I’m back on the Naim forum after a few years of absence so I thought I’d say hi again. I’ve been active on the old forum for a # of years but due to ‘competing interests’, moving house, changing jobs and all that sort of thing my music/audio hobby faded into the background somehow.
The purchase of an ND5 XS2 some 2 weeks ago replacing a NAT05 kinda lit things up again… For me this is also the jump to streaming audio. A little late to the party, I know.
I started with Naim some 20 odd years ago with a stack of Olive boxes and never looked back. My current system:
282 | Hi | Naps
200
CDX2 | Hi-line
ND5 XS2 | Hi-line
all on Fraim
NBS Dragonfly III cords
SF Guarneri Memento speakers
Cardas Golden Cross speaker cables
Mains via a dedicated spur separated from the house’ switchboard with it’s own earth, a rod piercing 16 meters deep under the house (it’s a muddy swamp here).
The system still plays wonderful music but all the boxes except the ND5 are from 2008 so I think service is badly needed/overdue by now. I reached out to Naim via email a week ago and waiting for their reply.
Being Dutch, English is not my native keyboard so I’ll do my best to keep misspellings, faulty grammar and odd expressions/choice or words to a minimum!
It’s good to be back and it’s great to see quite a few familiar names still active here!
Welcome back Richard, when you get time post a picture on the system pics thread. Posting pics is much easier on the forum, just click on the 8th icon of a picture frame and mountain and it will go to your photo library on phone or ipad etc.
Welkom terug in de wereld van Naim Richard.
What part of Holland do you stay? I’m very familiar with the country as I spent a lot of time working there (& everywhere) and I try to go every year to visit my fathers grave at Arnhem.
You have a nice system, now you have the ND5xs2 do you intend to keep the CDX2. I sold my CDX2 as soon as I bought an NDX, in some respects I miss it’s rock playing abilities.
Yes, please post some pictures.
Yes I know Ginkelseheide very well Ardbeg10y.
It was called DZ-Y (drop zone yanky) on 18-Sept’44
The N/E area of the heath nearest to the monuments was allocated to where my fathers 10th battalion dropped.
Welcome back! That’s a nice system you have, and well worth getting a service so that you can get it performing as well as possible.
I’m a little surprised at your choice of speaker cable. Those Litz style Cardas cables are probably the least compatible design you could choose for a Naim power amp. Perhaps worth trying something that’s a better match. Maybe you have a dealer who could lend you something to try.
Thanks for all the replies guys! This sure feels like a welcome back. Awesome.
@Richard.Dane - thank you Richard. I know Latham and I will contact them. If possible, I prefer to have my kit serviced at Naim HQ though.
@Mike-B - I’m in Amsterdam, close to the Rembrandt tower.
About keeping the CDX2 - not sure. The ND5XS2 is brand new, cooking for a week now. After the first day of use I’m completely sold on streaming. The convenience from internet radio, Tidal & Qobus is just mind-blowing. This alone renders the CDX2 out of a job. But…
I’m not 100% sold the ND5’s SQ just yet. It sounds good/ok playing from Tidal but definitely not up to the level of the old CDX2. But I guess I was naive to hope there wasn’t a rabbit hole to dig out with streaming too. So now I’m looking upstream first. I’ve upgraded the 12v power supply of the providers’ cable modem/router. That was a good jump up (bigger than expected). My internet connection is fast and stable so it’s playing via 5GHz wifi from an Apple Time Capsule now. Not a glitch so far. Next up with be ethernet cables etc. The ND5 needs to improve quite a bit from where it is now or I might find myself looking to step up to the NDX2. Aaahhh… my wife was so happy with the ‘quiet years’…
@ChrisSU - I’ve had this question before. The Cardas GC is the only component that survived two complete systems, countless upgrades, tweeks and comparisons. Obviously in the Naim world, I tried the A5 a # of times too. I’ve had and/or tried cables from the usual suspects like MIT, Chord, Audioquest etc. The GC matches really well with the SF speakers and I (still) like their gentle, slightly rounded but very insightful presentation. A significant improvement would require a significant investment and they are far from the weakest link now.
But first things first. Get my boxes serviced - maybe upgraded? - asap!
As long as your power amp is not overheating or becoming unstable, fair enough, use the speaker cable that works for you.
Regarding the streamers, as I guess you have discovered, the model that is on the same level as your CDX2 would be an NDX2, and that should be a good match for your amp. Naim gear does not get any cheaper!
Thanks @LindsayM - I was wondering about that. Service after some 8/9 years got stuck in my head but I’m glad to learn it’s not yet that urgent. After 13 years of use the SQ must have faded gradually but your ears fade with it so it’s hard to judge/quantify just how much.
This is new for me as up till now I never had my gear long enough to need service.
Hello Richard.
I am quite new to the forum but have owned Naim gear since 1997 and love it.
Like you I am now embracing streaming and have ordered a ND5 XS2 streamer. My NAT05 will be retired. However I have to wait until late November before it will arrive due to manufacturing lead time.
I am ok with that as I want to support my local dealer in these hard times.
My Credo speakers will also be retired as I am about to pick up Harbeth CSES3 Anniversary Speakers. So I am gently being pulled in to modern times
Best,
David
I’m not sure I’d retire that lovely NAT05. Internet radio is not as good sounding as FM, especially R3 and R4. You would also do well to get a nice olive Hicap for your 102. It will thank you for it.
Thanks for your quick reply. Funny that you should pick on R3 and R4.
I only picked up the second hand NAT05 last November and was delighted by the quality of R3 and 4.
Remembering a magazine quote of many years ago ‘If you want better quality visit the studio’.
It has been a genuine joy. So perhaps I will keep it in the system. You think an Olive Hicap is better than the Flatcap 2 that I already have ?
I should say that I have had all the components serviced by Naim earlier this year at great expense. But I think it is worth it.
Best,
David
Yes, an olive Hicap is very much better than a Flatcap and well worth the cost. Get yourself a Napsc too. It makes a surprising difference to the 102 and doesn’t cost much. The Napsc 2 is a little better than the original version.
