I have upgraded my Dac to a preloved Briscati M3 and it sounds really fantastic with my Nac 282 and Nap 250 Dr.
Now i have the unexpected opportunity to swap to a barely used Ndx2.
Since the NDX2 also has a streaming capability, i could get rid of my additional streamer and its USB connections.
Unfortunately, it is not possible to do a listening comparison and i have to make a fast decision. So your experiences would be very valuable.
Any opinions on whether the NDX2 sound quality would be on par with the Briscati M3?
Also, with the Briscati, i have balanced XLR connections to my headphone amp Ferrum Oor with Hypsos. It sounds sublime. With the NDX2, i would have to use the RCA outputs and i am worried that it may not sound as good.
Thatās a very interesting comparison in my opinion. Unluckily Iāve never been able to directly compare them. IME and according to my taste and preference, I do prefer the NDX2. The Bricasti sounds very good, Iām far from saying the opposite, however I think it lacks of emotion and, maybe, a bit of PRaT. Therefore, if it was my choice, I would instantly know what to go for.
I would say itās on par, just a different character.
I think itās also system dependant. Iāve listened to it with the Kanta 3, Octave V70, Nordost and QED cables. The sound was mesmerizing, but not as engaging as the NDX2, at least for me. The M3 is more on the analytical / neutral side (it might be why it works well with your speakers, Iām just guessing).
Out of curiosity, what did you have before the M3? And why did you choose it in the first place? Have you ever tested a ND5 XS2?
Very interesting comments. The PRaT argument in favor of NDX2 comes up so regularly. Makes me really curious.
I had a Ferrum Erco DAC before and always knew that it was a bottle neck in my system. And the sounds quality of the Briscati comfirmed this. Choosing the Briscati M3 was the result of a listening experience with my local dealer who had a used one on sale.
I am willing to āsacrificeā some resolution for PRaT. What i really really like with the Briscati is the depth of the sounds stage. It is amazing.
I havenāt heard the Bricasti, but if you are enjoying it I would proceed with caution. To my ears the NDX2 is only a good enough source if you use it with either a power supply upgrade or a DAC upgrade. Without one of those, I just donāt find it all that engaging when partnered with a 282/250DR.
I suspect you are better off sticking with what youāve got.
thanks, good point. I actually do not have space in my cupboard for an additional powersupply for the NDX2 and do not want, at this time, to spend money on a powersupply upgrade. Not an issue with the Briscati which could provide some peace of mind against upgrade compulsions. So the comparison has to be NDX2 without external powersupply versus Briscati M3
Itās not impossible that your experience would be different to mine, but my advice would be to only consider an NDX2 if you can listen to one in your own system for a while before you commit.
I had an M3 for quite a while. It replaced an NDX2 and was several steps up, imo. If youāre happy with the M3 then keep it.
Itās also a good pre; a capability the NDX2 doesnāt have. You might not use that functionality now, but it does allow for flexibility in the future.
Itās only up to you do decide whether itās a good choice or not, but you should listen to it, I wouldnāt buy it without a test. If you canāt hear it and have doubts, I would stick to the M3 as @ChrisSU and @simon said.
The NDX2 sounds fantastic IMHO even without an additional PS, but we are all different and others might disagree indeed.
thank you all. So this is clearly not a no brainer decision. Very intereting to see that the majority of this small group here see NDX2 and Briscati M3 somewhat on par but with clearly different sound signatures. Good indication for me not to make a hasted decision and wait until i can listen to an Ndx2 at home.
This is what i was hoping for in terms of feedback.
Mind at peace nowā¦
Late to your thread, an NDX2 owner and owner of a plethora of other DACs, but not the Briscati M3.
I would comment the main functional difference between the two is the NDX2 is a very capable media renderer, where as I understand the M3 is minimal here, supporting pushed media only I understand with UPnP, or direct digital inputs.
However I donāt consider the analogue outputs the NDX2 its strengthsā¦ I find it lacks definition, feels shut in and un natural compared to what I am used to and prefer, though sounds entertaining with many genres. I havenāt listened to my NDX2 with a 555PS at home, which may well help it, but the DAC converter, i2v and output filter wonāt changeā¦ which very much provides the character and feel.
On the other hand the NDX2 as a digital source is superb, and will feed a quality DAC via its SPDIF really well and this is how I use my NDX2ā¦ feeding a DAVEā¦ my NDX2 analogue output is there for contingency.
The nice things with these Naim streamers, you configure for analogue or digital outputs and it optimises itself for either mode maximising the respective performanceā¦ one reason why you canāt do digital and analogue output at the same time, itās either / or.
Thats great feedback, thank you. Would love to listen one day to the Ndx2 and Dave combination.
The Briscati M3 that i have cannot stream. It does not have the optional streaming module. Therefore i am feeding it with a Volumio Rivo streamer. Using the Ndx2 instead of the Volumio would be a nice upgrade in the future. I will wait a bit more until there is a better bargain. Alternatively, i wait 2-3 years and move up to Ns333 and replace everyting with one great box.
Regading the analogue outputs: i use the Briscati M3 Xlr balanced output to my headphone Amp (ferrum Erco) which sounds great. It also sounds great if i use the unbalanced RCA output of the Briscati.
But if i route to the headphone amp from Briscati through the Nac 282 and connect the Nac282 with a 5 Din to RCA, it sounds flat and anemic. I use the tape output for this.
I want to use the Nac 282 in this way with my turntable so that i can listen to vinyl with my headphones. But, the same here: phonostage to Nac282 and then Nac282 to Headphone amp with 5pin to Rca sounds flat.
This really surprises me. Why should the Nac282 outputs sound less well? After all the Nac282 also feeds the Nap250 where things sound great.
I wonder if it is the Din5 to RCA cable that i have. It is a Audioquest Sydney, which i think should be good enough. The Xlr cable that i use between Briscati and Headphone amp sounds great and is not much better (inakustik reference).
I would suggest that you consider the cheaper ND5XS2 if you want a streamer to use with its digital output. I spent some time comparing the two and couldnāt reliably hear any difference. They both use the same streaming board.
All the classic streamers use the same front end StreamUnlimited network module, not the same Naim streaming boards, which are LVDS connected to the network module, albeit they follow the same architecture.
The NDX2 is a media renderer that gives you feedback and control on the device itself, and has a slightly lower impedance PSU compared to the ND5XS2, which has no real feedback, and requires the use of an application running on a device.
Depending on your DAC and rest of system you may or may not hear a difference between the ND5XS2 and NDX2 when in digital audio modeā¦ but if you do notice the difference it will likely be subtle, just like when adding a PSU to the NDX2 in digital audio mode
Personally with how I like to listen to a lot of my music the NDX2 colour display becomes key and sometimes with local controlā¦ and I love that feedback, without needing to look at and wake-up devices, but I guess if you are more wedded to iPads and the like this might be moot, and the nd5xs2 could be the ideal media renderer for you.
Very interesting info. It would be so much fun to compare both as streamers and also compare them to a stand-alone streamer such as the Volumio Rivo that i am currently using. Cost of streamers has a huge span and i wonder whether the SQ differences are as prominent as with a similar price range in DACs.
I think so, certainly in my experience. DACs have a huge range of price and complexity.
I do feel the quality and capability DAC is so essential in a digital replay chainā¦ especially with a revealing system.
Put it this way my DAC is my most expensive component in my system, and it brings the whole system along with it.
I have owned a Bricasti M3 for some time. I remember that I wrote to them for a minor question and a guy from the company, possibly one of the three syllables, called me from California on a Sunday morning (my time) and very affably answered my questions.
Unfortunately, although the M3 sounded great - albeit in a sort of pro way, very clean, very objective - the OS on a flash memory card wasnāt reassuring. Plus, half of the times I turned it on it didnāt connect to the modem and I had to turn it off and on again.
The ND5XS2 I traded in for it was a much more reliable unit, never missed a connection and sounded at least as good.
Thanks a lot Max, embarrassing that i got the name wrong.
I also feel that the sound of the Bricasti is āproā like. It works really well with my system and i love it. I have the nonstreaming version, so use it as a Dac only. Hope there will be an opportunity to try out and compare an Nd5Xs or an Ndx2 in the near future.
I am a fan of the ND5 XS2 even if I am not streaming presently. I love its slightly more āmeatyā, less āin your faceā presentation. Personally, it took me time, money and ears to finally learn that more clarity, more details is not always a better musical experience. Have a careful listen at the ND5 XS2! Best, M.