Hi @Thegreatroberto, I use my NDX 2 / PS555 to feed an external DAC via BNC S/PDIF.
My brother-in-law was auditioning DACs late last year and brought over a Chord Electronics Hugo TT 2 and Denafrips Pontus 15th for an evening. I thought both were very good, albeit with very different characters. The Denafrips tending to a very warm balance (it was basically brand new mind, he’d only run it briefly earlier the same afternoon). He did say that it didn’t seem to change character much if at all over the following week or two though.
As James mentioned, any of LAiV, DAVE, Mola Mola or Naim NDS, etc. will be an interesting comparison to what you have if you are looking to listen to a few. Moving to the external DAC was definitely the right move for me and there’s plenty of scope for improvement as you have Naim’s current top level streaming engine completely isolated in its own chassis separate from the DAC.
You already know pretty well what the NDX2 + 555PS sounds like I’d figure.
I thought the experiment was about putting the 555PS on your nDAC. In which case your ND5-XS2 will be quite similar to the NDX2 as a front end.
You could start there, with A/B comparisons later after you’ve found the NDX2 link plug.
However, there is a likelyhood you’ll like it so much you just leave it all in the main system. And moving the bare NDX2 to the system where the ND5-XS2 + nDAC came from. Once you have a link plug for it again, of course.
After a short while, I purchased a PS Audio Mains lead, Audioquest Angel DIN - DIN interconnect to my NDX2 and it’s bringing a bigger grin to my face. I’ve just fitted an Ifi I-silencer a few days ago and it’s improved things like ‘quieter’ background this a little more detail. I might do a PSU upgrade later this year.
I love the NDX2, it simply is a world class streamer in my opinion and convinced me that at least ‘local’ streaming is a viable option to CD.
So I have finally managed to hook up the nDac to the 555 and ndx2.
Results are intresting if unsurprising.
Ndx2 and nDac equal with
ndx2 fed by 555dr into nDac
Ndx2 and 555dr
Ndx2 into nDac powered by 555dr. But only just.
So yes there is a mild improvement putting the nDac into my ndx2/555dr set up, but not much. And not enough to overcome the buggeration of having it in the rack.
Fun to do, and exposed that I didnt have my ndx2 burndy plug. Turns out a ndx/ndsxs fits and works.
Should be interesting to rate Ndx2 into Nds/555 dr. Not much or nice upgrade vs Ndx2 / 555 dr? Nds second hand is today not much more expensive vs the Ndac.
The falling costs of the used NDS makes this a little experiment we might do in time.
Others have tried it (moving from nDAC to NDS as DAC) - forum search finds opinions.
A long time ago we heard ND555 and struggled to justify cost of upgrade. Recent opinion from respected members would indicate an NDS as DAC gets you most of the way there, cheaply.
But cheaply is all relative because the itch for a second PSU would be strong.
Was going to mention that a few on here have gone from nd5xs2/nDac/555psu to a NDS/555psu as dac, then to Nd555/555psu, and not hear much of a difference.
In my mind we know the NDX2 is an excellent streaming transport which can grace esoteric DACS.
And if NDS/555 is more or less equivalent to ND555 as a DAC it’s win win. Can expect some SQ upgrade from nDAC which uses basic regulation board for digital section, even with 555 connected.
We get the gen2 streaming board feeding a high(er?) quality DAC. We already have the 555.
Cost to try low, compared to something like £7K to change DAC away from naim.
Worst case we hear little difference and move nDAC into office, which we ran for a short while before and RPI - nDAC - SU is an excellent office system.
This DAC quandary is why we haven’t changed anything in our system for a while (despite being very impressed by two DACs). We really are in diminishing returns territory. Either that or I’m getting tight in my old age.
If some here say that a NPS already beats it, then there’s some chances in it, not ?
Or maybe the NPS is so good that even a Taiko Olympus would be put into shame ?
The other reason is that I am solding my P10. I will use Qobuz in parallel of local Melco.
