My NAC82 has no phone cards. Can I stick my NDX into the phono input instead of the current CD input it uses?
Explanation: I turn my hifi off between listens (as I’ve calculated leaving it on costs me nearly £250pa at current electricity prices) so I’ve added a smart plug and turn the whole lot on and off with the voice command ‘Hey Google, turn on/off lounge hifi power’. (In case surges/spikes might be a problem I use a surge surpressing mains adaptor). Annoyingly the preamp always starts in phono mode so I have to scrabble for the (otherwise unused) remote to change it. I’d rather not have to do this.
You need to replace the phono cards with line cards to do this. Alternatively you could get jumper leads made up. Give Darran at Class A a call. He will advise you.
You may want to check if the main board PCB links are still in place if no Phono boards have been fitted. If so, then you should be able to use the phono inputs as link inputs without needing 526 line boards or jumper leads.
This is something of a dilemma for many; the need or sire to save money, and the desire to do the right thing for the planet. I’m sure you know that this older Naim equipment is designed to be left on 24/7, and that it sounds best that way. I’m sure you also know that using surge suppressing devices is a pretty sure fire way of reducing sound quality.
I do wonder if a radical solution of seeking the three boxes and replacing them with a Nova could be a way forward. I have one, having had a multi box setup for nigh on 40 years. It’s set to go into standby after 20 minutes, and wakes up via the app or a touch on the remote. It’s probably a daft idea, but it may just work for you.
The new series NSC222 and 250.3 is another option, but at a higher price.
Thanks for that HungryHalibut but I’m happy as I am (as long as what I am doing is not damaging my kit!). I see spike supressants as a necessity having had, to date three routers blown up by thunderstorms. I also can’t discern any noticeable difference in sound quality (caveat: I’m 63 so hearing not pristine and I most often use the hifi at hi volume to fill the whole house).
Oh. Have just tried to stick the NDX into the phono inputs only to find the phono inputs look like TV arial sockets (or something)! Bugger. Think I’ll stay as I am. Shame as I can fire up the hifi with a voice command from almost anywhere in the house and select music from my phone (which I always have on me)… or I could if the pre-amp did not always start in phono mode, forcing me to walk to the lounge… grrrrr… so near but so far.
If you were to send the 82 to Darran at Class A, it would be very easy to have the BNC sockets swapped to RCA at the same time as sorting out the boards or links. Alternatively you could have a Din to 2 BNC cable made up. It’s all possible.
These devices are not in any way effective against lightning. If anything, they might do more harm than good if they lull you into a false sense of security and make you leave things plugged in when a thunderstorm is approaching.
The only really effective way to prevent damage is to unplug power cables, copper phone or network cables, and TV/radio aerials.
Surge protectors can provide some protection against the relatively minor spikes that sometimes occur on mains power supplies, but the massive current carried by a lightning strike will arc straight across them.
My hifi dealer suggested it is better to leave the preamp on all the time for sound quality reasons although you can turn the power amp off and it should be ok after 30 minutes warm up. Also some forum members have used a power consumption meter for their whole system and with say a 300dr it was about 60 watts. Even with the the current high price of 33p per kWh that is about £157 per year. Electricity prices might be a lot lower in a year’s time so these costs might come down. I decided to leave everything on including the power amp as I kept blowing fuses after turning off the power amp, possibly because of an old consumer unit!
^^^^^^ What he said. Open up the NAC82 and see if you have jumpers/link board in place of the phono board. If so, just get the RCA to BNC adapter plugs ($5.00 on ebay or amazon) and plug your streamer in there.
Thanks. I will open it up tomorrow and see what’s connected to the BNC sockets and take it from there.
As for power… I measured the draw on standby and worked out the cost from there. The setup includes NDX, NAP180, NAC82, HiCAP, WAP, Squeezebox Touch, Google Chromecast Audio, and the little PSU for the NAC lights. Just under £250pa. When energy prices reduce I may well dump the smart plug but it actually works well for me so we shall see.
Am surprised about the surge suppressor. Will look into it.
Try to avoid BNC adaptors if possible. They’re fine as temporary measure but you’re best off without them and using proper 50 ohm BNC plugs. Of course, not all interconnect cabling can be used with BNCs, so another alternative is to ask your Naim dealer to replace the BNCs with good quality RCA Phono sockets such as the WBT Next Gens that Naim use (Keep the BNCs in a bag in the box so they’re there if you wish to convert back in future).
What he said ^^^^. I used adapters temporarily a few years ago but then soldered proper plugs onto my Linn tonearm cable. I was a bit skeptical at first but I was quite surprised by the difference it made.
Looks like I am in luck… and there were even BNC to RCA adaptors in the bag of goodies I got with the pre-amp too!
I’d like to change the BNC plugs for WBT Next Gen RCA phono sockets but there are two immediate issues:
They seem to be a complete rip-off, ranging from £50 to £220 EACH!
The holes in the chassis are 3/8" (9mm) and the lower priced WBT Next Gen RCA phono sockets I’ve found seems to be 12mm diameter (and I do not want to drill the chassis)
Does anyone know where I can get suitable WBT Next Gen RCA phono sockets for a price that does not make me feel like a fool? And @Richard.Dane any idea who Naim’s supplier is?
As HH has said, why not send it to Class A , give it a service, get any links remade and the bncs swapped for rcas?
What ive done with all 3 ( yes 3 ) nac72s.
