Hi All,
My NAC152XS is good on its own. It’s better supplied with one of the outputs of a FCXS. It’s super with both.
Nice preamp. Thank you Naim.
Yours enthusiastically,
C.
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What I’d really like is to keep my FCXS on my CD5XS and upgrade 1 of my NAC. Then try a NAP200DR in place of my NAP155XS.
That way, the hero preamp gets the DR tech. So I will be hearing it in a way that its designers could only have imagined 
One day…
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Nice to hear you are enjoying your system!
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Thanks Mr M. Reading the forum, sometimes it’s all too easy to think that the pleasure is only towards the upper end of the ranges
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I happily powered my 282 from a 200DR. Sure, it’s not quite a Hicap, but it still sounded very good.
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Not at all Chris. I’ve enjoyed all of my systems, even the Fidelity UA4. Very lucky to be able to enjoy higher end now. But if the situation changes and boxes have to go I’m sure I’d be very happy with a Rega P1 a Nait and my IBLs again.
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Thanks. I asked Naim about exactly this. They responded that in my set NAP200DR would be the way they would go rather than HCDR. The gist of it was that I would get the DR tech into the pre and get the extra muscle for the Allaes too.
This suits me since if I bought a HCDR, I would need another Isoblue shelf and my 4 way Hydra would be one head short.
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Yes, I don’t think there’s any doubt that the twin rail supply from a Hicap would be better, but how much further do you go before a preamp upgrade becomes inevitable. Then there’s the NAPSC!
The NAP155XS is pretty darn good too. I’ve heard one in a system with a nice LP12/Aro with a 252/Supercap DR as a pre and it impressed me greatly
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Chris - I’m also one of the few 152 users here, and perhaps the only one with a ‘complete’ XS streaming stack (152, 155, FCXS, ND5, XP5). I’m in my early 40s with a young family and associated financial commitments, so spending thousands upgrading boxes is possible but certainly not the responsible thing to do! In any case, my setup sounds amazing to my ears which helps with suppressing the urge to upgrade. I’ve also considered a 200DR so if you ever make the switch I’d love to hear your thoughts.
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Sometimes it’s best to do nothing at all and enjoy what you have.
I think this is the appeal of the Naim design philosophy, they have over the years managed to keep true to their roots whilst extending their reach to both new market segments and lifestyle products and in parallel pushed the bounds of what engineering could make possible in the form of the Statement system.
In my 20+ years as a member of the wider Naim “family” I’ve enjoyed every step of the way as my space and budgets allowed!
I’ve mentioned it here a few times but the product that got me hooked was the NAIT 5, I got it at a time when I’d dabbled with a NAIT 3R having seen a high end olive system at a friends house and been blown away by it, quite literally as we were young and a bit more cavalier it’s fair to say…
I wanted a slice of that engaging musical pie and managed to get a used NAIT 3R and then when the Classic design series came out made some sacrifices and dieted on beans on toast for a period of time to get a NAIT 5 which to this day I have a lot of fond memories of as it really was such a fun amp that was honest about it’s limitations but gave it’s all whatever you gave to it to sprinkle its magic on.
The great thing about the products you own today is that they will continue to reward you and give you options for change over many years of service and where needed can be returned to their birth place for some TLC and a MOT as needed.
Naim is a rare mix of both embracing its origins and encompassing the present so you have the confidence that whatever path your journey takes you on, you have some of the very best equipment that is out there to enjoy your music on and a company that has consistently and continuously supported its customers.
They may not jump on the latest fad, or modernise their designs as often as a Milan fashion house but there is that sense of familiarity and consistency that many of us have come to both trust and rely upon on our musical journeys.
Naim products are there for the journey not just the moment as many other competitors are.
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I reckon there might be as many of 6 of us in our oh-so-select group of NAC152XS owners!
You have broadly the set that I could see myself with one day, except that in my case it it would be the ND5XS2 (or more likely ND5XS4 ).
The NAP200 (now with DR) is a bit of a odd one since Naim recommended it as an alternative to the NAP155XS when the NAC152XS was released. Normally NAPs are from the same level as the pre.
And as Tricky Dickie says, not much wrong with the NAP155XS.
I think a few have run a CD5XS with a dac and my dealer recommends something called a Chord Quetest. In my mind this certainly chimed with Naim’s general line of, ‘if you want improvements, look to the source’.
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Well nearly a year and a half since first asking Naim whether a NAP200DR would make any sense in my set, and a few weeks since a forum friend also suggested it, I finally have one. A new to me 2018 NAP200DR has replaced my NAP155XS.
I’m delighted. The sound is so much more effortless and detailed, just all round more engaging. As well as more power, it just shows the importance of getting the DR tech into the preamp. It’s Naim’s latest preamp upgrade if you like. It’s also perfectly suitable for the NAC152XS exactly as the NAP200DR product page on Naim’s site shows.
A highly recommended upgrade for anyone with a CD5XS or ND5XS2 etc and NAC152XS and NAP155XS who wants to take it further. I couldn’t be more pleased.
Chris
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Glad you are enjoying it! I must have missed this thread as I also have a system with 152xs/flatcap xs/nap 200 and I’m enjoying it right now, currently Tidal via 272 in main system next door.
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152/155XS user here with CD5XS, but not for much longer, good though it is. I considered upgrading to 200DR but I was in a position to go further and currently awaiting delivery of 282/250/HC. The CD5XS is staying.
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Good news Chris - enjoy your new amp 
Thank you James. I am mostly seeing it as a preamp upgrade. I’m delighting in how good Naim’s one time most modest preamp can sound with DR.
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Thanks for the update. Good to know you find it to be a worthwhile upgrade.
I’ve be oh-so close to replacing my 155 with a 200dr on more than one occasion but then the urge passes. Now you’ve reminded me of this upgrade path again 
Enjoy your new amp !
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