It took a few decades (I’m old and I had a lot of pieces to work through LOL) but I finally bit the bullet and acquired my first Naim piece… a 5i-2!! Well loved but I’m thrilled!!
My very simple system consists of:
Magnepan MMG’s
MHDT Havana DAC fed by a Chromecast Audio
Wireworld Luna 7 speaker cables
Flashback DIN to RCA Interconnect
So a couple things… there is a brashness to the sound… its a tad “splashy” especially when listening to internet radio. Spotify is similar on some genres of music but not as bad. So with an added 1.5ohm resistor to the Maggie’s and a tube change I’m about 70-80% rectified. I figured to bring it in the rest of the way and make it smoother with a little more body, I would try some NACA5 cables. Wrong… things went sideways and the cables bring out the nasties more!! Back to the Wireworld’s.
Any recommendations from this point??
And secondly, when I turned off the power to the amp, I have to reset the remote in order for the volume control to work. Is this common?? It’s happened every time from the day I received the unit.
These look a bit suspect to me. I don’t know their electrical properties but they may be poor. But it sounds like something else is off if the NACA-5 actually took you the wrong way. Very strange.
The brashness sound – you may be listening to relatively low quality digital source material that the Nait now reveals to be low quality. Any “lossy” source (and much internet streaming is lossy, some more than others) can take on this quality. But especially the ‘more lossy’ streams. Does this happen with lossless Spotify sources (I think they call it Hi-Fi Spotify?).
Before I posted this, I read through a lot of posts in the forum…hours in fact… and I did come across one where Naim replied to a customer about Wireworld and they confirmed it was “satisfactory”. Which is why I have no issues using it. The amp never gets warm at all albeit I never drive my system loud.
But I did my due diligence and got the NACA-5’s.
As for the brashness, even with Spotify set to its highest level, I am still hearing it.
I’m mid 50’s… I do have some sensitivity in my hearing especially in the upper levels where sibilance and tizz drive me bananas!! Everything I’ve read about Naim pointed me to where something like this would not be an issue… but unfortunately it is.
Hello everyone - topic has been beaten to death and I apologize. I received confirmation from Naim Customer Service that Wireworld, if I choose to use it and like the sound it is compatible with the Supernait 3. I didn’t delve into the older gear as I’m a novice an still learning. They mentioned the Interconnects for the S’Nait 3 are easier to get along with as well. Not sure how many Nait 3 owners are here but I wanted to drop this tiny piece of knowledge. They are not litz configuration I wire , they are twisted and suspended apart by the dialectic and do not touch. Naim still does feel their OEM cable will sound better. Have a good day!
How old is the Nait 5i? When was it serviced ?
Or is it brand new?
If second hand, past 10/15 years, it needs service from Naim.
Then they are the Wireworld speakers cables. May not suit the Naim speakers cables specs required.
I’m sorry the sound isn’t to your liking. There are a couple of points. First as FR notes above - if the unit has had no service since 2009, it probably needs one. If you call Naim customer service with the serial number they will have information about the history of the unit and be able to advise you.
Secondly, your comments on the remote suggest that you are turning off the amp when not in use. If that is the case it is possible that you haven’t yet given the amp a chance to warm up properly since you got it. Naim electronics are designed to be left on except when there is a threat of thunderstorms or if they are being left unattended for a while eg when on holiday.
A point of order, but nothing that answers your query.
You say you read that Naim said WW Lunar 7 was ‘satisfactory’
That’s very surprising as these cables are made with copper wires formed as flat strips & are not much more than an unrolled capacitor. I don’t know the spec numbers but estimate they will be very high C & low L, not ideal at all for Naim.
Perhaps the system isn’t good enough to meet your expectations and needs. (Because this is the Naim forum, let’s start with your Naim piece … have you heard it sounding amazing in other contexts?) … or perhaps your room doesn’t suit the system / or simply doesn’t sound nice … have you heard other stuff sounding good in your room? You need to start a process of elimination. Cables … check … next … ?
What you are experiencing to me sounds like the combination of lossy Spotify/Internet radio and the use of the Chromecast audio device to feed your DAC. With a better amplifier it will expose any shortcomings of your source.
I tried a Chromecast audio once to feed my old NDX and it sounded pretty awful to be honest and wouldn’t have been something I would have wanted to continue to use. The device was quickly sold!
Prehaps you can try something better to feed your DAC?
All the other replies were spot-on and worth investigating.
One thing remains and it depends on what it is that you describe as “brashness”: Maybe it’s the Naim sound, which some people might describe as somewhat brash, if only to differentiate it from “polite”, which it isn’t.
Did you hear a 5i-2 or other Naim units before in other systems/environments?
In any case, use something else than lossy internet radio or Spotify to test, whatever you hear with those might be misleading
Which cable do you have between the Chromecast Audio and the Dac?
I have 2 Chromecast Audio’s around and the results differ. Somehow I never really liked the ChromeCast Audio into my Chord Mojo via a simple optical cable. The ChromeCast Audio into my SuperNait 1 (toslink) was very good even with a brandless cable. Adding a Audioquest cable - as simple as they come - improved the CCA into Chord Mojo and also running it into the SN1.
You can also add UTP to the ChromeCast audio via a special adapter. That’s a marked improvement too.
It is a very good streamer, but depends on many factors.
CrazyRiver and Suedkiez: Yup… the obvious is the Naim just may not be for me. I want to build my system around the Maggies. I’ve owned a pair 20 years ago and I’ve come back to them for a reason… I like them! So yes, I may have to look elsewhere.
As far as the CCA… not going to change. I like it and I’ve used it for many years through many systems and it sounds just fine to me. Cable is an Audioquest, among others.
K… one thing… I am not looking for the hifi end all… my ears can’t take that!! I am looking for flow, musicality, and proper tone… detail is last on my list.
And lastly… being an electronics tech for 30+ years, this Naim does not reflect conditions of bad caps. Even though it may be in the time frame of a service I don’t believe it’s ultimately necessary and would like to exhaust other options first. That or move on to something else.
This is why I came here folks… great discussion thank you!!
You like your speakers so look at other things. I have a Nait 5i and have run it with inexpensive speakers that ought to have sounded a bit thin, but I haven’t heard that. I am currently running the 5i with a set of Dali 5’s and they are just the opposite, clear but a little bass heavy. I would try some cheap experimentation with a simple 79 strand ofc speaker cable just to see if the sound changes.
My sources on the 5i have included low grade streaming with the squeezebox duet and again no excess treble.
Precisely… which is why I brought one in… go figure LOL!!
I actually had the Naim running with a set of Fyne F301’s and it did better with them than the Bryston B60 I had before.
I prefer the Naim over the Bryston with the Maggie’s… and as mentioned earlier it’s not like the Naim is bad… I like what’s coming out 80% of the time…I was just hoping it would be just that tad bit better with poorer sources… more forgiving.
