Ndac feeding

Dears, i m looking forward how to connect my ndac in order to have best sound quality:
Using innuos zen mini mk3 with toslink
Using innuos with spdif converter
Using mac mini with spdif converter
Using uniti core
What is your advice?

FLACs from a Synology NAS → Cat5e → Allo USBSignature+DigiOneSignature+Shanti+MoOde Audio Software → DC-1 → nDAC

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Another option if you are staying with Naim products; Newer Naim streamers(ND5XS2, NDX2) → DC-1 → nDAC

Oh OK, if you must… :laughing:

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Couldn’t resist! :slight_smile:

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i don t understand why complicate the scenario in this way, I have a synology as well, it is bitperfect as a music player, why adding all that appliance to reach the dac?

Innuos Zen Mini Mk3 → RCA digital coaxial - > nDAC RCA Digital input?

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This is my idea but you know that it is a common feeling that spdif perform bette and this is my doubt

If you have an older Mac mini with digital output all you need is a decent optical cable: mini toslink to standard toslink. SQ from this setup is surprisingly good (with a decent cable).

When I had that setup, playing a ripped CD from the Mac mini bested, admittedly by a small margin, playing the same CD on my CD5XS (both into nDAC).

Roger

I am feeding my nDAC from a dual PC computer audio setup through a Singxer SU-1 S/PDIF converter. I hadv one PC for control and the second for audio processing. Software used is Windows Server 2019/JPLAY Femto/Audiophile Optimizer/Fidelizer Pro/Process Lasso (Both PCs). I play music files stored locally on an external USB drive. It sounds pretty good but there are hassles. It is not 100% reliable by any means. My experiments over the past ten years with different hardware and software have clearly shown that it is not simply a matter of ‘bit perfect is bit perfect’. JPLAY Femto is the best replay software that I have tried. JRiver Media Center was much easier to use but it didn’t sound anywhere near as good.

There’s nothing complicated about it. The nDAC has neither ethernet nor (streaming) USB inputs. The Allo is a small box (plus Shanti PSU) connecting to the NAS via the LAN. The on-board software (MoOde) manages the library of flacs on the NAS (and provides internet radio) and delivers a SPDIF signal to the nDAC.

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To me it Sounds enermously complicate compared to playing the nas files using the nas player

In that case use the NAS player. Do you mean Synology’s “DS Audio”? I’ve used it; it’s pretty basic but does the job well enough.

However that still leaves the question as to how are you going to connect your Syn NAS to the nDAC?

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Yes i mean the ds audio and the synology connected via usb spdif converter

I m totally skeptical in thinking that the same bus with the same cable could sounds different with different bitperfect players

iMac → Shiit Eitr → nDac works fine for me as I use different digital „sources“ on my iMac: locally stored audio, video, streaming, music geek websites.

My favorite service is an online radio archive behind a paywall and thus not accessible via streamers.

For bettet sound quality I thought a good upgrade could be Mutec MC3+ USB with Ref 10 but have not yet tried it.

My experiences are the same as from @PeakMan . My NDAC is fed by the optical output from a MacBook via AQ Diamond. Toslink with glass fiber cables, Wire World makes nice ones, too, is a surprisingly good choice for the DAC.

I have had various sources into my Ndac
Mac mini toslink v a basic converer- i used a MF V link - the Spdif was far better
Better still a dedicated streamer into it. Not sure re the quality on the Innuos but certainly even without the PSU will perform better than your Nas if you use it as a server rather than a player
Lots of other choices- NDX 5xs etc. I have the Moon Mind2 which was a big uplift from the Mac
If you want to play CDs then a decent CD transport offers fantastic value for money

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