Just acquired a Rega Saturn cd player and would welcome advice on best connection options to a Naim XS3 and recommended appropriate interconnect.
Thanks
Just take two RCA plug outputs, the ‘DAC CD analogue output’, and connect to some RCA inputs on the XS3.
If you are yet to spend some nice money on interconnects, I would look into a cable that goes from RCAs (2) to Naims’ DIN plugs. (inside the XS3 the DIN have a better connection.)
Pretty sure Chord will have some options here.
I wouldn’t blow the budget though… But, YMMV.
In theory, a din plug at the Naim end will be best. Naim make an excellent RCA phono to Din cable, which costs around £120 and can be bought from Naim dealers. If you prefer to have RCA at both ends, Rega’s Couple cables are very good and again, not silly money.
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@HungryHalibut is spot on, with those recommendations. Could save yourself a lot of time by simply making a choice between those two alternatives.
It’s possible to go higher.
Hope these related posts make for interesting reading…
Maybe stretch to go to Shawline. But with those items, might not get (hear) any further benefit, beyond .
Ideal situation would be to ask your local Naim dealer to loan some cable options, from their loans / demo room stock, just over a weekend. Find out for yourself.
Good luck
R
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The Saturn is reputed to be a really good player , it needs good connections to you XS3 ( again a quality component) , I have just bought a Chord Shawline for my Naim CD5si and Nait 50, I also have a Naim UnitiQute that I use as a DAC and streamer for internet radio
That too is connected via Chord Shawline to the Nait 50 , indeed I have gone one step further than that in that both UnitiQute and CD5si use Chord Shawline power cords .
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Those links certainly suggest the Shawline level of interconnect is not choking the potential capability of the ‘amp’ rendering a GREAT playback. (better was identified going ‘higher’ but the Shawline was the base level for being a jump above a good Naim cable; identified as being better than the lower two tiers (that were tested) by @ratrat.)
the linked to thread regarding cables had a couple of posts that really cleared up ‘what to expect’ in real world usage… (and described things as I would likely do when noting ‘cable differences’; so lines up with my expectations and is easy for me to take onboard as ‘potentially true’)
Cables arguably are the last steps of sorting out a systems sound.
Unless, like me, you have a few cables sitting around begging to be used, and can, with no expectation bias ([i]maybe previous samplings of ‘said cable’ in previous systems, “sure”), or ‘need to net value’ from a purchasing decision etc… loading my bias’.
Oddly enough I replaced a flagship Kordz cable with a mid tiered Chords cable and have loved the pairing with the Nait amplifier.
I believe (if) it is an electrical properties matching thing; perhaps Witchhat (?) brand cables are another to consider (ex Naim employees I read in a thread here somewhere).
Took a couple of weeks to settle… by present setup is musical in every regard and I’d argue, certainly at ‘low volumes’ a better listen for me than my previous (higher tiered) amp in situ.
Not on all recordings quite yet (a few are still “a little grainy” as of a couple of days ago; might need be rechecked though based on listening today so far!)
OP: Saturn is a nice CD player, and likely going to be the DAC in the system from streaming sources etc… great way to use one set of ‘cable’ to improve multiple sources!!
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Thank you all for your suggestions. Think I’ll give the Naim din to rca cable a go to start with. Looking forward to giving my cd collection a new lease of life
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I’d warn against switching cables, as can prove false economy
You can only use one set (at a time), splitting ‘investment’ pointlessly isn’t wise.
For clarity, you need a RCA to DIN .
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I agree in using DIN inputs are usually preferred.
However when using Rega CD players I’ve always preferred Rega Couple interconnect(any edition is fine), only available RCA configured.
Rega Couple is known as a variant of Klotz or Mogami cables, usually for studio use, nice free of any audiophile snake oil.
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