Well guys after my slight wobble what do you think is my best way forward,
I will need to get my 552 serviced soon and maybe DR’ed ?
But cable dressing, now in the pic this is how it is now, and being 3 racks, the cables are not as good as they could be, so would i be better going back to 2, but then the 500ps bottom, 552ps next, 500 amp and then 552, with turntable on the top, or better to keep them separate on different racks?
I could get a fraim for it ?
Anyway ideas please
How about adding three more shelves? You would allow some spacing for the system and help with dressing the cables.
Your current racks look pretty sweet…
Got to careful on height, been thinking about moving my rack to another wall, but then you will see down the side and the wife wont like that lol
I can only go by my modest setup Dunc and can certainly say that a Fraim improved everything.
So I would imagine at your level it will be fantastic! Going by what’s said, DR’ing is a substantial improvement also.
Obviously this is you now going the other way and spending money tho.
Welcome back Dunc, amazing journey. Thank you for sharing with us.
I always think of Naim a bit like F1, everything needs to be on song (literally) to sing. Fraim, attention to cable dressing will bring incredible rewards.
There is a wealth of information on this fine forum and old alike with some incredibly helpful, knowledgeable and wonderful people to help smooth the teeth when the going gets tough.
Your in the right place with the right kit, right people and Naim to support and back up this incredible journey we’re all on to enjoy our audio pleasures.
For me, In Naim I trust.
Looking at your rack, I assume that like the Fraim, two medium height shelves = three regular ones. If so, you just need one more medium and one more standard and it’ll all look nicely balanced as well as afford you a bit of room to experiment moving things around if need be.
Would like to find out more on what owners of non 552 dr, found when then went dr’ed, as i believe it can have mixed results, but it will be due a service in 2 years time i think, and can always bring that forward if DRing is definitely a gain.
The fraim is more a problem as the wife doesn’t like it, but right now i might be able to swing it
Well i already have a spare standard height one, so are you saying, have 3 x standard shelves on each side and 2 medium in the middle, and if so how would you suggest the best layout?
Yup that’s what I suggest. You then have it nicely balanced in look, the DCS kit gets its own shelf, and you can play a bit with layout.
Ok, cheers
Hi @Dunc, I have owned 2x 552DR and heard a 552 non DR and can say that the difference is quite noticeable. The 552 is a great pre but the DR is the latest version and with this change Naim really upped the stakes. For me the difference was much darker background, better instrument separation, a clarity in the reproduction I had not experienced before, realism was greater also. The 552DR seems to be more fun, more effortless in its presentation. Not sure why anyone would prefer a non DR 552 in all honesty as the DR just builds on everything that is great about the 552. Nothing fundamentally changes. It just feels like a fresher/younger model with more lust for life. Absolutely one of Naims best products.
The 500DR vs the 500 is a big lift also imo but in a different way. That is more like a different amp, like another step up the ladder.
Depending on the age of your 552 you maybe shocked at the difference a simple service makes! Remember the time frames are limits and depends on the use, conditions etc. An early service will bring it back to new, these amps slowly degrade over time, they are not perfect one day and need a service the next.
…plus Fraim. It looks so much better in the flesh I think. The 500 series is designed to be used on Fraim and you will extract the maximum from those black boxes on it! At 500 level its cheap. Better value than the SL cable in my opinion (They are still great). Not sure if you have a Powerline for the 552 if you have a non DR one but if not grab one. That 552/500 DR/Powerline synergy is wonderful when set up and singing.
Cheers steve
I have a good mains set up, from separate consumer unit, 10mm cable radial, nice un switched socket, matching 6 way power block and shielded mains cables off a good size and quality.
I use witchhat phantom speaker cable, and morgana everywhere else in the loom.
Maybe a 4 shelf fraim and base would be the way to go for the naim, but it would all be on the same rack then
IMV Dunc, get Fraim as a priority before DR’ing the 552. I think it will make a bigger and more obvious difference. Make sure all cables hang free of all others and no signal leads touch the ground. Get as much Fraim as you need to ensure that is the case. Welcome home! 
FYI your 552 is listed as DR in you profile
Hi Dunc, I also thought from your profile that you already had a 552DR and 500DR - so is just the latter DR?
If the 552 needs a service (how old is it?), it definitely makes sense to get it DRd at the same time. I was somewhat hesitant about the upgrades due to the choice of music at Naim demos and the fact that there don’t seem to be any classical fanatics on the R&D side or indeed elsewhere in the company at present to my knowledge, but I needn’t have worried - they’re an overall improvement with no lack of delicacy of touch or textural detail, which in fact take a step up along with everything else.
The biggest improvement you could get immediately, however, is to set up the 552 so that there is nothing either immediately above or below it. Getting the cables clear of each other and the floor also makes a difference, sort of cherry on the cake. But having space around the 552 makes a very desirable improvement, especially if you are missing some of the Vitus detail (DR will also improve this). Get an empty shelf below and above - or preferably nothing above it. Fraim will also improve this (probably also lifting the performance of your Rega to boot) along with the service/DR upgrade.
PS: Brain/brawn separation is also in my experience worth maintains, preferably (to get paranoid) with the brawn to the right, which gets the transformers further away from the brain stack.
Hi Dunc,
@Michaelb 's advice is absolutely spot on.
However, if your wife is not taken with the aesthetics of FRAIM, or it is too wide to fit, then try an internet search for Simon Price Simrak. This is the rack that we will end up with, as FRAIM is too wide for our available space. For an objective comparison of the two, you may like to give Cymbiosis a call, as they sell both.
Best regards, BF
I’d second the advice re the Simrak. It really exudes quality and it isn’t excessively expensive either. 
I had the 552 already to go off and be DRed, the 2nd week after i got it, but i couldn’t get down to drop it off, as at the same time my ear problem came to light, that also had the dr money as went private. Must have been all around the same time and just forgotten about it, but like i say my 552ps isnt DRed, but i will be sorting that out and been told about a 2 week turn around, also i guess it would be only right to get the 552 serviced at the same time ?
The fraim is more off a problem as i have said before the wife doesn’t like the look off it, plus i couldn’t fit 3 stacks in, like i have know as its wider, plus the rega, its connections fall in the way off the rear leg and you have to bend the cables very sharply to miss it, and the dcs kit is too deep.
But as i said i could say have just one fraim stack, but all 4 boxes would need to be on it and that might be worse than what i have know?
