Having said that, Naim’s new(ish) streaming platform is very good, so I would be tempted to wait and see if any new products emerge later this year before committing.
Also consider your longer term plan. Good though the 272 is, I am strongly of the opinion that separates systems will outperform it, and now necessarily those at a much higher price point, so maybe try to get a dealer to demo some options before you commit.
A dedicated radial spur is always worth the investment.
Beyond that your Linn and phono stage would warrant a better preamp. I would trade your 272 for a NDX and seek out a 2nd hand 282 which would nicely exploit the DR capability on your 200. The 282/200 pairing is very good.
That’s very helpful - thank you.
Could i do this in stages? i.e. if I bought a 282 first, could I connect the 272 to it and just use it as a streamer, until I find a decent NDX?
Yes, that would work. Remember that the 282 uses a NAPSC. Then if you plan to move to a 250 later, you will also need a Hicap, whereas this is only optional with a 200. Add that lot to your turntable and you’ll need to make sure you have a decent rack with enough shelves for each box.
Yes no problem at all using the output socket pre volume control but it would interesting to find out what gave the most benefit upgrading the streamer or the pre amp. Of course if vinyl is your preferred listening then the pre is the answer.
I tend to use the streamer and vinyl equally - just depends on mood
So would it also be possible to upgrade the streamer first and to use the 272 just as a pre-amp (presumably by using the digital out socket on the NDX)?
I would let the NDX do all the digital conversion stuff and use the analogue input on the 272. On reflection I think I’d go 282 first just because of the uplift your vinyl replay would get.
Yes, the 200DR has a preamp power supply built in so it can run a 282, so a Hicap is not required, although it’s a worthwhile upgrade. The 250DR has no preamp power supply, so the Hicap then becomes essential.
(The NAPSC is required to power just the digital control circuits in the 282, and is normally supplied with it as standard as it is required regardless of how you power the main 282 preamp.)