Naim Uniti Atom NAC5 cable length

Hi all,

I am new here. I hope this has not been already answered as, as much as I have searched in this forum I am not able to find a clear answer to this question. I would be really glad for your help!

I am considering for the Naim Unity Atom (HDMI edition) along with the Focal Aria K2 926 speakers.

I am also planning on purchasing Naim NACA5 cables. I have clearly seen stated here that older Naim power amplifiers need at least 3.5m cable length with the notion that increasing cable length has a positive effect on sound quality. However, it is not clear to me if this recommendation is also valid for the Uniti range.

I would be very glad to know if I should consider longer cable length. I am currently planning for 3m on each side and if length matters to instead go for 5m each side. However I feel that if this not even relevant for the Uniti Atom, why spend extra money and have extra space to hide if there is no benefit…Do you you think 5m instead of 3m will make a difference for the Atom?

Thank you very much for your time to read my question!

personally I would just buy the length you need. I bought the 5m and then was told years later (by the same dealer that was happy to sell me the length) that coiling the extra below had an adverse affect on the sound.

Naim advise not to coil any excess cable, but to fold in a Jumping Jack style.

From the FAQ Section;
“ Spare speaker cable should not be coiled – excess cable may be tidied up in a way similar to that employed in the “Jumping Jack” firework. Use cable ties or similar at either end to hold in place.”

Hope this helps.

DG…

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I think the situation is that with the older amplifiers you had to have lengths longer than 3.5 m per side for stability reasons. With the new unitis, you don’t have to have longer lengths but it improves with SQ if you do.

Also exact positioning of your loudspeakers can affect the sound dramatically, so having a little bit of spare length is wise because otherwise it’s very limiting as to what you can try.

Personally I would go for 5m each side if the actual length I needed was 3.5 m.

Good luck!

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Coiling the excess cable isn’t a good idea and even in the jumping jack configuration NACA5 can be rather unwieldy. I’m getting some new cables - I need them to be longer so that they fit round the fireplace - so because the Nova is to the right of the right hand speaker I’m ordering 5.5m for the left and 2.75m for the right. Given that the signal travels down the cables at 80% of the speed of light I doubt I’ll notice. The Unitis are perfectly tolerant of this sort of thing. It’s better than having loads of spare cable flopping around.

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