NDX+nDac as DAC

[nitrous]

I would connect it to the nDAC. Preferably with a BNC to BNC cable if your cd player outputs on BNC? You may need to alter the earth on the NDX as well, depending on what else you have connected assuming you have a Naim preamp?

[Richard.Dane]

The signal comes from the DAC so that’s the critical one when it comes to the signal earth setting.

[Bonang]

I have an Audiolab transport so no BNC output. Pre-amp is NAC252. Thanks.

[Bonang]

In case anyone is curious I was usimg the nDac with a Squeezebox before I got the NDX.
I did not think it was worth getting rid of the nDac. I have a BNC/BNC lead between the two. (QED cable, I think).

[Bonang]

I can’t remember how I set the earth switches on the NDX and the nDac but I don’t seem to get any Earth hum.
Connected to the 252 I have
nDac (only input is the NDX)
Stageline (connected to LP12)
Headline
Old Quad valve tuner

[GavinB]

@Bonang

I have an Audiolab transport so no BNC output.

What output options does it have?

[philifa]

I had an NDX2 into an nDac which was great. I then added a PS555 to the nDac which took things to another level. However, one morning a week or so later the hifi started emitting a really loud noise, like a siren. I turned everything off in panic. I tried to find out which piece of equipment had gone belly up, even getting a couple of pieces checked by Naim (at great expense).
Eventually I emailed Peter Swain who recognised the problem straight away. He said adding the PS555 to the nDac is causing an occasional earthing problem and I should switch the earth on the nDac to the alternative setting. This was an instant cure and I am forever grateful to Peter.

[Guinnless]

Set the nDAC to chassis.

[Bonang]

It’s an Audiolab 6000CDT CD transport with two SPDIF outputs
coax (phono) output
optical (toslink?) output

[GavinB]

Choice of options to connect to the nDac - just need to get the right cable.

[JimDog]

@Bonang

optical (toslink?) output

I use a Chord toslink optical cable from my TV set up box into my Naim DAC and it sounds great for YouTube music videos.

[Bonang]

Thanks for all the suggestions.
I have the appropriate cables.
But my question is …
Should I connect my CD transport direct to the nDac or through the NDX?
Would going through the NDX produce more isolation and a better final result?

[Guinnless]

Connect your CD player to the nDAC.

[onglh27]

Thanks for the layman language, appreciate it

Just got myself second nDAC for my NDX

[marcusman]

I do wonder why Naim discontinued the nDAC with as much love that people have for it. Did it not sell well in the past?

[Guinnless]

I think it was a slow seller, yes. Fab but if kit though.

[Simon-in-Suffolk]

I am not sure it was, it was very popular, but available for a long time, and its sales did start to tail off… but it used the discontinued Texas Instruments PCM1704K and so the stockpile was limited for that device and it was needed for the NDS and the later ND555 as well as spares… so the NDAC was discontinued

Naim DAC - Why Is This Product Discontinued?

I think Naim had no choice really. The Naim DAC had been out for a number of years and so sales were tailing down, and it used the wonderful Burr Brown PCM1704K DAC chips, which have been long out of production. Naim probably felt they had to preserve what their stockpile in order to build ND555s so it made most sense to cease production of the Naim DAC.

[Fatcat]

The ndac was discontinued in 2018, the same date Naim’s latest streamers where released. So, because it was only available when the inferior 1st generation streamers where available, it’s no wonder sales declined. People just weren’t aware what the ndac was capable of.

Hook it up to a current Naim streamer or modern high quality network bridge, it’s a different beast.

[Simon-in-Suffolk]

just be careful the Naim DAC requires SPDIF or USB file system - it can’t connect directly to bridged networks … it needs some sort of streamer interface or digital audio bridge that provides SPDIF to play from ethernet or wifi.